Roland Perry wrote:
In message , at 14:15:06 on Mon, 24
Jun 2019, Marland remarked:
Roland Perry wrote:
In message , at 11:00:18 on Mon, 24
Jun 2019, Marland remarked:

At High street Ken the position of the steam loco meant it was in the open

But even the under-the-canopy engine in their shot of Ealing Broadway is
completely devoid of any smoke or steam.

At Ealing Broadway platform 9 as you know having used it was set side for
travellers on the special

Curiously, it didn't stop the PIS displaying fictional District Line
train to places like Plaistow.

and a few others in connection with it,

By day 2 they weren't making much effort at keeping normals off either
the footbridge or the steps down. People would only be challenged once
on platform 9, and approaching the first roped-off boarding area.
even then, if you claimed to booked on a carriage further down the
platform, they'd simply let you past.

the normal passengers were not deposited alongside down a stairway on
to the platform or off a service train on the other face of an Island
Platform and even at Ealing the canopy is nice and high ,same with
Earls Court. That’s why I used the term poorly vented ones rather
than completely open,but further East along the District main line
how far do you have to go to reach such a station able to turn around
a steam special. Barking maybe and that may have been too far to run
more then one or possibly two round trips.

They used Moorgate on the previous occasion. Which while having some
handy bay platforms, is not even vaguely open-air (I went on the C-stock
last trip from there in 2014). That was different because it travelled
at normal speed. Still took much of the day to go from Moorgate to
Barking to Hammersmith.

The engine crew did keep the smoke emission to a minimum but on the trip I
did there was definitely some while doing the turnaround at High Street Ken
and a little at Ealing Broadway.
Perhaps there was not as much need to build up the fire at Ealing as Sarah
Siddons would be hauling the train out leaving plenty of time to put coal
on once clear of the canopy.

That you didn’t have any just means that conditions for your trip were
different than mine.

Anyhow , did you enjoy your outing?

It was OK, but I didn't ultimately feel it was value for money. Given
the number of opportunities to get close-up afforded to the general
public, it would have been almost as good to just go and look. See that
Youtube video I found and posted.

Yes, that's the trouble with steam specials: the paying passengers don't
get nearly as good a view as the spectators.


Not compared to a railtour brochure that arrived here today for a trip
from Ely to Bristol, via Leicester (and back), at £80. Only diesel
hauled though, but similar prices available for steam tours.

Steam hauled is usually a lot more expensive, I thought? But I don't do
very much main line steam in the UK.