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I've been working on the Railway for 47 years, 1948 till 1995 or put it another way, the exact span of the nationalised BRITISH RAILWAYS. Firstly as a so-called Apprentice Electrical Fitter at Kilmarnock Railway Works. At which I spent two years travelling about on trains and learning practically nothing followed by three months at Ayr Harbour, then with National Service fast approaching, I decide... More

I've been working on the Railway for 47 years, 1948 till 1995 or put it another way, the exact span of the nationalised BRITISH RAILWAYS. Firstly as a so-called Apprentice Electrical Fitter at Kilmarnock Railway Works. At which I spent two years travelling about on trains and learning practically nothing followed by three months at Ayr Harbour, then with National Service fast approaching, I decided to transfer to the Loco Sheds at Hurlford, near Kilmarnock. Where I spent sixteen years of which I include the two years away in the RAF. Then, courtesy of the good Doctor Beeching, I was able to get a transfer to the Southern Region with my seniority. Sadly there were strings attached to it which are nowadays illegal. They are detailed in the Memories and the Extra Chapters. In 1985 after watching the vacancy lists I spotted a vacancy at Ayr that I could just get with my seniority but I just gave up looking anymore and settled for the depot at Slade Green. I was game for a change of traction and made the transfer which I got within a week. My time at Slade Green was unexpectedly short. I had Diabetes which meant I could drive on the Mainline as long as I was not taking any medicine for it, but as soon as I started taking tablets to control it, I was confined to the depot for shunting purposes. Then about December 1993, when I was doing a shunt alone in the depot without the shunter, as I got out of the cab to change ends my legs just buckled under me and I collapsed on the ground. Luckily for me the live rail was on the other side of the train or I would have gone up in smoke. I was off for a year getting the strength back in my legs but as I was so near retiring I decided to retire gracefully. The mention of the 1939 in the title is to do with a short trip I had on the footplate as a seven year old mentioned in the memories chapter.

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