Neil Parkhouse - Gloucestershire Railways 

Neil, supported by his wife Heather, regaled us with just some of his huge collection of high quality colour photographs showing Gloucestershire's railways in the dying days of steam.  This past now being in the hands of preservation societies.  Steam trains always evoke the feeling of good times gone by.  Nearly all of us would have had a train set (Mike Till's is fantastic) but I don't think many diesel models were sold.

Most of the rail lines are no longer there, many being victims of the 'Beeching' cuts.  Lost with them have gone the associated buildings with their historic architecture.  The 111 stations have now been reduced to ten (and we've even lost the country's longest platform to Colchester).  Neil showed how Gloucestershire railways were intrinsically linked with the industry of the county and was the key infrastructure of its time. He included many interesting anecdotes, some poignant like the two children killed in a rail accident that remain unidentified.

This was a most informative and nostalgic presentation and clearly showed Neil's enthusiasm for keeping these treasures alive.

Clive Townsend