19:55 Station name is Smethwick Rolfe Street, not Smethwick

10:36 - Dudley Port, formerly known as Dudley Port High Level to distinquish it from the station on the former South Staffs Line which passes underneath. A Metro stop will be built there on the line to Dudley.

The Tipton level crossing, now replaced by a road tunnel a little further south.

Excellent footage/nostalgia, as a Northern Ned trying to negotiate the SR Network it brings back many happy memories, thanks !

Love the straight gears sound, love the short stations stops (sometimes 6-7 seconds), thanks to the slam doors giving really fast access and exit. Slower acceleration than more recent stock it seems. And love the conversation!

Este som do dínamo me fez lembrar dos antigos na década de 80 aqui no Brasil.

I love EPB,s.

At 43.59 the points seem to be set against the train - how did they work?

Nice seeing the 1066 electrics that were running when they electrified the line between Tonbridge & Hastings 7:22

Great to see this particular route. I learnt to drive on these units, 51s, 57s and 63s. 415 and 416. Knew that route well and was based at Slade Green for a long time. I am now retired, but preferred those old units to the wretched networkers ( 465/466) that replaced them.

Why am I not hearing 2 on the bell from the guard?

I always remembered the "Sarson's Malt Vinegar" sign. There was another semi circular one at the end of the building too at one point. Good to see it wasn't something I had imagined.

I remember it well. I still think the 415/416 were better than networkers.

I remember these units and this route very well.

8 cig "ghost train"

Getting strange looks by the mrs whilst l watch this. Hearing the train motors and rails takes me back to when l used to the Catford Loop service to Holborn Viaduct . Then go to work at the now gone sorting office next door to St Barts hospital, happy memories.

is it me or do people get quite emotional due to the fact all our trains then were built in the UK

Great cab ride, I will attempt to re create this in train simulator

🚂👍

Thirty minutes of listening to Derek and Clive chatting.

Excellent video seeing old slam door,s southwestern train,s to Dartford Kent

Such lovely video always nice to see oid southeastern train,s

2:30 Next to the water column right up til the late 70's there used to be a coaler shed that covered over the track prob a coaling and watering stage for the Central division trains due to the major issues of getting loco's over to the Kent lines in order to get down to Bricklayer's works.

Quite funny to see the Plat 7/7a headshunt there, put in place at some great cost and quite a bit of remodelling work esp for the S&T... then SR decided they didn't want it and tasked Thumpers in for the "bankers" commuter services making it instantly redundant. Just wondering if me old man was there that day on Plat 1-6/Spur panel aka the Widowmaker, it withered hale and hearty men during the rush hours where trains would be block to block locked down to some stupid passenger causing problems, I remember one day going in with the old man a drunk bloke got off the train the wrong side ending up on the track at New Cross and another time again at New Cross a chap needing the lav decided to do it out the window and something zapped off as the current travelled northwards...

Best train's I ever went on was the DEMU from Charing Cross to Hastings via Tunbridge, missed very much

What was he units called that Waterloo had to push and pull that took 2 unit's of 4 cars as far as Bournemouth and then a diesel had to take them to Weymouth

Did his crew not know it was being filmed and getting all there yapp

Cracking video, all respect to the old hand who was a passed fireman.

This is worth watching to hear the stories from the driver alone! He must have been near retirement, talking about going to Leysdown in 1946/1947 and going “on the juice” in 1959. He must have had a lot of knowledge and tales to tell

Great video.. If only it had been filmed just a few short years earlier and we would have seen Bilston Steelworks and other industrial sites before they disappeared from the landscape forever.

What livery is that 317 wearing at 1:52?

Privilege to watch..Great drivers insight and the lamented long gone Class 415 EPBs.. Reliable workhorses. Cannon St crash certainly hastened their replacement.

Why did the train stop but not stop at Nunhead @ 11:37 ? Also the warehouse on the left @ 11:53 used to be something to do with Fyfes bananas. Not there anymore as turned into a housing estate. @ 12:24 up the embankment to the left is where my nan used to live! Spent ages watching trains from the garden. Also the talk of the crystal palace high level route. That was something you could walk along until the early 90s when a housing estate was built along there. Very fond memories.

Love the discussion about the steam and the electrification of the line. Love the class 305 look.

The through service from Central London to Bromley North finished completely during the early 1990s.

I remember a journey like this between Charing Cross to Charlton. I asked the driver if he was stopping at my stop, he said, 'no', but he offered me a journey in the cab. When we got to Charlton he stopped at the head of the platform to let me off!

More train noise would be nice

Such lovely video back in time

I thought 305's only operated on the West Anglia and Great Eastern main lines?

Pity no more cab rides like these on dvds such nice trains

Well done & thank you. Can't believe that not only have they gone, but it's so long ago! Good looking units, pleasant to drive though not having traction motors under you and no ampere gauge was a disadvantage when going over 4-car gaps and especially in snow & ice. "Slammers" was an enthusiasts' term in vogue when they were in service and included all such SR stock, though not CORs and BILs: they were more revered. It was a seniority thing. Cheers!

Drove these on the Central from 88-90, reliable, fantastic brake and proper trains👍 Loved the AWS warble which went off every few seconds by Metropolitan Junction towards London Bridge on the two lines from CX/Blkfriars which is now 4lines. The density of trains was incredible and we were t allows in CX with the Caterhams during the peak as there were no paths👍 Amazing bit of railway, not that it's relevant to this video per se.

Such good video nice to see old slam door,s train,s

47:45 I hear them talking about the Wessex Series...

Interesting to see the single line connection from the down fast at the Country end of grove Park. Wonder when that was removed

Really interesting hearing the conversation in the cab about how the 302s "are built to last" and "the modern stuff, the 315s, they're flimsy, they're not built to last" 😄

smashing thank you

London bridge, how it's changed but it still has train spotters, I was there myself recently. Love these old video's. I have loads which I am copying from VHS to WMV ready to upload to KZbin. Over 300 but not cab rides I'm afraid. I enjoy riding the trains around London. S many trains running and really interesting scenery, old building and railway structures. Thanks for sharing this

Beautiful trains those slammers were. I miss them so much 😢 .... wonderful footage by the way. Thank you for posting