Bucks Rail Centre, Wightwick Hall and the Brill Tramway

So when the sun starts to shine and the Heritage Centres start to open we will obviously be visiting a few as part of our #EveryDisusedStation trips.
@Scenebyrail suggested we go visit Bucks Rail Centre as the "Wightwick Hall" Steam engine had been restored. What with the name and all we decided we would come along and take the opportunity to squeeze in a few #EveryDisusedStations from the BRILL Tramway too.
Apologies for the lack of inclusion of Wotton GWR/GCR station. Despite the house being for sale and having its pictures all over the internet a neighbour expressed her concern at us sharing any pictures at all. We respected her wishes and have had a rant on a Patreon Video! Email us for more if you would prefer.
Links: www.everydisusedstation.com
Patreon Page if you like what we do!: / everydisusedstation
Attributes and thanks:
@Scenebyrail. For the idea.
Epidemicsound.com - All music.
Pictures:
Simpson, Bill (2005). A History of the Metropolitan Railway. 3. Witney: Lamplight Publications. p. 79. ISBN 1899246134.; credited to S. W. Baker
By Source, Fair use, en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?...
By Signature appears to be "Swain, F." - Published in The Locomotive Magazine Vol III, No. 35, November 1898, and on p. 167 of the compilation Locomotive, Railway Carriage and Wagon Review, Volumes 3-4., PD-US, en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?...
By Iridescent - Own work, based on maps appearing in From Quainton to Brill, Ian Melton, 1984 and Aylesbury to Rugby, Vic Mitchell & Keith Smith, 2006, CC BY-SA 3.0, commons.wikimedia.org/w/index...
Simpson, Bill (2005). A History of the Metropolitan Railway. 3. Witney: Lamplight Publications. p. 119. ISBN 1899246134.; credited to London Transport Museum

[@HenrysAdventures]

Another great video! In my books Quainton Road isn't disused a occasional passenger trains are run from Aylesbury, usually on a Bank Holiday. The was also a railway up to Waddesdon Manor itself when it was under construction.

[@terryansell6641]

It so good to live so faraway and enjoy your adventures thank you from NZ

[@davidbassett4577]

Only just watching this for first time at end of 2021.. born & brought up in High Wycombe .. I moved to Aylesbury back in 2001 .. and the Brill Tramway is fascinating .. lucky to have this & Buckinghamshire Railway Centre on my doorstep.. managed to get a ride up to Bicester over the Calvert line before it was ripped up & being destroyed by the White Elephant that is HS2 sadly. On a side note only just found out there was an Aylesbury South Halt on the rail line down to Princes Risborough (line runs about 20 metres from rear of my house) .. Further side note .. from the nearby foot crossing I was able to watch & photograph the last day of the final Class 121 Bubble Car diesels on this route a few years ago

[@TIMMEH19991]

The weather is always gorgeous when you go out!

[@terryansell6641]

Very interesting video thank you from New Zealand

[@pwhitewick]

Thanks Terry.

[@TheDoctorhuw]

Grew up in Brill spent most of my childhood exploring the history of the area. also lived in derbyshire for a while. working in Crich. Now live in Newcastle. so hopefully you'll do a few explores up here. and there is a lot to explore!

[@davidcann4329]

I used to go to the Quainton Road Railway Centre (as it was called then) when I was a young teenager - with my parents, sister and grandad usually. It's changed a lot since then and has been renamed, plus the old Rewley Road station wasn't there when I used to visit. Believe it or not, I actually walked through the frames of King Edward I when it was there being restored very early on. I think your work on trying to cover every abandoned railway, station and structures is highly commendable - keep up the good work.

[@pwhitewick]

Thanks David, a life work I am sure but good fun anyway.

[@peterw2845]

fab as always , thankyou :)

[@pwhitewick]

Cheers Peter.

[@p.h8516]

If u get the north Pembroke and fishguard railway book it has the old line and about rosebush. Tafarn Sinc is a hotel for rosebush station but it is now a pub outside the display of the rosebush station where it would of been

[@michaelpilling9659]

Wonderful journey. Very interesting story about the tramway. Whitewick/Wightwick - either will do me!

[@geoffreybock8079]

Hi i live in Australia and have a big intrest in the state of Victoria broad gauge historic railways preservation. I would just like to congratulate your commitment to the task that you both have taken on with your quest to visit all the railway stations or locations . Good luck with your massive job that you have taken on. I also enjoy how you explore places like railway tunnels and other interesting railway things from the past. Stay safe on your travels for your ongoing quest .

[@pwhitewick]

Thank you Geoffrey. Really pleased you are enjoying the channel from the other side of the world. 👍👍👍

[@peterbradburn9115]

Another fascinating video

[@pwhitewick]

Cheers Peter. 👍

[@terryansell6641]

Very interesting thank. You

[@Sim0nTrains]

Lovely video, nice to see the steam locomotives, Wightwick Hall is a Great Western Railway Modified Hall Class, or 6959 Class, I'm also interested at the DMU at 1:33, i'm not sure if it a Class 115 DMU which used to work out of London Maylebone, as for the Brill Tramway, it was a great video and cannot wait for the Patreon Video to hear what happened about Wotton.

[@pwhitewick]

Cheers Simon. Will aim to get that done this week. 👍👍

[@stephenpalcso42]

Also the Brill tramroad was part of Metropolitan line in its final couple of years. I have read that the staff had London Transport uniforms (I so hope that was true!)

[@pwhitewick]

Yup, the museum looks like it had a quite a lot from that side of the lines history. 👍

[@bullettube9863]

I found it fascinating that this museum had freight cars! Several years ago while visiting "Steam Town" here in the states I asked one of the guides why there were no freight cars and he replied that sad to say, when the railroads are ready to dispose of them it's because they are in terrible shape. So they are impractical to restore. So many places have so many steam engines but future generations will ask what were they for. While I love looking at the old Pullman cars, freight cars are to me, much more interesting to look at.

[@pwhitewick]

Couldn't agree more. Quite a few of the heritage centres local to us have plenty of Frieght cars.

[@andrewbayliss5421]

How could you not live the smell of a steam engine.

[@gussmedways]

Another great vid. Thanks. Shame about the weather once again! I'm with you with regards to steam. Give me a Class 47 on full thrash anyday!

[@pwhitewick]

Haha... You can't help what you were brought up with. 👍👍

[@nbc_uk]

Of course you also did the Oxford Rewley Road railway station when you entered. A closed station a fair way away from where it used to be, but another closed station for the list.

[@benpreston5809]

I’m from brill, now live in quainton (where the railway centre is) and I’ve always had a fascination with the history of brill... coincidencetally convenient

[@ynot6473]

37s rule. still in service after 55 ish years! @6:17 OMG!! that's gorgeous!!

[@pwhitewick]

Couldn't agree more!

[@p.h8516]

You should go to Rosebush which is the highest station on the Fishguard and Rosebush railway which are abandoned but fishguard harbour station is only left. Tafarn since is the old hotel of the station but it is a pub outside a display of the rosebush station

[@maxpayne2574]

Rebecca like the new haircut looks good, beautiful engine like the green colour

[@TrevsTravelsByNarrowboat]

Just found you on Martin Zero ,,, I lived just down the road from you in my childhood at Bullington I look forward to following you

[@pwhitewick]

Ha brilliant. Pass there most days! Enjoy the channel.

[@RichardWells1]

Thanks for such a fascinating look at what's left of the Brill Tramway (taken over by the Metropolitan Railway in 1899 and closed 1935). Sorry the weather wasn't better! The former tramway trackbed, which you pointed out running alongside Station Road, Quainton, towards the A41, is set to be bisected by the construction of HS2, which starts this year (2019). If anyone's interested, Wikipedia has a very detailed account of the tramway's birth, operation and demise.

[@pwhitewick]

Thanks Richard. Glad you enjoyed the video. We were naively unaware of the HS2 route at the time of our visit.

[@MorrisTart]

The Brill Tramway was closed by London Transport in 1935 shortly after it took over the Metropolitan Railway. Although it was owned by the Metropolitan from 1899 it was still nominally a separate railway, the Oxford and Aylesbury Tramroad, until 1933.

[@davepoole9520]

Good to see the old Metropolitan Line map. I counted 14 terminus stations on it. Now I think (top of my head), because of the loss of the Hammersmith and City line, the Addison Road (Kensington Olympia) branch, the loss of the East London line and the closed branches to Brill and Verney Junction they've only now got five.

[@TIMMEH19991]

Great to hear you're a diesel man! When you go up to do Bury Knowsley Street for your every disused station, if you let me know I'll make sure I'm at Bury Baron Street and you can come and have a nosy at our class 15 and the CoBo if you want to ;)

[@pwhitewick]

Sounds like a plan to me! How do we get in touch? Could you drop us an email?

[@TIMMEH19991]

@@pwhitewick I'll send you a message on facebook. Don'rt be surprised that its not from somebody called Tim LOL!

[@neilbain8736]

Brill vid indeed!

[@pwhitewick]

Brill Neil.

[@neilbain8736]

@@pwhitewick :)

[@andrewholloway231]

I have been to the Bucks Railway Centre a few times and walked part of the Brill tramway with the Railway Ramblers.

[@pwhitewick]

Ah brilliant. We have just joined them too.

[@suzyqualcast6269]

Used2"live in Iver, from 59 til 72, when der father removed us all to Ashover /Derbyshire to follow his job. Bottles dahnare to railways up here, and some canals n bottles.

[@alanwise482]

Enjoying your videos, I stumbled across them a couple of weeks ago, currently trying to catch up from the beginning watching each in order! You missed an easy spot in that the terminus building at Quainton was relocated from the Oxford Rewley Road (on the closed Oxford to Cambridge line) station site back in 1990's.

[@pwhitewick]

Cheers Alan, glad you are enjoying the channel. We had a good explore around it but likely didn't film that section (I think). It was a while back so my memory evades me.

[@alanwise482]

To be fair you did put a picture up from within the restored terminus building (at the 1 minute mark showing the steam loco with the large driving wheel), so maybe call it a 'tick from a drive-by?!

[@pwhitewick]

@@alanwise482 works for me!

[@philipdumelow6761]

Lovely. I'm very fond of the Brill Tramway, I live nearby in Thame. It's fascinating to explore: even though there's little left (it was very lightly engineered) a bit of imagination goes a long way! Have you read Bill Simpson's book "The Brill Tramway"? Published in 1985 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the closure of the line. It's still in print & is very well researched & written. I suspect, from your commentary, that you have. Also worth looking out are Ivor Newton's photos of the GCR being built: he picked up quite a bit of the tramway: I think one of the photos you showed was his. Incidentally, a short way on from the site of the terminus is Vale Brewery, a superb independent which you actually drove past at the end. I do hope you stopped in for a 2pt carry out of 'Gravitas'!

[@pwhitewick]

Thanks Philip. We enjoyed this trip save the weather, not read the book but you sum it up well... "Lightly engineered".

[@CliveBishop]

Thanks for the latest update - which my phone sent to our TV via Chromecast. And as I have said before, 6989 steam loco is pronounced WITTICK, FYI. Quainton Road is mentioned by John Betjeman in his video Metro-Land bur the Metropolitan Line never actually got there.

[@pwhitewick]

Thanks Clive. Us on a big screen TV. Scary stuff... 😂😂. Interesting you should mention the pronunciation, as I know a few with the surname "wightwick" who pronounce it in the same way as us. As you suggest though.... Wightwick Manor appears to be pronounced "whittick". No idea how our surname went from one pronunciation to the other. 👍

[@eddo167]

Quainton was in fact a meto station prior to the GCR arrival the Met went in fact to Verney junc as was

[@bobly]

Wotton Great Central opened in 1906 and closed in 1953, Wotton Brill Tramway opened in 1871 and closed in 1935

[@johnhealy8513]

The Brill Tramway closed in 1935 not 1934! You can find the details in one of my books. Other than that this is once again a fabulous video. Keep up the good work.

[@pwhitewick]

Thanks John. Ah not sure where we got the date from! Glad you are enjoying the channel.

[@edmorrell1381]

There's a Wightwick Manor in Wolverhampton but the wiki entry reports it being built for or by the paint magnates Mander family after whom Wolverhampton shopping centre seems likely to be named, unless its a different one, obvs.

[@Crowley2979]

named after the area in Wolverhampton - and according to Wikipedia - it is named after an ancient local family the "de Wightwicks" This one at least is pronounced 'Wittick' !

[@caltblake6112]

still some old stuff in those woods

[@chrisb012]

I'm loving your videos. So, how do I 'Patreon' you guys?

[@pwhitewick]

Ah thanks Christopher. Google "Patreon Every Disused Station".

[@johnrooney1749]

Thanks again for your video very interesting will have to watch again say hello to your navigate your wife.john Rooney

[@pwhitewick]

Cheers John.

[@bobly]

Quainton Road opened in 1896 and closed in 1966

[@bobly]

Waddesdon Road opened in 1871 and closed in 1935

Sorry Paul..got to admit it...young Rebecca is STILL the KZbin Pin-up girl....(you're nice too, says my wife....Must get her to Specsavers...)

[@bobly]

Westcott opened in 1871 and closed in 1935

[@Roblilley999]

Steam train = oversized kettle

[@pwhitewick]

Your words not mine....!!... 😲

[@bobly]

Wood Siding ??

[@koningbolo4700]

2:58 photo finish ??

[@pwhitewick]

It was close!

[@busesinprofile2114]

Is westcott. Not westcom

[@pwhitewick]

Whoops. Did I say Westcom?

[@bobly]

Church Siding ??

[@bobly]

Brill ??

[@GRAHAMAUS]

It's pronounced "wodsdon". Just FYI...

[@pwhitewick]

You'll find my pronunciation shocking!

[@rogerbradbury9713]

Yep, and Quainton is pronounced Quaint-un. My dad was born and grew up on a farm on Station Road, Quainton. In Bucks there's also an abandoned line that ran from Wolverton to Newport Pagnell. It is now a redway (cycleway and footpath) and bridges and station platforms are visible and accessible. There were plans to extend the line to Olney; there are embankments and cuttings visible but it was never finished. One embankment is in Emberton Park.

[@DrivermanO]

I don't want to carp, as I've just discovered your chanel, which is very good. Apart from that absolutely boring dreadful amnd too loud music! Its always the same and is beginning to pall! Almost have to mute it and just look at the scenery, but then miss the interesting bits with you explaining.

[@pwhitewick]

Keep watching as we were in our earlier days of editing back then!

[@DrivermanO]

@@pwhitewick I shall! I also subscribe to Geoff Marshall. And the disused railways channel. And others! I appreciate you have trouble with copyright music, but maybe just nice and quiet? Deserted railways are very atmospheric, and don't need to be disturbed! And I've been to Wightwick Manor near Wolverhampton - is this the same area as your name (with the scroll you had). There's a canal very near it too! Keep up the good work

[@skylarius3757]

Trains of today seem boring compared to steam engines.

[@pwhitewick]

Yup today is about efficiency rather than beauty. Most of the time at least.

[@thomasmann9216]

Why "respect the wishes" of such selfish, self-centered people?

[@pwhitewick]

Because it's the right thing to do. I don't believe what they have asked the public to do... Is the right thing to do though.

[@cargy930]

First video after watching the Caddiswell Viaduct one, and I'm not unhappy in any way. I spent 10 years living and working in Aylesbury, a good 25+ years back, and spent about 8 years of that driving buses all around Buckinghamshire. Went past Quainton hundreds of times (strangely, Inever got around to visiting), and was soon fascinated by the double hedge that ran from the station down to the A41. Curiosity aroused, a trip to the library soon told me these were from the tramway, and I researched the thing in every book I could find at the time. Thanks to the variety of the various bus routes I drove, I was able to see almost all of the old infrastructure shown in your video. One last thing; I doubt you'll ever feel the need to go again but, if you do, Waddesdon is pronounced as "wods-den" by the locals. Not that it makes any difference to your excellent video, but it makes me sound like I know what I'm talking about, so it's a nice bonus for me!

[@pwhitewick]

Brilliant thanks for watching. My pronunciation is famously shocking!!.... This wasn't my best video so hoping you'll enjoy the rest too. 👍👍👍

[@cargy930]

@@pwhitewick It's an absolute certainty! (The enjoyment, not the pronounciation, obviously!)