Honks whistle. Along the way, ill cross some stunning landscapes and meet people whose lives have been transformed by the Great British railway. I wanted to bring us down this slimyjetty here cos i wanted to show off Portsmouth Harbour station. As you come in, you feel like youre on land, but actually, its an old pier. And this used to function as a Freight Boat Pier in the mid 1800s. Im starting my Rail Adventure on englands southern coastline, passing through london, the midlands, into the yorkshire dales, then crossing scotland up through the highlands, and hopefully making it to thurso, the most northerly Railway Station in the uk. Sometimes find hermit crabs. There isnt a hermit crab in this one though. Tannoy please buy a ticket before getting on to a train. | as luck would have it, i happened to be wearing the specific badge to the train were travelling on. 166210. I actually used to get this train to see my parents when i used to live in portsmouth. So, yeah, im really excited. And all the better doing it on br Rolling Stock, too. Essentially, that means trains made in the uk in the era of british rail up to the mid 90s before the network was privatised. Tickets, please. Hiya. Hello. Ta. Thank you. This country invented the railway, and once, we used to design and Build Locomotives that were sent across the world, slashing Journey Times between great cities. But as the uks Manufacturing Industries declined, Railway Companies here found it cheaper to import trains from overseas. Yeah, 70007 and 66528. 007, and then theres 08 shunter, 08785. It was really the Freight Trains that, um, kind of kick started my social media. Um, during covid, i went out and filmed the Freight Trains. Uh, passing my parents� town in somerset when i was there during covid. Ah he laughs. Oh, it gave me a shock. I have 5. 4 million followers in total between tiktok and instagram. And thats happened in the space of about three years, so its been a pretty wackyjourney. Hellfire 0h. Unfortunately, we hit a snag. Our next train from salisbury to london has been cancelled due to an incident on the line. Back on. I was literallyjust there on the other side of the platform, and they said this train is now actually going all the way to waterloo. The line has reopened. Until it wasnt. Right, well, we need to run over to the Reading Train then. That service has just been cancelled. So, back and forth, back and forth, but were heading now to reading, which was the original plan. Wasnt the original original plan. Welcome aboard our chariot to reading. Tannoy the next| station is bramley. Well. I caught two Freight Trains in the space of about 15 minutes at reading. And also, weve managed to maintain our br Rolling Stock era only criteria, even though weve had a massive spanner thrown in the works, so, yeah, happy days. Well, ifinally made it to london, where ill be stopping for the night. Nice to meet you. Yes, see you. And there really is only one obvious choice for a railway enthusiast. St Pancras Hotel opened in the mid 19th century when rail travel was booming. 0h. Oh, my word. Ha ha. 0h 374s. And to think they were going to knock this station down in the � 60s. Tannoy this train is l formed of nine coaches. Will passengers intending to travel on this Service Please join the train now as it is ready to leave. Very cool. Thank you. No worries. Thank you. Nice to meet you. There you go. Got the right badge. So were jumping on a very special class 91, 91110. Which is the Speed Record Holder for electric locomotives in the uk. And its just on the other end down here. So this is the beast up at the front. If we were to hear this depart, theres like a succession of noises. Its almost like it just waking up. So, it starts off with a. Imitates low steady hum. And then immediately after it goes, it goes. Imitates loud air hiss. And then that is a continual noise of. Loud air hiss. And then theres a. Imitates whooshing. Noise. And then it uh. Train whooshes. Like that. So, the plan today is to get to leeds via a little diversion. Youll see why. Train horn blows. So, ive been invited to derby litchurch lane. Some of the trains im travelling on were built here. In fact, its the only factory left that still makes british trains from scratch. Most are imported to the uk in kit form. Kathryn lancaster has graciously offered to show me around. Were the only place that do everything. So yes, weve got the history, and we date back to 1876, and you can see that from the victorian buildings, but we are the only site in the uk that can do everything, right from design through to test and delivery. Wow. Inside these buildings, its like a railway kind of womb, isnt it . Yes. And you have these train babies being put together. You love this, dont you . Yeah. How long have you worked here . Ive been here since 1988, so ive done 35 years plus. Wow. Um, loved every day. Never had two days the same. Youre getting excited cos this is going past, arent you . Thats one of these. Perfect youve one. . Yes. Yeah, yeah. Yeah. Thats so cool, just. That was not set up. No, no. Now, this is something ive not seen before. Part of the Train Assembly line in action. Oh, my word. Told you. Moves quicker than i thought it would. But now, is it a matter of the operator just getting precise inputs . Yeah. Completely. Hes over there, hes got the remote, and hes listening to all four banksmen, who are now lining it up. Theyll be on their knees now, getting low, low, low. Are you ready for this . What i just witnessed what ijust witnessed is like a cow with no legs, totally unfamiliar and then putting a cow on its legs and 0k unfamiliar and then putting a cow on its legs and ok that his account now. I cow on its legs and ok that his account now. Account now. I work in the under frame account now. I work in the under frame of account now. I work in the under frame of the account now. I work in the. Under frame of the characters love under frame of the characters love putting things together. Have love putting things together. Have you seen anything you have got to get out on the Mainline Quiz Sign up personally. May be that they will come. Are you ready for this . That is the traverser. Oh, my word. Thats a serious bit of kit. And you can go in the cab. Cani . Yeah. Oh rich, can i bring francis up . Yeah. 0k, imjust going to get my gopro. Ok. Gopro. Thanks, kathryn. Hello. Good afternoon. Whistle blows. So, the guys have just gave me the one whistle to go. I then start giving it a bit more speed. Oh, my word. A bit more speed, a bit more speed, de clutch, and then all im going to do is keep putting my foot steadily on the brake. Yeah. And when it gets to the end, just bring it to a nice and steady stop. Wow. That was very dramatic. When youve been doing it for 30 odd years, it comes pretty natural. He blows whistle twice. Thats my two whistles to go. So i now start going forward. You like your diesels, then . I love my diesels. Ive been trainspotting ever since i was a little kid. 0h, fantastic. Well, they say, once youre bitten by the railway bug, it never goes away. No, it never goes away. It never goes away. Well, i could have stayed here all week, but i have a train to catch. This is a class 158, and it was actually made in the factory where we were yesterday. So, its day three of our Railway Adventure across the uk, and well be taking this train today to ribblehead on the settle and carlisle line, which, in my opinion, is one of the most Beautiful Trainjourneys in the uk. Francis. Hiya. I know that face. Nice to meet you. Ive seen your video many times. Larryjones is an untrained tour guide covering the Settle Larryjones is an on train tour guide covering the Settle To Carlisle Heritage Line in north yorkshire. He is part of a Volunteer Group that offer free walks, trails and tours, mainly around the ribblehead area, which is our next stop. Thank you. Careful, francis, dont get excited youre not going to run after it, are you . And this is why a lot of people stop here. A 15 minute walk from the station, and youll be under this impressive victorian structure. The ribblehead viaduct. Its just staggering, isnt it . Oh, its just amazing. You can only really make out how big it is by comparing it to the vans next to it. Exactly. 104 foot, 24 arches. Quarter of a mile long. During the 1980s, british rail threatened to close the settle to carlisle line, mainly because the viaduct was crumbling and the cost to repair it was high for a line with dwindling passenger numbers. A six Year Long Campaign to save the railway eventually caused parliament to intervene and banned it from closure. Nice one. Thanks. Nice to meet you. Nice to meet you, too. See you. Take care. And now, its the local community that volunteer to maintain the stations along the line as well as to encourage tourists to come. How does it feel to be able to help to preserve this part of british rail history . For me, its amazing that this line is just still running today, and theres ten stations that all look the same. Theyre all what they call midland or derby gothic red. So, theyre all kept the same. We put the planters out with flowers in, uh, keep them all looking, you know, nostalgic, like they did in the victorian era. And as an enthusiast, seeing how all of this has been preserved. Yeah. You know, it makes me feel a bit emotional, really. And you can actually stay here, cant you . Yeah, you can at many of the stations. These were all station masters houses at each of the stations, and now theyre all Staycation Properties that people can ring up and stay at, so. 0h, brilliant. Tannoy the next train i to arrive at platform two. Well, its time to finally travel over that beautiful viaduct. Tannoy this train is i formed of eight coaches. Its day four of our Railway Adventure, and were up in scotland, specifically Glasgow Queen street. And behind me, theres a sound that im very familiar with. Its a class 43 hst. Can i get a picture with you . Yeah, yeah. I love meeting people who have watched my videos cos it gives me an opportunity to say thanks. Yeah, the initial kind of, like, sort of slight anxiety around it isnt really so much any more. Thanks, man. Nice to meet you. Nice to meet you, man. I love making people happy, so to see someone, uh, to see someone happy in person is nice. I looked over, and i was like. Sadly, these intercity high speed trains are being pulled off the tracks within the next few years, so i plan to make the most out of today. And on board, theres a chance to catch up with a fellow train enthusiast. Hi, jude, arthur. Hello, francis. 0h, hello, francis. Hows it going . All right. Enjoying the hsts. Yeah. I first Met Arthur Last year whilst trainspotting near brighton. I think were going to get off at, uh, kingussie. Ok. Um. Some good shots there. Jude often runs her business from the train, which, to be honest, sounds pretty perfect to me. Did your ears pop . Yeah. We just passed the sign for the summit of the drumochter pass, and its the highest point of the uk network at 1,484ft. Tannoy please mind the gap when leaving the train. Down to the door. Yeah. Its all right. Here, my daughters going to love this. I honestly, she follows you. Well, nice to meet you. Get my photo, greg. Shell no believe this. Is that it . Brilliant. Nice to meet you. I mean, it might actually look quite nice to photograph it from up. See in that field there . Thats what i was thinking. Arthur eats, sleeps, breathes, trains. Its how he has made friends. Its how hes got, you know, a social element. Arthur was diagnosed with autism when he was quite small four, and kids at school didnt really get that, so it felt like his world was quite lonely. I mean, he didnt care cos he wasjust interested in the trains, much like my, you know, train driver husband. He has found a passion. Trying to get a good photo. Usually angle, light. Yeah. The light� s not terrible. Yeah, well. It could be worse. All right, here we go. School holidays, this is where i am. Im not in an office. Im not sitting on my sofa. Im standing while my son is on a bridge or at the end of the platform, and im just working from where i have to. And my clients are not averse, luckily, to me setting up a zoom call in a waiting room or talking to me, and im like, hold on a minute, were just going through a tunnel. I get asked a lot about why i do this, but for me its his passion, and. I dont know, what mum wouldnt want to, like, allow and encourage their kid to be passionate about something . Oh train horn. That might have scared me. Well, let me guess, was that when they, um, did the horn . Maybe. Then theres that. That ones a bit better. Yeah, thats quite good. I think yours is better framed than my one. My great uncle actually campaigned to keep this line open when it was planned for closure. The particular section between inverness and kyle of lochalsh. Tannoy we are now| approaching dingwall. Please mind the gap when alighting from this train. So, during this final journey, ivejust learned that the factory we visited in derby a few days ago is stopping production, and Thousands Ofjobs are now at risk. Its a real shame cos we met people there who are so passionate and loved working there. What has been a thriving site for, you know, over 100 years is potentially coming to an end. Train horn blows. There are some sounds on the railway that actually bring out a lot of emotion in me, especially thinking about, uh, derby now and whats happening. Dont know why im getting emotional. After stopping at 87 stations from the south coast to the north, ifinally made it to my final destination, spending just £169 on tickets over the past five days. Well, i would say after travelling 900 miles and arriving here in thurso, im very, very, very proud to be a railway enthusiast. And i love our British Railway network. Oh. And what a destination to finish on. And with that, im going to take off. Hello, there. The weathers looking pretty mixed this Bank Holiday Weekend, although saturday looks to be pretty decent for many with a lot of sunshine around. Sunday and Bank Holiday Monday will see some heavy thundery showers developing, some local torrential downpours, but therell still be some sunshine in between. Now for saturday, weve got two frontal systems approaching one across the east, one across the west. This one will arrive quite early through the morning across east anglia, Eastern England and spread westward so skies Turning Cloudier here. This one will arrive late in the day for south west england, south wales. But in between, plenty of sunshine around after a chilly start, and we should see sunny spells into the afternoon. Could see just a few showers developing. Most places should stay dry, and itll feel warmer again with top temperatures of 20 or 21 degrees. Now, as we head through Saturday Night, this Weather Front across the east peps up, brings outbreaks of rain to much of northern england, pushing into scotland, and this one across the South West Pushes northwards across england and wales, so itll be Turning Cloudier, breezier and wetter through Saturday Night so, as a result, itll be milder with double figure values for most to start monday morning. But sundays pressure chart looks quite messy these couple of Weather Fronts pretty much across the country will bring a more unsettled day. So well have that first Weather Front bringing outbreaks of rain to scotland and Northern Ireland through the morning. Some sunshine for northern scotland. And then for england and wales, the sunshine will emerge, and when the sunshine comes out, thatll set off scattered, heavy and Thundery Downpours these could be quite slow moving, particularly through the midlands in towards wales and north west england. If you catch one, youll certainly know about it. But sunshine in between, maybe not quite as warm 17 19 degrees. For Bank Holiday Monday, the Weather Fronts push their way northward, so its in the north where well see the focus of the heaviest and most frequent showers, i think. Theyll pop up pretty much anywhere again its going to be another day of sunshine and showers but it is northern and eastern areas, i think, which will see most of those Thundery Downpours. And later in the day, something a bit drier pushing into western areas. Temperatures, again, a degree or so down so 15 17 celsius but not feeling too bad in the sunshine. As we head into tuesday and beyond, it looks like low pressure starts to take over our weather it turns breezier well see showers or longer spells of rain. But High Pressure waits in the wings, so it could turn a bit more settled as we move into next weekend. But certainly into next week, it will be quite unsettled showers or longer spells of rain, with a bit of sunshine in between. Good morning. Welcome to breakfast, with Nina Warhurst and charlie stayt. 0ur Headlines Today mps michael gove and Andrea Leadsom announce they wont stand at the next election the highest profile figures to quit out of nearly 80 conservatives. Former post office boss Paula Vennells finishes giving evidence to the horizon it scandal inquiry, and former subpostmasters give us their verdict on her performance. She is putting her make up on while she is to drive, so near side, trying to put her blusher on while she is trying to drive. A crackdown on distracted drivers who are putting lives at risk. In sport, good morning on cup final day. While in scotland, rangers will be trying to stop celtic doing the double. Here at wembley, Manchester United will be trying to do the sameto their neighbours and great rivals, manchester city, in the fa cup. And ill have your full Bank Holiday Weekend forecast. Watch out for some wet weather at times. Its saturday, 25 may. Our main story former Conservative Ministers michael gove and dame Andrea Leadsom are among more than 100 mps to reveal they wont be contesting their seats at the general election. The announcements came as the parliamentary session was officially closed last night, allowing full scale campaigning to begin. 0ur Political Correspondent Hannah Miller has the latest
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