Pete TrumanThe most memorable parts of our recent family trip to IWM Lambeth were the recreations of the WWI trench, and the WWII East End ‘bombed out’ street.
I agree with you about the Lambeth experiences, I took some kids there and they loved it, well, they were very nervous, but it certainly had the right effect. These were set up quite a few years ago now, I’m sure that new technology could produce some quite spine tingling effects at East Kirkby without being too over sensationalist.
How about an air raid during the night taxi runs, a few searchlights and a gas operated bofors would be most impressive, whether the Typhoon boys on finals for Coningsby would be happy about that though is another matter.
What always puzzled me was why DX got rid of the WD train that ran along the front of the tank hall and around a trench system set up at the end of the airfield, the kids loved it, so did I when it used to run during an airshow, you got some spectacular views of the aircraft.
Pete TrumanWith two chip shops down the road, not likely!
Lets hope that they are traditionally cooked in dripping, rather than the tasteless, ‘healthy’ rubbish that they use in chip shops down here.
I take issue with the entry fee to DX, looking around for a reasonably priced family day out last sunday, we found that those sort of entry fees were pretty much par for the course for any venue.
We actually went to Shepreth Wildlife Park, just up the road from DX, it cost us over £30 for 2 adults and a child. I wasn’t complaining, it’s a great little zoo and well worth a visit, but even dragging our feet and scrutinising everything, it only took us just over a couple of hours to get round.
DX has got so much to offer, even if you’ve been before, you can easily spend a day there, what other museums offer so much. Apart from the exhibits, ok, not always displayed to their best advantage I agree, you have the restorations to look at, films, buildings, little nooks and crannies to seek out and of course there’s always the chance of something epic to see being run up or even flying.
I’ve been going there for the past 30 years, even before it was set up as a proper museum, and I always find something new everytime I go there, don’t knock it, a great place that I’m lucky to live within a reasonable distance of.
Pete TrumanThe B-29 is by far my favourite aircraft. I’ve sat inside the B-29 at Duxford a few times.
I often visit the B-29 wreck at Derbyshire and have done from the age of 7.
In 1990, my Father and I met Charles Austin, who was the radio operator of the mountain rescue unit who were first at the scene of the crash. He asked us if we would take him to the crash site, which we did the following week. It was the first time he had been back to the crash site since the crash and to my kowledge his last time.
Charles Austin overheard reports on his radio from another B-29 that went out looking for the missing B-29, that they had spotted burning wreckage. He and his team were at Doctors Gate at the time and set of from there to the crash site. He kindly provided us with photos he took of the wreck at the time of the crash for us to copy.
Mr Austin sadly died in 1993.
I have some photos of him at the wreck with us in 1990.Keith.
Any chance of seeing them?
I read in this months Flypast that a previously undiscovered turret had been recovered from the site, does anyone know anymore about it. For those who haven’t been there, it’s a very large crash site with large sections remaining, wings, undercarriage, engines, I’m very surprised that it can’t be detected on Google Earth.
Pete TrumanYesterday there was a very nice, but unusually noisy Tiger Moth flying about here. It was red with a silver tail and I last saw it heading for Andrewsfield yesterday afternoon. I know that they lost one in an accident last year, has it been repaired already.
Pete TrumanConsidering that the event is being classed as a tribute to 90 years of the RAF, the modern RAF is somewhat lacking. Surely it must be the first time that the Reds haven’t appeared at a DX September Airshow, and where is the Typhoon.
Perhaps so much money has been spent on massed flypasts for the Royal Family this year, that the budget has run out as far as the paying public are concerned.
At least our local heroes are providing us with some memorable stuff.
Pete TrumanI watched Atonement the other night, it’s been sitting around on the shelves for a bit, I think it will stay there.
Beautifully filmed, but so slow to start, and so many stupid errors.
My missus usually has a go at me for whingeing at errors, but some of them were so crass, we were trying to find hidden meanings, a read up on IMDB afterwards put paid to that.
When our hero was lying in the bath in 1935 and a Lancaster flew over, she was beside herself, then key dates were all wrong, ridiculously so in the case of the sinking of the Lancastria, Balham tube station was not flooded up to the roof, of the 600 people down there, 65 were killed mainly by falling debris.
The BEF was a regular army, not filled with conscripts or rehabillitated prisoners.
The best one was the black soldier with the London accent in the BEF, what was that all about, political correctness no doubt, I know that many West Indians came over and bravely served with the RAF, as aircrew as well, but surely not in the BEF in 1939-40.
Anyway, apart from that, my mates live near Redcar which was used as the beach scene for Dunkirk, apparently, there are still signs up in French on the seafront and a memorial has been erected to the making of the film there, hope they aren’t embarresed.
Pete TrumanI watched Atonement the other night, it’s been sitting around on the shelves for a bit, I think it will stay there.
Beautifully filmed, but so slow to start, and so many stupid errors.
My missus usually has a go at me for whingeing at errors, but some of them were so crass, we were trying to find hidden meanings, a read up on IMDB afterwards put paid to that.
When our hero was lying in the bath in 1935 and a Lancaster flew over, she was beside herself, then key dates were all wrong, ridiculously so in the case of the sinking of the Lancastria, Balham tube station was not flooded up to the roof, of the 600 people down there, 65 were killed mainly by falling debris.
The BEF was a regular army, not filled with conscripts or rehabillitated prisoners.
The best one was the black soldier with the London accent in the BEF, what was that all about, political correctness no doubt, I know that many West Indians came over and bravely served with the RAF, as aircrew as well, but surely not in the BEF in 1939-40.
Anyway, apart from that, my mates live near Redcar which was used as the beach scene for Dunkirk, apparently, there are still signs up in French on the seafront and a memorial has been erected to the making of the film there, hope they aren’t embarresed.
Pete TrumanThankyou all so much for the replies, am so looking forward to visiting London again (4th trip). Is magic to get some fresh idea’s about where to go and what to do !……. as well as everything aviaition am really looking forward to a good pint of John Smith’s also !
If you find a good pint of John Smiths I’d like to know about it, try Timothy Taylors Landlord instead.
Pete TrumanAfter checking the list, please note I had a PM from Westway Models several weeks ago before all this became an issue. I did look at it, it was merely an advert for their products listing some well known contributers on here as takers.
I didn’t think much of it at the time, I just thought it was a bit cheeky and deleted it without going any further, I did check as well that Westway were a bona fide company, which they seemed to be, thinking about it, it coincided with my pop ups increasing.
Note that I’ve changed my password, lets hope I can remember it!!
Pete TrumanI don’t wish to sound cynical, but I’ve heard all this before.
In the 80’s enthusiasts were sure that a cache of steam locomotives were hidden away in underground tunnels, possibly in the Shropshire area.
It was a well known fact that some countries did do this, ie Finland, as a strategic reserve in case of nuclear attack, well it stood to reason, steam locos weren’t affected by EMP after a nuclear attack, they would always blunder through.
Certain classes of locomotive that lasted almost to the end of steam, admittedly vanished off the face of the earth, Granges, Austerities, early 9F’s, people claim to have seen lines of these things in large caverns, but 40 years on, I can’t think that the government would want to hold on to these things anymore, so, inevitably, it was obviously a well formulated myth.
Why any government would want to preserve Spitfires in the age of the Mig 15 and Sabre, is beyond me, unless of course they are neatly lined up with ex GWR Granges of the same vintage, hoping to save the free world.
Pete TrumanNobody has mentioned ‘Jericho’, the current nuclear armaggedon tv series, being repeated on ITV something or other.
As Kev suggests, perhaps the powers that be are promoting this to remind us of what could happen, us old gits have obviously forgotten and the younger generation needing educating.
Quite frankly the whole thing is a bizarre American soap opera that goes nowhere, I started watching the first few episodes but it degenerated into such a ridiculous farce, that I gave up on it, I doubt whether any more series will be made, anybody else watched it?
Pete TrumanNobody has mentioned ‘Jericho’, the current nuclear armaggedon tv series, being repeated on ITV something or other.
As Kev suggests, perhaps the powers that be are promoting this to remind us of what could happen, us old gits have obviously forgotten and the younger generation needing educating.
Quite frankly the whole thing is a bizarre American soap opera that goes nowhere, I started watching the first few episodes but it degenerated into such a ridiculous farce, that I gave up on it, I doubt whether any more series will be made, anybody else watched it?
Pete TrumanI have no issues but if the w**k**s are reading this what pleasure do you get from spoiling other peoples fun ?
Is anybody clever enough to turn the tables on them and stitch them up big time.
Pete TrumanWell if I remember correctly, there were plenty of scenarios which would have triggered an exchange. One involved an assault by the Warsaw Pact forces which, with Nato losing, would trigger battlefield nukes. USSR responds with medium range weapons widening the battlefield and taking out most of Europe. USA and USSR look at what they’ve done and stop. Not much good for us but that was one of the scenarios used to justify the UK having its own independent Nuclear weapons.
I think the difference between then and now is that there “might” be a possible threat of a dirty bomb in a European capital, a Middle East exchange or Pakistan/India’s dispute getting very hot but which of those would lead to Mutually Assured Destruction?
You say “it could be anywhere” but it is very unlikely to be everywhere.
Allan
It could be beside the lake beneath the trees.
Pete TrumanWell if I remember correctly, there were plenty of scenarios which would have triggered an exchange. One involved an assault by the Warsaw Pact forces which, with Nato losing, would trigger battlefield nukes. USSR responds with medium range weapons widening the battlefield and taking out most of Europe. USA and USSR look at what they’ve done and stop. Not much good for us but that was one of the scenarios used to justify the UK having its own independent Nuclear weapons.
I think the difference between then and now is that there “might” be a possible threat of a dirty bomb in a European capital, a Middle East exchange or Pakistan/India’s dispute getting very hot but which of those would lead to Mutually Assured Destruction?
You say “it could be anywhere” but it is very unlikely to be everywhere.
Allan
It could be beside the lake beneath the trees.
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