Huntingdon Street bus station

[firbeck 859]

Someone's left the starting handle in place or was it common practice when the bus was waiting at the terminus 'just in case'. Which way did the A1 go, did it go up past Woolies and across Slab Square before joining the original trolleybus route.

[Merthyr Imp 729]

It was quite common in the old days, especially pre-war, for buses to run around with the starting handle in place. Numerous photos could probably be found, but the only one of my own to hand is this old Portsmouth Corporation Leyland in use on the seafront service at Southsea in 1968.

[firbeck 859]

Mr Imp, what memories that photo of the Pompey open topper brought back to me!

In 1969 I left Nottingham to do an RICS surveying degree at what is now Portsmouth Uni. I lived in digs at North End, almost off the top end of the 'island'. Every morning we used to catch the bus in to college which was adjacent to the Royal Navy sports ground near to the cathedral and the Sally Port, many happy lunch hours were spent sitting on the verandah of the Still and West with a pint of Brickwoods, watching the then considerable number and variety of RN warships sailing past almost within touching distance.

The buses were a mixture of those lovely Southdown unique double deckers out of Hilsea depot and elderly Portsmouth Corp dd's with open rear platform entrances, we caught whichever one came along first, but Southdown tended to get preference, they were more comfortable. One freezing cold, filthy wet winters morning, nothing turned up, then a bus appeared in the distance, it was the lovely old open top Leyland as in your photograph. I don't know why it was out that day, but it was a bus, unfortunately, every inch of space downstairs was packed so we went upstairs and sat on the soaking front seats waving at the bus stop qeues, the experience certainly cleared away the Brickwoods induced hangovers. We never saw the open top again until the summer when they used to run along the seafront from Clarence Pier to Eastney Barracks via South Parade Pier, happy days.

[The Pianoman 1,532]

Brickwoods Sunshine Ales!

I have ridden on that bus many times to Hayling Ferry while on hols when I was a lot younger before and after 1968, but I don't remember it (or its mate) being painted that way round. The colours, crimson and white, so that the bus was painted more crimson than white. Must have been repainted at sometime or other - either that or my memory has been repainted. that bus is well over 30 years old in 1968 too. Was down there on a delivery this time last year and I thought what a horrible place it has become. No crimson and white buses, no Brickwoods and Victory has lost its topmasts!

[The Pianoman 1,532]

This is how I remember it being painted:

http://www3.hants.gov.uk/heritage100/itemlist/item.htm?itemid=109

[Merthyr Imp 729]

That was taken when I was on a Barton coach tour holiday - 'South Coast & Isle of Wight'. The first two nights were spent in Southsea, and I had a few rides on the open top service - travelling downstairs, although good weather, for the vintage atmosphere of what were really museum pieces even then, as they dated from 1935.

I'm guessing you mean this type of Southdown double decker. This was taken a day or two later in Chichester. Barton, of course, had that style of bodywork on several of their rebuilds.

[Merthyr Imp 729]

Pianoman - I gather those old TD4s were converted to open top use in 1955, and were originally in the livery you mention, but by 1968 they had been repainted into the style in my photo.

We were on holiday in Portsmouth a couple of years ago and saw the Victory without its topmasts. I believe they were missing so that restoration work could be carried out on them.

[The Pianoman 1,532]

Thinking about it we holidaying down there then more like '64-70ish so probably my memory fading! Its not the first time in my lifetime that Victory has had its masts removed for various restoration jobs.

[The Pianoman 1,532]

Second bus I ever drove was one of those while going around the area getting free assessments for a PSV licence. That half cab that looks like full width front end is referred to as a Queen Mary front for whatever reason. The bus will be a Leyland PD 3 no doubt.

[Merthyr Imp 729]

What's for sure is it wasn't a Barton BTD2! No. 903 seen here at the new Mount Street.

[firbeck 859]

I'd forgotten that Bartons operated the same type of bus, I can't decide which look I preferred, the Barton livery was fantastic, but I liked the Southdown green and the gold Southdown, almost handpainted, logo, until National buses got their hands on them of course.

I'm sure that the open top's at Portsmouth were mainly painted crimson rather than white, that would be 1969 through to the summer of 1970 when the survivors emerged from the depot for the sea front service from the depths of Eastney Depot. We may have been long haired, revolting, hippy, 'pot' smoking, rock music fanatical, girl crazy typical 60's students, but it was quite fascinating how many of us had been former transport enthusiasts in the past and didn't consider it 'Uncool Man', to still take an interest. I recall how our morning bus coincided with the Cardiff-Portsmouth Harbour train passing over the bridge near the Guildhall, we used to sit upstairs at the front to see what was pulling it, if we were lucky it was a Hymek which would cause much enthusiastic discussion among our bleary eyed band to the amusement of our fellow passengers. In the end we pooled together and bought the latest edition of Ian Allan's combined volume which got hidden among our lecture notes, after all, some fellow students thought we were a bit weird marking in the numbers at break, two of my mates were extremely large though and the combi was never stolen and no-one ever dare take the p#ss.

HMS Victory is a bit like the Forth Bridge, it's always having bits replaced, I'd like to know how much of it actually took part in the Battle of Trafalgar. The last time I went round it was in 2005, on the day before the 200th anniversary of the battle. It had been painstakingly completely restored for that event, probably the only time over 50 years of visits that I ever saw it in such a complete state. Even then, our guide told us that immediately after the 200th Celebrations the entire port (or was it starboard) side was to be removed and replaced, I assume after 10 years now that work has probably been completed, can anyone confirm that.

One thing about being a student at Pompey was that, surprisingly, there was always a really good rapport between the students and the Navy particularly if you showed an interest, I do not ever recall any incidents between us whatsoever. I remember one afternoon when we had no lectures we wandered down to look round the Victory and get up close to some of the warships, in those days entrance was free, you just had to get a pass off the MP's at the dockyard entrance, they were always smartly dressed in gleaming white puttees and belts from which hung a very threatening looking truncheon. But they were such nice blokes, after taking the p#ss out of our appearance we had a right laugh, I recall looking too long at the office notice concerning ships in the harbour and they got a bit security conscious until I told them my uncles had been on carriers in WW2 and I wondered which one's were in or due to sail, a knowledge of such things certainly made them keen to tell you things they probably shouldn't have. As I said, happy days.

[StephenFord 866]

Re #101 - the A1 route from Broad Marsh was boringly ordinary - Canal Street, Lower Parliament Street and Huntingdon Street. It didn't go into the bus station, but picked up at a stop opposite on Huntingdon Street itself. The same applied to the F2 and F4.

[firbeck 859]

What route did they take from Huntingdon St then. I must admit I don't really remember 'Blue buses' operating anywhere but Mount St, but that's because it's more or less the only terminus we used apart from East Midlands to Edwinstowe and the odd coach trip from Huntingdon St. I doubt whether I ever caught a bus from Broad Marsh, I can't think of any destination we would have used it for.

[Bubblewrap 3,815]

Where did Gash's run their Newark service from?

[Merthyr Imp 729]

From Huntingdon Street (not the best quality photo, sorry).

[Merthyr Imp 729]

Having mentioned I took that Portsmouth photo while on a Barton coach tour holiday in August 1968 I thought I'd put a bit more on here about that.

The vehicle used was no. 1104, a Bedford that had been acquired in 1967 along with the business of Mason's of Leicester. Although eight years old and not exactly the latest model it was still in smart enough condition to be used on a front-line coach tour holiday, plus - and this was probably the main thing - it had a petrol engine, which meant a quiet, vibration-free ride for the holidaymakers.

The photo below shows it outside the hotel where we stayed in St. Leonard's (adjacent to Hastings).

I was only 18 at the time - probably not the age group usually encountered on coach tour holidays, and I don't think anyone else on it was under the age of 40. But it was the height of my bus-spotting/photography days, plus I enjoyed touring rather than staying in one place.

The tour started on a Sunday morning outside Barton's garage on Huntingdon Street from where, if I remember correctly, all their touring holidays started. I think we picked up in Loughborough, and possible Leicester as well, although the coach was no more than half full. We then made for Southsea (not via the M1).

An interesting thing is that we were sort of shadowed by Mr. Alfred Barton (one of the brothers) and his family in his Rolls-Royce. The reason apart from providing a holiday for them too, was it was a means of them doing a check on the quality of the hotels and various meal stops.

We had two nights in Southsea, and apart from having rides on the open-toppers all I can remember is a couple of trips on the Gosport ferry to see the Provincial (Gosport & Fareham) buses, as they had some double deckers that were as heavily rebuilt as anything Barton ever did!

The day there was taken up with a round trip on the Isle of Wight, using a coach hired from Southern Vectis, only slightly newer than 1104. I can't remember if the Barton driver, Sandy Powell (not the comedian), drove it himself

We went across to Ryde by the boat - no high speed catamarans as there are now, although the hovercraft service had started operation by then.

Then there was a run along the coast to St Leonard's where we had three nights. One of the days there was a 'free' day, and although various entertainments/events were offered as options I preferred to have a day trip up to London.

The final day was a journey along the coast as far as Dover where we turned inland and made for London before returning up the M1.

I haven't recorded where this photo was taken, but it shows the coach getting some refuelling as well as us passengers at one of the meal stops. Whether the place was deliberately chosen because it was called the 'Robin Hood' I don't know. One thing that's always stuck in my mind about the experience was that at times it seemed just like a progression from one meal to another! It was breakfast in the hotel, then a stop for morning coffee and biscuits, then a full cooked lunch (I remember roast beef at Shanklin), then afternoon tea, then a three-course dinner in the hotel in the evening.

[StephenFord 866]

#113 - The route was straight up Huntingdon Street, Mansfield Road, Sherwood Rise, Valley Road, Church Street Basford, Alpine Street, Percy Street, Stockhill Lane, Nuthall Road. Then the A1 was main road to Ripley - i.e. Kimberley, Eastwood, Heanor, Codnor; F2 was Kimberley, a steep diversion up Hardy Street to High Spania, then down Maws Lane, straight across the main road, and on the Awsworth and Ilkeston. The F4 turned right at Nuthall along Larkfield Road, then Watnall Corner and on to Hucknall - but it didn't go into Hucknall town centre, turning along Derbyshire Lane, Sandy Lane, Wood Lane, Common Lane to Beauvale estate. The other blue bus, that did actually start from Huntingdon Street was the B8 to Mansfield, that headed straight up Hucknall Road, alongside Bulwell Forest and passing Bestwood Colliery.

[Merthyr Imp 729]

And another photo from me. Probably taken in 1969 or early 1970.

[Cliff Ton 10,464]

Huntingdon Street from an unusual angle.

[TBI 2,351]

Interesting shot, can't work out the vantage point. The GPO building in the left foreground was the highest building in that block.

[DAVIDW 1,683]

Aeriel shot here may help . Brittania Inn bottom right of pic. Wasn't Brown Brothers motor accessory wholesalers somewhere about that area ? http://www.picturethepast.org.uk/frontend.php?action=printdetails&keywords=Ref_No_increment;EQUALS;NTGM009013&prevUrl=

[Cliff Ton 10,464]

It's slightly misleading because the photo I posted is a zoom-in on a wider panorama. I've looked at the source where I 'borrowed' it to see if the location was mentioned, and it was taken from Cranbrook House, which is the 60s tower block in the lower left corner of the DAVIDW's photo.

[TBI 2,351]

Thanks David and Cliff, got it now.

[ChrisB 150]

That black and cream single decker on the F3 would certainly not have been going to Rennuth!

[LizzieM 9,507]

Hope someone told the driver and passengers!