edworth:
Hi Carl…We are going off our topic now but you have brought more memories back from when I used to go round to the yard (Broomfields) old Mrs Broomfield had died before I started knocking around with Keith, but the old man was still alive Ozzie and Jacky’s father, can you remember when you looked at the house (same today) there is a Left front door and a right front door the house was semi-detatched and you had to go around the side of Keiths house (right hand side) to get around the back of the old mans house, so if we wanted to go in the old mans house we would go straight through the left side front door, this day we went belting through and there was the old man Broomfield layed out dead on the dining table and Keiths mother and another woman washing him down, he was the first dead person I had seen, Keiths mum was talking away to him as if he was sat in the chair, hope you can make this out, by the way Keiths mum was the old mans daughter Audrey Broomfield nee McCrone, after the death of the old man Jacky and Steve (another brother) lived in the house together and it was like your dad told you, hens and anything that walked could go into the house and Jacky never used the proper toilet, he always did everything behind the barn door then just throw more straw onto it, until it had to be shoveled out, you mentioned Ozzie and the army, he fought at El Alemien in the 8th Army and Joseph another brother fought in Burmha against the Japanese he lost his big toe in some sort of
explosion, he always wore wellys after the war, we all use to meet up at the yard on a night, Peter Broomfield, Alan Bainbridge,Frankie Corbett and anyone who fancied coming with us, Peter use to put a drop diesel on his hair as he did not like vaseline and we could not afford brylcream, he as a old truck he enters into shows and is done in Cameron’s the Brewers colours, I remember his dad Ozzie making a tipper wagon out of a old Bedford artic unit, it must have been the shortest wheel base ever.
Eddie
Hi Eddie
I never was in Broomfields house but I remember when ozzie built a fence round his yard in bryan Street. Someone complained to the council that the fence was too high, and he had his dog trained to accept anyone with the smell of oil or diesel but council workers with suits were not acceptable.Anyway eventually after coming back when the dog was ■■■■■■■ he measured the fence and found it a foot too high and so Ozzie got the shovel out and piled soil round it said 'Measure it again, and had no more trouble from the council.
By the way where was the photo of BSO taken?
best wishes Carl
Harry Hawkins…driving MPT over Forth Road Bridge 1963
All MPT in 1963 Going to Inverness and at Inverness, by the way I have put the colour in, as they are all B&W.
Mpt in Inverness, looking for digs.
Opposite Inverness Castle.
Last one of MPT in Invernesss
Xmas Party in The Masonic Hall, Spennymoor, think it was the first proper one, can you remember we had a number to give to get drinks and it would be added up and taken off our wages, we were all using different numbers and some of the lads had a fortune to pay.
Photo…Left to right…Arthur Crooks (just died) wife Pauline, my ex wife Connie and myself.(woman down on the left, do not know)
Eddie Worthington and Harry Blatchford fishing on the tweed.
Hi Carl…Hope you like the photos, I am working on getting SGS etc from our Gail, could be a couple of weeks, BSO I took and arranged from another photo do not know location, my hobby is photography, say no more!!!.
Eddie
edworth:
Hi Carl…Hope you like the photos, I am working on getting SGS etc from our Gail, could be a couple of weeks, BSO I took and arranged from another photo do not know location, my hobby is photography, say no more!!!.
Eddie
Hi Eddie
What wonderful photos! Seeing 367MPT brings back so many memories. Very sorry to hear Arthur crooks died, he wouldn’t be so old.
My son, Paul is taking me for a ride to Edinburgh this morning, and so I haven’t got time now to say more, but have so many comments. I can’t drive now as I get lost, so am looking forward to a ride out.
kindest regards
Carl
367MPT photo kindly provided by Eddie Worthington
1963 Bedford SB Passenger chassis
330 cu in Bedford diesel engine
1850 Cubic foot pantechnicon body by Marsden Warrington
Cab and luton and full roof Glass fibre reinforced.
Body panels plymax sheeting
Inside body wheel boxes and drop well
rear tailboard and roller shutter.
Cab had foward sliding doors, which formed the air conditioning if left open on a hot summers day.
Chassis supplied by Adams and Gibbon Durham. Adam and Gibbon paid at point of order.
Chassis delivered to Marsden at Warrington and collected from Marsden by my father W.H.williams (Harry) paying them cash for bodywork on collection.
Marsden took aproximtely 9 month to complete bodywork.
Completed vehicle was supplied by Marsden in Grey primer and ran for first three weeks in primer as we were so busy at the time
Vehicle painted by my father W.H.Williams (Harry) in Dulux coach finnish supplied by Thompson & Brown Brothers Newcastle upon Tyne.
Brush painted by hand 2 coats undercoat and 1 coat enamel, rubbed down with wet and dry between every coat, by myself and dad.
The wheels wree taken off and vehicle stood on axel stands and I painted wheels, hubs and inside the cab.
Finally vehicle was sign written by Temp Newton Spennymoor.
Harry Hawkins was allocated the van from new and drove it for about 4 years until he was allocated another new van
We ran 367MPT for 14 years and it covered about 700,000 miles.
About half way through its life it had a replacement Bedford Short Motor supplied by Adams And Gibbon fitted in our workshop, and was given a repaint at about 8 years old when it was brought up to date to match the remainder of the fleet at the time with W.H.Williams in the brown rectangle in the front and on the rear shutter.orriginally the bumber on the front which was basially an alloy strip was left unpainted on its repaint this was pained cream to match the other vehicles.
I have no recollection of 367MPT ever breaking down.
It was identical to 1372 UP which was about 1 year older.
4479PT which was 2 years older was 4inches lower in body height and had 300 cu in Bedford diesel engine
Hi carl…some drivers , porters and fitters I can remember, here go’s…
Jimmy Clemmence, your granmothers brother…Bobby Marsden, your mams brother…John Nixon, his son Phil played in the finals of the World Darts, he is from Ferryhill…Tommy Stoddart, always dressed immaculate…Harry Hawkins, like you have said, harry could be hard work,very moody…Rodger Owens (The Lodger)from Barnet…Harry Blatchford ( Harry Blackberry) sound as a pound…Ron Harris, we used to tell everyone he played for Chelsea as there was a Ron Harris played for them…Norman Snowball,lovely bloke had a lot of trouble…Harry Smith,crapped himself on our way back from a removal at Leeds and put his dirty underpants on the shelf of the TK, I had my head out of window until we got back to Spennymoor, your Dad was not a happy chappy…Colin Watson,alright in small doses…Laurie Hawkins, Harrys brother he was canny…Billy Dixon,last I heard of him he was doing contiental, some great nights in Oldham…Aron Smith,Harrys brother, canny lad…Arthur Crooks,a great friend, called everybody “Wally”…Eddie Brown, a canny lad…Dave Heron (Kipper) a canny lad…Ray Juler, a great friend drank himself to death…Ronnie Wensley,a canny lad…Eric Nelson a great friend…Kenny Hodgson,still crackers…Dale Harrison a canny lad…Harry Brain was my brother-in-law…Alan Robinson (Al Jolson) a canny lad…Dennis bradley (Farmer) a canny lad…Martin Holiday (Doc) a great friend…Peter Wilson a great friend…Tommy Bowen a great friend…Peter Holiday no relation to Doc…Peter Moore a great friend…John Hetherington a great friend,he lived in the house May Thompson was murdered in William Street…Les Warnett…John Willetts came from Dent’s…Henry Barras a great friend…Freddie Wallce, a great bloke was married to Gassy Tyrers sister…George graham a canny lad…Brian Archer, took roof off van… More to come
Here they are…John Hughes a porter, started calling everyone a “Creton” and know body knew what it ment until it was looked up, then he got mawled (Deormed idiot)…Bob Bradley a great bloke…Eddie Ramsey (Old Eddie) a great bloke…Cec Ramsey think he used to do some boxing a canny lad…Jeoff Pye, came from Johnsons Durham a canny lad…Colin Williams went to Ness…Geordie Sykes a canny lad…Fred Thirlaway a good friend…Jacky Wilkinson could tell a good tale, trouble was they were not true…Bev Easter a good friend…Billy Foster (Bilko) crackers…Ray Hornsby a great bloke…Taffy Evans never used 1st or 3rd gear just 2nd and 4th or 5th it it had one…Bob Hobson(The Onion Man)…Alan Brown a canny lad, I used to deliver Thompsons grocerys at Chilton with Alans wife her Dad was the manager, think his name was Bill Richards, he paid me and Dale Harrison to deliver a pig from Chilton allotments to Jewitt’s the slaughter house at Middlestone Moor, having finished work on the saturday we called at the allotments in my car to collect the pig, we managed to stuff it in the boot and on the way up to Merrington it bust the lock and jumped out at about 40mph, we caught it and Dale sat on the back seat with it, it was shocked and kept ■■■■■■■■ on him and trying to bite him, by the time we got it to the slaughter house it was vitually dead,I think the going rate was about 7 pound but they paid Billy Richards half as it was all bruised meat, what a journey.
Some fitters…Jack Kempsey, work at factory but helped your Dad on weekends etc…George Hardy had more oil and dirt on him than the wagons…Dickie Porter…Ken Armstong…Tommy Mangles think his parents had a pub at west auckland…Eddie Thornton was not fitting but in office when I was there…Brian Henderson I worked at Ogdens with him and told him to try for a interview with you…Billy Westgarth,I was on my way to Brighton on a Sunday when my gearbox packed in on Coombe Hill about 18mile from Brighton,phoned your Dad and he got a bedford dealer from Shoreham(next to brighton) out to me, when they started the repair the next day…continued
they (The Bedford dealers) said they could not get a replacement,having informed your dad he said they would sort it out at Durham and he would send a fitter down to me with a gearbox, he sent Billy Westgarth (Ginger Bill) to London he then had to get a Taxi from one station to another for Brighton and he also had to carry/drag or whatever the replacement gearbox wrapped in old sacking with him, The Bedford dealer met him at Brighton Station and they commenced to fit the gearbox and on the night time I was informed it was the wrong type of box, I had already been there 3 nights and the telephone line was nearly melting, your Dad told me to stay put and he was sending another van with a load for Havant to tow me back (Bob Hobson the Onion Man) instead of him going to Havant first then coming along the south coast he came to me first, we went into Shoreham and found a Ships Chandoler and bought some rope from him and then to a scrapyard and bought a old wagon tyre to hang on his tailboard and we then proceeded to tow me and Billy Westgarth along the southcoast to Kenwoods at Havant and unloaded both vans and then set off for home, on the way back we parked at Newbury for a night out and then the next day set off for the final run to home, it was friday night when we pulled into Marmaduke street, your Dad was so relieved we were back safely, I got my wages and he gave me a box of chocolates my my then wife, it must rate as one of the longest rope tows ever.
Eddie
edworth:
they (The Bedford dealers) said they could not get a replacement,having informed your dad he said they would sort it out at Durham and he would send a fitter down to me with a gearbox, he sent Billy Westgarth (Ginger Bill) to London he then had to get a Taxi from one station to another for Brighton and he also had to carry/drag or whatever the replacement gearbox wrapped in old sacking with him, The Bedford dealer met him at Brighton Station and they commenced to fit the gearbox and on the night time I was informed it was the wrong type of box, I had already been there 3 nights and the telephone line was nearly melting, your Dad told me to stay put and he was sending another van with a load for Havant to tow me back (Bob Hobson the Onion Man) instead of him going to Havant first then coming along the south coast he came to me first, we went into Shoreham and found a Ships Chandoler and bought some rope from him and then to a scrapyard and bought a old wagon tyre to hang on his tailboard and we then proceeded to tow me and Billy Westgarth along the southcoast to Kenwoods at Havant and unloaded both vans and then set off for home, on the way back we parked at Newbury for a night out and then the next day set off for the final run to home, it was friday night when we pulled into Marmaduke street, your Dad was so relieved we were back safely, I got my wages and he gave me a box of chocolates my my then wife, it must rate as one of the longest rope tows ever.
Eddie
Hi Eddie
You have provided a wealth of information over your last posts, and I will eventually comment when I take it all in.
You made me laugh when you said about Billy Westgarth going by Train and taxi with the gearbox. Billy never learnt to drive and never strayed far from spennymoor, so for him to arrive in London to get a taxi with a ball and chain tied to him would have made a good sitcom.
You have brought back so many good memories.
Can you remember what you drove after passing your driving test, until you drove an HGV?
No doubt, like me you would not need to take an HGV test, just started driving at 21? Can you remember your first trip and what van it was?
I am not surposed to drive now, and they said they were surprised I could remember how to change gear.I am sure I could drive in my sleep, but my son takes me everywhere I go, and I must say that now I don’t miss driving, but it was the most important thing in my life.
Best wishes
carl
In the attached photo of Harry Hawkins driving 367MPT (New at the time) driving over the newly opened Forth Road Bridge. Note the ‘Avant guarde’ audio system with the speaker positioned with precision to obtain optimum volume (Thanks to Eddie Worthington for not only providing the photo, but also taking it almost 50 years ago)
![367%20MPT-Harry%20Hawkins-1963-Eddie%20Worthington[1].jpg](https://europe1.discourse-cdn.com/flex013/uploads/trucknetuk/original/3X/6/b/6bf3bb822b03cb03c50b114d412423c2e73cb233.jpeg)
Hi Eddie, read your post with interest but disappointed that you didn’t remember that as a 16 year old (you may have been 20) I was with you when we delivered the pig to Jewitts Farm at Middlestone in your Austin Westminster 16 NHN. (Am I that memorable?) You were correct that the pig did escape half way up the bank from Chilton to Merrington after it managed to break the boot lock. We had to chase it all over the road before catching and getting it back in the boot with great difficulty but lots of laughter and tied the lid down with the pig squealing all the way to Jewitts where it was to meet an untimely end. It was an hilarious lunchtime on a Saturday and we had just delivered the groceries from Thomson Stores in Chilton and we were doing this as a favour for the manager. We delivered the groceries in the Luton Transit AUP 241F then had to go back to Spennymoor to collect your car.
Carls and your threads are making memorable reading.
Hoping you all have a good New Year. Peter.
pbsummers:
Hi Eddie, read your post with interest but disappointed that you didn’t remember that as a 16 year old (you may have been 20) I was with you when we delivered the pig to Jewitts Farm at Middlestone in your Austin Westminster 16 NHN. (Am I that memorable?) You were correct that the pig did escape half way up the bank from Chilton to Merrington after it managed to break the boot lock. We had to chase it all over the road before catching and getting it back in the boot with great difficulty but lots of laughter and tied the lid down with the pig squealing all the way to Jewitts where it was to meet an untimely end. It was an hilarious lunchtime on a Saturday and we had just delivered the groceries from Thomson Stores in Chilton and we were doing this as a favour for the manager. We delivered the groceries in the Luton Transit AUP 241F then had to go back to Spennymoor to collect your car.
Carls and your threads are making memorable reading.
Hoping you all have a good New Year. Peter.
Thanks Peter,
Hope to read more of your memories
HAPPY new YEAR
carl
Thanks, Peter for mentioning AUP 30CWT luton Transit, I had forgotten about that van and DPT it’s identical sister. Daft as it may seem I can never remember driving them, but I will have done. One thing I can remember was AUP was our first vehicle we fitted reflective plates, supplied by Serk Services.(We hadn’t at that time started making our own number plates) Dad and me had a long discussion because we were allowed to use them or the old black plates. I won and it had reflective plates fitted (They were more expensive) I think they did the van justice as it is hard to believe now but then it was a very modern vehicle, certainly the first Transit Marsden had buit on.
Recently I always thought EUP 488G which was TIR registered was the first van Masden had painted for us,as it had to be painted for photography and registring as TIR, but after Peter has mentioned AUP I seem to think they painted the two transits. Perhaps you, Peter can remember were the two transits painted vy Marsden or supplied in Grey primer and painted at Spennymoor.
