Now I am in reflective mood, and that reflection has been partly brought on by a trawl of Dad’s old photographs.
This is one of the coaches he would have driven sometime in the 1930s, before he upsticked from Gateshead and made his way south to begin a long and happy career driving for Glenton Tours.*
I grew up with the idea that many people would spend their holidays on coach seeing trips, which in the days before cheap flights, TV documentaries, and online pictures, were the way to see Britain and the Continent.
Today, we can be a bit sniffy of the all in one trip that over 7 days could take you to a series of historic and scenic spots, with meals and accommodation as part of the package, and if we want be particularly snooty lead to the observation, “if it’s Tuesday its Belgium and if its Wednesday it might be Italy”, and that equally silly warning, “don’t turn away from the coach window or you’ll miss Luxembourg”.
But for lots of people either side of the last world war, that was how you saw these places.
And that was how Dad made his living.
From Easter through to September we would see him for a few hours, in the time after he dropped the coach off at the garage and before he was up in the morning for another tour. And for most of his career that took him abroad on seven, twelve or fifteen day trips, reaching as far as the Italian Lakes, Venice and Genoa
But he had begun his career in the north east, driving for several companies including the coach of Calley’s Motor Services.
And when he began working for Glenton Tours of south east London in the mid-1930s, this also would have been the type of coach he drove.
A model of one such coach had been in the window of Glenton’s in New Cross until the early 1950s, when it was replaced by a more modern version and by degree it ended up with me, who sadly wrecked it.
In my defence I would have been no more than about seven or eight and treated it as a knock about toy.
That said it was sturdy enough to have survived into the 1960s, minus much of its fine detail.
But enough of such personal memories, and back to the coach, and in particular the interior, with its plush seating, ornate lights and that wonderful slide back roof, which on warm summer days must have been magic.
In time I will go looking for Calley’s Motor Services and cross check it against the companies that gave dad a testimonial.
But for now, I shall just leave it at that.
Location; the North East
Pictures; coach travel circa 1930s, from the collection of Andrew Simpson
*Glenton Tours, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/search/label/Glenton%20Tours
I grew up with the idea that many people would spend their holidays on coach seeing trips, which in the days before cheap flights, TV documentaries, and online pictures, were the way to see Britain and the Continent.
Today, we can be a bit sniffy of the all in one trip that over 7 days could take you to a series of historic and scenic spots, with meals and accommodation as part of the package, and if we want be particularly snooty lead to the observation, “if it’s Tuesday its Belgium and if its Wednesday it might be Italy”, and that equally silly warning, “don’t turn away from the coach window or you’ll miss Luxembourg”.
But for lots of people either side of the last world war, that was how you saw these places.
And that was how Dad made his living.
From Easter through to September we would see him for a few hours, in the time after he dropped the coach off at the garage and before he was up in the morning for another tour. And for most of his career that took him abroad on seven, twelve or fifteen day trips, reaching as far as the Italian Lakes, Venice and Genoa
But he had begun his career in the north east, driving for several companies including the coach of Calley’s Motor Services.
And when he began working for Glenton Tours of south east London in the mid-1930s, this also would have been the type of coach he drove.
A model of one such coach had been in the window of Glenton’s in New Cross until the early 1950s, when it was replaced by a more modern version and by degree it ended up with me, who sadly wrecked it.
That said it was sturdy enough to have survived into the 1960s, minus much of its fine detail.
But enough of such personal memories, and back to the coach, and in particular the interior, with its plush seating, ornate lights and that wonderful slide back roof, which on warm summer days must have been magic.
In time I will go looking for Calley’s Motor Services and cross check it against the companies that gave dad a testimonial.
But for now, I shall just leave it at that.
Location; the North East
Pictures; coach travel circa 1930s, from the collection of Andrew Simpson
*Glenton Tours, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/search/label/Glenton%20Tours
Galley's of Newcastle, who later became associated with Armstrong of Westerhope, both of whom were purchased by the Tyne and Wear PTE inthe early 1970s. The coach is a Morris-Commercial Dictator with coachwork which appears to be by Duple.
ReplyDeleteThank you Stephen.
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