The Bristol Railway Archive

Although I have lived in Bath since 1963, back on new years eve for 1961/2 I lived in Truro and can remember the locos on
shed sounding their whistles to bring in the new year. Did any local sheds do this?
Finally, I wish all members a healthy and safe 2011.
Rog.(The Wheeltapper)

I was on the royal edward pilot when midnight struck and all hell let loose with ships sirens any loco near by that was in 1950 it happened every year

I don't know about "rituals" as such, but I was on early turn in Bath Road Time Office on New Years Day 1972 (New Years Day wasn't a Bank Holiday in those days).

At the time I was living in a shared house in Totterdown - all the rest there were Rolls Royce apprentices - and they were making so much bleedin' noise with their New Year celebrations that I went to work at 0100 and got my head down for 5 hours in an empty office

I recall one New Year's Eve in the mid-eighties when I was a freight guard at Bath Road. All those of us who were on duty climbed into cabs for the magic hour and kept most of Bristol awake with two-tone horn-blowing for several minutes. We'd probably have been sacked for doing it these days