Mrs M and I have just watched tonight's Marvin Gaye prom, wow absolutely superb, fabulous singers, conductor and the BBC Concert Orchestra/audience thoroughly enjoying themselves - a 10/10 from us!

I am afraid the other cross-over proms we have seen this season have been a bit hit and miss:

Prog Rock Prom 4/10 - had a few good moments but as Mick @Newportnobby said disappointing.
Graceland (Paul Simon) 6/10 - spoilt by some poor choices of singers, James Bay really...
Miles Davis, 7/10 - not heard of the soloist, played well but he lacked stage presence; however, I quite enjoyed it on the whole - not really for everyone.
Sci-Fi music 8/10 - a mash up from the archives but enjoyable.

Next Saturday is Bond themes...

Tim
 

So far I've watched the Prog Rock prom, the Spanish night prom and the Space/Star Wars prom. Apart from the first one (which in my opinion was pretty dire), I've really enjoyed them

BBC Proms 2026, not totally classical music but a marvellous collection of musical performances from a wide range of genres. So far I've really enjoyed the youth orchestra playing Berlioz, Evelyn Glennie percussion, Black Dyke band and evening of Miles Davies, another of choral music and orchestral pieces that were a first like Shostakovich 10th symphony written under the Stalin area and first heard in 1953.
The performances will stay live on BBC sounds app for a couple of months so I would urge you to scan the list and try a few. The app will allow you to 'hunt' forwards or backwards to pick a track.
 Tonight Sat 22/08 it's a few 'American Songbook' peaces with Angel Blue as soloist then a Dvorak symphony.

38 Special. I have their Greatest Hits album and none of them are iffy.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTK7fIgoVn8

@Skyline2uk

Yes that is a really good video - seen it before, the author has made a lot of top quality content

Thanks for sharing it though as I'm going to watch it again

An unusual acquisition by the Ashton branch of the MET. What were the directors thinking! Did they confuse cute with functional?

The sight of it caused various "comments" from the crews. It will probably be converted to a saddle tank, much like the Kitson supplied MET locos, and then painted in a proper colour, MET Midcared, but, until then, it will wobble a little, up and down the track as it is. Does those number plates need a rotation? No, it's 71, not 12! (And I have recently been to Specsavers!)

Many thanks to Osborns Models for getting it to me so quickly.






Mark

@GWR_XC (and anybody else who is interested), here is an excellent YouTube video that I used a lot for reference when finishing my model:

https://youtu.be/KaCVtZNXJJI?is=kxXouse77YkwGX3O

Skyline2uk

Yes I agree the white style nse livery looks nice on the emus & dmu especially the class 159

Pity you didn't get to travel on a 442, use to like the center coach where the guard compartment was as next to it was the smoking area and had really cool seating arrangement the train was just so cool & sadly missed

Quote from: GWR_XC on August 21, 2026, 09:26:08 PM@Skyline2uk

Great job on the 442 looks fantastic

The 442 in nse livery just looks so good, did you ever go on the real life 442?

Very kind of you to say, I always liked the "White" style of NSE livery on the DMUs / EMUs of the time.

Sadly I never did go on the 442s myself, but witnessed many of them at full tilt as well as leaving and arriving at Waterloo.

Skyline2uk

@Skyline2uk

Great job on the 442 looks fantastic

The 442 in nse livery just looks so good, did you ever go on the real life 442?