The Biggest Little Railway in the World

Papyrus · January 06, 2018, 03:05:31 PM

Can't see that anyone else has flagged this up...

Sunday 7th January, Channel 4, 8pm. First of a series of 5 on an attempt to build the longest model railway in the world - 71 miles from coast to coast in Scotland! Probably the 'wrong' scale, but what the heck, it sounds completely barmy and just up my street.

Cheers,

Chris

Yet_Another · January 06, 2018, 03:15:40 PM

See also:

http://www.ngaugeforum.co.uk/SMFN/index.php?topic=36670.msg482441#msg482441

and

http://www.ngaugeforum.co.uk/SMFN/index.php?topic=39834.0

Papyrus · January 06, 2018, 03:29:25 PM

Damn! Yes, sorry for the duplication, guys. My excuse is that nothing came up when I searched the title, and how was I to know one thread was entitled 'The Great Glen' !!

Chris

Yet_Another · January 06, 2018, 03:52:43 PM

No criticism intended, I just remembered this being mentioned earlier

Newportnobby · January 06, 2018, 03:59:17 PM

There's a write up about it on page 10 of the Daily Fail 'Weekend' supplement

MalcolmInN · January 06, 2018, 04:39:03 PM

Quote from: Papyrus on January 06, 2018, 03:05:31 PMSunday 7th January, Channel 4, 8pm.

Thanks for the reminder, I'd forgotten that it was due.

I am pleased to be able to report that there is nowt else on the box to clash at that time !
Children have been programmed to remind me and wife as well, also set an alarm on my phone so with a bit of luck , , ,

Buffin · January 07, 2018, 07:58:33 AM

And it's in The Times (though behind a paywall)

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/model-railway-enthusiasts-build-line-along-the-great-glen-way-w7kdp6tgz

The paper calls the hobby unfashionable (have they seen our N Gauge Show pictures?) and then adds

QuoteSurveys suggest that building model railways remains the second most popular hobby in Britain, behind angling.

and later

QuoteFor a hobby dismissed as the preserve of old men in their attics, model trains have a rockstar following.

Rod Stewart The 72-year-old has spent years assembling tracks at the top of his house. "Every three years Model Railroader magazine puts me on their cover, which is better than Rolling Stone," he once said.

Roger Daltrey the lead singer of The Who, 73, constructed a 45ft by 25ft display in his attic.

Neil Young The Canadian folk rock singer, 72, recently sold his extensive collection of model trains for $300,000 (£220,000) at auction. Other noted toy train enthusiasts include Eric Clapton and Phil Collins.

daveg · January 07, 2018, 08:12:39 AM

'Toy trains'

How dare they!

Dave G

Calnefoxile · January 07, 2018, 12:04:56 PM

Sky Box duly programmed to record

Cheers

Neal.

first timer · January 07, 2018, 02:24:12 PM

Me to:- going to record all 5 episodes and then watch them all together.

Les H.

MalcolmInN · January 09, 2018, 12:49:58 AM

Does the lack of followup in this topic mean that you were all as underwhelmed as I was ? !

Bring back James May,
at least we would have had a giggle as well, at the upsets, without the interpersonal angst

There is a Scots (lowland) word that sums up my impression of the presentation :- "dour"

There was a sad lack of humour

daveg · January 09, 2018, 06:32:41 AM

I agree with the lack of fun (and Mr May) but hoping that the teams get more enjoyment out of the task now they have their 'knees brown' if you get my meaning.

I shall watch the next episode with interest but it does seem there wasn't that much pre-planning of the greater challenges such as the canal crossing.

Still, a bit of something different from the tedious round of quizzes, antique shows and cooking on the TV.

Dave G

CliveH · January 09, 2018, 07:30:17 AM

Quote from: MalcolmAL on January 09, 2018, 12:49:58 AM
Does the lack of followup in this topic mean that you were all as underwhelmed as I was ? !

Absolutely!
Short on technical detail - long on fake shambolics and pseudo 'personal journeys'.
I suppose they had to try to avoid comparison with May (difficult considering the subject they'd been given) and of the alternatives available, went for the frothy, substance free presentation style.
It doesn't bode well for the future episodes that by the end of the first one they felt the need to drop a quad bike in a river as an attention seeking device.
Cheers

emjaybee · January 09, 2018, 09:01:26 AM

Underwhelmed...

...I'm not sure I found it THAT exciting.

I felt that custom extruded plastic track with a rubber grip strip on top wasn't really in the spirit of building a 'Model railway'. Whilst a number of the volunteers seemed to want to go for a real-life method of getting a train on a boat, I thought it a bit petulant for one of the project leaders to have a minor tantrum and insist on a derek. Did any regular rail service ANYWHERE in the world use a derek to load trains?

As for the single span bridge of the canal? That had fail written all over it from the start, there's a reason rail bridges don't look like that in real life.

I'm really hoping that it improves so the general populous don't look at railway modellers even more like grumpy oddballs.

daffy · January 09, 2018, 09:45:25 AM

Just started to watch this....

Of dear! Why, oh why, oh why do program makers have to persist with showing 'coming up' scenes from an entire series at the start of the first episode?

Do they think we might like to know what happens, in the manner of news on TV these days that use a similar style: "The PM will say later today......" , or "so-and-so will visit such and such and is expected to say.....".

So having seen a little loco on a bridge, steaming here and there through town and country, and assorted folks running alongside (astride?) the loco and whooping and voicing the usual portents of doom, with added jeopardy, is there any point in continuing to watch?

I shall persist, and will probably enjoy it one way or another, but it would be nice to be kept in suspense throughout. After all, if I read a book or see a film I don't expect to read/see a synopsis in the first five pages/five minutes.