Engine Punk

Podgy- our old school bus - was 848 BOR, a Thames Duple Yeoman coach built in 1961. Here it is seen at Truro in August 1974 (Photo: Brian Botley) By the power of the internet I have received this image of Podgy. A very good friend of mine Peter Yarlett, Professor Emeritus in Ferro-Equinology at the University of Andover (and chair of the Faculty of Yeast Culture) is not only interested in steaming leviathans, as you might have guessed from his distinguished title, but also classic buses. He sent me a link to a well-known internet auction site that advertised a black and white photo of 848BOR when owned by Creamline Coaches of Bordon, long before this fine example of a Thames Duple Yeoman ever came west and carried spotty, snotty school children to Goonhavern County Primary. The auction had long since closed but undeterred I contacted the seller and explained my interest. Unfortunately, that image had sold and was no longer available but after he'd read my blog he got back ...

The other day my sister mentioned our old school bus, a two tone blue coach (coaches being more luxurious than buses) run by Mitchell's of Perranporth. This was while I attended Goonhavern Country Primary school from 1969 to 1974. A torrent of fond memories followed and I took to wondering whatever happened to this old bus. At first sight this could have been Podgy's twin. I was intrigued to see that this coach has a Cornish registration number although Podgy definitely different (photo: Wikimedia) We called our bus Podgy and I'd seen similar coaches over the years. Everything pointed  to Podgy being a Bedford SB Duple Super Vega, one of the most stylish coaches made during the fifties and early sixties. I began to search the internet for information and was delighted to find loads of images on Flickr. Some pictures were historical while others showed present day survivors, beautifully restored in preservation. And there are still some mouldering round the pa...