MarkyP

An extrordinary discovery! A completely unique Bushells built London Canal Tug still afloat.... This boat deserves to be looked after properly. London Canal Museum?

I was the person the BBC contacted and asked to talk about the "boat graveyard" at Harefield. I took the view that all publicity is good publicity, and it was great that the Beeb felt there was an appetite for a canal history programme. Prime time on the BBC is a great spot for viewer numbers but its not the time when an in depth programme would get aired. The coverage by Gogglebox was probably the level Sat Night TV is aimed at http://www.channel4.com/programmes/gogglebox/on-demand/.... The BBC team doing the research and recording were genuinely really interested in the site and whole local story - from the first "Bricks by Boat"chapter (as featured in the latest Narrowboat mag), to the final chapter and the boats sinking in the Colne Valley gravel pits. I was supposed to be advising the crew behind the camera, so rocked up unshaven and in scruffy togs. I ended up being interviewed by Mary Ann Ochota in front of the camera, so all a bit impromptu... Having to say the same thing over and over as they filmed from different angles wasn't the easiest thing for my brain to cope with! Anyway, the main thing from my perspective is that the Harefield filming "made the cut", and so got some great airtime. The BBC were genuinely interested in the site and the story, and I spent a nice amount of time with Mary Ann, showing her other boat remnants off camera too. So, we have gained some good allies and the possibility of expanding on the story in the future.

Many thanks Ronald. Great resource!

Many thanks Ian - perfect. Many thanks Ronald. Yes, got some of the plans and can see others on CRT Archive. Needed to see the sweep and twist in the swim - nothing like a photo sometimes...

Hi, does anyone have a photo of the back end of a Large Northwich which clearly shows swim and counter area that they could post?

Proud to have been a very small part of it and to have had the opportunity to work with you. From hacking around the back streets of the Black Country, making chimneys & firing up a Ruston engine to make smoke rings on stand at the NEC - different times & great memories. Glad you are scanning in some of the older docs - is there a Black Country industry heritage project that might appreciate some of the bits you have?

A BCN (or other area/topic) Pinterest Board could be an interesting H&H group project ... Multiple editors on group boards can easily be set up if desired....

No probs re PYTHON pics - glad they're of interest. Yes,,,, Pinterest can (has) become quite addictive!

No probs Derek. My plan was to use Pinterest to collate applicable images found on other websites, using the Pinterest feature that allows direct access to the original image. Due to the way some websites are formatted, I was unable to include a link to the relevant full webpage and had to use the image location as the link to allow inclusion in the board. The image captions haven't been gone through yet - most automatically utilise the caption used on the original website. I'm hoping to add geographic locations to each pic soon too. If anyone is aware of additional suitable pics on other websites, please post the links. Mark

Yes, very little collated info regards the boats and trades around London's Waterways. I've spent a fair bit of time scratching around gathering various pieces of info, and know there's some on CWDF who also have done their own research. Here's a few photos, drifting off your original specific topic question's, but which might be of interest: Here's BEN MACDHUI at Paddington during A40 extension works in 1967. By 1970, this boat was being used as a base for kid's summer activities by Beaucamp Lodge (moored about where the trendy coffee shops are now located at Paddington basin arm entrance). Here's a photo of VICTOR in 1969, also on A40 extension works, at Harrow Road bridge. Courtesy of the Mary Evans picture library (www.maryevans.com), here's a photo of VICTOR with TOPAZ around 25 years earlier at Brentford: Is there another fleet of craft, which were given "colours" as names, or maybe there's a link with boat names beginning with "V"? Here's a photo of VIOLET at Ware: Also courtesy of the Mary Evans picture library (www.maryevans.com), here's an interesting photo, taken on the Thames in London, of BILL & CORAL, which seem to be GU or R.Wey style Wideboats. Anyone got any information on these craft?: Hope of interest. Mark

Be great to see them on a model railway. Usual stuff seen is pretty much always rubbish. A group from RM WEB forum are modelling the BCN - they will need a BCN Joey or two I'm sure!

Do you have any pics of the BCN Joey, Laurence? Did you ever paint them for customers?

On the subject of size.... pics of cans on London-based short haul H.Sabey &Co Ltd craft look like they may have used smaller cans... WB PHOENIX

Haha - yes forgotten about the plan to get down the old arm.... Good to hear from you too - many thanks for this information. Looking at an early pic of Fastnet and what looks like a two colour cabin side, I wonder if the Green/Red/White livery was once used on the tugs also?... Will have to have another look at the other pics...