In this week's #RailNatter I'm very pleased to say we will be joined by the electrifying Garry Keenor (@25kV on Twitter)! In Episode 22, we'll be talking about all things OLE (OCS if you're elsewhere in the world)... Given that national electrification was suggested seriously back in the 1910s, how on earth can we finally get Britain to #ElectrifyAllTheThings , over a century later? Join us LIVE to ask all of your electrification questions! Enjoyed this? Please do consider supporting me at patre...
Aug 12, 2020•1 hr 31 min•Ep. 23
Episode 21 of #RailNatter is being hijacked as a #NotAMetro soapbox! This is one of my all-time bug-bears: what is and is not a “metro”, and why the UK in particular is fixated on calling tram systems “metros” despite them being a long way short of that. But where does the line sit? Is the DLR a metro? Is the Tyne and Wear Metro a metro? Is Thameslink a metro? Watch to see as I try to create the definitive categorisation system for railways!...
Aug 05, 2020•1 hr 17 min•Ep. 22
Episode 20 of #RailNatter is going to be an hour of me making a rod for my own back, no doubt... Why? Because I am going to make my proposal for what the organisational structure of Britain's railways should look like! Do I want a return to Grouping? Sectorised BR? The Japanese model? Tune in to find out! (Here's Alasdair Rae's CityMetric piece explaining his Federal England map: https://www.citymetric.com/politics/w... ) Enjoyed this? Please do consider supporting #RailNatter at patreon.com/gar...
Jul 29, 2020•1 hr 24 min•Ep. 21
We're LIVE again for Episode 19 of #RailNatter , and I am very pleased to say we'll have the brilliant Lucy Prior MBE joining us to talk about STEM... or is that STEAM? Science, Technology, Engineering, ARTS and Mathematics: Are we broadening the description too much, or are we just acknowledging that engineering is as creative as it is technical? This is the subject that got the two of us together in person for the first time, though in true me style we never ended up actually talking about it....
Jul 22, 2020•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 20
Morpeth Curve - a ridiculous kink in Britain's 125mph East Coast Main Line that has tipped more than one train into the adjacent housing estate... In this week's #RailNatter , I'll be postulating on why it exists, looking at what we might do about it, and thinking on the tragedy and comedy of successive derailments in this small Northumbrian town. I'm away for this one... But through the wonders of modern technology, you can still join this episode at 7pm and chat away LIVE (ish)! Enjoyed this? ...
Jul 15, 2020•30 min•Ep. 19
Seeing as trans-Pennine infrastructure was in the news recently, this week's #RailNatter is going to cover THE WOODHEAD ROUTE and why "reopening" it is an idea beloved by nostalgists that isn't rooted in reality. Join me to tell me why I'm wrong - and it's just me this week, so we'll be doing a lot of nattering, no doubt! Enjoyed this? Please do consider supporting #RailNatter at patreon.com/garethdennis or throw loose change at me via paypal.me/garethdennis. Join in the discussion at garethdenn...
Jul 08, 2020•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 18
In this week's #RailNatter , Andrew White is joining us to talk about a topic close to our hearts, but perhaps from an unusual angle... What are the BENEFITS of closing railway lines? Are there any? Are we doing the work of the devil in even talking about closing railways? Join us LIVE to get involved and tell us what you think! Check out Walks Around Britain at their website: walksaroundbritain.co.uk Enjoyed this? Please do consider supporting #RailNatter at patreon.com/garethdennis or throw lo...
Jul 01, 2020•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 17
In this week's #RailNatter , we're diving underneath London again and looking at one of my favourite transportation art projects... Art on the Underground. And we are being joined by signaller and all-round urban transit buff Charlotte Monroe (@BeingCharley on Twitter) who is going to tell us all about it! Enjoyed this? Please do consider supporting #RailNatter at patreon.com/garethdennis or throw loose change at me via paypal.me/garethdennis. Join in the discussion at garethdennis.co.uk/discord...
Jun 24, 2020•1 hr 53 min•Ep. 16
This week, I'm delighted to welcome Prab onto #RailNatter ! In Episode 14, we'll be talking about carbon emissions in construction... How do you calculate them? How do you reduce them? Are we doing enough? Is concrete evil? We'll also touch on the experiences of entering and thriving in the rail industry as someone who doesn't fit within the "prevailing engineering demographic". Circular Ecology Website (the Inventory of Carbon and Energy can be downloaded from here): https://circularecology.com...
Jun 17, 2020•1 hr 16 min•Ep. 15
We've got Geoff Marshall on! I'm delighted to say that Geoff is going to be joining us to talk about all things Underground (that's with a capital U)... Episode 13 of #RailNatter (our fourteenth episode, so hopefully things will run smoother than last time) will take us on a tour of London's subterranean railway network! Enjoyed this? Please do consider supporting #RailNatter at patreon.com/garethdennis or throw loose change at me via paypal.me/garethdennis. Join in the discussion at garethdenni...
Jun 10, 2020•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 14
Well, it has finally happened. We are talking about Beeching. In Episode 12 of #RailNatter , we are unpicking the mythos of Beeching, helped by the historical handiwork of Dr David Turner, who is back for his second appearance (which I think makes him a "friend of the show"). Was Beeching the harbinger of railway destruction? Should we reverse Beeching? What does that actually mean? Was Beeching good or bad? Was there more going on? What would the railways look like today if Beeching hadn't happ...
Jun 03, 2020•1 hr 27 min•Ep. 12
You've all been asking me for it, so here it is: the (first) signalling episode! Melanie Osborne is joining us for Episode 11 of #RailNatter , and she's going to be telling us all how to get trains from A to B without bumping into things. Why are train traffic lights upside down? What is semaphore? Who is Balise? All questions we may or may not answer in varying degrees of detail - in all seriousness, we're all going to be learning a lot in this one! Enjoyed this? Please do consider supporting #...
May 27, 2020•1 hr 36 min•Ep. 12
This week's #RailNatter is like a Harry Hill fight between British small talk topics... In Episode 10 (we've reached double figures!), meteorologist and thinly-veiled bahnnerd Alex Priestley will be talking about how weather is a constant challenge to railways, and how climate change is making it worse. We'll sail through a few of the big hitters (Dawlish as a biggie) and might also mention a few tales you might not have heard of. Enjoyed this? Please do consider supporting #RailNatter at patreo...
May 20, 2020•1 hr 36 min•Ep. 11
I'm pleased to say we've been joined by the brilliant Jonn Elledge (@JonnElledge on twitter) for this week's #RailNatter ! In Episode 9, Jonn is going to guide us through his Official and Objective Ranking of London Terminals™ - who knows what other tidbits we'll stumble upon? Jonn's original piece in CityMetric is here: https://www.citymetric.com/transport/... Enjoyed this? Please do consider supporting #RailNatter at patreon.com/garethdennis or throw loose change at me via paypal.me/garethdenn...
May 15, 2020•1 hr 36 min•Ep. 10
It's time to slow things down a bit for Episode 8... This week's #RailNatter is going to be a leisurely stroll through the story of the Forth Bridge, warts and all (who am I kidding, there are no warts, this thing is the greatest structure humankind has ever created). Without 200 slides to hammer through this one will be much more of a natter, so do check in live to get involved and share your stories! My Medium piece on the Forth Bridge is here: https://medium.com/@garethdennis/the-... Enjoyed ...
May 06, 2020•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 9
We're onto Episode 7 of #RailNatter , and I'm very pleased to say that Britain's most effervescent ferroequinologist Tim Dunn is joining us to talk about his new TV show: The Architecture the Railways Built... #RailwayArchitecture started this week on UKTV Yesterday, and you can see it at 20:00 (UK time) on Tuesday evenings! What is the show about? Where will Tim end up? What's in store for us over the coming weeks? Tune in to find out and ask us your questions... More info about Tim's show here...
Apr 29, 2020•1 hr 28 min•Ep. 8
It's Episode 6 of #RailNatter , and this time we're doing a bit of alternate history... On the APT! What might Britain's railways have looked like if the Advanced Passenger Train project had succeeded? What small changes might have resulted in that happening? Would there have been any downsides? What would the trains be doing now? We'll dig into all of this, and more! Link to the Hornby/Hitachi NHS competition: https://www.hornby.com/uk-en/nhs-comp Enjoyed this? Please do consider supporting #Ra...
Apr 22, 2020•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 7
Here is this week's #RailNatter ... In Episode 5 we are talking about BEER and everything Dr David Turner and I can think of that connects this fine drink with the railways! We cover the complex relationship between supply chains and railways, hint at why Beeching wasn't the baddie everyone says he is (oooooh), talk about Burton quite a lot, and imbibe a few ales in the process! Enjoyed this? Please do consider supporting #RailNatter at patreon.com/garethdennis or throw loose change at me via pa...
Apr 15, 2020•1 hr 18 min•Ep. 6
Here is this week's #RailNatter ... In Episode 4 we are talking about all things hydrogen with (I'm pleased to say) Alstom's Mike Muldoon! Are hydrogen trains a good idea? What is the hydrogen economy? Are battery trains better? All is answered here! Enjoyed this? Please do consider supporting me at patreon.com/garethdennis or throw loose change at me via paypal.me/garethdennis.
Apr 08, 2020•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 5
Here is this week's #RailNatter ... In Episode 3 we are talking about "Rail over the Pennines" and all that entails (amongst other things)! How many lines crossed the Pennine watershed in the past, and how many do now? How many lines are electrified? How does trans-Pennine railway history compare with the Scottish Central Belt? We cover it all here! Link to the episode of Well There's Your Problem that I guested on: https://youtu.be/38-MKEap0AQ Enjoyed this? Please do consider supporting #RailNa...
Apr 01, 2020•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 4
It's time for Episode 2 of #RailNatter , and this time we're talking about the Class 158 Express Sprinters... and the history of Sprinter trains/British Rail Diesel Multiple Units (DMUs) more generally! Enjoyed this? Please do consider supporting #RailNatter at patreon.com/garethdennis or throw loose change at me via paypal.me/garethdennis. Join in the discussion at garethdennis.co.uk/discord....
Mar 25, 2020•59 min•Ep. 3
This week we're looking at the list of rail pinch points that I (mostly) came up with and featured in Channel 4's Dispatches on Monday! Head to the map of pinch points here: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1Emq... Enjoyed this? Please do consider supporting #RailNatter at patreon.com/garethdennis or throw loose change at me via paypal.me/garethdennis. Join in the discussion at garethdennis.co.uk/discord....
Mar 18, 2020•59 min•Ep. 2
As a trial run for the proper #RailNatter series, I did a live Periscope Q&A on High Speed 2 and answered as many questions as I could in an hour... Now it's here for you to re-watch! Enjoyed this? Please do consider supporting #RailNatter at patreon.com/garethdennis or throw loose change at me via paypal.me/garethdennis. Join in the discussion at garethdennis.co.uk/discord....
Mar 11, 2020•58 min•Ep. 1
