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I didn’t get to the Erith show this year, but Allan sent me a selection of photos of the N gauge exhibits.  So I’ve posted a few of them below.

An old friend to start with, but Graham Bridge’s Southwark Bridge has to come first today.  One of my favourite layouts – railways as I grew up with and still like.

Ray and Anna were exhibiting their newish layout, White Meadow Quarry.  They do know how to make themselves at home at an exhibition.

Scarlington looks a most impressive layout.

Upton Lacey and Hatch End.

Ashenden Junction.

Part of the West Sussex Group’s contribution.

Has Mr Dawes left these two behind?

So, here is the final tranche of photos from Southampton.  A quick look at most of the layouts, and some very good modelling here on the third day of posting, but not the layouts that immediately caught my eye.

It was Dinas Mawddwy’s (EM) first exhibition.  I’ve a soft spot for the Welsh railways before they were spoilt by the GWR…..

Fence Houses NCB (OO) had a good selection of industrial steam on show.

Light railway modelling at Harkness (EM.)  A very good backscene and some interesting wagons here.

Brassingdale (OO) is set in the Peak District.  I liked the breakdown train.

Pencader (EM), a major GWR branch station on the Aberystwyth line.

And, I think, the first N gauge layout, Newvaddon Parkway, set in the modern era.  Nicely done, but I’m beginning to think that modern image N gauge layouts are becoming just like GWR branch line layouts when I was younger (a long time ago).  I’m afraid that they all look the same.

Narrow gauge on Kaninchenbau (HOe)

A pretty little GWR branch line in N.  Penworth copies some of the iconic Pendon buildings in the smaller scale.  Sorry, but more my sort of N gauge layout…..

More N, with Mike Le Marie’s little Scottish layout, Kinlochlaggen.

Foxbury (TT) and clever use of the fiddle yard traverser to keep the compact layout footprint.

Finally, Tittlesworth (OO9.)

Overall, this was an excellent show.  All the modelling was of high standard, and there was a good balance of all action layouts and more bucolic branch lines.  And best of all, I didn’t buy anything (but see below.)

And a final afterword – the college canteen didn’t run out of bacon and Allan and I enjoyed a very nice and quite keenly priced breakfast.

Back today with another selection of excellent layouts from Southampton.

I’ve seen Rossiter Rise before, but I think that the layout has been extended with an underground Underground (so to speak) workshop as in the photos below.  I’ve always liked this layout.  Very compact, with a mixture of London Underground and British Railways suburban trains.  All in a station reminiscent of Baker Street, in a cutting surrounded by grimy blocks of flats.  Of note is the fact that the layout is largely pointless (so to speak) with the only turnouts being in the LUT depot at the front of the layout.  All the platforms go directly into the fiddle yard.

Wimborne (OO) is an excellent representation of Wimborne station,  modified slightly to allow an oval layout into the fiddle yard, but with all the features of the prototype.  This was the busiest station in Dorset, with trains from the LSWR, then Southern Railway, and the Somerset and Dorset Joint.  Now, of course, there’s nothing left.  We did like the accurately scale station buildings, with a couple of old Bere Regis buses in the yard, in their unusual brown livery.  (Seeing one of these was a highlight of the family holiday to Dorset around 1960.)  And plenty of interesting trains passing and shunting the yard.

Just the one picture of Fawley (OO), as I’ve recently featured it on the blog.  But it’s an interesting prototype that’s always worth another look.

Hayling Island (OO), with its Terrier in the station.

Lower Exbury is another old friend, and also always worth another look.  I especially like the dead DUWK and the live cormorant…..

And finally today, Radcliffe Road (O).  Under construction, but I appreciated the Class 73 and the 4-TC unit (actually a 3-TC, to fit it on the layout.)

Final pictures next time.

Was it really 2019 when I last visited the Southampton show, in nearby Eastleigh?  Last Saturday I kept Mr Dawes company as he drove down to the show.  An easy journey, and we even found a nearby parking spot when the college car parks had already filled up.  A cold but sunny day (help, I’m sounding like Ron here) and the birdwatcher in me was pleased to clock Red Kite, Buzzard and Kestrel as we travelled, and best of all, a raven flying over as we queued to get in to the exhibition.

And a very good exhibition it was, too.  A top quality club show, with some excellent layouts, good trade and plenty of society stands, demonstrations, and even some exhibits aimed at the junior member.  Personal favourites could take a few days, but here are four layouts that really impressed.

I’d get in big trouble with the Cha(i)rman if I didn’t put this layout first…..  As an ex-milkman, Express Dairsy Sidings (EM) was unbeatable.  A 4′ long ‘Inglenook Sidings’ shunting puzzle, it was built during lockdown (like quite a few small layouts.)  This little layout is full of character, and we (and anyone else) were offered a chance to take on a little shunting.

From a tiny to a large layout.  Eastwood (P4) is a lovely layout, based on a real station near Hebden Bridge in West Yorkshire.  Modelled in Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway days after the Great War (the station closed in 1951 and little of the site remains today), it offers an uncluttered view of trains passing through the landscape.  I think this probably was my favourite layout on the day.

Let’s go back from large to small.  I was rather taken by Melin Dorhyd (OO9), even if I couldn’t pronounce it.  Modelled on a real location on the Welshpool & Llanfair Railway, it’s another great (if very much smaller) spot to watch the trains go by.  An you’ll note that it has no points at all ‘out front’ – what could possibly go wrong?

And going back up in size, if not scale, we have Portsea (TT).  Portsea has been around a long time, but looks as if it has been ‘refreshed’ and new detail and bits added.  It models the Portsmouth area in British Railways days, and I particularly enjoyed the procession of Southern EMUs (and the occasional DEMU and DMU.)

More next time.