Today's speaker was Granville Dobson who spoke on "Old Flames" and his often humorous experiences and memories of his life as a fireman working on steam trains. Following his call up to the army he applied for and started as a cleaner in 1953 much to the disappointment of his parents. He was then based at Lowmoor sheds near Bradford, he progressed and passed his Fireman exams.
Granville then described the many characters and near misses he had on the footplate. For example, a 1,000-ton freight train travelling at 15 mph towards a crossing at the same time as a passenger train. As he passed the signal box on the other side of the crossing, he saw the signalman wiping the sweat from his brow. He had spotted the impending disaster and halted the other train just in time.
Granville ended by answering a number of questions from members.