SHOW TRAIN

Series

Series Name: Mining Review 15th Year

Issue

Issue No.

Date Released

Jun 1962

Stories in this Issue:

Story

Story No. within this Issue

1 / 3

Summary

BFI synopsis: Lord Robens, Chairman of the N.C.B., and Dr. Beeching, Chairman of the British Transport Commission, officially open the "Cosy Home Show Train" at Victoria Station, London
NCB Commentary - Victoria Station, London and on Platform Number Two is the ‘Cosy Home Train’, which will tour the country to demonstrate solid fuel heating appliances.
To see it off came Lord Robens and Dr. Beeching (in the hat), the chairmen of our two leading nationalised industries.
The gleaming white coaches have retractable entrance steps built on aircraft principles. They will be staffed by technical experts and demonstrators.
The railways, of course, are large customers of the Coal Board for their locomotives and generating stations and, in addition, they move one hundred and fifty million tons of solid fuel a year - so this was indeed a joint venture.
'Cosy’ had been given his own special train and all he did in thanks was to try and trip up the chairman of the Transport Commission. But Dr. Beeching bore no ill-will and, with Lord Robens, played guard for the occasion.
The train will travel sixteen thousand miles giving the people of twenty-five towns and cities a chance of studying the latest trends in heating techniques. One coal held examples of partial central heating systems - another the more complete type.
The tour, which was to last for thirteen weeks, brought a first-class exhibition to the people, and, to explain everything, there was a team of six informed demonstrators. ‘Cosy’ was going his best to make the British people cosy and doing it very well indeed.

Researcher Comments

Commentary recorded at Kays Carlton Hill on 7th May 1962.

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