Then and Now
A photographic reflection of changes through the years

Some things change over the years - often unrecognisably. But some views just seem unchanged with the passage of time. 

This page takes some of my pictures from the 1960's and 70's and compares them with recent images.

Below are links to Then and Now special articles looking back at Southern steam in 1966, 50 years on.

Dorset Belle revisited - retracing part of the route of the LCGB rail tour on the 27 February 1966
Eastleigh - revisiting Eastleigh station and works
Devonshire Rambler - retracing part of the tour route from Waterloo and Exeter
Summer 1966 - Southern steam in Dorset and Hampshire in August 1966
Farnborough Flyer - Flying Scotsman's visit to Hampshire in September 1966 
Isle of Wight - Revisiting the island 50 years after steam ended in 1966
The Shakespearian Rail Tour - a review of the 1966 "Shakespearian" Rail Tour and this years Vintage Train's "Pannier Rambler" Rail Tour both taking place on 12 November but 50 years apart. 

The first picture shows West Country class locomotive 34048 "Crediton" with the 10.30am train to Weymouth in July 1965. Whilst quite clean (you could see it was green), the name plates and front number had been removed. One of the electric lights (on the right hand smoke deflector) had also been removed.

Move forward to September 2014 and we have a similar engine waiting departure from Waterloo. The engine is 34046 "Braunton" with a UK Railtours excursion to Salisbury. Apart from the immaculate condition of the engine, there are other differences. The train shed was significantly cleaner than in 1965. I understand the roof had been recently reglazed. The platform canopies had been replaced and generally the station has a clinical feel to it. Is Waterloo Station in 2014 a better place? It is certainly cleaner and there is a lot less clutter on the concourse but it still is a very busy station.

The Routemaster bus (RM) served London for over 50 years. The last route to use the RM bus in normal service was the 159 from Hyde Park to Streatham. This route succumbed to more modern (and accessible) buses on Friday the 9 December 2005. A normal service was run during the morning with the new buses taking over during the afternoon. The final bus attracted a lot of media attention and a huge crowd at Brixton Garage.

Ten years on, a service of preserved RM's operated (alongside the normal service) which enabled some 'then and now' pictures.

Ironically the following weekend saw the introduction of 'Boris Buses' on this route complete with conductors and the open platform. What goes around comes around!

The top pair of pictures feature RM875 (left) in 2005 and RML2278 in 2015. The location is Kennington Road. The pictures were taken 10 years and 3 hours apart.

The bottom pair feature RM5 and RML2278 on Kennington Road. RM5 was the penultimate departure from Hyde Park in 2005 but went on to be the last RM in service. Unlike the celebrity final bus which ended it's journey at Brixton, RM5 continued to Streatham Station.

This pair of pictures were taken 10 years 1 hour and 20 minutes apart!