Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[PAUL BEAUMONT]

I too shared the general thought that this might well be later than advertised in the opening clip, but to comment on Jim's point, the Bradford was introduced in 1946, but it bore remarkable similarity to the immediate pre-war Jowett van, certainly in the areas shown in the clip. However a Jowett van trademark was the oval rear door windows. The van in the clip seems to have square ones, so I suspect that it is not a Jowett.
That said, I still feel that this is later than advertised!

Paul

[pigtin]

The white on the rear mudguards of the bicycles may be significant. Was this brought in to make them more visible in the blackout? If that is the case it is strange that all the cycles seem to have white on the rear of the mudguards as early as August that year?
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Due to the onset of my mid eighties I'm no longer sprightly and rarely seen in my Austin special. I have written a book though. https://amzn.eu/d/7rwRRqL

[Jim.Walker]

It seems my comment about the Norman Cross was a red herring. I found reference to it on Wikipedia. Very interesting too, but it has no relevance here! It seems it was the site of a huge prison for captured Napoleonic Troops. And I thought, with an eagle on top and with so many aerodromes around it had to be some sort of RAF monument. Of course the eagle was Napoleon's Emblem.

Ah well, back to school! Do you think I would look out of place at over 70?

Jim.
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Quote from my late Dad:- You only need a woman and a car and you have all the problems you
are ever likely to want". Computers had not been invented then!

[47Jag]

Jim,

Go for it. My mother went back to school to take Higher English at the age of 75. She was in one of my niece's class.

Art

[Penman]

Hi
Just had another look
There is a banner above the road near the traffic lights "??????/ARP Offices" but then ARP as an organisation started up in 1924,
but nobody seems to be carrying Gas Mask cases.
Generally gas masks were issued before the war with instructions to carry them at all time after the outbreak.
Fuel rationing started in late '39 and the number of vehicles seems to rather too high for essential transport.
Road signs were removed straight after Dunkirk but they are still up on the film in fact I saw a couple of what looked like AA special event signs in Biggleswade.
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Bristols should always come in pairs.

Any 2 from:-
Straight 6
V8 V10

[Jim.Walker]

[P3steve]

I think it was filmed in mid 1939, the war hadn't started so no one is carrying gas masks though Britain was on a war footage since 1938, only a few of the buses have white paint on the wings as this was done to all London buses as well as a mesh fitted over the windows which stayed on some buses for a few years after the war until the bus was shopped for a general overhaul it appears that they haven't got round to all the buses yet. Note the single barrage balloon - a novelty in 1939 so worth swinging the camera up for, as stated before all road signs were taken down in the war if this was post war and the signs had been reinstated then you would think you would see some signs of disturbed ground which would take at least a year or so to settle down in the film its obvious that none of the signs have been disturbed for years. Note the total lack of military vehicles although the forces were on alert there wasn't as yet the large mobilization of troops that took place when the war started. Note also the total lack of defence structures on the bridge and road side I would have thought you would have seen some sort of bunkers or concrete blocks (still to be seen on many bridges today 70 years later) if this was filmed after 1940 when the threat of invasion caused a flurry of pill box building and also if it was later than 1939 then there's just too much traffic on the roads.

[P3steve]

PS all London Transport buses, trams and trolleybuses had there roofs repainted from silver to brown in the war so as not to reflect light in the black out and were never repainted silver after so again this seems to confirm the 1939 date