Onboard announcement

[Steven1924]

Hello, is anyone able to help me with a script that would be used onboard the LNER Highland Cheiftan from Kings Cross to Inverness?

Thanks in advance.

[LCDR]

On board train announcements which are made by the Train Manager AKA,Guard or Senior Conductor usually follow a pattern, but inevitably will vary according to the skill, experience and preferences of the person making it. I believe skeleton scripts are used, but may not be folliowed 100%.

 

It will probably go something like this -

 

"Ladies and Gentlemen, this is (Gordon Bennett) your Train Manager / Senior Conductor today welcoming you on board the 12:00 hours from Kings Cross London and North Eastern Railway service, "The Highland Chieftan"  to Inverness. We shall be calling at York, Darlington, Newcastle, Berwick upon Tweed, Edinburgh, Haymarket, Falkirk, Stirling, Gleneagles, Perth, Pitochry, Kingussie Aviemore and arriving at Inverness at 20:06 hours.Our next stop will be York.

First class accomodation is in the rear three coaches, standard class is at the front, and the quiet coaches are coaches B and M. If you are in these please turn all mobile telephones and electronic devices to quiet mode. An  complimentary 'at seat ' service of lunch will be served in First class, a further announcement will be made by our Customer Servces manager.

A trolley serving snacks, light refreshments hot and cold drinks will be passing through standard class, please keep aisles and vesibules clear of luggage.  A buffet bar is situated in coach F.

A full ticket check will be carried out shortly, please have all tickets, passes travel cards and reservations ready for inspection.

Our next calling point is York at 13:52."

 

That is something like it would go, but I cannot guarantee it would be like that every time.

 

A similar announcement would be made on departing the other stations altered to cover that leg of the journey.

 

As the train approaches a calling point an announcement like this will be made.

 

"Ladies and gentlemen the train will shortly be arriving at York, change here for Leeds, Scarborough, Harrogate, Thirsk, Hull, Northallerton and Middlesbrough. The train is arriving on time. When leaving the train please make certain you have all your possessions with you.Thank you for travelling with LNER today.  I hope you have had a pleasant journey. York will be your next station stop."

 

It will of course alter depending on the next stop.

 

On wet or frosty days he may add "Please take care when alighting the train as the platforms and step may be slippery".

 

Sometimes he wil add the times and platforms numbers of connections.

 

The announcements can get a little tedious, especially when the Catering Manager subsequently  reads out a long list of all the goods he hopes to sell in the Buffet car and from the trolley, after the Senior Conductor / Train Manager. finishes his.

[Chrissaf]

 As LC&DR's reply is very long and detailed, please pay particular attention to the TIP below about not using the 'Blue Button' to reply'

.

TIP: As a newbie poster on the forum, just be aware that the 'Blue Button with the White Arrow' is not a 'Reply to this post' button. If you want to reply to any of the posts, scroll down and write your reply in the reply text box at the bottom of the page and click the Green 'Reply' button.

.

See also – further TIPs on how to get the best user experience from this forum.

https://www.hornby.com/uk-en/forum/tips-on-using-the-forum/

.

[LCDR]

On train announcements, and station announcements are part of the ambience of the railway. 

 

A long time ago when I worked at a station in Kent we had a box full of recorded announcements that could be selected by pressing a button on the front of the box, because trains passed through going to Dover some of the announcements were in French and German as well as English. We also had a microphone to make ad hoc announcements. The recorded voices were both male and female which could be quite amusing. The box and the microphone were in a hut at the top of the entrance staircase on both the up and down side island platforms. The hut had windows on all three sides and a door which was difficult to close.

 

We also used 'finger boards' which had the train calling points painted on them and these were suppose to match the script in the box of announcements. The process was to put the finger board into the slot which was attached to one of the pillars near the hut before the train arrived, and then as soon as the train had stopped we pressed the appropriate button. 

 

My own preference was also to make a short ad-hoc announcement with the microphone before the train arrived stating where the next train was going. 

 

Despite doing this a vast number of passengers still came up to ask "is this the train to Dover "(or wherever)!

[96RAF]

In my days of travelling the railway there were no on train announcements, only the much ridiculed unintelligible waffle at each station.

 

The travel methodology employed was you got on the train having checked with a porter chappie on the platform that this was the train for XYZ, then nearer your destination you looked out of the window, if it was your station you got off, if not you stayed on. If it was the station beyond your destination because you had fallen asleeep, you got off as soon as you could, swapped platforms and grabbed the next train back.

 

Of course in those days ticketing was simple. You bought a ticket from A to B and could use any train at any time on any network to get you there.

[LCDR]

Announcements on trains is generally a fairly recent innovation. We did not have them when I worked on stations, so station announcements were considered to be important. What bought matters to a head was the removal of windows that passengers could open, and the fitting of double glazed windows in carriages. 

 

The unintelligible announcements were particularly bad at the big stations with an overall roof when an echo would fresult in a noise that sounded like speech, but wasn't. 

 

The railway rule book required Guards to call out the name of stations , but very few of them did so.  The sound of 'Perks' calling 'Oakworth, Oakworth' in the 'Railway Children' was a rarity.

 

Stations were supposed to have station nameboards, often attached to lamp posts, and at the end of the station which was the first place the train should pass would be a large board with the station name in large letters. This was known as the "Running In Board", and these nameboards were supposed tro be kept spotless! This was the down 'running in board' at Whitstable and Tankerton, one of my station in darkest history.

 

/media/tinymce_upload/b9a7f4fc8b4d54231682e735a513a7a8.jpg

[LCDR]

Here is another/media/tinymce_upload/f02899ad665081b0fe006882812c464d.jpg

A 2Hal is approaching on a Maidstone to Charing Cross service and is about to pass the running in board at Belvedere. Unfortunately the platform was extended to handle 10 coach trains the year before, and BR hasn't got round to moving the board further back on to the new section!

[atom3624]

I think that by the length of the announcement - not remotely doubting the content, it does make perfect sense from what I have experienced in recent years - it could be (switchably) automated through a motion sensor upon entering the room / loft / shed / wherever that is occupied by the model railway.

 

That way, by the time the announcement is terminating, you're already settled in, powered up, cuppa in hand and ready to pull away from the station.

 

The announcement, when related to model railway applications, does appear very realistic, but a tad long ... but could be accommodated this way, perhaps.

 

Al.

[Steven1924]

Thank you all for your help.