Interesting fact about the Kingsferry Bridge: I used to work for Southeastern Railway. The third rail power supply over the bridge does not include that part of the bridge that is lifted when a ship needs to pass through. This necessitates trains having to "coast" over that section before picking up the power again. Do trains ever fail to do that and get stuck? Oh YES!!!! 🤣🤣🤣
Some nice little gems in this one; "Today, it looks likes a field, because it is", and "The year 1080p". Nice one Jon, your wit and humour makes these videos fun to watch
Ahh Rochester, the city that forgot to be city. If you don’t know what I mean, in 1998 during a local government reshuffle Rochester had to appoint charter trustees to maintain its city status and they didn’t so the city status was lost. Nobody noticed until 2002 and now that status can never be reclaimed.
@@jonbaldwinI may be wrong but my understanding in this case is that they can’t, because there is no local government authority for Rochester in the same way as there was at the point of the first government reshuffle in the 70’s. Medway has applied to be a city and failed so far but Rochester the history city can’t do it. Tom Scott (inevitably) explains it better.
@@SashaGrace94 The good people of Rochester could set up a parish council to sit under the Medway unitary authority. But I think you're right - unless they did that it would be the whole of Medway. :)
Shame he does not mention the fact the Ferry stopped running due to Thurrock Council being Broke. Then when they got the money together the Ferry owner decided they had enough so the ferry stopped. We shall see what happens in the future. But then when I had a trip on the Waverley paddle steamer from London we did stop there before going to Southend Pier.
Interesting fact about Rochester: It used to be a city but is now just a town. As it has a cathedral. it was, by tradition, a city, but when the Kent boroughs of Rochester and Gillingham merged in 1998 to form the unitary authority of Medway separate from Kent County Council, the leaders of the council forgot to properly protect Rochester's city status and it lost it. They have been campaigning to get it back; so far without success.
@@hairyairey Anglo-Saxon cathedral, of North Elmham is a good example lol population of 1400 these days and ok its more a ruin than a cathedral but it did have one and up until recently was sign posted as on, they've been changed to say chapel now for some reason
The incompetence of Medway Council, whether red or blue, never ceases to amaze me. Actually, I'm being facetious, I'm never surprised at their astronomic levels of incompetence.
@@norfolkngood8960 I had a look at this on the English Heritage site - it seems it was a cathedral until 1071. Or 1080p-9 to people on this site. So yes, I guess it was downgraded. Bit like poor Pluto.
I lived near Gravesend for 2 years as a child [1966-68, age 8-10]. I remember the railway that went to the pier, it ran just behind our house. It had no passenger service at the time, just one freight train in each direction a day. This stopped in the spring of 1968, but a few weeks before it saw its first passenger train for many years as part of a railtour of Kent. I was lucky enough to see this from our garden. I have verified the dates, so not just relying on memory. Sheerness was one possible day out by the sea we would have in the summer whilst we were there. We went if my father did not want to drive all the way to the main Kent coast resorts of Whitstable, Herne Bay or Thanet. We could do it for an afternoon trip, whist Thanet required a full day.
Spot on comment about Sittingbourne traffic, as the town expanded the local government there (KCC/Swale Borough Council) didn't bother much with infrastructure planning. Best avoided.
Stunning Jon 🥳 An area I was compelled to deliver the cheapest shoddy furniture in Christendom, early to mid 1980’s…….. much of the Medway towns has a veneer of shit…… although the Dickens festival in Rochester is always worthwhile…… Chatham Docks is worth a visit, there’s also a rusting Cold War Russian Submarine (following a failed attempt at a night club or venue) tied up in the Medway…….. plus the unexploded remains of the SS Richard Montgomery - some 440 feet of US Liberty Ship, grounded and sunk during the second small disagreement. It still contains some 1500 tons of exploding murder death kill stuff……. sitting in the Thames Estuary near the mouth of the River Medway. The masts can be seen from as far away as the Pier in Southend on Sea. If it were to detonate, windows and property might be destroyed in London, Canvey Island and the Isles of Sheppey and Grain could be washed away. There may also be negative effects. Do please carry on Jon, you are doing important work 🇬🇧 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
"There may also be negative effects" 😂😂😂 I went to Sittingbourne and the Isle of Sheppy for work last week. Interesting to see it on the channel. It's really a little dreary over there.
Kent is supposed to be "The Garden of England", well it's anything but. More like the septic tank of England. We went there on "holiday" as people raved about the countryside. Well, we couldn't find any. If you have a kink for the A2 that is about it. It has no redeeming features what so ever other than a few castles, Even Bodiam made an escape to East Sussex along with Herstmonceux. I was taken aback by the misery of the towns and having left Herne Bay I needed treatment on the NHS. The only interesting bits are the areas around Dungeness where you might start glowing and the A2 back to London. All Kent has is those pointy houses that twizzle around for rich people and a huge lorry park. Why would people trying to flee the mainland want to come here on a rubber ring goes beyond me. Perhaps if the French Government showed pictures of Dover, Ramsgate and Broadstairs they might want to row back to France. Kent really is dogs rear end of this country.
As someone born in Chatham (although very nearly in Sheerness!), I wholly applaud John's putting down of the area (although Rochester IS actually quite nice).
Should have gone to Queenborough. You might also have mentioned that the new Sheppey Bridge hosted the UK's worst pile-up in 2013 with 130 vehicles, but amazingly no fatalities.
@@PhillipParr They had a 50 speed limit for a while. The problem was the fog, which is not unknown for that area. Perhaps red lights to close the bridge in similar conditions?
There's one part of that journey you can't make any more - the A226 between Swanscombe and Northfleet collapsed last year at Galley Hill, when the narrow chalk ridge it was built on gave way in a landslip. It has remained closed ever since, while the water company and the council argue about whether the burst water main caused the landslip, or the landslip broke the water main, and who should pay for repairs, which would be a major engineering project.
Hey let me show you how Glorious DOVER is. Like Jerusalem !! Seven hills and seven Vallie's. It has a crap town centre and Council. But the scenery is dramatic and beautiful. I am a proud Man of Kent :o) And DOVER XXX
Ahh Dartford. I grew up there, and that's why I drank a lot. I moved away, a long way, and now I am teetotal. It wasn't just the place to blame though, it was the people too.
A little known fact about Sheerness. Circa 1950 an industrialist, called Wadia Murad started the Murad Car company. Sadly a number of problems, including Government intervention, apparently they wanted him to move his companies to Wales! Things halted before serious production began. One example still exists.
Well I have lived in nine places along that route. When I lived briefly in Gravesend in the late 80s the ferry was in operation. I used it to visit the fort on the north side of the river but did not see much else of note. The Kingsferry bridge was resurfaced at about the same time. They had a slight problem because the bridge would not come down again completely with all the reduced weight after the nights work. Fortunately it was low enough that they could drive loaded trucks onto to provide weight but nobody could drive on or off the island that day. Surprised that there was no mention of the ship off Sheerness left over from the second disagreement.
Had ancestors in Gravesend (oddly Two of similar names that appear to be distant cousins who independently moved to london then independently married the ancestors of my parents.
Excellent - I think an updated guide book would only have one page - it would say AVOID. North Kent was never going to be beautiful (excepting little bits of Rochester) Even Dickens set some of his grimmest stories here! (love the Saab - class!)
That pier is the remains of the old Gravesend pier station. The Thames Way road follows the old track alignment and uses an old railway tunnel. As you pass through you can see the arches within the tunnel for pway workers to shelter in when trains passed. The floor has been dig out to allow better clearance and the arches are half way up the walls
You are correct that people from Gravesend don't want to go to Tilbury, but people from Tilbury want to go to Gravesend, then they have to get back again. When I was a child in the 1960s a family day out would be a visit to Coalhouse Fort followed by a trip on the Tilbury Ferry.
Great video as always. I'm a lorry driver, I've heard other drivers complaining about driving over Thelwall on the M6 as it can be a bit hairy in bad weather. Which i don't doubt, but its not as bad as going over Dartford QE2 bridge, which in turn isn't as bad as the Sheppey bridge. Its virtually always windy going to Sheppey, but when its really bad the older bridge is a very thankful site, although I've only had to use the older bridge a couple of times. People pay alot of money at the fairgrounds for thrill seeking rides, I'm not desperate enough to get it for free!!!!
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I used to know Sheppey well, as had friends at Warden Point. Minster was quite interesting and Leysdown on Sea was a classic piece of crappy British seaside.
I lived in Sheerness between the ages of 7 and 17, whereupon my parents relocated us to Bristol (from one of John's most favourite places to another!). I'm sure they did this to give us kids (I was the eldest) better job opportunities.
2:50 As a kid I remember getting the Royal Daffodil steam boat from on day trips along the river 😂😂from Gravesend to Southend. It had a “sister” ship the Royal Sovereign.
Gravesend used to have an airport to the east of the town. Opening on 1932 it was a fighter base in the Second Small Disagreement. It closed in 1956 and a council estate was built on the site.
I was born in Dartford but left when I could just about walk so that's why it ran down hill afterwards! My Dad worked on the paper mill mills as well. So thanks for popping in there! 🤣
Sheerness is, shall we say, a shadow of its former glory! I used to have to visit the docks regularly for work. I can say that there are some Georgian architectural gems on the dock site but behind security. There was a wonderful food trailer just over the bridge onto the island. Awesome bacon and egg in a salt and pepper tiger baguette! Just what you need having suffered the Dartford crossing.
I used to live near Dartford. I can confirm you summed it up nicely and got out of town quickly. PS. How do I do a 'super like'? I can see 'buy us a coffee' but not the super-duper likey likey option. PS. I did hit the button to show specifically I enjoyed your clip.
Dartford. My birthplace, a long, long time ago. I barely recognise the place now, although I was ridiculously pleased to kind of see (as in, "Ooh, it's about there, somewhere") my childhood home (literally born at home) on the map with the roman villa. But we had a different roman villa discovered 'just up the road' which also was covered back up as it was 'insignificant' and housing built over it. Thank you for a trip down memory lane, and a shout out to my husband's cousin who runs a tea shop in Rochester!
I've moved a few thousand cars into and out of Sheerness over the years. It's expanded a bit after the railhead was closed which is a bit odd given one train has the capacity of 25 trucks. Go back 20-25 years and pretty much all the kit that arrived in Gefco in Corby had come through Sheerness with the exception of the Pug 206 which were built in Coventry.
You missed one the most significant sights of Sheerness, the wreck of the US Liberty Ship Richard Montgomery, still holding 1400 tonnes of bombs and the masts of which are visible from the beach. The jury is out about how safe it is and what might be done about it but one thing is agreed - if/when it goes up it will be a VERY big bang! A waterspout 3km high and 15m high tidal wave. Someone calculated it could flatten Sheerness, doing as much as £150 worth of damage, so it's not all bad.
Should have said we could visit the City of Rochester but that doesn't exist anymore - lost city status in 1998 with local government reorganisation & them not bothering to appoint city trustees
Before they built the new bridge there used to be a sign with distances just after you came off the Kingsferry Bridge that said “Sheerness 3, Queenborough 1, Halfway 2”
Coincidently I flew the length of Kent yesterday to Manston and was struck by the amount of commercial and industrial sites around the area to the south of the estuary. I guess it's better than thousands of acres of dull housing as it contributes to what's left of the country's wealth.
Do you mind, I grew up in the area around Gravesend and ..... yes it is shit! Ah the A226, I know it well. St George's Church which you decided to avoid is the burial place of Pocahontas (yes she from the Disney film), though they can't remember exactly where they buried her, which has really pissed off some of our American friends who want her back.
Came to mention the SS Richard Montgomery as well. Theres still about 1500 tons of ordinance on it in a constant state of decay! From learning about it years ago, I got into looking up just how much munitions were dumped at sea and its practically all around the UK, particularly in a deep trench south of Plymouth and west of Guernsey called Hurd's Deep.
@@chriszanfPlans to deal with it are regularly postponed - they are hoping to remove the masts first. I reckon it'll blow up, taking a lot of the town with it before anything is done.
I notice there was no mention of the rather nasty accident that took place on the the new Sheerness bridge in the fog. Luckily non one was killed. I think several individual's made court appearance`s afterwards and the local council was held to account for the lack of lighting etc.
Just off of sheerness is the wreck of the SS Richard Montgomery, a “second small disagreement” liberty cargo ship which was full of ammunition and can be seen from there. It still has a lot of ordinance on it which is still capable of exploding. There’s a local radio station called “ship full of bombs”! Nice.
My childhood stamping grounds, lived on an estate built on the old RAF Gravesham with the old airport turned into Thong Lane sports centre now called Cascades, wasn't the worst place to grow up if one had a trusty Raleigh Chopper and enjoyable activities like winding up the Cobham hermit to learn brand new swear words. My late father in the 70's worked every signalbox in the area, he was quite well known in railway circles as a bit of a signally god just a shame in home circles he was a proper tit to brother and I. Still, it never got old when calling out to the girls to admire ones purple chopper :P
My Grandparents lived in three different houses around Gravesend's Windmill Hill. They used to rent the oddest garage I'd seen. Somewhere near the river was an indoor car park, but each parking space was like a lock up cage. Not seen anything like it since.
Back in the early 90's Sheerness was where I took the ferry to Vlissingen in the Netherlands (the Brits called it Flushing as they couldnt get their head around fliss-ing-ge). I had a GF in Sutton and working in Hamburg so it was a handy overnight crossing (only a 4 hour drive on the other side). I guess the railway may have handled any foot passengers. Sadly, no longer a ferry port. The new bridge may have just been in time to see the ferry stop.
When the ferry terminal was being built they accidentally buried a large excavator, they were pumping in sand to reclaim the beach and it was too expensive to stop. Cost a fortune to dig it out again a few months latter.
Great video Jon, thank you. Dartford Crossing anyone? Rumour has it that said crossing has been paid for over and over, and that the authorities have renaged on the original agreement that once it was paid for, it would be free to use. True or false?
Good video. But a little short in the facts about Sheppey. Should have headed towards Leysdown where you past East Church . This area was instrumental to aviation history including visits from the Wright brothers to the Aero Club and later Royal Aero Club and a business that Charles Rolls (of Rolls-Royce) once had related to building planes. Worth another visit….
A fair assessment! Tho the defences were for Sherness dockyard. Next time, check out Horrid Hill in Riverside country park at Rainhall - it's actually really nice 👌
Having been born in and lived in until I was 18 (basically when I could leave) I can confirm that Gravesend is, indeed, a 'shithole'. Great video as always
You crack me up. Your sarcasm alone makes for great content. You could be describing a half sucked polo mint and I would be enthralled with your verbosity. Take that as the highest of praise from a Glaswegian (we are slightly sarcastic here)
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"The year 1080p" made me laugh way more than it should have!
me to!
Snap
Yeah, me too!
It was a year of high definition
The year Newcastle upon Tyne was founded, apart from the p
"it must have worked, because we won" - lines like this keep me coming back!
I find absolutely no flaws with this logic.
I snorted embarrassingly loud at that! 😂
1080p was a high quality year. Far more defining than most
People were far more resolute
And definitely a Memorable Year.
I wonder what it'll be like in 4k?
@@RichardWatt you probably won't know until 4090
Some might even say "Highly Defining"
The casual avoidance of Chatham and Gillingham, probably for the best....
I worked as a doorman in Chatham about 15 years ago and I could not agree with you more.
Love how he puts down every place he visits.
Dartford to sheppy, hard work to not.
Easy when you just go to shit places
Yeah, Kent isn’t exactly the best place these days, and I don’t even live in Kent!
@@lolzlarkin3059 and Chatham would have been too easy
I don't,. It's done to death by other channels with no wit or imagination. The year 1080p is much better.
Interesting fact about the Kingsferry Bridge:
I used to work for Southeastern Railway. The third rail power supply over the bridge does not include that part of the bridge that is lifted when a ship needs to pass through. This necessitates trains having to "coast" over that section before picking up the power again. Do trains ever fail to do that and get stuck? Oh YES!!!! 🤣🤣🤣
You visited Gravesend and managed not to mention the Black Death or Pocahontas. Amazing.
no black death connection so would have been a bit pointless, kudos no poch0 tho.
@@mattd2129 Graves End has no Black Death connection? You're kiddin' right?🤣
@@grahamcook9289it has nothing to do with graves, surprisingly.
Some nice little gems in this one; "Today, it looks likes a field, because it is", and "The year 1080p". Nice one Jon, your wit and humour makes these videos fun to watch
Ahh Rochester, the city that forgot to be city. If you don’t know what I mean, in 1998 during a local government reshuffle Rochester had to appoint charter trustees to maintain its city status and they didn’t so the city status was lost. Nobody noticed until 2002 and now that status can never be reclaimed.
More like Nocitychester
Well city status could be granted again, but two monarchs and seven prime ministers simply couldn't be bothered.
The council didn't forget to put the parking charges up but also forgot to fix the potholes.
@@jonbaldwinI may be wrong but my understanding in this case is that they can’t, because there is no local government authority for Rochester in the same way as there was at the point of the first government reshuffle in the 70’s. Medway has applied to be a city and failed so far but Rochester the history city can’t do it. Tom Scott (inevitably) explains it better.
@@SashaGrace94 The good people of Rochester could set up a parish council to sit under the Medway unitary authority. But I think you're right - unless they did that it would be the whole of Medway. :)
I like this video so I pressed the button specifically for that 👉🏻
If only there was a button specifically for liking comments.
@@shootmcrunfastthere is
@@ninjathedeadguy2655 No way! 😯
The Gravesend to Tilbury ferry unfortunately stopped running on 30th March 2024. A sad note to add to your excellent video.
Somehow, "Ferry Cross The Thames" doesn't have *quite* the right ring to it...
Shame he does not mention the fact the Ferry stopped running due to Thurrock Council being Broke. Then when they got the money together the Ferry owner decided they had enough so the ferry stopped. We shall see what happens in the future. But then when I had a trip on the Waverley paddle steamer from London we did stop there before going to Southend Pier.
Apparently Sheerness was the birthplace of some guy by the name of “Richard Beeching” What a Kent
A Man of complete Kent or complete and utter Kentish Man?
See you next Tuesday people used to mutter to him as he passed
Inbreeding is still rife.
Interesting fact about Rochester: It used to be a city but is now just a town.
As it has a cathedral. it was, by tradition, a city, but when the Kent boroughs of Rochester and Gillingham merged in 1998 to form the unitary authority of Medway separate from Kent County Council, the leaders of the council forgot to properly protect Rochester's city status and it lost it. They have been campaigning to get it back; so far without success.
@DavidJCane. Interestingly, you managed to leave out Chatham, which is much older than both Rochester and Gillingham!!
Having a cathedral doesn't make you a city (Southwark for example). It's totally up to the Monarch. But you're right it lost its city status.
@@hairyairey Anglo-Saxon cathedral, of North Elmham is a good example lol population of 1400 these days and ok its more a ruin than a cathedral but it did have one and up until recently was sign posted as on, they've been changed to say chapel now for some reason
The incompetence of Medway Council, whether red or blue, never ceases to amaze me. Actually, I'm being facetious, I'm never surprised at their astronomic levels of incompetence.
@@norfolkngood8960 I had a look at this on the English Heritage site - it seems it was a cathedral until 1071. Or 1080p-9 to people on this site. So yes, I guess it was downgraded. Bit like poor Pluto.
I lived near Gravesend for 2 years as a child [1966-68, age 8-10]. I remember the railway that went to the pier, it ran just behind our house. It had no passenger service at the time, just one freight train in each direction a day. This stopped in the spring of 1968, but a few weeks before it saw its first passenger train for many years as part of a railtour of Kent. I was lucky enough to see this from our garden.
I have verified the dates, so not just relying on memory.
Sheerness was one possible day out by the sea we would have in the summer whilst we were there. We went if my father did not want to drive all the way to the main Kent coast resorts of Whitstable, Herne Bay or Thanet. We could do it for an afternoon trip, whist Thanet required a full day.
Spot on comment about Sittingbourne traffic, as the town expanded the local government there (KCC/Swale Borough Council) didn't bother much with infrastructure planning. Best avoided.
Stunning Jon 🥳
An area I was compelled to deliver the cheapest shoddy furniture in Christendom, early to mid 1980’s…….. much of the Medway towns has a veneer of shit…… although the Dickens festival in Rochester is always worthwhile…… Chatham Docks is worth a visit, there’s also a rusting Cold War Russian Submarine (following a failed attempt at a night club or venue) tied up in the Medway…….. plus the unexploded remains of the SS Richard Montgomery - some 440 feet of US Liberty Ship, grounded and sunk during the second small disagreement. It still contains some 1500 tons of exploding murder death kill stuff……. sitting in the Thames Estuary near the mouth of the River Medway. The masts can be seen from as far away as the Pier in Southend on Sea.
If it were to detonate, windows and property might be destroyed in London, Canvey Island and the Isles of Sheppey and Grain could be washed away. There may also be negative effects.
Do please carry on Jon, you are doing important work 🇬🇧
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Chatham Dockyard is indeed worth a visit, I was there yesterday. Will now be looking for pics of that Russian sub, didn't know about that.
@@garycollard1981 en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Submarine_U-475_Black_Widow
🙂
@@iancharlton678 Cool. Thanks.
"There may also be negative effects" 😂😂😂
I went to Sittingbourne and the Isle of Sheppy for work last week. Interesting to see it on the channel. It's really a little dreary over there.
@@illegalopinions4082 …… extra fingers, webbed feet…… and the distant sound of a badly thumbed banjo 😳
6:35 - 'Get a fry up, go karting and throw up'
🤣
☮
This lines have me as well 🤣
Exploring Dartford to Sheerness by boat is even more fascinating. It really is a very interesting piece of the coast.
Factory factory factory, council estate factory factory warehouse...
@@soyebaswat5382 Lots of marshes and Napoleonic forts too.
@@fatman3785 and a former Royal Navy Dockyard.. The HMS Victory was built there.
Kent is supposed to be "The Garden of England", well it's anything but. More like the septic tank of England. We went there on "holiday" as people raved about the countryside. Well, we couldn't find any. If you have a kink for the A2 that is about it. It has no redeeming features what so ever other than a few castles, Even Bodiam made an escape to East Sussex along with Herstmonceux. I was taken aback by the misery of the towns and having left Herne Bay I needed treatment on the NHS. The only interesting bits are the areas around Dungeness where you might start glowing and the A2 back to London. All Kent has is those pointy houses that twizzle around for rich people and a huge lorry park. Why would people trying to flee the mainland want to come here on a rubber ring goes beyond me. Perhaps if the French Government showed pictures of Dover, Ramsgate and Broadstairs they might want to row back to France. Kent really is dogs rear end of this country.
You made one good decision in this video, and one very bad one. Leaving Dartford is a good idea, but going to Sheerness is terrible idea.
I do these trips so you dont have to. :D
@@AutoShenanigans Brilliant, great rejoinder!!!
As someone born in Chatham (although very nearly in Sheerness!), I wholly applaud John's putting down of the area (although Rochester IS actually quite nice).
Should have gone to Queenborough. You might also have mentioned that the new Sheppey Bridge hosted the UK's worst pile-up in 2013 with 130 vehicles, but amazingly no fatalities.
I like that they've done nothing to the bridge to mitigate something like that happening again.
@@PhillipParr They had a 50 speed limit for a while. The problem was the fog, which is not unknown for that area. Perhaps red lights to close the bridge in similar conditions?
@@PhillipParr You cant fix stupid. Weather doesn't cause a 130 car pilleup on its own.
@@fatman3785 indeed, but you can mitigate stupid with various techniques
“Must have worked, as we won”, genius.
There's one part of that journey you can't make any more - the A226 between Swanscombe and Northfleet collapsed last year at Galley Hill, when the narrow chalk ridge it was built on gave way in a landslip. It has remained closed ever since, while the water company and the council argue about whether the burst water main caused the landslip, or the landslip broke the water main, and who should pay for repairs, which would be a major engineering project.
Something I learned all about on the day of filming, oops! Video on the collapsed road coming soon!
Your enthusiasm for your destinations this week was just oozing out of you John. Be well.
"Sheerness. What a treat..." Jon, your sarcasm and comic timing are spot on. I have been to Sheerness once, and once only. It appeared to be closed.
You were lucky, I had to go lots of times for my job 😕
I'm pleased that you didn't mispronounce Kent Countryside.
Like Trevor McDonald's famous Spoonerism on News at 10 one time ;)
Hey let me show you how Glorious DOVER is. Like Jerusalem !! Seven hills and seven Vallie's. It has a crap town centre and Council. But the scenery is dramatic and beautiful. I am a proud Man of Kent :o) And DOVER XXX
I grew up in these areas. Even watching the video of you driving through Dartford and Gravesend, I was reaching to lock my imaginary car door.
Nells Cafe in Gravesend, came into existence when the A2 was a dirt road 😀
Ahh Dartford. I grew up there, and that's why I drank a lot. I moved away, a long way, and now I am teetotal. It wasn't just the place to blame though, it was the people too.
Brilliantly produced, written, researched, edited and delivered. What an awesome channel!
You should be immensely proud
A little known fact about Sheerness. Circa 1950 an industrialist, called Wadia Murad started the Murad Car company. Sadly a number of problems, including Government intervention, apparently they wanted him to move his companies to Wales! Things halted before serious production began. One example still exists.
Well I have lived in nine places along that route.
When I lived briefly in Gravesend in the late 80s the ferry was in operation. I used it to visit the fort on the north side of the river but did not see much else of note.
The Kingsferry bridge was resurfaced at about the same time. They had a slight problem because the bridge would not come down again completely with all the reduced weight after the nights work. Fortunately it was low enough that they could drive loaded trucks onto to provide weight but nobody could drive on or off the island that day.
Surprised that there was no mention of the ship off Sheerness left over from the second disagreement.
Yes, I remember as a child taking the ferry from Gravesend over to Tilbury to visit the fort. It was a highlight of the year! 🙂
Had ancestors in Gravesend (oddly Two of similar names that appear to be distant cousins who independently moved to london then independently married the ancestors of my parents.
Excellent - I think an updated guide book would only have one page - it would say AVOID. North Kent was never going to be beautiful (excepting little bits of Rochester) Even Dickens set some of his grimmest stories here! (love the Saab - class!)
That pier is the remains of the old Gravesend pier station. The Thames Way road follows the old track alignment and uses an old railway tunnel. As you pass through you can see the arches within the tunnel for pway workers to shelter in when trains passed. The floor has been dig out to allow better clearance and the arches are half way up the walls
You are correct that people from Gravesend don't want to go to Tilbury, but people from Tilbury want to go to Gravesend, then they have to get back again. When I was a child in the 1960s a family day out would be a visit to Coalhouse Fort followed by a trip on the Tilbury Ferry.
This channel has been the main source for hyper fixation for adhders
Loved it, John! Kent is a county of contrasts, there’s juxtapositions of nice towns and countryside next to utter dumps!
Love these videos. The combo of info and snark are excellent. Keep up the good work.
18 weeks of pure joy. Long may this road trip continue. 👏👏👍😀
Great video as always. I'm a lorry driver, I've heard other drivers complaining about driving over Thelwall on the M6 as it can be a bit hairy in bad weather. Which i don't doubt, but its not as bad as going over Dartford QE2 bridge, which in turn isn't as bad as the Sheppey bridge. Its virtually always windy going to Sheppey, but when its really bad the older bridge is a very thankful site, although I've only had to use the older bridge a couple of times. People pay alot of money at the fairgrounds for thrill seeking rides, I'm not desperate enough to get it for free!!!!
I used to know Sheppey well, as had friends at Warden Point. Minster was quite interesting and Leysdown on Sea was a classic piece of crappy British seaside.
I lived in Sheerness between the ages of 7 and 17, whereupon my parents relocated us to Bristol (from one of John's most favourite places to another!). I'm sure they did this to give us kids (I was the eldest) better job opportunities.
I’m crying 😂😂, being from Kent, this is absolutely spot on and I hope you have a few Kent videos in stock 🤣🤣 love the videos fella
Nice one, thanks for watching!
2:50 As a kid I remember getting the Royal Daffodil steam boat from on day trips along the river 😂😂from Gravesend to Southend. It had a “sister” ship the Royal Sovereign.
Since you are in that park of the UK make a trip to Ramsgate to This Museum is (not) Obsolete, I think you’ll find it is right up your street
Gravesend used to have an airport to the east of the town. Opening on 1932 it was a fighter base in the Second Small Disagreement. It closed in 1956 and a council estate was built on the site.
Thank you for asking. Just had an excellent Sunday lunch.
Hello Jon How the devil are you have you had a good week and also I liked the video and used the button specifically for that
I was born in Dartford but left when I could just about walk so that's why it ran down hill afterwards! My Dad worked on the paper mill mills as well. So thanks for popping in there! 🤣
Just always chuckle at the “small disagreement”
Another great video thank you, informative and enjoyable, I love your presentation skills
Sheerness is, shall we say, a shadow of its former glory! I used to have to visit the docks regularly for work. I can say that there are some Georgian architectural gems on the dock site but behind security.
There was a wonderful food trailer just over the bridge onto the island. Awesome bacon and egg in a salt and pepper tiger baguette! Just what you need having suffered the Dartford crossing.
the date 1080p?! that's a resolution my brother
Dude's a pro-gamer going for a high refresh rate so if he wants a cheap monitor he'd have to stick to 1080p
Can't wait for the year 4k
@@SekritJay This is what we call, a pro-gamer move.
Don't you think he knows that?
Came to the comments to make or like it 👍
I used to live near Dartford. I can confirm you summed it up nicely and got out of town quickly. PS. How do I do a 'super like'? I can see 'buy us a coffee' but not the super-duper likey likey option. PS. I did hit the button to show specifically I enjoyed your clip.
Thanks Jon, safe travels.
Rochester used to be a city for over 800 years until 1998 and is now part of the borough of Medway.
Dartford. My birthplace, a long, long time ago. I barely recognise the place now, although I was ridiculously pleased to kind of see (as in, "Ooh, it's about there, somewhere") my childhood home (literally born at home) on the map with the roman villa. But we had a different roman villa discovered 'just up the road' which also was covered back up as it was 'insignificant' and housing built over it. Thank you for a trip down memory lane, and a shout out to my husband's cousin who runs a tea shop in Rochester!
The reason the guide book mentions visiting St George’s church in Gravesend, is because that is where Pocahontas is buried Jon.
More quality content - thanks for visiting these places so I don't have to 🙂 Keep up the great work Jon!
Another fantastic and informative episode Jon.
I've moved a few thousand cars into and out of Sheerness over the years. It's expanded a bit after the railhead was closed which is a bit odd given one train has the capacity of 25 trucks. Go back 20-25 years and pretty much all the kit that arrived in Gefco in Corby had come through Sheerness with the exception of the Pug 206 which were built in Coventry.
You missed one the most significant sights of Sheerness, the wreck of the US Liberty Ship Richard Montgomery, still holding 1400 tonnes of bombs and the masts of which are visible from the beach. The jury is out about how safe it is and what might be done about it but one thing is agreed - if/when it goes up it will be a VERY big bang! A waterspout 3km high and 15m high tidal wave. Someone calculated it could flatten Sheerness, doing as much as £150 worth of damage, so it's not all bad.
Never a dull moment here Jon.
Firstly, great video as always. Secondly, as a Kentish lad I’m sorry about you having to visit both Dartford & Sheppy.
Should have said we could visit the City of Rochester but that doesn't exist anymore - lost city status in 1998 with local government reorganisation & them not bothering to appoint city trustees
Before they built the new bridge there used to be a sign with distances just after you came off the Kingsferry Bridge that said “Sheerness 3, Queenborough 1, Halfway 2”
Coincidently I flew the length of Kent yesterday to Manston and was struck by the amount of commercial and industrial sites around the area to the south of the estuary. I guess it's better than thousands of acres of dull housing as it contributes to what's left of the country's wealth.
"Like a block of hideous flats." Love it... 😎
The disguise on the watch tower must of worked because we won😊😂 Classic auto John😊
Do you mind, I grew up in the area around Gravesend and ..... yes it is shit! Ah the A226, I know it well. St George's Church which you decided to avoid is the burial place of Pocahontas (yes she from the Disney film), though they can't remember exactly where they buried her, which has really pissed off some of our American friends who want her back.
And you didn't mention that Sherness could be blown up by the ammunition ship that sunk during the 2nd disagreement.
Came to mention the SS Richard Montgomery as well. Theres still about 1500 tons of ordinance on it in a constant state of decay! From learning about it years ago, I got into looking up just how much munitions were dumped at sea and its practically all around the UK, particularly in a deep trench south of Plymouth and west of Guernsey called Hurd's Deep.
@@chriszanfPlans to deal with it are regularly postponed - they are hoping to remove the masts first. I reckon it'll blow up, taking a lot of the town with it before anything is done.
I notice there was no mention of the rather nasty accident that took place on the the new Sheerness bridge in the fog. Luckily non one was killed. I think several individual's made court appearance`s afterwards and the local council was held to account for the lack of lighting etc.
Just off of sheerness is the wreck of the SS Richard Montgomery, a “second small disagreement” liberty cargo ship which was full of ammunition and can be seen from there. It still has a lot of ordinance on it which is still capable of exploding. There’s a local radio station called “ship full of bombs”! Nice.
lol at " the year 1080p" you'll find it was actually 1080i
1440p came much later....🤩
I was waiting for a roman villa built in the year H264...
Love watching these videos. Keep it up mate.
i like the speed of your delivery and the interesting information you give . i am a fan .
Nice one, thanks for watching!
My childhood stamping grounds, lived on an estate built on the old RAF Gravesham with the old airport turned into Thong Lane sports centre now called Cascades, wasn't the worst place to grow up if one had a trusty Raleigh Chopper and enjoyable activities like winding up the Cobham hermit to learn brand new swear words. My late father in the 70's worked every signalbox in the area, he was quite well known in railway circles as a bit of a signally god just a shame in home circles he was a proper tit to brother and I. Still, it never got old when calling out to the girls to admire ones purple chopper :P
The best thing about Kent is it is a short hop across the channel to civilization.
What! Dirty old France?
I think you will find it is quite a long drive to get to Manchester ;)
Absolutely wonderful
My Grandparents lived in three different houses around Gravesend's Windmill Hill. They used to rent the oddest garage I'd seen. Somewhere near the river was an indoor car park, but each parking space was like a lock up cage. Not seen anything like it since.
Back in the early 90's Sheerness was where I took the ferry to Vlissingen in the Netherlands (the Brits called it Flushing as they couldnt get their head around fliss-ing-ge). I had a GF in Sutton and working in Hamburg so it was a handy overnight crossing (only a 4 hour drive on the other side). I guess the railway may have handled any foot passengers. Sadly, no longer a ferry port. The new bridge may have just been in time to see the ferry stop.
When the ferry terminal was being built they accidentally buried a large excavator, they were pumping in sand to reclaim the beach and it was too expensive to stop. Cost a fortune to dig it out again a few months latter.
It’s sarcasm and what makes the channel attractive.
Beautiful bit about my home town Sittingbourne here and of course the Isle of Sheppey which like you said is a treat!!
You paint a fine picture of this county. Cheers
Great video Jon, thank you.
Dartford Crossing anyone?
Rumour has it that said crossing has been paid for over and over, and that the authorities have renaged on the original agreement that once it was paid for, it would be free to use.
True or false?
I guess the scorpions hadn't taken-up residence in Sheerness docks when your guide was written...
As a former resident of Gravesend, I can confirm it's a shit-hole.
The unsung hero of the two little disagreements, a weird looking house structure on the Isle of Sheppy.
1080p. What a great year. Sometimes, my videos go back to the year 144p, right now, it's in the year Auto (360p).
Always love the latest Auto Shenanigans video, I look forward to it and the history info and humor
Good video. But a little short in the facts about Sheppey. Should have headed towards Leysdown where you past East Church . This area was instrumental to aviation history including visits from the Wright brothers to the Aero Club and later Royal Aero Club and a business that Charles Rolls (of Rolls-Royce) once had related to building planes. Worth another visit….
Gravesend. I went there once. Once was enough.
A fair assessment! Tho the defences were for Sherness dockyard.
Next time, check out Horrid Hill in Riverside country park at Rainhall - it's actually really nice 👌
Entertaining as always.
What an Intriguing hatted man, inspirational channel Jon🫡
Nice one, thanks for watching!
Having been born in and lived in until I was 18 (basically when I could leave) I can confirm that Gravesend is, indeed, a 'shithole'. Great video as always
The love that went into this video 😍
Regarding the Tilbury -> Gravesend ferry, that closed in March 2024 due to the owners not being able to find funding for it, to maintain service.
You crack me up. Your sarcasm alone makes for great content. You could be describing a half sucked polo mint and I would be enthralled with your verbosity. Take that as the highest of praise from a Glaswegian (we are slightly sarcastic here)