Swindon's Most Dangerous Street. The Old Town Tunnel.
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 15 มิ.ย. 2024
- We took a trip to Swindon to take a look at Swindon's Other Railway. The Midland and South Western Junction Railway ran a north south route perpendicular to the main GWR Line. Its original intention was to cut a tunnel under Swindon's old town and join up to Brunel's main line, and then head north.
Although we couldn't get in in touch with the LAY Family you can visit their fantastic website here: www.tunnelhouse.co.uk and learn a lot more than we can tell you in a TH-cam video!
If you like what we do please consider the following Links
/ everydisusedstation
www.paulwhitewick.co.uk
ko-fi.com/everydisusedstation
Thanks to:
RailMapOnline.co.uk
Google.co.uk
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This is like a BBC 4 programme, the production quality, research and presenting is top drawer.
The videos are really nice and informative, but isn't it a bit sad that they can do it so well with a probably rather small budget while the BBC literally has huge amounts of money at their hands? Says a lot about traditional media these days...
Apart from when he says 'bereft with problems', while actually meaning 'beset with problems'' :-) Excellent otherwise, though.
it actually does
@@egalf The BBC is parasitic propaganda organisation
Better - as it doesn't pad out the content to make a full 60 minutes - and also no pointless re-enactments
Swindon born and raised... I don't know if that's good or bad but I don't care, I love my town and its history.
I live in Swindon and it’s class😍
Harley Platt same lad I’m from north hbu
I love Swindon I’m living in it right now I love this town
Like how youtube is choosing videos by your town now
I'm from Swindon... ngl its shit
Your wife is remarkable. She's a great asset to your work. Plus shes very glam. Excellent.
Besides being the chosen for the centre for locomotive engineering, Swindon was also infamous for an appalling refreshment caterer that had the franchise at Swindon. This is what Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the engineer for the line, wrote in a letter :-
"Dear sir
I assure you that Mr Player was wrong in supposing that I thought you purchased inferior coffee. I thought I said to him that I was surprised you should buy such poor roasted corn. I did not believe you had such a thing as coffee in the place; I am certain I never tasted any. I have long ceased to make complaints at Swindon. I avoid taking anything there if I can help it."
I'm surprised (not) that they don't have this letter on display in the coffee shop on Swindon Station today...
A masterpiece of the English language,
More famous for building the fastest steam train ever created
@@wingedfinger I was under the impression the A4's were all built at Doncaster Plant by LNER, is there a Great Western train which holds an unofficial record which beats the Mallard?
Can’t be worse than the coffee at the Railway Refreshment Room at Warragul Station.
this is so creepy... I live in Swindon and this just came up in my recommended
Guessing it's linked to a Google account. Perhaps local searches you have done told Google your interests. All a tad odd I agree!
Are u blind? They trach ur every move via phone, gps, pc and even ur mind!
Same
Yep same
It's the algorithm of the Internet the Internet knows a lot about people that's why people can take your identity if they really tried I got recommended this since I was looking for places in that area because I'm planning on moving outside of London
In terms of distance, Swindon was rather closer to Bristol than it was to London, but the GWR route got steaper beyond Swindon and needed locos with Smaller driving Wheels (Smaller wheels mean a loco better for climbing hills) and while Swindon was rather 'off centre' in terms of distance, the locos were swapped here, and the idea was, it was as many wheel revolutions on the bigger locs from London, as it was on the smaller wheeled locos from Bristol, so the locos for each end of the line would wear out at the same rate.
What a fascinating comment. I've never heard that explanation and, I must admit, I thought Brunel's main line was straight and flat. Is it not referred-to as the "billiard table"?
It is so far as Swindon, but not thereafter.
Like myself, I love the way you integrate maps, historical records and ground investigation into topics. It's a rare skill these days as most people think Google has the answer to everything and do a few google searches then declare they know the truth. You are true historians.
I spent a lot of time in queens park. In the late 60s, it has changed heaps. We left Swindon in mid-1971.🇦🇺 so thanks for the video. enjoyed it.
As a Swindonian, this was really interesting! I’d clocked you we’re fairly local, from other videos, but would love to see more on Swindon things like this (and the mechanics institute and its various sagas through the last 20 years!)
Thanks Dave. We try and get far afield as you'll see from last years videos (Pre-Lockdown). You'll have to go even further back to see the MSWJR ones!
@@pwhitewick there is also the tunnel under the Dingle Liverpool which was the only tunnel on the Liverpool Overhead railway, the tunnel collapsed in 2012 and has now been repaired.
This video popped up randomly in my feed today. Not what I normally watch, but I thought it might be interesting. I sure hope it’s just coincidence, given I live about 2 mins walk from Queens Park. Otherwise I might have to go and make myself a tinfoil hat...
A few years ago I met a Landscaping contracter that had carried out some work in Queens park, possibly around the time Tunnel House was built. He claimed they had uncovered the tunnel entrance, he said they filled it in and built the ground to a higher level. The tunnel at Marlborough was open a few years ago, I walked through it, at one point they grew Mushrooms in it.
Thanks Robin, I'd love to know if they actually constructed a portal. Yes the Marlborough one was part of a huge Bat sanctuary project I believe.
I grew up in Marlborough ,my friends and myself when we were younger we used to play in the old tunnel you could walk all the way through it.
@@chrisoffer3074 I am VERY jealous.
@@pwhitewick just another thing to say by the southern entrnce of Marlborough tunnel there used to be a temporary siding/station in ww2 where they unloaded ammunition to store in savernake forest . If you go down a road called the grand avenue in the forest you can see remains of the bunkers where ammunition was stored
@@chrisoffer3074 ah yes we featured that in another video many moons ago
Thank you so much again for yet another wonderful glimpse into Britain's lost tunnels. Keep up the excellent work Paul and Rebecca .
My dad was a builder and he told me about the tunnel when we visited Queen's Park. I think he had to do some work there and up in Old Town that related to it. He also did some work on or around the skew bridge that carried the M&SWJ across the Wilts & Berks Canal. He would have loved this video. Thanks for making it.
I’m sure I read somewhere many years ago that the reason that the GWR placed the works at Swindon was due to the fact that it was the point on the line where the very flat section of the railway from London (Brunel’s billiard table) changed to the more hilly route onwards to Bristol. Hence it was a good place to change from fast locomotives with larger wheels to ones with smaller wheels that were better able to cope with the increased gradients west of Swindon.
Your information just gets better and better. yet another quality video about somewhere i knew nothing about. thought i knew my railways but just shows you're always learning. well done again guys.
Went to Swindon many times when I worked round there, including the infamous Magic Roundabout but this is a new one on me. Thanks for yet another piece of lost history.
We actually went over the roundabout to get there. Left and left, thankfully.
I've lived in Swindon for 60 years, I knew about the land slippage, but never heard of a tunnel under old town!
@@jaynedavis4667 There are some tunnels that can be accessed (Not by public though) through Villets house and the Goddard arms as well. Originally i beleive they connected through to Coate water but as far as i know they have been filled in/caved in along the route.
How lovely did Rebecca look in that dress 🤗❤
she is the only reason I subscribed.
You guys turn out some fascinating videos on engineering history, really good work. Thanks for bringing this to the internet 👍🏻
Another interesting video! I like how the safest house in Swindon is in the most dangerous street!
Gee, I wonder why I like this channel so much. ;-)
I was born in Swindon and lived as a young child in Dunbarton Terrace which is the road next to Hunt Street. We had to move out due to the house land sliding in to Queens park. I found this video very interesting and love local history. Anymore on Swindon would be great 😁
Did the house have to be demolished in the end or was it safely stablised.
@@simontay4851 There were 6 houses on Dunbarton Terrace and numbers 5 & 6 had to be demolished. We lived at number 5. This was in 1983.
Great work! Top notch production, and very engaging presentation!
7:22 Rebecca Whitewick is clearly the fashionable one in the family.
Obviously.
Dressing up during covid-19, is it the day for putting your bins out then?
"My glamorous assistant" except, I suspect, that would not go down well...
John - what's bloody covid got anything to do with it?!
@@annother3350 It's called a joke
Mate definitely you need to try your luck in national geographic
The way you speak and the voice you have and the personality what you have
It sounds like you made for this
Great research here. Fascinating to hear of a planned tunnel actually being abandoned completely because they couldn't solve the civil engineering problems. Fareham Tunnel in Hampshire had similar problems and landslips caused several closures. They even built a "geological avoiding line" which experience showed did not actually avoid the problem. In 1967 the avoiding line was closed and they build houses on top of the cutting, like Hunt Street in Swindon. Surprise, surprise, they later encountered subsidence problems. The original line survives, with a very wide shallow sided cutting stabilised by trees.
Also Swindon born and raised thank you for this :)
There is a couple of old railway tunnels near my house. One of them recently dug up now, however, one is still there in Gill Bridge Park on the banks of the Wear in Sunderland
I live in Swindon and I never knew it was so fascinating
I was lucky enough to walk through Marlborough tunnel, when i was at school in the early 90s.
Another great video. Many thanks for all the hard work you put in, which culminates in these fascinating videos.
Another piece of fascinating history. A great film - love the maps.
Loved that thanks. It is so pretty there for hiking even without tunnels to chase. Thank you so much for taking me along. Take care
Nice video, thanks! I used to live on Hunt street, I can see my old house behind the Tunnel House in the picture. Lost a bit of our garden in the early 80s to a landslide. I don't know if it's because of the poorly filled in tunnel but you could really feel the vibrations from the house if a lorry went by outside.
Found this very interesting as when I was 7 we used to travel from the Newport St Station down to Southampton in carriages with no corridor. Will follow as I have an interest in Canals and railways in fact various structures.
I lived just across the road for 4 years and always wondered why they called it 'Tunnel House', and now I know!
Anyway, really interesting and well-made video and there's a nice piece about you in the Evening Adver today.
Another Swindonian here... fantastic video! Thank you!
Great story on a dangerous venue from yesteryear. Good that you found a reliable Cartographer.
I'm surprised, since it so wet, that they didn't turn the railway tunnel into a canal tunnel! But from what I've read, they encountered a band of clay that they hadn't known was there. I'm just amazed that a genius like Brunell didn't figure out a solution, after all he and his father built a tunnel under the Thames river.
I maybe wrong, but they were trying to connect to brunnel's line, not the other way around
Brunel did not survey this proposed line. It was going to be built by another company.
I live in Swindon so it was kinda weird watching a semi-viral video about it. Cool video though 👍
The production on this is phenomenal. Well done. Super video and you've a new subscriber.
I live not far from Newport St, and this was fascinating.
Very interesting video,learning even more about my home town. The tunnel is one thing I didn`t know about.Thank you again.
Super video as always, didn't know about this one! Thanks for another great bit of history!
Glad you enjoyed it
Very good explanation and good little documentation, this gentleman has produce .. please carry do more videos .. thank you .
Interesting programme about a non-existent structure! Great delivery and top marks for investigative content. Thanks Paul and Rebecca 👍
Thanks Colin, very kind.
Just found your channel and I love it! Great editing and I like the cuts with your wife where you pop in and out. The content and editing is so good! Thanks to you both from Texas!
OMG .. I live in Swindon .. and never knew this .. what a gem of information, thank you
Thanks Barry. A pleasure
Great video I live in Swindon but knew nothing about this so thank you both
Another brilliant video. keep up the great work.
Another brilliant video - thank you!
Great video, unaware of the existence of this proposed tunnel until your video. Our thanks to Rebecca for her informative comments and appearances in the video while trying to keep you “on track”.
What a splendid assistant young Rebecca makes looking very glamorous indeed 😉
Thank you for a brilliant video. I enjoyed this. In 2010 , I stayed at The Marriott Swindon Hotel for a RCTS members weekend and there is an old M&SWJR railway bridge.
How interesting. Having worked in Pipers Way, Swindon for 22 years, I never knew about these railways and tunnels. Thanks.
Really interesting! Love our home town and it's history! Great job guys!
There is a secret smaller tunnel, off Dean Street. It was access for the workers to get into the factory.
Interesting tunnel.
where exactly? can you still see it!?
Swindon is shit how come you love it and love living there 😂😂😂 wtf it’s utter shit shit night life shit shops nah shit
it's not a secret, it's on the Two Chain plans, you can purchase these online for a few quid a sheet.
@@harrynewnham6410 good job I sleep at night and don't like retail therapy then 👍
I have lived in swindon all my life and I never knew this! Great video!
Thanks guys another very interesting vlog.
Another story about something I never knew! You guys should write a book! 😊
Despite the problems they had there Swindon Old Town has a network of old (smugglers) tunnels running underneath it. Some bits are still accessible I think from the cellars of some of the buildings.
Villets house and The Goddard arms. Also in the town centre there are 2 large round concrete structures that are access point. The computer museum and other shops nearby can access the tunnels near the Wyvern theatre, they come in the car park just below the Theatre.
@@Jacob-ct7hc I work under villets house on occasion. Loads of shut off tunnels
Natives of Wiltshire were called 'Moonrakers' especially those engaged in smuggling and other nefarious activities around Swindon and there is a pub named after them. Old Swindonians were called 'Moonies'.
well damn. all this time i was looking for the tunnel on maps and i was looking on the wrong end! liverd in swindon my whole life and am quite a fan of the M&SWJR (earlier SM&AR) lovely video, thank you
I have lived in Swindon since 1996 and seen it change a lot. I'm really fascinated by the history of the town. I didn't know about this thank you for sharing. Oh and I have subbed 😎👍
I feel sorry for any one who lives in Swindon it’s shit the night life is shit and the shops I hate it so much 😡
This is fantastic stuff and at one time would have been on mainstream TV. I won't go into what the channels are full of now.
Walked the line I think the day before you did the tunnel visit its a great line with so much to see, never knew about the tunnel so well done again great stuff.
Cheers. We actually filmed this the day we did Sapperton!
Well presented and informative great work!
It is a great video. I live near Swindon, almost on where the M&SWJ used to run. I was aware of some of the history and locations of the tunnel, but had never drawn it all out. You must have my "round tuit" as I never have the time! As mentioned by Ian, the planning department must have some detailed ground surveys, provided as part of the planning applications.
You got Tesco extra pencilled in on map amuses me on your route plan great programmes thankyou
another very enjoyable and interesting production - well done you guys
Glad you enjoyed it
Good to see you managed to find a copy of the original deposited plans, they can be very interesting to read.
Great video as always. Really enjoyed it.
Interesting video, brilliantly edited. Thanks for posting
Thanks Ethan
Good evening you lovely pair I have lived and still do in Swindon this is amazing to learn
Thankyou for sharing.
I lived at 56 Bath Road Old Town Swindon, tunnels everywhere in this area . Lots where the works used to be too
From everything I've seen on this channel and Martin Zero's channel. That must be some insane terrain if a heard of Angelo's, Brit's, Norman's, and Celt's couldn't tunnel through it, and set it in steady stonework.
Great video! Very interesting, even the bits where you play with maps and markers.😊👌
Great video Paul and Rebecca, very interesting,the tunnel caused a lot of subsidence I should think on a lot of properties, Rebecca looking rather glamorous 😉👍👌
a fascinating video. Thanks for sharing.
Swindon! I always wanted to visit. It’s the hometown of one of my favorite bands, XTC.
Great video thank you for posting this...👍
I live in Swindon and never knew there was plans for a huge tunnel shame it didn’t work out great video guys
Thank you.
Another fascinating video!
That was a nice surprise to see you suddenly popping up with a new video. The sun's definitely brought you out!
Oddly enough I was walking through boggy land today thinking of Swamp Castle from Monty Python and the Holy Grail.
The Sun and Planets are all I know about Swindon - I've cycled around them many years ago, so this was very interesting to see.
hey paul and rebecca , another very interesting video , well done :)
Enjoyed the presentation!
Hi Paul and Rebecca thanks for another informative video in your inimitable style.
Our pleasure!
One of the reasons Swindon was selected was because it had access to the canal system, so it could bring raw materials for the works.
As well as already having a stone quarrying industry in the town, which was also useful for the GWR, and was why the canals came through Swindon in the first place.
First video of yours I’ve seen. We live south of Swindon and my wife works there. Really enjoyed this - subbed 👍
Great video again Paul and Rebecca. They built railways everywhere, sometimes with no prior thought of, can we get through, or will it make money.
I've only been to Swindon once, drove round the famous magic roundabout and stayed at the Menzies hotel for one night.
One of my classic bikes was given a Swindon number, VMR.
Absolute legend
Well thanks.
Thanks for the interesting and differing content, I've missed a few, so I reckon I should hire my local cinema screen to watch them on to catch up. Keep up the good work. 👍
Looks like Rebecca channelling the inner Debbie McGee
And now for my next trick she appears from behind the whiteboard
Except MUCH prettier
thats quite a bit of the town's history to digest, great sharing 👍 I am sure the town is a huge challenge for urban planners
Thanks Kevin, certainly this part of the town yes.
@@ianhalsall-fox thanks for sharing! when there's tunnel there's trouble yea? haha
Love this channel...new subscriber from annapolis, maryland. Just found you 2 today !!! Fascinating !!! Keep up the great work , both of you.
Very interesting video.
When there is a road number, that it's prioritised over road names. They would space for both at the scale you had the map at but they don't do that. Personally I would display both. I work in mapping and addressing, hence my interest the maps, amongst everything else.
Regarding Swindon street names being towns on the GWR line, I presume many of those moving to Swindon to work for GWR would have come from those same towns!
Very true Derek. I wonder how much of that played a part in naming the streets?
Great and informative video as always guys, thank you for covering the Swindon's abandoned tunnel. I'm very local and lived in Hunt Street for a while (the stable end, not the crumbly end). I currently live near to where the southern portal would have been. I love the history of the railway around here and often cycle the old line north through Cricklade or south to Marlborough.
Where is the southern portal exactly, nothing obvious to see and can't see on any maps, did it just run to the track from Marlborough Road side?
@@jasonmccormick9944 it never actually existed as they did not get that far before abandoning the project and taking the route around the south and west side of the hill. But if it had it would have been around where the station stood at the end of what is today, Signal Way.
Superb content and production....brilliant work. Thanks.
Thanks Neil
Swindon Town railway station was at the end of Station Approach, which was just off Newport Street
Really interesting and informative vid! Great bit of knowledge too!
Great presentation thanks xxx.
Nice I'm actually planning on moving to that place soon
Cracking video guys! Very interesting!