a cup which is insulated enough not to burn, but enough lacking in insulation so we can finish our drink before we get [there].

20:06 Westbury to Cheltenham Spa due 22:06

20:06 Westbury to Cheltenham Spa due 22:06 has been cancelled.
This is due to the emergency services dealing with an incident earlier today.

Which service bus are you planning on?  The old 120 between Winscombe and Bristol was cancelled some years ago.  There is the Bristol / Plymouth Falcon service that stops for Winscombe but that is a coach service run by Megabus.  You could take the train to Weston and then the 126 from Weston to Winscombe.

It is a lovely walk to Yatton.

This train did in fact start from Swindon in the end albeit over 20 minutes late.

Plans 'absolutely vital' to protect future of Ironbridge museums

The interim boss in charge of the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust says the new plan to protect the sites was "vital" after visitor numbers fell.

On Thursday it was announced the National Trust would be taking over the running of its 10 museums and 35 listed buildings and scheduled monuments, with the help of £9m from the government.

Karen Davies, the trust's interim chief executive officer, said the last five years had been "very difficult" and visitor numbers "were just not returning to pre-Covid levels". She said the museums were "not about to go bump", but added: "We recognised to protect the historic assets for the medium to long-term future, it was absolutely vital we put a plan in place."

The Ironbridge Gorge has been described as the birthplace of the industrial revolution, and one of the attractions is the original blast furnace where Abraham Darby I perfected iron smelting. His innovations, and those of the "iron masters" who followed him, are widely recognised as being the catalyst for the building of the bridges, railways and machinery of the modern world.

The museums tell the story of those achievements and of the Industrial Revolution and since 1967 the area's heritage has been overseen by the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust.

But Ms Davies said visitor numbers had fallen from approximately 450,000 before the pandemic to just under 300,000 last year. She said ideally, to be sustainable, that figure needed to be 500,000. For that reason, she said the museum trust had spoken to "lots of organisations" to seek help.


Blists Hill Victorian Town is one of the biggest attractions in the Ironbridge Gorge

The National Trust has said it aims to increase annual visitor numbers to 600,000 in the long term, and Ms Davies said: "We consider ourselves to be very fortunate the National Trust recognised the absolute uniqueness of Ironbridge."

She said the "stories that we tell you can't find that anywhere else in the world," and it would be up to the National Trust to decide how to tell that story. Ms Davies also said: "The whole idea of government investing the £9m is that the National Trust will have the ability to invest in all our sites and bring them to life more."

Ms Davies said it was too early to talk about the impact on jobs, but in the short term all employees would move over to the National Trust when the takeover is completed in the spring. "We haven't started to discuss operational plans with the National Trust," she added.

The future of the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust is more certain, however, and she said the organisation would be wound up in mid-2026.

I'll be there - planning an earlier start and headed for Winscombe (service bus from Bristol) to walk along the Strawberry Line to Yatton, lunch at the cafe and 2 p.m. meeting. 

Now pushed out to 1800

Sparing a thought, many thoughts indeed, for all involved in what appears to be another sad and bad situation

16:32 Great Malvern to London Paddington due 19:29 will be cancelled.
This is due to the emergency services dealing with an incident near the railway earlier today.
Last Updated:17/10/2025 16:31

18:02 Worcester Foregate Street to London Paddington due 20:29 will be cancelled.
This is due to the emergency services dealing with an incident earlier today.
Last Updated:17/10/2025 16:52

14:53 London Paddington to Worcester Foregate Street due 17:04 has been delayed between London Paddington and Oxford and is now 29 minutes late.
This is due to the emergency services dealing with an incident earlier today.
Last Updated:17/10/2025 16:34

15:52 London Paddington to Great Malvern due 18:26 has been delayed at London Paddington and is now 40 minutes late.
This is due to the emergency services dealing with an incident earlier today.
Last Updated:17/10/2025 16:36

Two decades of improving railway safety

Today, 17 October 2025, RAIB marks 20 years of independently investigating accidents and incidents on the UK railway.

Railway and tramway passengers and workers have benefited from safer journeys and working environments following two decades of independent safety investigations by the Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB).

Since becoming operational on 17th October 2005, RAIB has deployed investigators 777 times across Britain’s railway network. The organisation’s 427 published reports have generated 1,891 safety recommendations and 447 learning points that have directly contributed to improved safety standards across the industry.

The organisation has issued 52 urgent safety advice notifications when immediate action was needed to protect lives. Its 138 safety bulletins and digests have highlighted 278 critical safety messages to the industry.

Andrew Hall, Chief Inspector of Rail Accidents said:

Learning from accidents is a fundamental way of improving safety and the railway has a long history of doing so, going back to the 19th century. Today our anniversary feels poignant, as it is also 25 years since the tragic accident at Hatfield, which took the lives of four people and injured 70 more.   

Thankfully over the last 20 years, the railway has become statistically safer. Technological advancements, organisational change and a better understanding of risk have all contributed. Such improvements are no small part due to the structural changes brought about by the Cullen Inquiry and the consequent establishment of the tripartite railway safety structure: RAIB; ORR; and the railway industry, including RSSB. 

RAIB’s role today is the same as it was on day one, to independently investigate accidents to improve railway and tramway safety and inform the industry and the public. After a significant accident or incident, the travelling public must be assured that a thorough and independent investigation will be conducted and that the causes will be published so that everyone can understand what happened and learn the lessons.

Two casualties on GWR today.
One in the London area, and now this one.

Thoughts with all involved.

A. Mackinnon donated this photo to the Australian War Memorial - This tag does not indicate the copyright status of the attached work. A normal copyright tag is still required. See Commons:Licensing for more information.
Australian and Dutch prisoners of war at Tarsau in Thailand. The four men are suffering from beri beri.

15:23 London Paddington to Worcester Foregate Street due 17:47 has been cancelled.
This is due to the emergency services dealing with an incident near the railway earlier today.
Last Updated:17/10/2025 15:44

15:15 Swindon to Westbury due 15:59

15:15 Swindon to Westbury due 15:59 will be started from Chippenham.
It will no longer call at Swindon.
This is due to the emergency services dealing with an incident near the railway earlier today.