News

Train stop journey arrives at Haverfordwest

Published

7 years ago

June 29, 2017

Tom Sinclair

Vicki and Geoff: Travelling to 2,563 train stations across the UK

A COUPLE from East London have taken on the challenge of travelling to every train station in the UK, and this week they arrived at Haverfordwest.

Geoff Marshall and Vicki Pipe have travelled to over 1,400 train stations out of the 2,563 stations in the United Kingdom, and have so far travelled by train across Kent, Birmingham and Derbyshire, but this week is their ‘Wales Week’.

Updating their YouTube channel, ‘All The Stations’, they have been documenting their journey on a daily basis.

So, what are the rules? Geoff and Vicki must be on a train that stops – they can’t get on a fast train that goes all the way through to the final destination, so ideally they need to be on a train that does stop at every station.

The Herald caught up with Geoff and Vicki at Haverfordwest Train Station after they got off the 2pm train with their camera, wearing their ‘All The Stations’ t-shirts yesterday afternoon (Jun 27).

When asked where it all started, Vicki said: “I’m very interested in the social history side and how the railways connect people.”

Pulling into the station: Haverfordwest

Geoff managed to be the record holder of travelling to all the tube stations in London in the fastest time – twice. He said: “Off of that came the conversation, is there a record to go to all of the train stations?”

“We’re not trying to do it in the fastest time, but at a more leisurely pace!”

The pair didn’t want it to just be a journey in which they stopped and explored places that they thought were interesting, and wanted other people to contribute.

They came to Haverfordwest after being approached by a local, who offered them the chance to travel to Pembrokeshire and take a look around.

So far, it has taken Vicki and Geoff 6 weeks to travel to half of the stations across the UK, however they anticipate it will take them an extra 8 weeks to complete the rest as they take their journey through Wales, due to trains running less frequently than in other areas.

Geoff said: “One of the most obvious difference is we live in a world in South East London, where we’re from, where a train runs every 10 minutes.

“One of our local stations, I don’t even bother to check when the next train is going to be, I just rock up and know that another one is going to be along in the next three or four, at most seven minutes, there’s going to be a train, and here at Haverfordwest we’re looking at the board and there’s a train every two hours.

“It does bring it home how infrequent trains are out of the cities and commuter areas.”

Whilst travelling through Wales, Vicki has been trying to learn some of the Welsh language, and has been speaking to people across the country in an attempt to help her learn more.

She said: “It’s been brilliant trying to learn Welsh as well, and people have been so happy to give us tips, and I really hope by the end of the week I’ll be able to reel off a few sentences without having to look at my notes!”

Half way there: Vicki and Geoff are almost half way through their ‘All The Stations’ journey

The love of railways all stemmed from a box of old black and white photogaphs of railways owned by Geoff’s grandad, before they were closed by The Beeching cuts in 1965, along with maps of the railways that Geoff’s grandfather used to cycle to.

Geoff said: “The more you look at a map and the place names, the more you think why don’t people just get on a train and get out and explore more? And there’s something quite marvellous, with that expression the thrill is in the chase not the capture, I would definitely bump that up to the experience is in the journey not getting to your destination.

“And, I’d rather do it on a train where you can look out the window, read a book, talk to someone, have a nap, get up and go for a walk around – if I was taking a long journey I’d prefer to do it by train, and it’s good for the environment too!

“And I really mean that – we come from London where the air quality is an issue, and we’ve been in Wales this week breathing in some fresh mountain air, so it brings it home. So, more than ever, I’m thinking we need to get people onto trains.”

The Herald asked Geoff and Vicki if they think the train lines will change over the next few years.

Vicki said: “I think there’s going to be loads of investment in the train network over the next few years, and that’s going to dramatically change the way we travel, such as the speed of which we travel, how we buy our tickets and the service we expect once we get on board a train, and in a way it felt like 2017 was the time to take a look and take a snapshot of what the railways are like now before all of that change happens.

“We’ve joked about maybe coming back in 15 to 20 years to see what it’s like!”

To follow Geoff and Vicki’s journey, go to www.allthestations.co.uk or find them on Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Twitter.

Crime

Ceredigion man sentenced for selling £150,000 in illegal DVDs

Published

5 mins ago

November 14, 2024

Tom Sinclair

A CEREDIGION man has been sentenced for selling counterfeit DVDs worth £150,000 under major brand names without authorization.

David Robert Thomas, 47, from Sarnau, ran a sophisticated online operation, producing and selling fake DVDs labeled with brands like Netflix, Amazon, Disney, Sony, and Universal City Studios LLC. Thomas used seven different websites and managed multiple bank and PayPal accounts, including those of family members, to carry out his business.

Councillor Matthew Vaux, Ceredigion County Council’s Cabinet Member for Public Protection, said: “Counterfeiting is often thought of as a victimless crime, but it harms the local economy by undermining legitimate businesses that pay taxes and create real jobs. This result sends a clear message that counterfeit sales will not be tolerated, and we will act against offenders.”

Thomas pleaded guilty at Swansea Crown Court on Monday (Nov 11) and was sentenced to 20 months in prison, suspended for 18 months. His sentence includes a four-month curfew and fifteen Rehabilitation Activity Requirement days.

Under the Crime Act 2002, forfeiture proceedings will follow to reclaim the financial benefits from Thomas’s criminal activities. Judge Richards took into account the market value of equivalent genuine goods, the sophisticated setup of Thomas’s business, and his previously clean record in reaching the sentencing decision.

The case was brought forward successfully by Ceredigion County Council’s Trading Standards Service.

News

Poignant Poppy Walk created in Milford Haven following Remembrance Day

Published

26 mins ago

November 14, 2024

Tom Sinclair

YOUNG people have again created a fitting tribute in honour of Remembrance Day with a Poppy Walk established along Hamilton Terrace.

On Monday (Nov 11) veterans working for the youth service identify young people to support them in using wreaths laid at the cenotaph to mount them along the railings between the Royal British Legion in Milford down to the Cenotaph itself.

This has now become an annual event with the service, in previous years young people from Milford Haven School and members of Milford Haven Youth Club have completed this work. This year it was young people and staff from Futureworks who helped youth workers.

In previous years the feedback from the public has been extremely positive and this year was no exception with members of the public stopping and speaking to the young people to ask what they were doing and to share their thanks for adding to the community in a respectful way.

Milford Town Council has supported the Poppy Walk since its inception and again were grateful to the youth service and the young people for leading on this work.

Jimmy Wilson, youth worker and former member of the Kings’ Own Royal Border Regiment said: “The fact that these young people have come in on their day off to volunteer their time to create the poppy walk shows that they value the service of the armed forces and understand the significance of remembrance day and the sacrifices made by both serving and ex forces members.”

The above picture includes Alfie, Kaden, Lily, Megan and Jenna with staff from Pembrokeshire Youth Service and Futureworks.

Entertainment

Creatives connect in Fishguard: Mastering social media and sparking collaborations

Published

2 hours ago

November 14, 2024

Tom Sinclair

Musicians, photographers, filmmakers, and content creators gathered for an inspiring evening of collaboration and conversation at Creative West Wales’ latest event.

A well-attended panel discussion and networking event held in Ffwrn, Fishguard last month, focused on the use of social media and digital images to market the music sector.

A panel of experts from the music industry including Siân Adler of Trigger Happy Creative, Alun Llwyd CEO of PYST Ltd and Owain Elidir Williams, founder of music magazine Klust, discussed the use of social media platforms as a tool for the creative industries.

A speed-networking session enabled those attending to connect with fellow creatives from across the sectors and explore potential collaborations, business opportunities and support.

Siân said: “It’s really exciting to see projects like Creative West Wales exist – it can be difficult to make new connections in the industry especially outside of the city but having opportunities like the panel/networking event held at Ffwrn was great.

“Every year our company films at Other Voices Festival and are always looking for local crew so to be able to meet and connect with local creatives was a great opportunity for us.”

The Creative West Wales event was funded by the UK Government’s Shared Prosperity Fund and supported by Pembrokeshire County Council’s business team.

Creative Industries Officer Anwen Baldwin said: “It was great to get so many talented local people with a range of skills together in one room. Often people are unaware of fellow creatives who may be living and working just down the road.

“Hopefully this will lead to many future collaborations. We’ve already had positive feedback about the value of this event, and plan to arrange more networking events of this kind to bring people together from across the sectors.”

Creative West Wales aims to facilitate conversations and connections. Primarily focusing on the music, screen, gaming, publishing and animation sectors, the network links people working in the creative industries across the counties of Ceredigion, Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire, Swansea and Neath Port Talbot, in a bid to share opportunities, information and encourage collaboration.To find out more about the available activities or to join the Creative West Wales Network please visit: www.creativewest.wales