issue 188 (December 2023 – January 2024)

50 years ago, Martin Curtis holidayed on the Isle of Wight; he shows and tells us what he saw. 50 years ago was also the end of Blue Bus of Willington, and David Stanier recalls its last days before being sold to Derby Corporation.

We take a brief look at the route 38 running day in London and Bristol's City Centre Circle, are shown more buses and coaches that took people to see the Pope in Coventry in 1982, and observe the prototype Bristol RE coach in Victoria Coach Station. On our ongoing theme of ECW window rubbers, we find that they also came in grey, and we discover a one-off sort-of taxi that was built by Park Royal (for Birch). We also negotiate the Devil's Elbow in Scotland, chase Bristol FLF Lodekkas in Weymouth and Wood Green, and go one-man in Dorset and Wiltshire.

We tell the story of King's Cross coach station in London, Chris Drew recalls help with his O-level project from Bristol and ECW, and Ian Maclean remembers driving the Rolls-Royce gas-engined Fleetline. There is also more on MCW Topaz coaches with East Yorkshire and, from The Bus Archive, a tale of an Essex independent.

in this issue

• London 38 running day – a fine day out
• a long gone Essex independent – from The Bus Archive
• Isle of Wight 50 years ago – Martin Curtis on holiday
• an O-level project helped – Chris Drew was grateful
• driving a Rolls-Royce bus – up to Glasgow and back
• when Blue Bus bowed out – the end of an independent
• Bristol's City Centre Circle – LS and MW types with headboards
• grey window rubbers – more on the ECW style
• going one-man in Dorset & Wiltshire – David Pike tells the story
• the King's Cross story – even Green Line used it
• a prototype RE coach – at Victoria
• the Rossmore bus – in Poole
• in search of FLFs – in Weymouth and Wood Green
• a Park Royal taxi – sort-of, for Birch
• sent to Coventry – more coaches to see the Pope
• the Devil's Elbow – a nasty turn and climb in Scotland