31st December , 2008

"Homeguard and the Orient Express"

Happy New Year to you all. Hope you had a good one. well here goes this is what happened.................................
Some of us arrived in the afternoon and helped to get things ready. three rooms upstairs and the station masters office were allocated as family and married couples rooms. The big room out the back was the boys dorm as we had 7 single men!!!!! It worked well really 21of us stopped over including the owner of the tea rooms and the cook.

Many thanks to Elaine Ward and to Kenny Morland (Airborne Medic Below right (tash))  for the photos.

The evening kicked off around 7.30ish with 40's music. Many older ones talked those who liked to dance (Me, Georgia, Ian and Linda) was on the dance floor pretty soon. The owners wife and his daughter was soon doing the Charleston swing and American stroll.
A corn beef hash was enjoyed by everyone at 9pm. Gracie Lands did a spot of singing and then a surprise spot was followed by Elvis (surprise to him as well).

Roops entertained us with a couple of numbers on his guitar, without the other two foggy bottom boys. But he was brilliant. Roops's dad, Gordon, rocked the tea rooms on the piano. Wow can he play boogie woogie rhythm, the place was dancing and clapping. Hilary jumped up and was stamping her feet and clapping and best of all she was sober doing it.................

The orient express arrived about 11.40ish. WOW!!!    Red carpets were rolled out onto the platform from each door way. trolleys of champagne were lifted out and all the passengers were handed one on disembarking by a lovely 'bell girl'. This is when DJ's met OD's.

There was 3 Scottish pipers playing on the platform by the clock. What an atmosphere, they all wanted pictures taken with us. Midnight was spent on the platform, the pipers played in the new year Auld Lang syne on their pipes and then there was a magnificent fireworks display.

The lucky passengers re-boarded the train, and we sent them off with union Jack flags waving.

We then carried on with a sing song around the piano, as people went home and others went to bed. Lights out at about 2.30ish. Pretty much everyone was up, had breakfast and gone by 10.30am. None with hangovers!!

I only had a sip of champagne off the orient express all evening no alcohol touched my lips. So a very sober night for many of us.

Elaine.

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