Priory Coaches of North Shields
194?
Bedford OB
Duple C27F

My thanks to the management of Priory Coaches North Shields, for allowing me to use this photo.
An impressive line up of Duple bodied Bedford OB’s from the late 40’s (exact year unknown) In the background is Tynemouth Castle, which overlooks the mouth of the river Tyne. To the extreme left, the white building at the top of the cliffs is the Coast Guard Station.

Above the roof line of the buildings you can see the medieval monument of Tynemouth Priory, which the company is named after, at one time a gold image of the Priory was displayed on the rear of their vehicles. The livery was two shades of green and cream, with gold leaf lettering and logo, the seats were upholstered in a dark rich red moquette material. Around 1953, the layout was altered and cream became the predominant colour. On the OB‘s, the bulk of the body became cream, the roof, front and rear wings, lower skirt, radiator and bonnet tops were dark green, the wheels and the side flash below the window line was the lighter green. The present day fleet is mainly Volvo, and the livery is white with two shades of blue. The Priory logo is still used, but is no longer displayed on their vehicles, the lettering is now blue, but same shaded style font is still used.

Photograph and Copy contributed by Ronnie Hoye

12/05/14 – 08:42

Only a small number of Bedford OB coaches were produced late 1945 after the war with production increasing in 1946 a Bedford PSV circle listing would give you exact year. This listing provides date to 1st owner. Which may help you to date photograph. Sorry I do not have access to listing.

Alan Coulson

12/05/14 – 14:03

T. G. Chapman (Priory Coaches) of South Shields had the following OB/Vistas:
FT 5666: 04/46
FT 5679: 06/46
FT 5680: 06/46
FT 5884: 10/46
FT 5885: 02/47
FT 5892: 10/46
FT 5893: 01/47
FT 5894: 10/46
FT 5895: 11/47
FT 5896: 10/46
FT 6102: 11/47 (SMT body)
FT 6281: 01/48
FT 6358: 06/48
FT 6642: 05/49
FT 6795: ?
FT 6905: 1950
FT 7009: 1951
There were also 12 OB’s (6 Duple, 6 Plaxton FC30F) with FT registrations delivered between 7/46 and 12/48 to Taylor Bros. of North Shields. Some of the registration numbers of Taylor’s vehicles were in the same batches as the Priory (Chapman) ones, so I assume there was a connection between the two. This is according to the PSV Circle book on the OB.

John Stringer

13/05/14 – 06:37

John, I’m not aware of any connection between Taylor Brothers of North Shields and Priory Coaches, but that’s not to say there wasn’t one. Around 1960 ‘ish’ Taylor Bros became a subsidiary of Hall Brothers of South Shields, who subsequently became part of the Barton Group

Ronnie Hoye

13/05/14 – 13:08

Sorry Ronnie, an unfortunate typo crept into my comment above, the listed OB’s being those of G. Chapman (Priory Coaches), not Taylor Bros.

John Stringer

13/05/14 – 17:20

John, I note that one of the numbers listed is for the OB’s is FT 6905, as I said, I am not aware of any connection between Taylor Bros and Priory Coaches, however, Taylor Bros had a Daimler CVD6SD with C33F Burlingham body, registration FT 6909, only four away. The vehicle is pictured elsewhere on this site, and was last heard of tucked away in a corner of Wright Brothers depot in Nenthead, and awaiting restoration. The two depots were very close to each other, Priory was in Queen Street, and I think Taylor’s were literally just round the corner in Hudson Street. Another thing that I had quite forgotten, I don’t know when the business started, or if there was any connection between the two, but certainly from the end of the war until about the mid to late 60’s, the main Vauxhall / Bedford dealership in North Shields was also called Taylor Brothers, and they were on Tynemouth Road, which was only a stones throw from both the Priory and Taylor Bros depots. This is only speculation on my part, but the dealership changed hands at roughly the same time the coaches were taken over by Hall Brothers. death duties perhaps?

Ronnie Hoye

19/05/14 – 07:14

It was interesting to see the list of OB registrations from John Stringer, and they had me reaching for my Glass’s Index of registration numbers.
FT was the mark of the ‘County Borough Council of Tynemouth’, and was the mark allocated to it, when it became a County Borough, and commenced issuing registrations as and from 1st October 1904.
FT ran from then until January 1957.
John shows TF 5666 being registered on April 1946, and must have been only the 2nd vehicle licensed that year, because the year started at FT 5665.
Similarly in 1948 the year started at 6276, with FT 6281 being only the 6th licensed. It can be seen therefore that it was a very slow moving mark.
So it took 53 years to issue 10,000 marks, (an average of less than 200 a year), it must have been an easy job working in the Motor Vehicle Taxation Office in Tynemouth

Stephen Howarth

19/05/14 – 15:35

The DVLA seem to have stumbled upon a nice little earner in unused Tynemouth FT registrations. The BBC George Gently series is set in the early 70’s, in a recent episode I noticed an Austin with a numbers first LFT registration. Tynemouth did get as far as three letters followed by the numbers, but never with the numbers first. Incidentally, the 1 numbers, AFT 1 – BFT 1 Etc, were all Tynemouth Police vehicles.

Ronnie Hoye

20/05/14 – 16:33

The county borough of Tynemouth got as far as the start of the KFT series before it changed to AFT —B! It must have been getting a little busier in Tynemouths motor taxation office…

Tom Carr

20/05/14 – 17:20

I think we may have our wires crossed here, Tom. The first three letter FT registrations delivered to Tynemouth and District were the 1957 Willowbrook bodied Leyland PD2/12’s, they were AFT 49/53, but AFT 1 was an Austin Westminster for Tynemouth Police, and the first of every issue up to KFT were also Police vehicles. The fist issue with a suffix was in 1965 ‘C’ but the letters reverted to AFT. Under the local boundary changes of 1974, FT became a Tyne and Wear registration.

Ronnie Hoye

21/05/14 – 08:08

It wouldn’t have required a great deal of intelligence for the local villains to spot the unmarked police cars, then, Ronnie.

Roger Cox

15/06/14 – 07:57

Tom is quite right – Tynemouth got as far as KFT 333 before starting the year suffixes with AFT 1B in August 1964.
And he’s not wrong to say that it must have been getting busier in Tynemouth’s motor taxation office – by October 1974, they had reached the VFT-N series whereas Gateshead, which had made it as far as SCN 56 before adopting the year suffixes in July 1964, had only reached the RCN-N series…

Des Elmes

18/03/15 – 07:05

AFT 1 was also on a Humber Super Snipe which came chauffeur driven when I was a lad to pick Chief Constable J. J. Scott up who lived diagonally opposite my grandmothers.

Eddie Hill

Leicester City Transport
1961
AEC Bridgemaster B3RA
Park Royal H45/31R

217 AJF Leicester City 217 was one of the first vehicles to be delivered in the new cream livery with three maroon bands. It was withdrawn from service in 1971, worked for other companies until 1998 when it was bought for preservation and is now owned by individual members of the Leicester Transport Heritage Trust. It originally had only 72 seats but an additional row was inserted in the upper deck in 1963. It has been fully operational since 2011. More information can be found at this link.

Photograph and Copy contributed by Ken Jones

08/05/14 – 07:53

It just shows how even an ugly duckling like the Bridgemaster can be enhanced by a quality livery. Good to see it preserved and in running order.

Ian Wild

08/05/14 – 07:54

Isn’t this livery just much more dignified than the red/grey/white Leicester City Council corporate livery that came after? – we’ll paint our buses the same colour as our "bin waggons" because, presumably, we think our passengers are rubbish. When I first visited Leicester in 1984 the LCT operation had echoes of various conflicting past ages: Ultimate and Solomatic ticket machines; and, yes, conductor operation; but two-door buses abounded; and on some one man buses change was delivered down a chute from a change-giver situated by the driver’s left shoulder (Roger Cox – or indeed anybody living in Halifax late 60’s/early 70’s . . . or in fact in Leicester late 70’s-late 80’s! – will get the picture). LCT was the first time I saw drivers/conductors wearing flat-caps as a matter of course – now, around in First Leeds country, if I ever spot a driver wearing a cap, then the odds are in favour it being a non-uniform baseball cap.
In how many respects was the Bridgemaster a low-height-cut-price-Routemaster-for-the-provinces?
And what a bloody indulgence of LCT to buy a small number of buses they subsequently decided were non-standard (didn’t see that coming then!) and so dispose of prematurely . . . all on the backs of their rate-payers presumably.

Philip Rushworth

08/05/14 – 10:58

The Bridgemaster was an AEC/Park Royal integral model, but there the resemblance to the Routemaster stopped. Among the most obvious differences the Bridgemaster was only available with a manual gearbox, it did not have power steering, was a lowheight design and completely different in appearance!

Don McKeown

08/05/14 – 10:59

Phil They also bought AEC Renowns which also left early along with the non standard Daimler CSG6/30s bought in the early sixties.
Many years ago Leeds bin wagons were a very similar shade to the buses while the lighting dept used blueand the direct works dept used grey The in the late sixties early seventies everything apart from the buses went bright red In Lancaster the bus shelters and the dust carts are still using Trafalgar blue the colour used fro the buses from 1974 to their demise Perhaps they overstocked!

Chris Hough

08/05/14 – 10:59

It is said that following the loan of a Sheffield Transport bus, the general manager of Leicester was so impressed with the blue and cream livery that he decided to adorn his buses with a virtually identical scheme in maroon and cream. Details of the Sheffield bus escape me at present, but what excellent taste that man had!

John Darwent

08/05/14 – 11:45

Variations on a theme. DBC 189C was a H44/31F East Lancs bodied AEC Renown, new to Leicester City Transport in 1965. Around the mid to late 70’s. it was sold to Hunter of Seaton Delaval, and is pictured in service with them on the road between Earsdon and Seaton Delaval. Did it too start life in the rather smart version of the Leicester livery?

Ronnie Hoye

09/05/14 – 08:56

Ronnie. Yes. John. Could it have been one of Sheffield’s 519-524 batch of similar Bridgemasters? Sheffield never had any particular problems with either Regent Vs or Bridgemasters in their mountainous operating area – and all achieved a full working life (12/13 for Bridgemaster and 13-17 for Regent V).

David Oldfield

09/05/14 – 08:56

The previous Leicester livery was not unlike the Hunters livery with the window surrounds in cream and the rest in maroon.

Chris Hough

09/05/14 – 09:58

Photograph by ‘unknown’ if you took this photo please go to the copyright page.

David – May well have been a Sheffield Bridgemaster on loan.  Pretty similar apart from opening top deck front windows. Go compare.

John Darwent

09/05/14 – 12:46

…..and as Ian said, at the top, what a difference a livery can make – just like on the Orion. Even 525, of the ugliest of PRV designs, looks good in STD livery – as it still does in preservation.

Question for all our experts out there. Recent reading has brought up an number of "forgotten" facts. One is the legislation requiring a downstairs emergency exit on 30′ long deckers. The Leicester Bridgemaster has one behind the driver’s cab, the "normal" position. Apart from those with platform doors – where the emergency exit was a door at the rear of the platform – only the Alexander Regent Vs of Sheffield had the additional emergency exit behind the driver. Why? Did the legislation come in during the course of 1960? STD’s Roe and Weymann Regent Vs arrived between January and April 1960. The Alexanders were the last to arrive, again in April.

David Oldfield

10/05/14 – 08:59

Leeds later 30 foot vehicles had an emergency window in the first bay on the offside rather like an upper deck emergency window

Chris Hough

10/05/14 – 08:59

Dont know for certain, David. By 1960 the NGT Group had entered the world of the Atlantean. The lower deck emergency exit was on the O/S between the rear axle and the engine. The only half cabs required to have an emergency exit on the lower deck were the SDO R/D Burlingham bodied PD3’s. They had a door on the back at the foot of the stairs, the Routemasters (O/S rear behind the axle, and the Ex East Yorkshire Renowns (centre rear). The Orion bodied PD3’s had the standard cut away section of the open platform which extended round the back, and allowed an escape route should the vehicle end up on its side.

Ronnie Hoye

10/05/14 – 08:59

The requirement for an additional emergency exit must have come in around 1959. The Leeds PD3s with Roe bodies didn’t have it but the tram replacement Daimlers in the reversed UA series did.

David Beilby

10/05/14 – 12:36

Thanks chaps. I was aware of the Leeds vehicles, Chris and David. Still anecdotal though. We’ve not pinned down a date, just more or less confirmed it by detection.

David Oldfield

11/05/14 – 08:21

There’s a small booklet that was produced by the Leicester Transport Heritage Trust in 2011 called "Maroon to Cream", The Story of Leicester City Transport’s Livery Change, by Mike Greenwood, which details the revision to the Leicester livery and highlights the Sheffield connection; it’s a fascinating little booklet that is well worth a read.

Dave Careless

11/05/14 – 08:22

Off-subject though this may be, I query the random positioning of front number plates on buses, and whether they were perhaps not subject to he Construction and use Regulations by which cars and motorcycles were bound.
Above we see Leicester Corp. Bridgemasters cast their plate high above the cab, under the destination indicator, BTC oft used a square plate slung the left under the cab, where the standard spot was at the base of the radiator – sometimes actually attached to the grille.
The only two ‘lets’ which I know to have been permitted in commercials, have been the rear plate of pantechnicons mounted atop the roof at right, and London Transport bypassing the white and yellow plates prescribed for all other vehicles in GB, by continuing with white on black. These allowances must have been arranged by the most complex legal wrangling and alteration of otherwise immutable law.
Thanks to all correspondents.who make this such a lively forum, with remarkable knowledge of the minutiae of omnibology and simply wonderful archive photographs, now saved for posterity by their exposure in OBP.

Victor Brumby

11/05/14 – 17:38

Leeds buses had a square registration plate affixed under the cab windscreen. However All the exposed radiator MCW Orion stock had a straight plate under the windscreen. The 60 all Leyland Titans had a transfer straight number plate under the cab window. The concealed radiator Daimler had a plate at the bottom of the tin front later Daimlers with Manchester style cowls reverted to the square cast plate. Later concealed Titans and Regents had their plates at the bottom of their tin fronts. All rear entrance buses had a square plate in the offside rear corner. These were usually painted. The last rear entrance Leeds buses 1966 AEC Regent had an illuminated plate over the rear platform window. All rear engined types had a plate at the bottom of the front dash positioned between the tow points. All rear engined deckers had a rear plate over the back window.

Chris Hough

12/05/14 – 08:34

Lincoln Corporation`s four Bridgemasters followed on from Leicester`s final batch by chassis nos. Does anyone know if they were cancelled by Leicester?
Lincoln were wedded to Leyland/Roe products and went back to them for several years. I have always wondered if they bought them at a bargain price, particularly as they were in the same traffic area and maybe the general managers were good pals?

Steve Milner

12/05/14 – 08:40

Manchester had square plates under the cab window as radiators were exchanged from time to time. There is a photo in The Manchester Bus of a vehicle carrying two different registrations after Burlingham delivered the first batch of the 1958 PD2s with plates on the bottom of the radiator and a swap was done later with a radiator for a 1959 Orion bodied PD2 and the mechanic failed to remove the plate from the original vehicle which would , along with its new radiator, have received the standard square plate. This left the newer vehicle with a correct UNB registration and an incorrect TNA one. The second batch of 1958 PD2s received square plates prior to delivery after Burlingham were reminded of Manchester’s requirements.
I don’t know of any hard and fast rules prior to the introduction of reflective plates, by which time, of course, front engined buses were being phased out by the manufacturers.

Phil Blinkhorn

Tynemouth and District
1949
AEC Regent III
Northern Coachbuilders H30/26R

Eight of these splendid AEC Regent III were among the 1949 intake. By 1951, the size of the name had been considerably reduced; this would also be around the time these were due for their first repaint, so my guess would be that the photo was taken roughly 1950 or thereabouts. As things turned out, they would be the last new AEC double deckers to enter service at Percy Main, with the next four intakes all being Guy Arabs, although AEC remained the preferred choice for single deck vehicles and coaches.
After the intake at the beginning of 1940, no new vehicles were allocated to Percy Main until 1946. During the war several vehicles were requisitioned by the Ministry of Transport or transferred to other depots within the NGT group, to make matters worse, the bodies on all the NGT group forward entrance Short Brothers AEC Regent I’s, had developed serious structural faults at the leading edge of the doors, by 1943, they had deteriorated to such an extent that special permission was granted to have them rebodied, presumably as utilities. Northern Coachbuilders carried out the work at their Cramlington works. The H26/24R Short Bros and H28/24R Brush bodied AEC Regent I’s from 1931 and 1932 seem to have lasted somewhat better, they were rebodied in 1945. They were also done by NCB, but at Claremont Road in Newcastle. Once rebodied 42 – 51 – 79/80/81 & 89 all returned to Percy Main, the remainder were reallocated to other depots and renamed and numbered, but retained their original registrations.
The years between 1946 and 1949 saw a frenzy of activity, with no less than 52 new vehicles arriving at Percy Main, bear in mind that the total fleet was around 120 vehicles, of which about 18 were coaches.

New vehicles were:-
1946 – 123/127 – FT 5623/5627 – H56R Northern Counties Guy Arab II G5LW.
1947 – 128/142 – FT 5698/5712 – H30/26R Weymann AEC Regent II – 141/142 carried the Wakefields name.
1948 – 143/156 – FT 6143/6156 – H30/26R Weymann AEC Regent II – 155/156 carried the Wakefields name.
1949 – 157/164 – FT 6557/6564 – H30/26R Northern Coachbuilders AEC Regent III – 157/158 carried the Wakefields name.
165/174 – FT 6565/6574 – H30/26R Pickering Guy Arab II.

In addition, 18 pre war vehicles were rebodied in 1949 and returned to the depot, they were:-
93/95 – FT 4220/4222 – 1938 H26/26F Weymann AEC Regent I – Rebodied by Pickering as H30/26R: 1957 sold to Provincial as replacements for vehicles destroyed in garage fire, finally withdrawn 1964.
96/103; FT 4496/4503: 1938 H26/26F Weymann Leyland TD5 – Rebodied H30/26R Northern Coachbuilders MK 3.
1939 – 111/112 – FT 4941/4942 / 1940 – 114 – FT 5224 – 117/118; FT 5227/5228 – 119/120; FT 5262/5263 – All B38F Brush AEC Regal – Rebodied B38F Pickering.

Photograph and Copy contributed by Ronnie Hoye

07/05/14 – 12:26

I think this looks a very handsome vehicle, Ronnie. These NCB bodies always remind me very much – if you cover up the very obviously different front ends – to the Park Royal-bodied Regent III’s of my local operator Halifax Corporation/JOC. Bradford had some very similar to these, and Huddersfield JOC had some lowbridge ones. They appeared to develop quite a degree of body sag though and pictures of many of them a few years on show a distinct downward curve in the waistrail (I know how they must have felt!).
A nice straight forward, yet cheerful livery and an impressive gold shaded fleetname. Looks just right.

John Stringer

07/05/14 – 17:36

Sheffield had quite a number of these NCB bodies – 10 each on Daimler CVD6 and Crossley DD42 chassis and 2 lots of 10 on AEC Regent III chassis. The final 10 were of a slightly more modern appearance, and I thought they were rather handsome. I agree with you entirely, John, about the Halifax Park Royals – but I actually think the front has an echo of the classical Weymann front. They were, however, as you say, quite dire, with their pronounced body sag which I assume was for the usual reason of unseasoned timber – being all they could get, even in the early post-war period. The first lot of Regents were included in the green repaint experiments – which was an unmitigated disaster. One assumes that the quality of the timber had improved by the time of the Newcastle "ECW clones". NCB closed shortly after but Roe’s bought all the machinery AND the timber from the receivers.

David Oldfield

07/05/14 – 17:36

Mention of the AEC Regent III /NCBs for Bradford Corporation (524 – 543; 1947/48) by John has made me think there were several variants of the AEC Regent III. Bradford specified the 9.6 litre engine and the pre-selector transmission, whilst some BET Companies preferred the 7.7 litre engine and the crash gearbox. What was the specification Ronnie of the Tynemouth and District AEC Regent III posted above?
When new these buses were splendid sight as shown above and the body fitted well on many other similar types of chassis such as the Leyland PD, Daimler CV and Guy Arab III.

Richard Fieldhouse

They were 7.7 with a crash box, Richard. So far as I am aware, the NGT group never had any pre select half cabs, there were certainly none at Percy Main, and the only semi auto half cabs were the Routemasters. Newcastle Corporation had some very similar NCB bodied Regent III, although they were slightly different under the windscreen, I think they were pre select. Obviously they were double fronted, but they also had 4 and 6 wheel trolleybuses with this style of body (501 is in preservation) As I remember, these and the Newcastle Regents were outlasted by the Weymann bodied Regent 11 from 1947 and 1948, perhaps they developed the body sag problems mentioned. SDO had some Regent III with ROE bodies, they were later transferred to Northern, and lasted until about 1965 or so.

Ronnie Hoye

08/05/14 – 07:51

‘Bus Lists on the Web’ shows the Tynemouth and District Regent IIIs as type 9612A, which, if correct, gives them 9.6 litre engines and crash gearboxes.

Peter Williamson

08/05/14 – 08:11

I stand corrected, Peter. The 1947/48 Regent II were 7.7, and most of the 1949 Pickering bodied Guy Arab III, which came with Meadows engines were later converted to AEC 7.7, but these may well have been 9.6 units, so perhaps spares may have been another reason why they were withdrawn before the Regent II and the Guy’s.

Ronnie Hoye