Frequently Asked Questions

Why?
So, you see, I got to thinking; what would the L M S web site have looked like had they had one in 1938? Yes, I realise that question engenders far more improbabilities that it could ever hope to resolve,
but, what if...?

What is the L M S?
The L M S is, or was, the largest of the "Big Four" Railway Companies that operated in Great Britiain between 1923 and 1948.

Why the L M S?
I grew up in Berkhamsted, living in Ellesmere Road for many of my childhood years, you may not know Ellesmere Road but it is at the top of the cutting, on the fast track side as you approach Berkhamsted Station in the down direction.
When I was 5 or so, the woman who lived next door to my Grandmother, gave to me as a present, one of the Rev. W. Awdry's Railway Series books, I don't remember which one but my Mother claims to this day that it was the start of my love affair with railways. Soon I was the proud owner of a Tri-ang "Jinty" (47606) and a rake of wagons.
As I grew I learned about the railways and how they used to be. My father grew up near to Welwyn Garden City and told me tales of A4s racing over Welwyn Viaduct but as I lived next to the L M S main line I decided that the L M S was "my" railway and so my allegiance was forged. Not too partisan though, I like railways in all shapes and sizes but my favourite, if asked is always the L M S.

So, you are a Gricer then?
I'm not really sure. I have spent my share of time avidly marking off numbers but I was far younger then and I do not own an anorak.

How can I contact you?
Send me an electronic mail; I understand that they are quite a popular way of communication.

Hang on! What is a Gricer?
A Gricer is seen by many to be a slightly shady figure living on the edges of the social order, with an unhealthy penchant for railways.
Then again a Gricer is also seen as a more than usually enthusiastic chap, immersed in the lore of all things railway whilst retaining a solid footing in society.
The former living a lonely life on the ends of station platforms; the latter, if not actually involved in running the railways or railway preservation will most probably have a train-set or model railway.
There are of course, as with so many things in life, innumerable shades of in-between.

What are the differences between a train-set and a model railway?
You tell me.
Mostly it seems to be a mater of perception; my Hornby Duchess trundling around the tabletop is a train-set; the chap whose scratch-built loco running on 18.82 mm gauge rails through painstakingly re-created scenery is a model railway.
There are of course, as with so many things in life, innumerable shades of in-between.

Aren't you taking this too seriously?
No, it's just a bit of fun.

Why does this web-site look disjointed in my browser?
I put this together with Internet Explorer in mind and a nod at Netscape and Opera, then Mozilla Firefox came along... and now Chrome!
I suppose that I'm just going to have to brush up on my web-authoring skills.

LINKS
A list of other Empirenet Web-sites having relevance to or interest for the discerning L M S traveller.

L M S "Wallpaper"
Emblazon your "desktop" with the L M S crest!
The image was produced in a fairly basic "paint" application by hand and eye, nothing was "scanned" and I'm sure that there are those of you out there who will point out that this is the wrong colour or that is the wrong shape; but that's not the point...