Looking to create something different for your back garden?
During the great Carona lock-down of 2020, Adrian Backshall from Eastbourne used his time in isolation to finish a labour of love, only a rail enthusiast would contemplate.
This ex British Rail employee decided to take his work home with him after he retired. He built a full-scale railway, including a 30 foot railway track, station, signal box, and hand-cranked wagon.
His wife calls him “a very sad husband”, but Adrian built the railway as a place to entertain, referring to it as his ‘Gentlemen’s Club’ – a place to meet with his friends for a chat and enjoy a cup of tea.
He now has plans to extend the line by 45 foot, and is undergoing negotiations with wife Ruth – Good luck with that Adrian!
Adrian isn’t the only rail enthusiast to have gone nuts turned his garden into a full-sized replica.
Stuart Searle and his wife from Hastings has moved homes 3 times to accommodate his train memorabilia.
The retired former signalman has turned his back garden into Tube and railway stations using vintage collectibles.
His love for all things rail and Tube started when he was a teenager. At the age of 64 (in 2017) he had over 1500 signs, a tea room, a £5000 chocolate vending machine and an every growing treasure chest.
These 2 enthusiasts have created unique features in their gardens that they can continue to build and expand on, however they see fit.
This is the first post (of many hopefully) that highlight the wonderful creativity, dedication and quirkiness of people from all walks of life, and how they’ve transformed their garden into something special.
Peter