I’ve added this post to the blog as it reveals that we don’t always manage to achieve what we set out too!  Also, I’ve had quite a few e-mails regarding this particular subject so I thought that I would put it on record as to what happened.

For some time, we have hoped to attract the sole surviving 1920s Newcastle Corporation ‘blue’ bus, an AEC 411 which has been fully restored from derelict condition, to one of our events.  Last year it became known to us that the chance would arise to purchase it and negotiations opened.  A price was agreed and also that we could go away and raise the necessary funds.  This involved a great deal of work as it is generally hard to lay one’s hands on the sort of sum of money involved, but we had a favourable wind behind us and the asking price was duly raised.  Unfortunately, the high prices attained by a small number of buses at the Michael Banfield auction prompted the vendor to question the value he had put on the AEC and whether he might be better sending it to auction.  A last minute negotiation led to an improvement of our offer by 25% but his mind was set and the bus was taken to Bonhams for auction.  Obviously this led us to feel rather upset about the whole affair, particularly when the bus sold for less than our best offer, and fees and commission would have to be taken into account.  So it was that we lost the chance to add an important vehicle to the collection, neatly filling the gap between Newcastle tram 114 and trolleybus 501.  However, the bus is not in any danger and I am sure it will be loved and enjoyed by its new owner and perhaps in time we will see it at Beamish for one of our events.  So, you win some and you lose some!  Hopefully this explains for those who wondered, why we didn’t buy this bus!

Below: Some photographs of No.64 showing the high standard of restoration that its previous owner had lavished upon it.  A very nice bus!