Sydney Tramway Museum on TV

[marknewton]

This morning my museum featured on "Sunrise", a morning news programme broadcast around Australia. We started dragging trams out of the running shed at 5.00am (!) to prepare for the programme, which went to air every 30 minutes from 6.00am to 8.30am. 

 

http://au.tv.yahoo.com/sunrise/video/watch/17999008/fixing-the-old-trams/

 

I'm sorry I didn't post a message about this sooner, but I only got a phone call late last night while I was at work asking me to come down and lend a hand. The last segment aired features Bill and myself faffing around in the inspection pit under Brisbane drop-centre car No.295, pretending to do some work. If I can get hold of this and the other segments I'll post them.

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

Edited July 15, 2013 by marknewton

[marknewton]

The whole sequence is now on youtube, posted by fellow museum member Liam Brundle:

 

 

The last segment, filmed in the inspection pit shows Bill Parkinson, Andrew McCabe and myself in the background. I'm the bloke in the white shirt and black hat.

 

I was pleasantly surprised at how keen and interested the TV people were about us and our museum, and just how good Edwina the presenter, was when doing her spiel. She asked lots of sensible questions, and was game for anything. When we jokingly suggested she should do a segment in the pit, she jumped right in.

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

Edited July 16, 2013 by marknewton

[Ochanomizu]

Hello Mr marknewton,

 

The presenter is so funny and cute.  I very enjoyed it.  I laugh at the end when she doesn't know what to do with  big wrench.

[cteno4]

Thanks was fun! Hopefully good press for the museum. but wish it was in one piece and not so fragmented! Modern media, nothing more than 25 seconds!

 

At some point the subjective side will revolt and the renaissance will come!

 

Jeff

Edited July 16, 2013 by cteno4

[E6系]

Very enjoyable.  Thank you.

[miyakoji]

Outstanding, Mark.  Well done volunteering to keep those cars in shape.  What was that edited-out bit about the US losing by 129 points? .  Does car 1979 run on broad gauge?

[marknewton]

Thanks was fun! Hopefully good press for the museum.

 

Our events manager Dave Chritchley, the bloke who appears in the old-fashioned tramway uniform driving 1979, tells me that there's already been an increase in the number of inquiries and bookings for group visits from people who saw the show. 

 

but wish it was in one piece and not so fragmented! Modern media, nothing more than 25 seconds!

 

They filmed a lot more material than what was broadcast on the day, so it'll be interesting to see what they do with that. 

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

[marknewton]

Outstanding, Mark.  Well done volunteering to keep those cars in shape.

 

Thanks - as my wife says, it keeps me out of the pub!  :)

 

 What was that edited-out bit about the US losing by 129 points? .

 

I honestly have no idea. I've only seen the show on YouTube, so I missed the rest.

 

Does car 1979 run on broad gauge?

 

No, all our cars are standard gauge - 1435mm. 1979 is a Sydney R1 class car, they had quite wide bodies and rode low on their trucks to keep the step height reasonably low.

 

The majority of tramway systems in Australia were standard gauge* and used 600v DC, which makes it easy for us to run cars from other cities, and indeed other countries. We have operating trams from Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Ballarat and Bendigo, as well as imports from Japan, San Fransisco, Milan, Berlin and Munich.

 

*Hobart, Launceston, Perth, Kalgoorlie, Fremantle and Rockhampton tramways were all 3'6"/1067mm gauge, while the Victorian Railways had a broad gauge line from St Kilda to Brighton Beach in Melbourne.

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

[Bernard]

Mark - the reporter really got her research down pat. After the broadcast was there an increase in visitors to the museum? And last....what is with the "cow" sitting on the couch?

[marknewton]

G'say Bernard, 

 

The thing that amazed us was that Edwina didn't research as such - just before each segment went to air she'd ask us questions, then rattle off the information like she'd known it all her life. She's a legend!

 

The broadcast has definitely increased our visitor numbers, so it was well worth getting up early for. 

 

As for the "cow", I have no idea what that's about. Until Dave rang me on the Sunday night I'd never heard of this program. I work at night, so I don't watch TV in the mornings.

 

Truth be told, I don't watch TV at any time of the day, unless I'm home on a Saturday night. Then it's time for Rockwiz! 

 

http://www.sbs.com.au/rockwiz/

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.