Well, I've finally found a little time to post my thoughts on the Meet from last weekend.
Things all kicked off in style when John Steed travelled over to my gaff on Friday evening. We set off over to my local Railway Arms and sank a good few beers during the course of the evening, which set things up nicely for the weekend ahead.
Saturday morning and it was tipping down with rain as we headed off to the train station for the choo choo down to Euston. By the time we arrived in London it was still tipping down but undeterred, we made a dash for The Warrington Hotel (as seen in The Sweeney episode "Night Out") where we found we'd already been beaten there by Windy Miller. Before long we were joined by Dirty Epic, Del Boy, The Saint & Get Carter. Another round of drinks followed in this lovely boozer before we headed back to the tube and down to Hammersmith so myself and Steed could check into the hotel. 5 minutes later, we were back in King Street and straight over into the Salutation to meet back up with the lads. Many pints later and a curry too, it was time to call it a day.
Sunday morning was upon us in a blink and it was off to meet more of the lads over in the William Morris for a full English. It was then off to our initial meet up point in Colet Gardens where all but 2 of the remaining attendees met up - all in good time I must add despite being on the p*** most of the day before.
Then it was time to head back to the tube and on up to Latimer Road to meet the remaining members Stan & Michael Rodd who had parked nearby.
We set off on our tour for the day. 31 locations over the course of just over 3.5 miles. This was punctuated by a nice long lunch break in The Ladbroke Arms & The Castle.
Before we knew it the Meet was at an end as like Mr Benn, we found ourselves back where we started. Latimer Road this time though, not Festive Road.
At this point, we said farewell to Stan & Michael Rodd before heading back into Hammersmith for our evening meal in The Brook Green. From there we made the short walk over to our old haunt, The Queens Head where several more drinks were consumed. At this point I was extremely tired after what had been a long weekend but I still managed to hold out and stay the course before returning to the hotel around 11pm.
Monday morning and myself and John headed for a final breakfast in the William Morris before heading back to Euston and getting the train home.
As far as I'm concerned this was possibly the most enjoyable Meet weekend I have had with our members since I started back in 2006. The atmosphere between everyone is wonderfully warm and friendly and I think most of us spent a huge part of the day laughing with (and at) each other.
As many of you have mentioned in your write ups, I did indeed spend a massive amount of time putting this Meet together. Far more than any Meet I have organised in previous years. It was a risk for me to take in conducting a Meet where many of the locations we visited had changed beyond all recognition. Roads had gone completely in some places which is why I spent so much time with old mapping sources both online and in my collection at home so that I could pinpoint exact positions where the action took place. This was made all worthwhile when almost all of you took a very keen interest and asked me questions about how things had changed and when. The Final Robbery! locations being the perfect example of this were both roads and houses and any relevant identifiers nearby were gone without trace. Some of you were amazed when I had you standing on a small lawned area as I then explained that this was where the Police Jaguar rounded the corner of Silchester Terrace into Blechynden Street. It really was enjoyable to take the time to explain this stuff to those interested.
During the course of the day, a few of you kindly got me a drink and said thank you for all the work I'd put in. That was really appreciated and won't be forgotten. Thanks also to The Saint who got Sam & I a bowl of chips at lunch time.
Thanks also to Dirty Epic who turned up on Saturday in the Warrington and immediately presented me with a bottle of Chivas Regal. What a star! Cheers pal
Then, much to my delight, Steve Austin called me to one side and also presented me with a bottle of Chivas. Not only that but a huge thank you goes out to Steve for not only printing out the excellent booklets for the Meet, but also posting one to me since returning home after some bugger nicked mine! Thanks for doing these again Steve, they are a wonderful souvenir of the days we have at these Meets.
Finally, a big thanks to each and every one of you for turning up on time on Sunday and for really getting involved and interested in the things I was explaining to you throughout the day. I think it's safe to say - judging from your posts above that you did indeed find the whole day more interesting and fun than ever.
Rest assured, there is enough material for a return to the area sometime in future years, but for the next Meet, I already have a plan bubbling away in the background that I'm sure will entice even more members to join us
Thanks again,
Gene Hunt.