Great to see Berney Arms on the TV with Selina Scott. Must pay a visit in the summer. Cheers, Mike

WHAT A GREAT PLACE TO LIVE.

Credit to you.

I am amazed that the Berney Windmill has fallen into such a state of neglect. I have very happy memories of the area in the late fifties. For a period of around five years I attended summer camps based on Salhouse Broad. A part of the time was spent sailing around the Broads under the watchful eye of "Nat" aboard the wherry " ALBION ". There were always two highlights connected with the wherry trip, the first was " shooting " the bridge at Potter Heigham. I remember the first time we approached it and " Nat " told me what he was about to do, as far as I could see it was mission impossible. A large crowd gathered on the bridge and hey presto down comes the sail and mast and we gracefully pass under the bridge with only inches to spare all round. The second highlight was to moor up for the night alongside the Mill where we were free to climb all over it and use the ground floor to prepare and cook our evening meal. When I get the time I will dig out some of my old photos and bring them round for you to see! As you will see I live in your adopted town.

Last night following the new guestbook comments, I e-mailed Jeff Dyer, and pointed him toward this website, I also asked him for an update. This is his reply this evening:

"Mark,

I have to advise that Thompsons had to divert on to emergency work at mills at various locations across the country because of the recent stormy weather. I will be pressing Thompsons to address Berney Arms late January/early February and keep you advised of definite dates nearer the time.

Regards,

Jeff Dyer"

I walked out to Berney Arms today and not a soul was to be seen, I have my fingers crossed that perhaps work may begin later in the week? But as usual with EH I am very doubtful.

Thanks for the news Jeff, i will head out for a walk over there on Monday and see if i can see anything happening.

Fingers crossed!

Lovely pictures of Berney Arms Station - especially the one of the lady lighting the gas lamp. I'm a native of Suffolk and a lover of East Anglian railways, but I only got round to alighting at Berney Arms for the first time in June 2005.
Best of luck with your web site.

I received this update from Jeff Dyer at EH yesterday:

"Just a brief note to advise that subject to the weather the reinstatement of the sails is planned for the week commencing 15 January. Will provide definite date/s once known.

Regards,

Jeff."

A well designed site, and especially interesting for me as I grew up right next-door to Gorleston Railway Station (in Clarence Road) which was my playground as a kid. I also had a paper round, and grocery deliveries too, covering the area from Bells Road right through to the golf course, so the photos of all the changes around that area were a trip down memory lane for me.
Thank Q!

I emailed Jeff Dyer at English Heritage again earlier this week requesting an update, following the previous posts. This is reply to me today:

"I had fully expected that the sails and fantail would have been put in place by mid-October. Unfortunately there have been complications. The current programme is for the fantail to be assembled and hoisted in to place during the first half of December 2006. The main sails will be reinstated in January 2007. I will make a point of ensuring that you are advised as to the exact dates upon which this work takes place."

I'll post any new info here if I get it.

The new sails on Polkey's Mill look like the ones meant for the Berney Arms. LOL.
On the matter it looks like a call or email to EH or to a local newspaper/TV, I'm very pissed that a lot of own funded mills including Polkey's Mill now look great but the best of them still looks like a shell.

Don't know what the EH are up to.

Still no signs of sails at Berney Arms windmill!!!!
There is little chance of more trains after the railway line is renewed.

With the relaid track will there be more fast trains whizzing up and down the track between Great Yarmouth and Reedham?

Will there be relief boats at Berney Arms when the railway closes for a fortnight for track relaying?

Latest information from Jeff Dyer, the Projects Manager at English Heritage.

"Just a brief note to say that R.Thompson & Son are currently working on the stocks, clamps and sails at their yard in Lincolnshire and plan to assemble and install these components and the fantail in mid-October. Unfortunately this operation has been delayed by a couple of emergency jobs that Thompsons have had to carry out on mills elsewhere."

It looks like something is happening at last!

Lying in bed last night the name Berney Arms came into my head; no idea why. I haven't thought about the place since I passed nearby on a boating holiday with my parents in about 1965. As an avid trainspotter I went and had a look (if I'd been a few years older I might have gone for a pint at the pub as well). Anyway I thought I'd look it up on the Internet and sure enough it was exactly as I remembered it from all those years ago.

Thanks for a most interesting website. Only one adverse comment - I found it almost impossible to navigate because it was hard to see the links on the left hand side of the home page. Blue letters on a blue background – a most unusual choice…

If the curve is reinstated at Reedham through direct trains could be run again from Lowestoft to Great Yarmouth.

I'm going to be contacting the EH again soon, 6 years the mill has been like this, its wrong, maybe local news should be informed of this. They would love a story of how a landmark has been left to rot by the EH. Makes me laugh when I think of all the people from EH saying this year will be the year the sails go back on.... makes me laugh that the new sails have been ready for 5 years. I think its time everyone who has time for this mill, puts some time in to writing to the EH and local news.

Hello.

Interesting website that I have just found (link from Disused Stations). I was in the Yarmouth area last week, first time for over 30 years.

I have a couple of railway reminiscences:

In 1959 I spent a holiday at Gorleston right next to the railway line and near Gorleston Links Halt. The trains on the line were either dmu's for the stopping services or Brush Type 2 (Class 31) on the Fast trains - not sure where these came from as the main line to Yarmouth Southdown via Haddiscoe would still have been open then for the London expresses.

I saw no freight trains.

We used the halt a couple of times to go to Yarmouth and Lowestoft (nobody else did). I remember that payment needed to be made at the other end on "trust" as there were no conductor/guards.

At both Lowestoft and Yarmouth expresses seemed to be steam hauled, by Britannias and B17s.

I assume that there is no trace that there ever was a railway at Links Halt now.

I visited Yarmouth in 1971. At this time (if I recall correctly) Southtown station was occupied by a firm in the oil and gas exploration business. Beach station was standing and used as a coach station. There were still some lines along the quay and these were in use.

I hope this is of some interest.

Peter