lad porter; lad ticket collector; axle box cleaner; electrical apprentice; workshops; royal trains; funeral trains; father's work as a platelayer; Enfield-Cuffley; lad porter; duties; lad ticket collector; 1926 railway strike; mother's job; axle box cleaner; electrical apprentice; training; Finsbury Park, Western Sidings; Pullman coaches; Yorkshire & Queen of Scots Pullman locomotive; diesel cars; workshop visits; Heaters in carriages; Western Sidings; diesel units electrical work; King's Cross; mainline work; complaints; electrical cables; staff relations; IRA; Second World War; Doncaster; air raids; d.o.b. 1904-04-29, railway work 1917-1972, Finsbury Park; King's Cross;