My elder son, Ian, is married to a lovely Norfolk lass called Caroline. They have a gorgeous young son called Alfie. Last week, they joined us on the Isle of Man for a short holiday. It’s something we very much look forward to. They travel around enjoying the scenery and the various attractions, one of which is the narrow guage steam railway that runs the 16½ miles from Douglas, the main town, to Port Erin in the south. The last time they were over, Caroline was pregnant with Alfie and though they decided to take a train ride, she was feeling decidely unwell for the whole journey. So they thought they’d try again under better circumstances. Anyway, Alfie would probably enjoy the ride. What could possibly go wrong?

Sod’s Law could go wrong! After a fine Full English Breakfast, we arrived at the train station in Douglas to find it overrun with strange people wearing duffle coats and bottle glass spectacles. They were walking round saying things like “Oooh” and “Ahhhh” to each other – and that was before they even got on the train. And all because it was a special journey to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the re-opening of the Isle of Man Railway by the Marquess of Ailsa after its entire closure at the end of 1965. Without Lord Ailsa’s personal financial support from 1967 until 1973, the south line to Port Erin would not have survived for everyone to enjoy. Everyone except Ian, Caroline nd Alfie that is!

On the morning in question, their train was not only full, but they had to quickly add more carriages. Far from being able to stretch out and enjoy the spectacular scenery, Ian and Caroline were squashed into a carriage full of train spotters. “Oh look, Doris, our engine is a Beyer Peacock, 2-4-0T, with the special Alisa Green livery.” And what a surprise. So it was!

Never mind. When the train arrived in Port Erin, we went across the road and had a nice lunch. Better luck next time, guys. Best of three!