oldboy

Just to put the record straight, my Dad, Sam Horne, was never a "boatman" Yes, he'd worked on boats and around canals most of his working life, but he always said that since he hadn't been born into the life, real boatmen still considered him to be a young amateur. He was actually born into a farming life, Northamptonshire/Oxfordshire, always on the move because it didn't take long for his father to fall-out with the farmer employing him. His nickname comes from when he was young. He was called "Little Sam" because of the striking resemblance he bore to his Uncle Sam. Not one of us ever dared to make the obvious joke about this. He still has a sister living in Canada, and one in Abingdon. His ashes now rest with my Mum's in Watford Crematorium grounds. His Cottage was long ago sold to a private landlord and had been sold on to a private owner. If they think they're going to do it up they're in for a surprise. For 40 years my Mum and Dad had tried to get improvements done to it, and all the time it's listed building status stopped them. They even got into trouble because the fence was replaced with natural wood colour and not white painted.

Just to let all who know him, my Dad, Sam Horne of Berkhamstead, has finally had to admit that his 84 years of age has got the best of him. With a failing memory, made worse by a stroke in January, and legs that no longer work, he's now moved into the St Paul's Care Centre in Hemel Hempstead. It looks likely that will be his new home from now on. Luckily most of his fellow inmates... residents... have the same problems so he can tell them old boating stories until the cows come home. (Including the one about cows coming home) If any of you know him personally and would like to send a message, the care centres website has the facility to do this. Link below. If all goes well with the Social Services, I and his sister Elsie, will have the task of taking everything out of his bungalow. Not something I'm looking forward to as our family have been associated with that house since 1966. http://www.westgatehealthcare.co.uk/WestgateMailResident/

We all pay "silly" money for the joy of owning something which to us is a thing of beauty. I once paid £90.00 for a tatty old magazine. Well, it is a 100 year old copy of Strand Magazine with Sherlock Holmes and the Six Napoleons as the featured story. I can't say how much I paid for a complete set of four 1966 Dr Who Movie Dalek models in their original packing, the wife'll go mad! For those who are interested my Dad, Sam is still living in Berkhamstead. He's quite frail now, and the short-term memory is going. But, if you want to know about having to milk the cows before going to school, he's your man.

Just seen this. As a child I knew Bert and Emily Wallington quite well. They were my Uncle Bert and Aunt Emily. Not real of course, but I do remember them as a very warm and kind couple. Sam Horne is my father and I remember quite vividly that 1962 Winter where they went tree cutting on the canal itself. Dad's still around, living in his cottage in Berkhamstead. Quite frail now, hardly able to use his legs. He also suffers from vascular dementia. He can remember 50 odd years ago like yesterday. What he did five minutes ago is a mystery to him. Mum died last year and he took it pretty badly. We hope to take on a train ride to Birmingham next week to see where mum was born at Gas Street Basin.

I remember when my Dad was the lock keeper at Berkhamstead he had a wonderful racket going. If someone lost their windless, the lock keeper was the first person you went to to try and get a replacement. Of course he always had one which he charged about £5.00 for. During the sale he'd casually enquire as to where the original had been lost, and then, the moment they were gone, he was off with his bike, a rake, and a flipping great magnet to fish it out and then sell on to the next unfortunate. £5.00? If only he knew. He recently gave his last one to my wife a gift.

I've only recently started to look at this thread, so forgive me if I go over old ground. Whilst we are discussing what "errors" were made during the making of The Bargee I'm sure many readers would also be interested to know that the portions of Dr Who filmed on the Dalek home world of Skaro were actually in a gravel pit somewhere. In other words, yes, we know. Like others have already pointed out, The Bargee was not a documentary, and in order for the story to make sense, and look good to the viewer, certain liberties have to be taken. Galton and Simpson wrote the script, and then the Director has to make the locations fit. The script said the house is near the pub, so they have to cut the film to make it look like that. In fact, when this film was being made, I was living on board the Aye at Marsworth Yard, which was one of the few remaining working boats around at the time, taking concrete piles from Marsworth to various locations for repair work. My Dad was Sam Horne, skipper of Ayno and Air. We were living through the sort of changes that the film mirrored, the end of the canal carrying era. What I didn't know then was that even with its "errors" this film gives a good idea of the look of the canals in this period.