It was September 1983, and seen in a flat cap leaning out of the train driver's cabin is the Duke of Gloucester.

He travelled up to Kinneil Halt on an ex-Swedish state railway engine, now no longer part of the Bo'ness collection.

On the platform with the press contingent is the late Bill Peddie, the then Scottish Railway Preservation Society chairman.

Our thanks go to keen photographer Hamish Stevenson, a long-standing SRPS volunteer. Hamish was encouraged in his photography by his late father, James L Stevenson, himself a railway worker from Renfrewshire.

If you have an old photo that you think may be of interest to our readers, send it with details to: Journal and Gazette, 114 High Street, Linlithgow, EH49 7AQ.

25 years ago

Angry residents claim they have been kept in the dark by Falkirk District Council regarding their homes. They were evacuated last November after subsidence from old mineworkings hit Grangepans and were given temporary accommodation.

Government cuts have meant a cash blow for householders in West Lothian, claimed West Lothian Convener Dominic McCauley after the council set its new rates for 1985/86 at 13.7p in the £. A staggering 80 per cent rates rise has also been set by Edinburgh District Council.

Work has started on the final phase of a scheme to tidy up 100 acres of derelict foreshore in Bo'ness. Falkirk Council says it will improve the appearance of the town and bring jobs to the area.

Kenny MacAskill of Linlithgow was one of five Scottish National Party supporters who staged a noisy demo in the House of Commons on Friday to mark the sixth anniversary of the devolution referendum. Protesters were dragged out shouting: "English Tories out! Give us an Assembly!"

Bo'ness United took the first step towards retaining the Robertson Homes Cup when they beat Haddington 4-1 in the first round.

50 years ago

Cleaner Agnes Middleton, of Market Place, Bo'ness, retired from her post at the Hippodrome Cinema after 45 years' service. She started her job in 1915, just three years after the cinema opened.

A lorry driver from Linlithgow, Thomas Brownlie, was the guest of honour at a dinner to mark 45 years with the BRS depot in Bathgate.
nEarly morning city-bound traffic came to a standstill twice this week on the outskirts of Kirkliston after vehicles crashed on the Boathouse Bridge.

Bo'ness teenager John Markie was set to win his first cap for Scotland Schoolboys after being picked for the national side to play against Ireland in Belfast.

As an added attraction for cinema-goers in Linlithgow, the Ritz was staging a perfomance by Linlithgow Pipe Band prior to the main attraction "The Bridal Path", starring Bill Travers.

The Rose ran riot at the weekend when they beat Alva 5-2, but BU fans had to suffer another week without football. They have not played a match in four weeks due to the weather.