From my perspective it seems that when applied to modern buses old heritage liveries don't always seem to look quite right. Enthusiasts hated them but hardly elegant I never found the MCW Orion particularly ugly and not only did the straightforward design suit any application the more attractive the livery the better it looked and Birkenhead was a good example of how nice they could look especially as a cream band beneath the upper deck windows always did wonders. They bought many Leyland PD2's and they all had the traditional no-nonsense exposed radiator which perhaps made them look a bit more dated but it added a touch of class. This one No.370 at Laird Street Garage dated from 1955 and was by this time twelve years old.
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ReplyDeleteI agree with your comments re livery style Christopher. However, the deeper lower deck windows on the Orion didn't lend to the attractiveness of the adjacent Massy Bro. body adjacent. I suppose I'm a tad biased being raised in Great Yarmouth where Massey bodies in a blue and cream livery reigned supreme during the mid to late 50s.
ReplyDeleteI've mentioned before that I really enjoy your blog and your wide selection of photographs which mostly are a bit out of the norm. Keep up the good work, please.
Thanks Mick, I am a big Massey Bros fan myself and even of the later more upright designs, I liked the sort of Municipals that ran them:- Maidstone, Exeter, Birkenhead, Wigan etc. Of course the likes of Northern Counties, East Lancashire and even Willowbrook could turn out a more elegant half-cab bus but at least the MCW buses were usually better proportioned than the similar efforts from Park Royal and Strachens. I understand why Great Yarmouth gives you as I grew up with BMMO MCW bodied D7's.
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