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On the right track
Reopening of famous ststion signals whole new era for town
 THE years rolled back at Carnforth railway station on Friday when its famous refreshment room was officially unveiled in all its forties glory. The £1.7 million re-fit of the whole station includes the restoration of the centrepiece tea room to the original style and appearance as once featured in the legendary film, "Brief Encounter". Memories of yearning looks between Trevor Howard and Celia Johnson came flooding back as more than 200 guests crammed in to take a look at a piece of film history lovingly recreated. The whistling steam, from both kettles and trains, has long disappeared, replaced in turn by regular tannoy announcements of late arrivals and departures. "It's just as I remember it," said 77-year-old Margaret Barton who is the last surviving cast member of the classic weepie. "Coming here today was just like walking onto the original film set at Denham studios. In fact the only thing missing is seeing David Lean sat in the corner!" Margaret was only 19 when she was spotted in a West End play by Noel Coward and cast as the teagirl Beryl who regular serves the film's star-crossed lovers. "None of us had any idea then just how popular the film would become and could never imagine how it would still generate so much interest all these years later." The teenager, who first performed professionally at the age of 12, was unperturbed by working along some of the biggest names in showbusiness and has particularly fond memories of comic actor Stanley Holloway entertainihg the crew between takes. Greeting "It was a wonderful role to come along in my career and I went on to work with people like George Cole, Alistair Sim and Margaret Lockwood," she added. After an official greeting delivered by the town crier, Margaret was happy to cut the red ribbon and to lead visitors around the station's new heritage centre which celebrates the town's transport links right back to the 1790s with the opening of the first stretch of canal. Jim Cornell, executive director of the Railway Heritage Trust, said: "This is the culmination of three years hard work and is a magnificent example of our belief that the best way to preserve buildings is by putting them back into use." The centre, which was partly sponsored by the David Lean Foundation, contains a gallery dedicated to photographs of the station's history, many of which were donated by ex-British Rail employees. The pictorial history presents almost a timeline of the last century marking events such as the Women's Voluntary Service giving tea to troops during World War Two and the Flying Scotsman making a rare appearance at the station. Morecambe MP Geraldine Smith provided a moment of levity in the proceedings by apologising for her lateness but stressing she had not travelled by train. "Carnforth just gets better and better with each visit and hopefully this is something we can build on. "But what I would really like to see is the mainline platform back in use," she said to the vocal approval of all present. On the right track - Lancaster Gurardian 24th October 2003
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