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<\/a><\/p>\nLY 4313, one of the early hire cars operated. \u00a0It was a Brasier. \u00a0I believe the driver was Percy Watts. \u00a0The photograph seems to have been taken in the little lane that runs at the back of the houses in Station Road, and which still exists (as of 2016).<\/p>\n
(copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n
Brasier LY 4313 again, together with H 8153 and XA 2745.\u00a0 The photograph appears to have been taken a little further along the same lane as the above photograph, behind the houses in Fidlas Road, where I believe Falconer and Watts had a small garage at one time.\u00a0 Again, this part of the lane still exists (as at 2016).<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n On the left is L 9379, a blue 1913 Vauxhall Landaulette purchased in 1921.\u00a0 On the right is NY 1670 (although the last digit is a little unclear), a 1918 Vauxhall Cabriolet 25 h.p. acquired in 1922 from the Army.\u00a0 The other two vehicles are difficult to identify (H 8153 may be the second from the left), as is the location, although it is probably Falconer and Watts\u2019 main parking area (latterly Llanishen Court).<\/p>\n \u00a0(copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n In 1927, there was a serious fire at the main garage. This building, on the new site behind Station Road, was largely wooden, and was totally destroyed by the fire, resulting in the destruction of four cars. This was reported in the Western Mail.\u00a0 However, regrettably, very little can be seen in the above photograph.<\/p>\n The shop and filling station in Station Road, Llanishen, in the early days.<\/span><\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/span><\/p>\n An advertisement that appeared in a local parish magazine in 1941.<\/p>\n BDL 322, a 1937 Bedford WTB with a 25-seat Duple body, was acquired around 1941 from Coombes Brothers of Shanklin on the Isle of Wight, and was the first coach to be painted in Falconer and Watts’ distinctive livery of golden brown and light buff. \u00a0It appears to have been photographed on Falconer and Watts’ premises off Station Road in Llanishen, where Llanishen Court now stands.<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n A poor photograph of UJ 7338, a 1936 Bedford about which we have very little information. \u00a0Alongside is HLG 101, a 1933 Bedford WLB Duple once operated by large operator Crosville.<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n Apart from the coaches and the shop and filling station, Falconer and Watts also provided private hire and wedding cars. \u00a0KG 9595 and CNY 343 are two Austins, probably from the 1930s. \u00a0Latterly, Humbers and Austin Westminsters were used for hire work, with larger Humbers and an Austin Princess for weddings.<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n A general view of the yard, probably in the early 1940s.<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n EKG 674, previously a War Department vehicle, was a Commer Q4 Commando that was acquired when coach chassis were in very short supply after the Second World War. \u00a0It was first operated as a coach by Falconer and Watts, when a new Pearson 30-seat body was built for them in 1949.<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n FBO 57, one of four Bedford OB coaches with Duple 29-seater bodywork operated in the 1950s. \u00a0This was purchased new in 1950.<\/p>\n (copyright Glyn Bowen)<\/p>\n GBO 319, a Bedford SBG 33-seater Duple, purchased new in 1951. \u00a0For some time, this was Graham Falconer’s preferred coach.<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n Edgar Falconer and his wife, Alice, standing beside the petrol pumps at the filling station in Station Road, Llanishen, latterly occupied by the Co-op food store. \u00a0In the background is Miss Cosslett’s, once the village blacksmith’s.<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n 750 FUO was one of three Austin Westminsters used for private hire work.<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n NKG 507, a Bedford SBG with a 41-seat Duple body, bought new in 1957.\u00a0 The tower of St. Isan’s Church can be seen in the background.<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n ODW 831, a 1958 Bedford SB3 with a 41-seat Duple body, on a “day out” somewhere.<\/p>\n (copyright Glyn Bowen)<\/p>\n 218 GPH, a 1958 Bedford SB3 with a 41-seat Duple body, was acquired second-hand to run alongside two other 1957 \/ 1958 Bedford Duple 41-seaters (one, ODW 831, is shown to the right). \u00a0It was operated from 1961 to 1965. \u00a0It was photographed on Falconer and Watts’ premises behind Station Road in Llanishen.<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n RHP 919, a 1955 Karrier with a 14-seat Reading body. \u00a0This is one of the few colour photographs I can find of Falconer and Watts’ golden brown and light buff livery.<\/p>\n (copyright Glyn Bowen)<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n CKG 470L, a Bedford VAS\u00a029-seater Duple, bought new in 1973, and the first new coach purchased since 1957. \u00a0It was a big disappointment, and, coupled with Falconer and Watts’ reluctance to buy the twin-steering Bedford VAL, it heralded the change to buying Ford chassis.<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n RVO 285F was a Deansgate Luxury Coach built on a petrol Ford Transit chassis, operated from 1973 to 1974. \u00a0Unusually for a minibus in those days, it had 12 high-back luxury seats and a boot. \u00a0It was photographed at Llandegfedd Reservoir, near Usk.<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n (photograph by Ken Evans \u2013 copyright Welsh Transport Heritage)<\/p>\n XKN 158J was a 1971 Ford R192 with a Plaxton 45-seater body purchased in 1975. \u00a0It was photographed on Lake Road West in Cardiff.<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n A mosaic, one of four, set into the pavement at the north end of Kimberley Terrace, Llanishen. \u00a0On the left, it depicts one of the lorries operated by R. H. Babbage and Son to deliver coal, whilst the vehicle on the right is XKG 808T, a 53 -seater Ford coach purchased new by Falconer and Watts in 1979 to celebrate their Diamond Jubilee.<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n As I have written in my online diary, I have recently managed to scan a number of slides showing our coaches.<\/strong><\/p>\n Some of these are included below.<\/strong><\/p>\n The above photographs were taken at our old garage and yard behind Station Road, Llanishen.\u00a0 From top to bottom are NKG 507, a Bedford SBG Duple Vega 41-seater purchased new in 1957 ; 218 GPH and ODW 831, two 1958 Bedford SB3 Duple Vega 41-seaters ; VNP 400, a 1958 Bedford C4Z2 Duple Vista 29-seater ; RHP 919, a 1955 Karrier Reading 14-seater ; and\u00a0 PTK 514 and 33 SRB, two 1961 Bedford SB3 Duple Super Vega 41-seaters (plus another coach) in the snow<\/p>\n (all copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n Two of the Humber cars we ran for private hire<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n PTK 514, a 1961 Bedford SB3 Duple Super Vega 41-seater, again at our old garage and yard behind Station Road<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n KRP 2E, our first 10-metre coach, a 1967 45-seater Bedford VAM 5 with Duple Viceroy coachwork<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n Graham Falconer always liked to investigate the availability of small luxury coaches, and this is a 1965 Bedford J2SZ10 with Duple 19-seater coachwork, which I seem to recall was photographed in one of the valleys north of Merthyr Tydfil<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n Our second 10-metre coach, KDY 220H, a 1970 Bedford VAM 70 Duple Viceroy 45-seater<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n Our first new coach for many years, CKG 470L was a Bedford VAS 5 with Duple Vista 25 coachwork, purchased new in 1973 : it was photographed in one of the lanes in Lisvane<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n LLG 923L, a 1972 Austin-Morris 19-seater with Asco Clubman coachwork, was photographed outside Llandaff Cathedral, in an unspecified country lane, and at St. Fagan’s<\/p>\n (all copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n BOD 807L, a 1973 Ford R1114 Duple Dominant 53-seater, originally with Trathen’s of Yelverton, photographed on Caerphilly Mountain<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n MTX 106P was a 45-seater 10-metre Ford R1014 with a Duple Dominant body, bought new in 1976, photographed near our Whittle Road depot<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n \n \n After we had taken a private party on a tour to Ravenna in Italy, the group held a reunion party, where one member had created a cake in the shape of the coach they had travelled in, MTX 106P<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n \n Again the result of Graham Falconer’s search for a small coach that could negotiate some of the narrow lanes in Wales, but also provide a good degree of luxury, RHB 114R, the first production model of Moseley’s 25-seater coachwork on the Ford A0609 chassis, was bought new in 1977, and entered into that year’s Coach Rally at Brighton, where it is photographed<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n \n RHB 114R again<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n \n RHB 114R taking part in the 1977 Brighton Coach Rally, with, I believe, Graham Falconer at the wheel<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n UTG 320S, an 11-metre Ford R1114 Plaxton 53-seater bought new in 1978, is pictured soon after collection from Plaxton’s in Scarborough<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n UTG 320S taking part in the 1978 Brighton Coach Rally, again with, I believe, Graham Falconer at the wheel<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n \n GBO 304W, an 11-metre Ford R1114 Duple Dominant IV 53-seater (with double-glazing) bought new in 1981, is pictured taking part in the 1981 Brighton Coach Rally, driven by John Crookes : it won the Cymru Trophy (Welsh Cup) that year<\/p>\n (copyright Rob Falconer)<\/p>\n Return to Falconer and Watts Main Page<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Hopefully, the content of the photographs will compensate for the poor quality of many of them LY 4313, one of the early hire cars operated. \u00a0It was a Brasier. \u00a0I believe the driver was Percy Watts. \u00a0The photograph seems to have been taken in the little lane that runs at the back of the houses … Continue reading GALLERY<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-349","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/robertfalconer.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/349","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/robertfalconer.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/robertfalconer.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/robertfalconer.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/robertfalconer.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=349"}],"version-history":[{"count":57,"href":"https:\/\/robertfalconer.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/349\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":555,"href":"https:\/\/robertfalconer.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/349\/revisions\/555"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/robertfalconer.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=349"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a>VNP 400, a 1958 Bedford C4Z2 Duple 29-seater, together with three Bedford SB Duple 41-seaters, in the early 1960s. \u00a0The houses in Llanishen village can be glimpsed to the rear.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a>PTK 514 (previously with Cosy Coaches of Poole) and 33 SRB (previously with Blue Bus of Willington), two 1961 Bedford SB3 Duple 41-seaters photographed at Station Road.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a>HDA 290J was a 1971 Ford R226 with a Duple Viceroy 53-seater body. \u00a0It was photographed on Caerphilly Mountain.<\/p>\n<\/a>LLG 923L was a 1972 Austin-Morris 440-EA with a 19-seater Asco Clubman body. \u00a0It was operated from 1975 to 1978.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/a><\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n