Wednesday 21 January 2015

Bovingdon Tank Museum


Nearly 50 years ago my Dad took this photo of me on a Sherman Tank at the Bovingdon Tank Museum. I loved the place though I do think my poor Mum must have been bored stiff.  Come Christmas 2012 I bought my son (& Me) a Ticket for Tiger Day which was in Late March the next year.  It was a day I will remember for a long time






On getting to the Museum you first see the gate guardian 





then a tank from I remember from my childhood, a Centurion tank, I had a couple these as model dinky toys I used to play with.









One of the Geman Tanks on display



Think this one if a General Grant 
 A Sherman Firefly one of the few tanks to be able to take on a Tiger




This tank was never used  in anger because it was built by the British army after the war using the captured factory equipment.







This is the beast we came to see, the Tiger and we were allowed all over it. After a good look round we went to a lecture about it and how the tank came about to be captured. That was more luck than anything. A Shell got stuck between the turret and body stopping it rotating so it got abandoned. The British army just drove it off. 



We went off to lunch which we had sat on the same table as the guest of honour Murry Walker (yep Mr F1 himself) turned out he was a tank commander in WWII and he commanded a Sherman Firefly so they gave him a ride in one









This tank is original but the engine is more modern as they could not get a replacement. It uses a Rover V8




One of the British Tanks
 WWII Matilda tank in Desert colours




A Russian T34 




Murry waving from his Sherman




The Tiger making it's way round
 How about that bearing down on you





Love this one, it's called Spud, one of my nicknames






The Centurion 




 A childhood favorite






This is a modern on a German Leopard in Canadian colors
The reason for the dust was because they had just fired the gun, and dam noisy it was too





After the arena visit we had a walk round the workshops as say a newly restored WWII German Anti Tank Gun
and were told about some of the munitions used



Here is the Matilda tank again




and me sat in it.







The Sherman tank Murry was in, I did get to go in it as well





Spud the Comet MkI




The spartan driving seat in a T34






A Valentine Mk1 in Desert colors




The  Leopard tank


 





and the inside, I was sat beside this guy









After the tour of the workshop wer went back for tea then it was time to go home. The ticket you get enables you to go back as much as you liked and I returned with my son later in the year, this time I found a Sherman to get my photo with.


More info on the Tank Museum hit the link you can also see more of the photos I took on Flickr
and the second visit I made here