insideKENT Magazine Issue 97 - April 2020 | Page 56

VISITKENT
VISITORS TO THE KENT & EAST SUSSEX
RAILWAY’S 40s WEEKEND WILL BE ABLE TO
TASTE THE NOSTALGIA
AS WELL AS EXCITING DISPLAYS, WHICH MAKE THIS ONE OF THE HERITAGE LINE’S
MOST POPULAR EVENTS, THERE WILL BE DEMONSTRATIONS OF WHAT IT WAS LIKE TO
COOK IN THE IMMEDIATE POST-WAR YEARS, WHEN FOOD WAS RATIONED.
During the war years meals often featured spam.
Today it’s associated with junk emails, but then it
meant tinned pork, a strangely coloured meat with
an even stranger taste, which was sliced and dished
out on tables across the land.
This year’s 40s Weekend is on 16th and 17th May,
when the steam railway will provide a perfect
backdrop for the 50-plus vehicles on show, including
Willys jeeps and service trucks, and more than 200
re-enactors wearing clothes from the period.
A packed programme of events will include the
return of popular singers, My Favourite Things,
Miss Holiday Swing, Swingtime Sweethearts, Ruby
Sisterz, Adam Hoffman, and, new for 2020, the
Invicta Jazz Orchestra. Trip the light fantastic with
the Cinque Ports Lindy Hoppers and get your hair
styled in a 1940s look. Vintage stalls selling military
items and vintage clothes will be among the
attractions on offer at Tenterden and Bodiam.
Popular character Viv the Spiv will be back, faithfully
depicting one of the 40s' wide boys who could come
up with anything from dodgy nylons to fake watches.
Spitfire displays will take place at the Railway on
both days, subject to weather conditions.
There will be the opportunity to learn how Air Sea
Rescue helped airmen forced to ditch in the
Channel and to talk to the ARP Air Raid Precaution
teams for an insight into life on the home front.
Following their premier appearance at the Railway
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in 2019, the 1940s Corner Shop will also return to
Bodiam station for this year’s event.
Visitors will receive their own identity cards and can
enjoy unlimited travel for the day, with trains running
every 45 minutes between Tenterden and Bodiam.
There is a packed programme of events at both
stations. Parking is free at Tenterden and Northiam.
The Tenterden Refreshment Rooms will be offering
a nostalgic wartime-themed menu including popular
dishes of the day such as rock buns, homity and
Lord Woolton pies throughout the day. The gift
shop is open throughout the weekend for the purchase
of that memento of your visit.
Admission including an all-day Travel Card: Adult
£19, Child (3-15 years) £13, Family (2 adults + 2
children or 1 adult and up to 3 children) £45. Please
see the timetable on the website for times of train
operation. Gates open at 10am both days. This
popular event gets very busy so pre-booking tickets
for collection on the day is strongly recommended:
www.kesr.org.uk/40
Bodiam Castle is a short walk from Bodiam Station.
Presenting a valid train ticket entitles passengers to
discounted entry to Bodiam Castle.
Every effort will be made to provide the attractions
as advertised, but unforeseen circumstances may
result in alteration or cancellation at short notice.