Hello
I have only just found the Brain Haulage site after looking for the book " Brain Haulage " by Peter Sumpter, I was employed by Brain’s as an apprentice mechanic in the Liverpool depot in 1974 / 75, the workshop foreman was Jimmy Lloyd, and Roy Anderson was the other mechanic. The three of us had all worked together previously for Ulster Ferry Link Line, this company had moved out of Liverpool due to the continual disruption / strikes by the Liverpool dockers, and we all went our separate ways. I then got a phone call from Jimmy Lloyd to say a job was there for me and I would be on " London " wages, needless to say I jumped at the chance.
The workshop in Naylor street was to say the least, awful, so small it was a struggle to get a 110 Scania through the doors, trailers had to be worked on in the yard. But Brains was a good company to work for and we were mainly left on our own, we saw John Stoneham from Grays a few times a year, and the other name I remember was Peter Singleton, he was the transport manager in Liverpool, another ex Grays escapee.
The disruptions / strikes continued with the Liverpool dockers, I was then told the workforce was being reduced, I was last in so I was first out, I had just completed my five year apprenticeship and Jimmy Lloyd asked me " what are you going to do " Join the Police I said, Jimmy put me in the old Bedford van and took me straight down to Police Headquarters where I signed on the dotted line.
Because of my mechanical background, I was soon in the Traffic Department and dealing with H.G.V’s, I kept in touch with the lads from Liverpool, they then moved to a nicer workshop / yard in Hawthorne road in Bootle, all in all Brain’s was a good company to work for.
All the photographs on the site bring back so many memories, Brain’s did not cut corners on vehicle maintenance and the vehicles always looked the part.
Regards
John