atkins derby

[Carl]

i work with a guy who did the continent for em in the 70,s he drove fiats and mercs the guys name is nobby and started at atkins as a lad washing trailers.
for a while he ran outta poole and southamton and when atkins had a french depot he had a french reg left hooker merc.does anyone remember nobby or have any atkins pics

[Wheel Nut]

Our bloke who thinks he should be obeyed in the office came from Atkins although he must have only been about 8

[truckerash]

Hi Carl: This is how I will always remember Atkins. The splendid red, brown and yellow. One of smartest liveries around in it's time.



and heres an "old un". An Atki for Atkins.... get it

[Carl]

cheers ash i,ll write the reg numbers down of them and ask nobby if he remembers them motors thanks again mate

[truckerash]

a la Francais

[Carl]

ash your a legend cheers mate

[mike t]

Here's another one Carl

[Carl]

cheers mike nice pic

[DaveL]

Hi Carl.
Haven't got any pics but your mate Nobby may recall a couple of drivers.
Dave Bridel worked for Atkins in the UK, Daniel (Nevada) worked out of Cherbourg. Their kids married ( I think it was Daves son & Daniels daughter) & have/had a restaurant in York.
Also ask Nobby if he recalls Bernie Thompson (from the transport office)at last count he owned trucks collecting garbage round Cherbourg.

[Carl]

cheers dave i will mate i,ll see him in the week somtime as were both trampers and i,ll ask him

[georgeking]

This was an awesome fleet certainly a contender for one of the greatest hauliers of all time.

[gunnerheskey]

They also used to do good breakfast in the cafes they used to own at their yards eitherside of the A38 just south of Derby.......

[Wheel Nut]

They also used to do good breakfast in the cafes they used to own at their yards eitherside of the A38 just south of Derby.......

Yes, they were amongst the last of a good roadside breakfast, in fact if it was open now I would be on my way now! It sort of put the airport caff to shame just up the A38

I always thought Derby was a good place to head for, 40 years later I now live here

[Dave Humphries]

Heres the very cafe Wheel Nut - well, just a small part of it. And here's some of the wagons I drove hauling containers to and from Tilbury. Pics (which Carl might like) were taken at a truck show in Atkins yard about 1988/9, I think. As for Derby, much better than living in Nottingham - from a footie point of view, naturally.

[Wheel Nut]

Heres the very cafe Wheel Nut - well, just a small part of it. And here's some of the wagons I drove hauling containers to and from Tilbury. Pics (which Carl might like) were taken at a truck show in Atkins yard about 1988/9, I think. As for Derby, much better than living in Nottingham - from a footie point of view, naturally.

And slightly less risk of being shot, only very slightly mind.

I remember all the road tests started and finished at Atkins in the good days of Truck magazine.

Newbies, notice the third blue line on the Scrapia

[Chris Webb]

I think it was 1968 when Atkins cafe was opened at Findern on the A38.It was single carriageway then but I never had a problem crossing to the S/W bound lane even in a Reiver or AEC MK3. IIRC it opened at 0600 mon-sat and was a revelation in transport cafe design,warm,clean bright and the snap was good.That bloody sh***** down the road called the Airport could have done with some updating to compare with Atkins,talk about a bloody dump . The only thing to remember about Atkins was to make sure you paid your parking and not to encroach on the yard foreman's white lines round the back if you were parking on a dodgy.

[stevecook]

Found this on t'Internet:

[adr]

What a beautifull Mickey Mouse Foden, that is serious customizing for its day| Is it my eyes, or does the fuel tank look like a highly polished beer keg? Or didnt the driver like pub prices on his nights out so decided to make his own arrangements!

[steptoe]

Heres another one Carl.

[Wheel Nut]

Article from the Derby Evening Telegraph in 2008

[Frankydobo]

Interesting article and Atkins are typical of a British company that went through the Fifties to today and the many changes during those times. The writer is also typical of the young driver that is inspired by childhood memories or experiences that push him into a life on the road, however as we all know sometimes this can be through rose coloured specs, you either loved the job and done it for the rest of your working life, loved it at first then grew disillusioned but couldn't get out of it or ended up hating it and got out as soon as possible, that's apart from the ones that loved or loathed but had to leave the job through illness or injury. Makes you think about your own working life and what you might have done differently. Franky.

[gunnerheskey]

Article from the Derby Evening Telegraph in 2008

Not a bad story is that, but can't help thinking of the stories he could've told if he'd stuck out the hard graft in the 60s.....
Think he would've drunk in the orange tree not the juniper berry eh wheelnut......

[mushroomman]

Heres another one Carl.

I have a feeling that this truck was used in one of those Long Distance Diary stories in the late seventies on a trip into the Commie Block.
So get up in your loft Dreva and see if you can find it and repost it .

[Stanley Mitchell]

Hi Carl: This is how I will always remember Atkins. The splendid red, brown and yellow. One of smartest liveries around in it's time.



and heres an "old un". An Atki for Atkins.... get it

That`s why i nominated them for the "Great British Haulier" thread, I was still a bit miffed that the response was ZERO, but, obviously, this thread has better taste [I`ll get me tin hat]

Cracking livery, cracking kit [for the period], very forward thinking [again, for the period].

And, fearless when up against the dock union, I think they were still banned from a port in the south, right upto their sale + demise

The main man there was paronoid about "revs", their tacho`s all had a "rev" read out on the back, IIRC

[Dave Humphries]

Support everything you say Stanley about Atkins. Being a Derby lad, I always had a soft spot for them (no jokes, please!). As the amazing Wheel Nut found out (how does he find all these stories and info?), I once wrote a story for my local paper about my brief experience with Atkins (thanks for the kind comments, too, regarding that, by Frankydobo, etc). In fact, one of the ex Atkins bosses read it and came around to our house to present me with a model Atkinson in Atkins livery and various other bits of memorabilia. So, in my book it's definitely FB Atkins as Greatest British Haulier.

[Antos]

Ah yes can anyone that worked 85-90 remember Pam from Felixstowe depot, George, Vera and Harry Bishop at Tilbury
and not forgetting our friends in the North at Dewsbury Alan Stanger and the two Johns??

[Stanley Mitchell]

Ah yes can anyone that worked 85-90 remember Pam from Felixstowe depot, George, Vera and Harry Bishop at Tilbury
and not forgetting our friends in the North at Dewsbury Alan Stanger and the two Johns??

My mate used to live next door to "TOGO", a VERY large night man based @ Findern.

He said his nightly run was DERBY - Felix - Dewsbury - DERBY, drop trailers @ each depot, his VERY large right foot to the floor

Some going, if it was true

[gb1]

Don't recall seeing many with the plain white livery. Was there any particular reason why?

[georgeking]

Thanks to Bubbleman

[georgeking]

Here is a video about FB Atkins who had a fine fleet.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=finUm2S08Ew