A man who has worked on the railway for 60 years said time has “flown by” and he has “never thought about doing anything else”.
Mick Clarke, based in Hull, is one of Northern’s longest-serving employees and he isn’t planning to retire anytime soon.
The 76-year-old describes himself as “a railway eccentric” and said he became fascinated with trains when he was a child, watching them for hours during family holidays in Germany.
After leaving school at 16, he got a job as a messenger at the British Rail freight yard in Hull in November 1965.
He was given a thick jacket and a bicycle, before being sent off to ride around the city, delivering messages and invoices to coal offices and shipping companies.
In the early 1970s, he decided it was time for a change and moved into an office at Hull station.
He spent his days sorting parcels that arrived by train and dealing with lost property, before he got another job working as a porter, helping passengers with their luggage.
“As long as I was on the railway, I was happy. But I was always looking at the British Rail vacancy list to see what jobs were going.” he said.
When Mick spotted a signalman job on the list, he decided to go for it and completed a six-week training course to learn how to safely control the movement of trains.
He then spent over a decade working at three signal boxes in East Yorkshire – Dutch River, Crabley Creek and Beverly Park – and still thinks of them as the best years of his career.
“I loved that job,” he said. “Out in the open country, sat watching the seasons go by.
“I found it fascinating, figuring out how the signalling system worked to keep the trains running. It’s like being part of a big jigsaw.
“Even now, if someone offered me a chance to go back to the signal box, I wouldn’t hesitate, I would just go.”
When signalling was modernised and centralised, Beverly Park signal box was shut down and Mick reluctantly moved on to Arram station. He worked there for three years – selling tickets and offering assistance to customers.
He then took a job as a conductor, after being talked into applying by a friend, and spent 26 years in the role.
“I enjoyed it,” he said. “It was like that programme ‘The Titfield Thunderbolt’, with all these local village stations where you knew everyone and the gossip travelled by train.
“I was proud to do my bit. When trains were cancelled or delayed and I could help passengers out and put a smile on their face, I would go home thinking I’d achieved something.”
Six years ago, he decided to move on again, to become a revenue protection officer, ensuring that everyone is travelling with a valid ticket.
Mick said he has thoroughly enjoyed his time on the railway and he still thinks of it as a hobby.
He has more than 1,000 railway books at home, as well as an elaborate model railway which spans two rooms and is connected by a tunnel running through the wall.
In his garden, he has built a signal box and filled it with levers and control equipment from a British Rail box near Filey, which was shut down in 1985.
“I once met a sailor who told me he got cravings to go to sea because it was in his blood. That’s how I feel about the railway,” he said. “I’ve never thought about doing anything else.
“People say to me 60 years is a long time, but it’s flown by. I love it and I’m going to keep ploughing on.”
Northern is the second largest train operator in the UK, with 2,650 services a day to more than 500 stations across the North of England.