The Great Train Robbery — A Personal Connection
The Great Train Robbery of 8th August 1963 remains one of the most audacious crimes in British history.
In the early hours of that August morning, a gang of fifteen men brought the Glasgow to London mail train to a halt at Bridego Railway Bridge in Buckinghamshire and made off with £2.5 million in used banknotes — a sum equivalent to over £50 million in today’s money.
The sheer scale and daring of the operation shocked the nation, and Scotland Yard swiftly took charge of what became one of the most complex criminal investigations the country had ever seen.
The robbery has never lost its grip on the public imagination, and for our speaker this evening, Clifton Club member Dave Talbot, it holds a rather more personal significance than most.
In 1983, almost exactly twenty years to the day after the robbery, Dave was serving as curator of the Thames Valley Police Museum when a routine visit to a nondescript Met Police Museum warehouse in South London took an unexpected turn. Tucked away on a dusty shelf, largely forgotten, sat a collection of large cardboard boxes bearing the label Great Train Robbery Exhibits.
A swift and entirely informal negotiation followed, and a gentlemen’s agreement was struck: a walking cane once belonging to Sir Robert Peel, founder of the Metropolitan Police, would find its proper home with the Met, and the Great Train Robbery exhibits would make their way to Thames Valley — where they remain to this day.
That chance discovery sparked a fascination that has never left him. Ever since, Dave has immersed himself in the story — going well beyond the familiar accounts to uncover details and perspectives that rarely feature in the popular retellings.
This evening, Dave will be sharing those insights with us.
6.30pm arrival for a 7pm start.
The talk is followed by a pie and mash supper with cheeseboards.
The ticket also includes half a bottle of house wine.
If you would like a non wine option please contact the office.
Members: £42 Non members: £47