Sorry, not strictly 50s, 60s or 70s. Extraordinary colour photos from 1928. The first is a 6 and a 15 at Ludgate Hill. Hard to believe they are nearly 90 years old.

http://mashable.com/2015/03/29/england-color-photos

My bus number (if any): RMs 238, 471 and 2213, GS17

Actually, probably The Strand as 77 shown at same location.

My bus number (if any): RMs 238, 471 and 2213, GS17

Yes, Chris, I think the Strand coming into Trafalgar Square,(buses are heading West)The 15 is outside the Gra and the 77 outside the Hot, so I'm guessing the old Grand Hotel by Charing Cross Station. Looks like they're waiting for the 'off' to steam across the Square! 1928 is the year my Grandfather started at Athol St.

I like the caption for the 2 'bus drivers' standing by the bus. Obviously forgotten about bus conductors!

The pictures might be outside of the usual ROOF era but they are well worth sharing here if only for the surprise of seeing the proof of quite good quality colour pictures from so long ago. I showed them to people at work yesterday and they all expressed the same surprise of not being aware of good colour photography in 1928. Capturing such a natural, busy London scene without anyone in the picture sticking two fingers up at the photographer or acting in idiot mode is a lovely reminder of a different age when police directed traffic and were unfazed by having their picture taken.


So few people managed to record interesting pre- 1960`s street scenes especially in colour that would now be so helpful to those seeking to recreate accurate adverts for preserved buses. I can recall seeing a television interview many years ago featuring the great (amateur) railway photographer Ivo Peters who was way ahead of the game by taking prolific colour stills and cine film in the late 1950`s and through the 1960`s. His photographic records of the Somerset & Dorset Railway are the definitive source of reference beyond anything attempted in an official capacity. Not just the trains but the people, landscapes and infrastructure too. But in the interview he readily admitted that he was often considered to be `a nutter` by many who couldn`t understand why he wanted to take pictures of trains. A great shame that people like Ivo Peters and the 1928 photographer would never have known how their diligence would be appreciated many years later.