Barnard Castle 1940's Weekend - June 23/24th
Photos and report by Stephen Carr

It was a 40 mile drive to Barnard Castle on Friday late afternoon, and one of those rare occasions that it was hot in the cab, rather than the usual flying jacket weather! We passed through the town on the way to our camp site which was about three miles further on. It was a lovely sunny evening and a good sign for the weekend weather. The daylight woke little legs at 4am and she woke us asking if it was time to get up yet? and again at 4:05am and again at 4:15am!! The birds and daylight stopped me from sleeping properly after that so I then just dozed until a more sensible time. We set off back to town about 9am in order to be set up before the required time of 9:30am.
There were three other Dodges on display. Another WC51, a WC52 and a WC7 Command Car.
Most of the vehicles were located at the top of the town, next to the castle, but a couple of vehicles were located on the high street to draw the attention of passing public and make them aware of the castle display.
In addition to the dozen or so vehicles on show, there were a number of dioramas and re-enactors, plus regular musical entertainment across the day nearby. There were a lot of people around, both locals and tourists, with many complimenting the interesting displays.
Around 12:40pm on Saturday, the BBMF Spitfire Mk.Vb made its flypasts directly overhead. We knew it was coming, but didn't know a time, so the first pass escaped me. I didn't take my telephoto lens, so the pictures I caught were just with the 18~55mm lens.
Here's a few more shots of the displays.
Sunday was even hotter than the day before and being in a well sheltered location, there was no breeze worth mentioning to cool things down. There were a reasonable number of people around at the start of the day, but the numbers dropped off in the afternoon due to some sports thing in Russia.
After the show, we went back to the camp site to pack the tent, followed by the 90 minute drive home. The Dodge is to be kept at home for the Bowes/Springwell event next weekend.