New Dual Carriageway in Inspector Morse Episode

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Herned
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Re: New Dual Carriageway in Inspector Morse Episode

Post by Herned »

It looks to me very like the A303 between the A338 junction and Thruxton, obviously the slope is wooded now but it's quite a deep cutting. That section was built in the late 1980s so it fits, and it's not that far from Oxford.

And as a Sabre bonus, I've just noticed the old road is an S3 up the hill!
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Re: New Dual Carriageway in Inspector Morse Episode

Post by hoagy_ytfc »

Herned wrote: Fri Nov 13, 2020 19:05
And as a Sabre bonus, I've just noticed the old road is an S3 up the hill!
There was a rediculously short dual-carriageway at the top.

IIRC the two up-hill lanes of the S3 just became the two lanes of the short D2, so the overtaking potential eastbound was longer than westbound,
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Re: New Dual Carriageway in Inspector Morse Episode

Post by Richardf »

Herned wrote: Fri Nov 13, 2020 19:05 It looks to me very like the A303 between the A338 junction and Thruxton, obviously the slope is wooded now but it's quite a deep cutting. That section was built in the late 1980s so it fits, and it's not that far from Oxford.

And as a Sabre bonus, I've just noticed the old road is an S3 up the hill!
Had a look. That stretch has potential.
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Re: New Dual Carriageway in Inspector Morse Episode

Post by Richardf »

hoagy_ytfc wrote: Fri Nov 13, 2020 21:36
Herned wrote: Fri Nov 13, 2020 19:05
And as a Sabre bonus, I've just noticed the old road is an S3 up the hill!
There was a rediculously short dual-carriageway at the top.

IIRC the two up-hill lanes of the S3 just became the two lanes of the short D2, so the overtaking potential eastbound was longer than westbound,
The D2 mustve been where old and new roads cross and been totally removed by the new A303? Can find no trace otherwise.
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Re: New Dual Carriageway in Inspector Morse Episode

Post by hoagy_ytfc »

Richardf wrote: Sat Nov 14, 2020 09:35 The D2 mustve been where old and new roads cross and been totally removed by the new A303? Can find no trace otherwise.
That’s exactly the case, yes, as I recall it
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Re: New Dual Carriageway in Inspector Morse Episode

Post by hoagy_ytfc »

PS I don’t think that’s where it is, the cutting in the screenshot seems too deep. I’m wondering if it’s the A34 realignment just north of Burlington Cross, the jct with the a303. I think that was done about that time?
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Re: New Dual Carriageway in Inspector Morse Episode

Post by solocle »

hoagy_ytfc wrote: Tue Jun 15, 2021 11:46 PS I don’t think that’s where it is, the cutting in the screenshot seems too deep. I’m wondering if it’s the A34 realignment just north of Burlington Cross, the jct with the a303. I think that was done about that time?
No, A34 just north of Bullington Cross shows up as being dualled on the OS QI between 1966 and 1968!
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Re: New Dual Carriageway in Inspector Morse Episode

Post by hoagy_ytfc »

But it was realigned to go through a cutting in mid to late 80s. Before that, it was steeper. One photo I found that looks like that section being rebuilt is dated 1989. If it’s correct, and the right location, then it’s a bit too late for the Morse thing though.

I’m referring to the penultimate photo at https://motorwayservicesonline.co.uk/ro ... hotos/a34/

Sabre wiki describes the realignment, without date, thus: “ Just north of the junction the old road headed up a hill, round two sharp bends and then back down the other side. When the A34 was upgraded, this became the northbound carriageway with the southbound side taking a smoother route through a cutting. The cutting was soon widened to take in the northbound carriageway, with the old road being removed but the alignment is still visible if you know where to look. The two carriageways still split where the northbound one moves on to the old road's alignment after the hill.”

(Edit, “soon after” means it might refer to earlier realignment, on 2nd thoughts. But that section was 100% rebuilt in the 80s, I remember it)
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Re: New Dual Carriageway in Inspector Morse Episode

Post by Vierwielen »

I understand that some parts of Morse were filmed in Buckinghamshire rather than Oxfordshire so as not to pay the film crew an additional sum for going to a county that does not border the old GLC. I also noticed that in one of the episodes, the railways in the background had an overhead line - something that I believe did not exist in Oxfordshire until the GWR electification, though the ECML ran through Bucks.
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Re: New Dual Carriageway in Inspector Morse Episode

Post by Chris Bertram »

"Morse, Thames Valley". The TVP area covers Bucks, Oxon and Berks, so the WCML (not the ECML) passing through MK would be in scope, though you'd have thought that officers from MK would be on point over there ahead of Oxford-based coppers.
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Re: New Dual Carriageway in Inspector Morse Episode

Post by hoagy_ytfc »

hoagy_ytfc wrote: Tue Jun 15, 2021 16:24 (Edit, “soon after” means it might refer to earlier realignment, on 2nd thoughts. But that section was 100% rebuilt in the 80s, I remember it)
I'm reverting to my original thoughts :)

The doubling was in the 60s as mentioned, but the above realignment was the one I remember from mid-to-late 80s. Pretty sure construction started when I was working at IBM Hursley, which would've been 1987.
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Re: New Dual Carriageway in Inspector Morse Episode

Post by Herned »

hoagy_ytfc wrote: Tue Jun 15, 2021 11:46 PS I don’t think that’s where it is, the cutting in the screenshot seems too deep. I’m wondering if it’s the A34 realignment just north of Burlington Cross, the jct with the a303. I think that was done about that time?
I think there is a bit of an optical illusion in the original photo, where the slope of the cutting blends in with the top edge as it goes over the brow of the hill, making it look deeper. On rechecking, I still the think the A303 is the best fit of any suggestions - the A34 cutting is going up a hill, whilst the screenshot appears to show a cutting over the top of a hill
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Re: New Dual Carriageway in Inspector Morse Episode

Post by hoagy_ytfc »

Just thought of another argument against my suggestion of the A34 - if I recall correctly, the cutting already had the southbound carriageway, it was widened to take the northbound too.

But the screen grab posted earlier shows BOTH carriageways under construction, so I must be wrong on that basis.
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Re: New Dual Carriageway in Inspector Morse Episode

Post by jgharston »

Chris Bertram wrote: Tue Jun 15, 2021 22:05 "Morse, Thames Valley". The TVP area covers Bucks, Oxon and Berks, so the WCML (not the ECML) passing through MK would be in scope, though you'd have thought that officers from MK would be on point over there ahead of Oxford-based coppers.
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Re: New Dual Carriageway in Inspector Morse Episode

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Vierwielen wrote: Tue Jun 15, 2021 21:46 I understand that some parts of Morse were filmed in Buckinghamshire rather than Oxfordshire so as not to pay the film crew an additional sum for going to a county that does not border the old GLC. I also noticed that in one of the episodes, the railways in the background had an overhead line - something that I believe did not exist in Oxfordshire until the GWR electification, though the ECML ran through Bucks.
I believe only the shots that are undeniably "OXFORD!" are filmed there, ie all the major city landmarks. A lot of it was filmed in parts of London doubling as Oxford - one housing estate looks like another so why go all the way to Oxford when this estate just 5 minutes from the studios will do?
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Re: New Dual Carriageway in Inspector Morse Episode

Post by RichardA626 »

Peeviously someone has mentioned in another thread that some scenes in Shoesting were filmed in West London rather than Bristol.
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