Group History

Roger Bugg, one of our Honorary Life Members, who revitalised the group in 1982, has written this short piece on his recollections of the group. Plus Roger Simpson, Secretary of the EMNGM has researched the 009 Society's online archive of the 009 News to show the references to the earlier versions of our group before Roger Bugg came on the scene. See the two panels below for details. 

We would welcome anyone else's recollections of the group over the years. Just contact Roger Simpson (Secretary) or Mark Dale (Chair) via the contact details on the home page here.

In addition, below these, there are a couple of pages from the 009 News showing Roger Bugg's letter.

THE DERBY AND DISTRICT 009 GROUP C1980—2000

The Derby and District Group pre-dated my arrival in Derby in January 1979. Prior to that I had been a member of the Essex 009 Group.

It took some time before my family and I settled into a new home, and began to discover a completely new environment. I eventually made contact with Paul Martin, who was running the Derby and District 009 Group. However, Paul was at that time moving away from 009 into larger scales. He was happy for me to take over the Derby and District Group.

I asked in 009 News if there were any modellers out there who would be interested in getting the Group going again. One of the first to respond was Stephen Teather, followed by Martyn Chapman. Brian Dominic and Stuart Scarf also joined, as well as some from the original group. Keith Gilliver, David Orme and Phil Toone came from the Gresley Model Railway Club. 

We adopted the usual pattern of monthly meetings at each other’s houses. To stimulate interest, each member was invited to bring along something they had built in the previous month. It was an exciting time. There were lots of interesting ideas, which widened our knowledge of members’ interests and modelling skills. I had begun my own model of The Talyllyn Railway, and benefited from skills and suggestions of other members.

We continued in this way for some years, until it became apparent that the geographical centre of the group had shifted from Derby to Nottingham and beyond. New members were mainly from Nottingham and points east. Some time in the 1990’s Martyn offered to take over the Group. I was happy to do this as I had taken on the secretaryship of a (non-railway) club, whose meetings were on the same day as the 009 Group, and held in London. From then on, I was only able to make the occasional Group meeting. 

However, under Martyn’s leadership, the Group continued to flourish. In 2008 the Group, very sensibly, rebranded itself as The East Midlands Narrow Gauge Modellers. This was the time when Bob Telford took over from Martyn as Group leader. This was after the last ever Derby Model Railway Show at the Assembly Rooms in Derby. 

The Group also made a visit to Cadeby to see the Rev Teddy Boston’s 00 railway and some of his extensive collection of railway films. There was also a Members’ Day held at the Gresley Club rooms. The Group also attended a number of other Members’ Days put on by various 009 groups

At different times, the Group acquired layouts from Pete Wilson, and another, via Stuart Scarf, from the Atherstone Club. Martyn Chapman and Keith Gilliver built boards for a proposed modular layout. 

The 009 Society celebrated its 40th Anniversary at Kegworth in 2013. As we were local to the area, Martyn Chapman and I were brought in to assist in making arrangements for the event.

The driving force behind the 40th Anniversary event was Brian Guilmant, long-time 009 Society Sales Officer. The following year Brian set out proposals for a revised version of Members’ Days. These would be for fellow members only to meet, chat and look at some layouts. They were not to be exhibitions for the general public, as that would mean less time to for members to chat.  I thought this seemed a good plan, and by that time we had the use of the hall and café at Portland College.  Bob Telford, Andrew Glover, Chris Boyd and myself began the search for exhibitors. It soon became apparent that there were lots of layouts out there offering to come, far more than the modest half dozen suggested by Brian Guilmant. However, we had unwittingly discovered a gap in the market. There was nothing else like it in the East Midlands. As you will know, as ‘Narrow Guage Now’ it has become one of the biggest shows in the 009 calendar, We have increasing space available, facilities improved, and more trade support. 

It has been quite a journey, but its not over yet. When I joined the 009 Society in the 1970’s I was surprised to read in the Railway Modeller that the 009 had gone out of existence. That was clearly not the case, and we are now supported by the Trade in ways that would have been considered impossible back then. Here’s to the next fifty years of the Society and the Group.

Roger Bugg

March 2026

Early History of 009 Society area groups in the East Midlands

From a review of the early volumes of the 009 news, up to early 1982, via the members area of the 009 Society website.

The first mention of any group, prior to the later proliferation of local groups, is in the first volume of the 009 Newsletter (V1, no 11, July 1974), for the Birmingham Area Branch, later referred to as the West Midlands group. The next mention is in V2, no 3 where a group around Bristol is mooted. The following few editions of the 009 News feature regular appeals to form groups in the Humberside area, the South of England, North Warwickshire, Wessex, Essex, Leicester, North London, Worcester, Yorkshire and the North Western area. By no 6 of V3 (April 1975) there was a listing of 9 definite area groups, including Anglia, Bristol, Leicester, North London, North Warks, Wessex, West Midlands and Wyvern, with reports from several of them, though by no 7 the Bristol Group had ceased to exist. More appeals dot the news for Central Scotland, Mid Staffs, South Birmingham, Greater Manchester. Northern Italy(!), North West Area, East Devon, Scotland, Sussex. The Greenwich and District Narrow Gauge Society get their first mention in V2 No 6 (Feb 1975).

South Derbyshire is proposed in No 4 V4 (December 1976), c/o David Orme, at the Church Gresley Railway Club, Swadlincote, and quickly gets added to the “official” groups listed in the 009 News. The first mention of a North East Midlands Group for the Derbys/Notts area comes in the edition of June 2077 (no 10 V4), with Don Mason and Alan Perry as the contacts, and this group gets added to the “official” groups listing by the September 1977 edition (no 1 V5).

By the 009 news of January 1978 (no5, V5) there were 15 “official” listed area groups, and two more under consideration. Later this listing was removed from the 009 News to provide space for other material and instead provided as a separate annual addendum, which is not on the society website, so the exact number that have remained “official” each year cannot be checked going forward in this period.

The first report from the North-East Midlands group appears in no11 V5 (July 1978), with reports of exhibition visits and planned future exhibition appearances of members layouts. Later occasional reports reveal that they met in members houses plus were planning more local model railway exhibition appearances, and further meeting reports appear for a few months through the rest of 1978, typically with 4 or 5 members present. 

Then the Derby and District Group appear for the first time in no8, V6 (April 1979) in the listing with Paul Martin as the contact, with a report of a planned joint meeting with the North East Midlands group for May, though reports of what is happening in either group stop about this time, until there is a note in May 1981 (no 9, v8) about disbanding the Derby and District group due to lack of interest. However, Roger Bugg is listed in the next issue as wanting to revive the group. A further letter by Roger appears in the issue of 009 news for February 1982 (no 6, V9) advising that he has contacted local members via the society membership sec and hopes to restart the group. 

Roger Simpson

March 27th 2026

This page last updated on 01/04/2026