Bell Busk railway station

History

It was opened by the "Little" North Western Railway in July 1849 as one of the intermediate stations on their line between Skipton and Ingleton, which subsequently became part of a through route between West Yorkshire and the Lancashire seaside town of Morecambe (and ultimately part of the Midland Railway main line from London to Scotland). The main buildings were located on the southbound side, whilst the two offset platforms were initially linked by a foot crossing. This however was subsequently replaced by a footbridge, possibly as the result of a fatal accident on the crossing in 1880 that resulted in the deaths of two elderly travellers.
Although situated some way from the nearest large communities, it was the most convenient station for the village of Malham and the surrounding countryside - a popular tourist destination. Consequently, the station was well patronised by ramblers heading for Malhamdale, as well as by local farmers sending their produce & livestock to market in Skipton & Leeds.

The station also had another somewhat unusual claim to fame, in that it was used as a shooting location for the 1951 feature film Another Man's Poison. The film's main star, noted American actress Bette Davis was apparently so impressed by it (according to reports in the local press) that she inquired if the station was for sale. It is not known whether her interest was genuine or not, but no formal purchase offer was made and so it remained in use until 1959, when it was closed by the British Transport Commission. Although more than 100 local objections were lodged to the proposed closure, the local Transport Users' Committee accepted the British Railways arguments that the station was unviable and it was duly closed to passengers on 4 May 1959.

The site today

The station platforms and footbridge were removed some years after closure (along with the goods facilities & signal box), but the main station buildings were retained and sold off by British Rail for use as a private dwelling. They were subsequently converted into a guest house in 1982 and remain in use as such today. The adjacent line meanwhile remains a busy freight & passenger route between Leeds & Morecambe/Carlisle, with more than 20 trains each way passing every weekday. The B&B is now run by Bob & Sheila Marchant (since 2009) and has received the Trip Advisor Certificate of Excellence for the last 5 years, leading to induction into the TA Hall of Fame. The station masters house has been extended to provide 4 letting rooms. The covered waiting area is now the residents lounge and the platform is an outdoor bar-b-q area giving the best view of the frequenly passing steam trains.