Coach Firm Owner Dies

The Fullers Hill premises was badly affected by fire in August 1984 and
the above shows NMS continuing from the site in November of that year

A second world war veteran, who later operated a local coach business, passed away at his Gorleston home last week at the age of 96

Alfred Blackbourn, was born in Cleethorpes but spent the major part of his life living in the Great Yarmouth area. He was best known locally for his role in the family business Norfolk Motor Services which operated across the county.

Whilst he began his early working life as an apprentice in a pharmacy, he joined the RAF at the age of 18. His time in the forces took him to Canada, the Mediterranean and the Far East until he was subsequently demobbed in 1948

A Norfolk Motor Services Plaxton bodied Ford R1014 at Britannia Pier awaiting holidaymakers for a summer tour sometime during the early 1980s. The coach,VEX 190L, was new to Norfolk Motor Services in May 1973

At that time his father convinced him to work for Granville Coaches, a company operating in the Grimsby area. Together they moved to Great Yarmouth bringing four coaches with them and began trading under the name of Norfolk Motor Services from premises at Fullers Hill (The site is now occupied by Staples). The company continued to grow and at one time there were more than thirty coaches in the fleet

A pair of Norfolk Motor Services Ford R1014s at the temporary South Denes site in late 1984

The company's Fullers Hill building sustained fire damage in August 1984 when four coaches were affected. However,the business continued to trade with some of the garage operations temporarily transferring to Southgates Road in South Denes. The company then ceased all operations from March of the following year

A private funeral for Alfred Blackbourn is being held at St Andrews Church in Gorleston later this month

Roy