Two Husbands, Two Wives, Two Coaches
When you visit an operator called John Martin Coaches, you might expect the owner to be called John. Well he is, but there’s also Martin, and don’t forget their partners.
“John’s had to go out on a job so are you ok just chatting with Martin?”
The writing was on the wall long before I arrived at the office of Midsomer Norton-based John Martin Coaches. I’d seen a very tidy looking VDL Futura 2 in the operator’s smart turquoise livery in the coach park at Osborne House on the Isle of Wight earlier this year. I was keen to find out more.
“Hello. I’m Judy, Martin’s wife, and this is Linda, John’s wife. Martin’s in the back. Would you like a cuppa?”
That’s the joy of meeting a small, family-run coach operator. The Somerset welcome was first-class, the VDL Futura 2 parked close by looked as magnificent as it had at Osborne House, and now I was sat with Martin, the freshly-brewed cuppa going down a treat.
But let’s start at the beginning.
John Martin Coaches is John Tamblyn and Martin Rawlings, with Martin’s wife Judy as Company Secretary and John’s wife Linda as Tours Manager. Back in the 1980s both men worked for the erstwhile Bristol Omnibus Company. In 1988 John, seemingly having had enough of life on the buses left to buy a coal business. Martin continued driving until 1995 with what by then was Badgerline, spending a period driving for Roman City Holidays. But although both men went their separate ways they stayed close friends. Both of them continued driving for other local operators. At one point, Martin spent six years driving a coal lorry for John.
