Sarah and Rebecca Brightman have entered the history books at the Crich Tramway Village by becoming the very first mother and daughter tram crew at the museum. The milestone was achieved after Rebecca, 16, passed out as a tram conductor recently.
Both Sarah and Rebecca have an interest in social history and transport. Sarah started to volunteer at Crich when she was 17 years old, became a conductor at 18 and became a tram driver in 2001. She has passed on her enthusiasm to Rebecca who has been visiting Crich since she was just 5 weeks old!
They both share the fact that their first solo conducting duties were on board Sheffield 74.
Rebecca will begin an Applied Science course at college in September. Sarah, meanwhile, credits volunteering at Crich as having given her many lessons in life.
Sarah said: “Those who knew me at the start will confirm that I was a quiet, shy and innocent young girl and I spent many evenings in the Cliff pub having a great time with the other volunteers. I have made many lifelong friends who remember the trams in the cities and passed on some great stories. Sadly, many of them have passed away or are in ill health, but I hope I can pass some of these stories on to other people. It is great to see so many younger people being interested in trams and our museum, and starting the same journey that I did nearly 30 years ago.
“We both agree that the museum is a friendly and welcoming environment, and it provides great experience in working with the public. We are also looking forward to my son, Daniel, starting his career at Crich in two years’ time; we’re calling it The Brightman Takeover!”.
Sarah and Rebecca alongside Sheffield 510. (Photograph courtesy of Crich Tramway Village)