Cecil R. Parkin (
Jeffrey Holland)
Stationmaster – the new stationmaster at Hatley who appears midway through the first episode. He is a perfectionist and is determined to make the station the best on the line. On the surface, he seems refined, but it turns out that he knows the station's buffet manager because they had a passionate affair, which was going on behind her boyfriend (later husband) Jack Skinner's back. He still has lecherous thoughts about her and in several episodes he tries his best to get her to leave Jack. The station staff react to him in different ways – most are tolerant of him, but Jack and Harry, the signalman, take an intense dislike to him, which only slightly mellows as the series goes on.
Jack Skinner (
Paul Shane)
Head Porter and Deputy Stationmaster – He is deeply in love with his beautiful wife, May, but gets very jealous whenever she comes into close contact with other men, especially Cecil. He heartily dislikes Cecil and shows it. He is an ex-soldier with a limp from a wound he supposedly received during the war – only in Episode 9 we learn that his leg was wounded when he was thrown out of a pub and the landlord's wife slammed the door on his foot, not during a battle, although Ethel changed the story to him jumping on a German tank to shove a land mine down it and a big German trapped his foot in the door.
Ethel Schumann (
Su Pollard)
Ticket Clerk – She is scatter-brained and sometimes muddles her words. She often gets frustrated with Jack for his jealousy of May. She is also a flirt – she has a son from her marriage to a now deceased American soldier named Earl, whom she frequently refers to in the earlier episodes. She is desperate for another boyfriend and frequently makes advances to the station's guard, Percy, who appreciates her advances, but seems more interested in the regular commuter, Amy. She is the only one who knows of Cecil and May's war-time fling once May tells her.
Harry Lambert (
Stephen Lewis)
Signalman – He is eternally miserable, with Stephen Lewis portraying the character very much like "Blakey" in
On the Buses. He never smiles and often sees the down side of things, never being seen happy. He hates his job, often calling the trains "ruddy". Because trains come through Hatley only a few times a day, he operates numerous sidelines from his box: growing vegetables, mending bikes and clocks, rearing farm animals (pigs, turkeys and chickens) for the staff's dinners, giving haircuts and taking bets. They are all illegal, yet all the staff, including Gloria, know about them, are customers and keep their mouths shut. Cecil does not know, as he would make it stop. There is a recurring gag, where Harry will say, "if they poke their noses around, they will get the flat end o' my tongue", that person comes and he starts sucking up to them. He often resists Vera's advances.
May Skinner (née Blanchflower) (
Julia Deakin)
Buffet Manageress – She had a passionate affair with Cecil Parkin before she married Jack, which ended when Cecil was called up to serve in the Army. She appears to genuinely love Jack, but she seems to still have buried feelings for Cecil. She frequently resists Cecil's advances, but occasionally relents, even letting him kiss her in Episode 10, but states that it must never happen again. In early episodes it is hinted that Cecil is the father of her daughter, Gloria, but this is proved to be false in Episode 11. The character of May was played by
Sherrie Hewson in the original pilot episode shown in August 1995. Because of her role in
Coronation Street, Hewson was unable to continue with the role of May in the series proper, so the character was recast to
Julia Deakin. When the pilot episode was repeated as the first episode of the first series in July 1996, Hewson's scenes as May were reshot with Deakin in the role.
Vera Plumtree (
Barbara New)
Cleaner – She helps the staff by cleaning their homes and washing linen for them. She has a lot in common with Ethel: she muddles her words and frequently talks about her unnamed late husband, who was an engine driver. She is fond of Harry, but he is not interested in her.
Wilfred Schumann (Paul Aspden, credited as Paul Aspen)
Porter – Ethel's son. Most of the time he comes across as extremely stupid. He is often verbally abused and hit around the head by Jack. Wilfred joins the Army in one episode so as to allow Ethel to elope with her new American airmen boyfriend, but she ends the relationship. Wilfred was born in 1946, making him 17.
Gloria Skinner (Lindsay Grimshaw) – Jack and May's daughter. A rebellious teenager, very fond of short skirts and the company of older men. Jack is over-protective and will let no man in the station take Gloria out. Gloria was born in February 1945, making her 18.
Percy (Terry John)
Guard – the main station flirt. He flirts with every woman he comes into contact with, except Vera. But he seems to prefer Amy above others: he takes her out on several dates during the series, often leaving Ethel in the lurch. We learn in Episode 14 that he keeps promising to take Ethel out, but never does.
Arnold Thomas (
Ivor Roberts)
Train Driver – An older train-driver. He is the star of the penultimate episode, where he goes to great lengths to make sure he is not sacked. He has a wife called Jessica, who appears to be forgetful. He alludes to her in almost every episode, but she only appears briefly in an uncredited role in Episode 13. The actress was Ivor Roberts' real life wife also.
Ralph (
Perry Benson)
Fireman and Trainee Driver – Works with Arnold – the two often engage in comic banter. Ralph can be as daft as Wilfred and is slow at learning to drive – but he drives the train perfectly in the final episode. One episode centres around him – in Episode 14 he threatens to go on strike. It is also revealed that he has a crush on Gloria.
Amy (Tara Daniels), best school friend of Gloria's, she appears in most of the episodes. She is often the object of Percy's desires.
Mr Orkindale (
Richard Spendlove)
District Inspector – Senior to Parkin, calls staff by Christian names and fancies May. Dislikes Mr Parkin as much as everyone else and in Episode 17 cheats him out of a place on the bowls club outing just so he can have a few extra drinks.
Guest appearances Other actors who had previously collaborated with
David Croft made guest appearances in the series.
Windsor Davies appeared in the final episode as the
mayor of Clumberfield, when the station staff re-enacted the station's opening for its 100th anniversary. James Pertwee, son of the actor
Bill Pertwee, made an appearance as a photographer in this final episode also.
Sally Grace appeared in Episode 7 as Mr Parkin's fiancée, Edna.
Hugh Lloyd made an appearance in one episode as a chauffeur. == Title and music ==