Biography

S. W. (known to all as Steve) Stevens-Stratten was born on 2 January 1924 in New Malden, Surrey. He was an only child whose father owned an Anglo/Francois lending library in Mayfair London.

As a child Steve enjoyed usual boys’ interests involving cars and train sets and in his mid teens he showed a passion for photography, entering into local exhibitions and regularly winning prizes for his compositions.

During World War Two Steve served in REME, being sent to Palestine, Cyprus, Egypt and in fact learned to drive in an army 3 tonne Bedford truck. His interest in photography also helped him record life and recreational days and transport during his army service.

When returning to civilian life, his working days in insurance were separate from his continuing and increasing passion for photography and transport. Steve was an active member of the New Malden Camera Club. As well as taking photographs, Steve developed and produced his own black and white prints and early on in occupancy of his home in Ewell, Surrey, he built a dark room in the loft, where he spent a good part of his spare time.

Steve had an enthusiasm in fairground rides and the tractors and equipment which moved them from place to place. Many a weekend was spent visiting those that were within travelling distance and as a child in the 1960s, Steve’s daughter Carol remembers being excited at the prospect of a visit to the fair, only to be then told that she could only go on the rides once he had taken his photographs and to that end, was expected to follow him “around the back” to hold the camera case whilst he switched between his Roliflex black and white camera (as it was always known) to a “colour slide one”. He also regularly attended the Easter fair at Mitcham and those on Hampton Court Green with his friend Philip W. Bradley, also a keen photographer and with whom he shared his interest.

Perhaps following from his father’s influence in the written material, he joined Ian Allan publishing in 1966 as Editor of Model Railway Constructor. This company is known for its books and magazines on specialist areas of transport and Steve not only produced the MRC magazine but wrote books and took many photographs which were used across the company for other magazines, such as Buses and lorries. This meant that he attended many transport Rallies and fairground rides there continued to be of personal interest.

After eighteen years, Steve changed his role within Ian Allan to become Founding Editor of Vintage Roadscene, a magazine published quarterly. This was his ”baby “and allowed him to concentrate on his lifelong interest in commercial vehicles and, naturally, fairground haulage. He continued publishing books on British Lorries and Commercial Vehicles which included fairground machines and many of his own photographs featured. For the first issue of VR in December 1984, he chose to feature a Showman’s Steam Road Locomotive on the cover and a six page photo illustrated article on fairground transport set the scene for future issues. The magazine was later independently published by Steve following his retirement and he in fact successfully continued to produce the magazine until he reached his mid eighties, then handing the baton back to Ian Allan. The magazine was subsequently transferred to a new company and continues to be published today.

VR magazine fostered a new and professional reason to attend transport rallies up and down the country during the 1960s and 1970s.

In the late 1980s Steve bought his own Dennis 1963 Pump Escape Fire Engine and those rallies that were local enough to drive to were visited but this time in the capacity of exhibitor.

Some of Steve’s interest spilled over from fairground to circus and following the same principles, his daughter’s experiences of a visit to the circus mirrored a visit to the fair in that, either before or after the show, the occasion wasn’t complete without clambering over cables and dodging the generators whilst he took his photos with said small child dragging along behind.

Steve died in July 2015, aged 91, still reading his transport magazines and books and with his significant collection of model fairground vehicles proudly on display.