Indholdsfortegnelse for Issue 309 i Heritage Railway

FOR the first time in 41 years, timetabled trains will once again stop at the Severn Valley Railway’s Eardington station during the September 14-17 Autumn Steam Gala. Eardington, often referred to as the SVR’s hidden gem, will open for limited business on occasions, but only for trains that fit into the platforms. Stopping will be limited to trains with a maximum of four carriages, but for the gala and as an introduction it will be three, allowing for a safety overrun. Steve Downs has volunteered at Eardington since the 1980s, officially gaining the title of stationmaster in the last 18 months. He said: “Our last timetabled train stopped in 1982 and it’s no exaggeration to say that it’s a dream come true that we are back on the map again…

A MILESTONE in restoring Thrumster station in Caithness was passed on July 16whenitwasofficiallyswitchedbackon totheelectricalgridfollowing12yearsof restoration. The station was one of five on the 13-mile Wick & Lybster Railway, which opened on July 1, 1903, and closed on April 3, 1944, two days after the last train ran. The line was built to link the fishing port of Lybster with the national network at Wick and heavily supported financially by local government and the Treasury. Worked by the Highland Railway, it was never heavily used and the hoped-for expansion of the local fishing trade did not take place. The construction of a modern road to the south in the 1930s provided quicker transport for the locality and sounded the death knell for the railway. Thrumster station was used as a post…

AN all-new braking system is the latest stage in the construction of the replica of Richard Trevithick’s groundbreaking locomotive Catch Me Who Can at Bridgnorth. Designed by the Cornish mine captain, Catch Me Who Can was the last of four locomotives which proved that steam-hauled trains were possible, paving the way for the modern transport age. In 1808, the original Catch Me Who Can became the first fare-paying passenger train in the world on a 100ft circular demonstration track behind a high fence near the site of the future Euston station. The public were offered rides in a stagecoach coupled behind it for a shilling a time. Speeds were reportedly about 1215mph and because the track was a circle, brakes were unnecessary. They are, however, obviously essential if the locomotive…

FFESTINIOG &Welsh Highland Railways director and general manager Paul Lewin is one of five people shortlisted in the heritage category of the outstanding individuals section of the 2023 National Lottery Awards. Paul, 59, first volunteered on the line as a teenager and worked up from a fireman to driver before taking the top job 20 years ago. He has overseen how millions of pounds of National Lottery funding has been invested over the years, ensuring that North Wales’s largest tourist attraction continues to entice visitors, provides opportunities for the local community, and helps keep the railway financially stable and viable for future generations. He recently oversaw the delivery of a two-year £450,000 National Lottery Heritage Fund-backed training scheme for 20 young trainees to learn traditional skills. He also secured a…

SANDSTONE Estates in South Africa, home of the world’s largest collection of 2ft gauge locomotives and stock, has welcomed international visitors for the firsttimeinfouryearssincetheCovid-19 outbreak. Two days were spent on a photographic charter, which is nowhere near enough to sample this newly-built railway. Its last major tour was the ‘Stars of Sandstone’ event in 2019, as reported in issue 254. Feedback was very positive, with once again Sandstone pulling out all the stops. Four South African Railways Garratts were steamed for the photographic sessions. Two were British-built NGG16s identical/similar to the ones used on the Welsh Highland Railway, in Beyer Peacock NGG16 No. 113 and modified NGG16A 155, affectionately called the Red Dragon. The two other locomotives were German-built NG15 No. 17 Kalahari and NGG13 No. 49 from Hanomag. Sandstone…

DARJEELING Himalayan Railway Sharp Stewart 0-4-0SWTT No. 19B will be displayed by a second locomotive from an Indian mountain railway at its new home on the Statfold Barn Railway. As reported last issue, No. 19B has been saved for the UK heritage sector following its £250,000 purchase by the Darjeeling Tank Locomotive Trust at an auction of the late Adrian Shooter CBE’s private Beeches Light Railway. It will now be joined at Statfold by Matheran Hill Railway Orenstein & Koppel 2ft gauge 0-6-0T No. 2343 of 1907 No. 740, which has just been acquired by the newly-formed Darnall Locomotive and Railway Heritage group, which has applied to become a charitable trust. No. 740 was one of a class of four, the other three plinthed in India. It was originally specified…

DESPITE its location in the north of England, the East Lancashire Railway’s June 29-July 1 diesel gala had a distinct West Country flavour to it – along with a heritage era first. Class 42 D821 Greyhound, visiting from the Severn Valley Railway, was reunited with the ELR’s resident classmate D832 Onslaught for the occasion, the pair of Warships meeting in BR blue liveries for the first time since the class was withdrawn. Furthermore, Class 35 ‘Hymek’ D7076 returned to service in matching colours. With Class 52 Western D1041 Western Prince also cosmetically restored in the same livery, you had the impression of being in Devon or Cornwall during the 1960s. Making the most of this unique gathering of locomotives in appropriate liveries, volunteer Liam Barnes organised a photographic charter for…

THE sole operational LWR locomotive –Webb 0-6-2T CoalTank No. 1054 – is to be the centrepiece of a new exhibition commemorating 180 years of CreweWorks. Furthermore, the 1888-built Keighley & Worth Valley-based locomotive will visit two other heritage lines after its appearance at the Forging History: 180 years of the Crewe Works exhibition at Crewe Heritage Centre, which runs until Sunday, September 10, on weekends and bank holidays and Wednesdays in August. The exhibition theme is how locomotives were a catalyst for change in Crewe. Bahamas Locomotive Societyowned No. 1054 will visit the Blaenavon Heritage Railway for its 40th anniversary celebrations on September 9/10, and will also attend the Mid-Hants Railway’s autumn gala on October 7/8, returning to Crewe Heritage Centre after both events. The exhibition celebrates the 180th anniversary…

THE 25-yearprojecttoplugamajor gapintheUK’sheritagefleetwiththe constructionofanewGWRGrange4-6-0 isnearingaconclusion– withitsfirst steamingpencilled inforNovember. With the last of the pipework and cleating sheets fitted to No. 6880 Betton Grange at Tyseley Locomotive Works in late July and early August, plans are now in hand to couple the locomotive to its temporary tender, a 4000-gallon Collett example currently on hire, and get both into the paintshops for finishing in lined Brunswick green with later BR crest. The private first steaming for Betton Grange Society members and supporters will be held behind closed doors at Tyseley on November 4 and all being well, the first public steaming of a Collett Grange since 1965 will be staged soon afterwards. The members were told about the steaming in the summer edition of the society’s newsletter, published on July 18. “With…

TODDINGTON Standard Locomotive Ltd, which owns and is restoring BR Standard 4 2-6-0 No. 76077, has purchased three wheelsets that will be utilised in the construction of a new BR2A tender for the locomotive. During its time at Barry scrapyard, No. 76077 lost its tender to classmate No. 76017 (currently stored at Southall), which in turn saw its own (along with several others) sold to Duport’s Briton Ferry steelworks to be converted into a steel billet carrier. Therefore, the need to construct a new one to replace this was evident, and there were many discussions with shareholders as to which design should be used. A third of the company’s directors favoured the larger BR1B type, which also drew support from a third of its shareholders largely on the grounds of…

THE Lincolnshire Coast Light Railway has been awarded a £24,250 grant from the Government’s Levelling Up UK Shared Prosperity Fund to build a station and interpretation centre at its southern terminus in the Skegness Water Leisure Park. Matched funding of £8000 from leisure park owner Ellis Bros Ltd will provide a total of £32,250 for the project, which aims to boost the economy of Skegness and encourage more visitors to explore the coast’s heritage. Building will begin in September, with some of the work undertaken by volunteers from the LCLR Historic Vehicles Trust. The grant has been made by East Lindsey District Council, which is administering the UK Shared Prosperity and Rural Prosperity funding scheme in the locality. World-first route The 2ft gauge line was the first heritage railway in…

TRANSPORT Minister Mark Harper officially opened the completed £80 million Dawlish sea wall project on July 3. Pupils from Westcliff Primary Academy in Dawlish helped unveil a plaque marking the occasion and read a poem about how the sea wall will protect the railway from the impact of climate change. The railway engineered by Isambard Kingdom Brunel was cut off in 2014 following a severe storm, costing the economy millions of pounds and isolating communities. Following initial repair work, Network Rail developed plans to make the line more resilient. The new wall, which stands at eight feet high and 2542 feet long, will protect the railway from extreme weather for decades to come, acting as a barrier to stop waves flooding the track or causing damage to infrastructure. The structure…

NAMEPLATES from a sole Pacific, a clutch of 4-6-0s and 4-4-0s and a pre-Grouping 2-4-0 will headline Great Central’s live online auction on September 2.The Pacific representative is Princess Marie Louise, from LMS Princess Royal No. 46206, which emerged from Crewe in August 1935 and was taken out of service from Camden (1B) in November 1962. The GWR will contribute two plates, comprising Easton Hall from No. 4995 and Impney Hall (No. 6951), built respectively at Swindon in February 1931 and February 1943 and withdrawn from Southall (81C) in June 1962 and Tyseley (2A) in December 1965, while from the Southern Railway comes plates from three Eastleigh-built locomotives, King Uther, Lord Howe and Whitgift. Long-time home The first is from No. 30737, a King Arthur class 4-6-0 built in October…

DECORATED samples have arrived for two of Accurascale’s upcoming OO scale models as each approaches final production. With the real-life locomotive recently in the news after changing ownership, the latest batch of Class 31 models includes the new Moorsline resident No. 31466, which is finished off in EWS maroon. A manufacturer exclusive, delivery is expected in the fourth quarter of 2023, with the price set at £169.99 for DCC-ready versions. Also received at the firm’s headquarters were decorated samples for the unique Class 89 electric locomotive No. 89001 Avocet. more information. Amid the liveries available will be the InterCity Swallow scheme as currently worn by the prototype. With prices starting at £229.99, delivery is also scheduled for the final quarter of 2024.…

BRITAIN gave the railways to the world and changed the face of the globe, and the heritage sector has spent decades pulling out all the stops to ensure that its seminal landmarks and milestones do not disappear forever into the back pages of history. We have saved steam, diesel and electric locomotives, carriages and rolling stock from eager scrap men, historic structures from the demolition contractor, and many a country branch line – all for the enjoyment, enlightenment and education of future generations, not to mention multiple benefits to local economies. Now we have been handed yet another part of the story for save for active posterity: the ticket office! Widespread dismay has loudly echoed from many sectors of the population around the UK in the wake of modern-day train…

EXCITEMENT around the return to operational condition of LSWR William Adams T3 4-4-0 No. 563 is continuing to mount, with another major landmark in its restoration passed as it turned a wheel under its own power for the first time since 1948. It was at the Waterloo station centenary celebrations 75 years ago that No. 563 was steamed for the last time. It has been hoped to have the locomotive return for the Waterloo 175 celebrations on July 11 (see feature, pages 86/87), but it missed the date but only by a day! Following further painting and the application of a handpainted LSWR crest, on July 12 the locomotive’s steam test took place at Bill Parker’s Flour Mill workshops at Bream in the Forest of Dean, witnessed by 563 Locomotive…

ENTHUSIASTS who have a passion for steam and heritage modern traction are often lovers of real ale: it’s like strawberries and cream or fish and chips – anatural pairing to be enjoyed whenever the opportunity arises. The Spa Valley Railway is offering railway enthusiasts the steam, diesel and ale experience with a real ale and cider festival on October 19-22, which includes the twin bonus of being held in the heritage line’s 1891-built engine depot at Tunbridge Wells West (75F), the last LBSCR shed still in railway use, and steam and heritage diesel trains throughout the weekend. Held in association with the West Kent branch of the Campaign for Real Ale, the festival will feature more than 150 real ales and ciders, and will be open on the evening of October…

A ‘TRANSATLANTIC’ flavour to the Strathspey Railway’s September 16/17steamgalamaywellevoke memories of a scenario more than half acenturyagowhenA3PacificFlying Scotsman undertook its ill-fated tour of North America. Gresley centenarian A3 No. 60103 will once again be in American company during its first working visit to a Scottish heritage line when it will be joined by a USATC S160 2-8-0 from the Churnet Valley Railway, courtesy of the locomotive’s owner, Greg Wilson. The exact locomotive was yet to be confirmed as we closed for press, but it was the intention to have No. 6046 completed in time in order to ‘head north’. Currently approaching the end of overhaul, by July 21 the S160 had moved under its own power within the yards at Cheddleton and was in the final stages of reassembly. Built…

BR Standard 9F 2-10-0 No. 92214 will join LNER A4 Pacific No. 60007 Sir Nigel Gresley as the star guests at the North Yorkshire Moors Railway September 2124 steam gala, celebrating its 50 years as a heritage line. Appearing courtesy of the Great Central Railway and the David Clarke Railway Trust, it will be No. 92214’s first visit away from Loughborough since being repainted in BR black during the 2022/23 winter months, having run for several years in lined BR green livery. It will run along home-based classmate No. 92134. No. 60007 Sir Nigel Gresley will arrive by main line during the first day of the gala before taking up rostered duties the next day. The gala appearance will be only its second scheduled appearance working heritage line services since…

POP mogul and locomotive owner Pete Water man added his weight to the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway’s £1.5 million appeal to repair its landmark 15-arch Stanway Viaduct when he attendedtheline’ssuccessfulJuly7-9 Summer Heritage Diesel Gala. Visiting from its base at Peak Rail, the Waterman Railway Heritage Trust’s 56-year-old Class 25 Sulzer Type 2 D7659, which re-entered traffic last year following a long and complex overhaul, appeared in the gala, which attracted high passenger numbers despite inclement weather. A total of 1374 people travelled during the weekend, with some trains full to standing capacity. Securing the future After crossing the 50ft-high viaduct betweenToddington and Broadway ontheSaturday, Pete, who is president oftherailway’splc, said:“Running a heritagerailwayismuchmorethanjust restoring steam and diesel locomotives and rolling stock.There are the buildings, bridges and infrastructure to maintain too– including huge…

BOOSTING the appeal of the miniature seaside line in the 21st century, the Cleethorpes Coast Light Railway held a two-day celebration marking its 75th anniversary on July 15/16. On July 15 – the exact anniversary to the day – the Mayor of North East Lincolnshire Council, Coun Ian Lindley, officially opened a new, free exhibition museum at Lakeside station. The Story of Cleethorpes Miniature Railways details the history of the line, which started out on July 16, 1948 as the 101/4in gauge Cleethorpes Miniature Railway and ran for just 300 yards. Returning for display at the exhibition are the two of the line’s first locomotives, 1922-built Bassett Lowke GNR Atlantic No. 272, now based at the Ingfield Light Railway in West Sussex, and the original ‘Cleethorpes Flyer’, built in 1949,…

THE Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway will run a series of steamhauled named holiday express trains during August. Recreating memories and nostalgia of summer holiday train journeys to the seaside, the trains will be hauled by the line’s resident locomotives. The first trip on August 2, ‘The Devonian’, was scheduled to be followed on Wednesdays August 9, 16 and 30. Launched on September 26, 1927, ‘The Devonian’ was run by the LMS, GWR and latterly BR from Bradford to Paignton and Kingswear, and last ran in 2002. August 9 sees the ‘Cambrian Coast Express’ launched by the GWR in 1927 and run by BR, steam haulage of it ending in 1965. It ran from Paddington to Aberystwyth and Pwllheli via Shrewsbury over the Cambrian line, with G/WR resident WR 4-6-0 No. 7820…

THE 130-year-old Keighley station will not see heritage trains arriving and departing its platforms for two months after January 2, when the station undergoes a multi-million-pound renovation project by Network Rail. As reported last issue, NR had submitted a planning application for the proposed work, which is expected to commence this September and last until December 2024, but will see a substantial amount take place following the start of the temporary closure next January. Many parts of the station have had to be cordoned off in recent years as the structure shows its age. Most recently has been the entry ramp to Platform 4 on the Keighley & Worth Valley railway side of the station, meaning visitors have to enter via the main station building and cross over via the…

THE futureofanew£600,000boilerbuilt foroneoftheworld’sflagshippreserved steam locomotives but never used hangs inthebalanceamidplansforanew railway hub in Australia. The boiler was commissioned by the former Office of Rail Heritage and manufactured by DB Meiningen in Germany as part of a major restoration of former New South Wales Government Railway’s C38 class No. 3801, a streamlined Pacific that is the pride of Australia and dubbed the country’s ‘Flying Scotsman’ due to its high-profile and iconic status. Rejection It was delivered in October 2010 by DB Meiningen – which built the boiler for Peppercorn A1 No. 60163 Tornado and is currently working on another for new-build P2 class 2-8-2 No. 2007 Prince of Wales – but was rejected by Australian officials as “not fit for purpose,” and was sent back to Germany for rectification. In January…

AN international appeal has been launched to buy a‘heritage’Soviet-built diesel to help with Ukraine’s survival effort in the conflict with Russia. Enthusiasts from the Baloži peat museum railway in Latvia have started raising funds to purchase a 750mm gauge series ESU2a locomotive from Lithuania with a view to sending it to the Ukranian city of Haivoron. Built in the USA to propel narrowgauge track-laying trains, ESU2as have an on-board 50 kW three-phase mobile generator. These are powered by an old D108 diesel engine, a modified form of which is still being produced as D160 today, itself a descendant of a 1930s Caterpillar crawler tractor diesel. Built with simple, rugged engineering, it has mechanical transmission, but also has an electrical drive motor. They were designed so that an electric-powered crane would…

THE partially complete new-build LNWR GeorgetheFifth passenger4-4-0 has comehometoCrewe. The class was introduced in July 1910 by Charles Bowen-Cooke following the succession of King George V, and 90 were built by 1915. Before the First World War, passengers demanded more comforts, including toilets with hot and cold water, and accordingly trains became much heavier and faster. Despite its small size, the George the Fifth class was famous for sustained high-power output on these trains. In 2012, enthusiasts established the LNWR George the Fifth Steam Locomotive Trust to build a new example to a standard whereby it will be able to run on the national network and heritage lines. The trust obtained permission from the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge to name the new locomotive, No. 2013, after their son, Prince…

THE recently preserved InterCity 125 set – including Class 43 power cars Nos. 43045 The Grammar School Doncaster AD1350 and 43060 County of Leicestershire – made its heritage era debut on the NeneValley Railway on July 8. In total, five HST vehicles are now operational at the NVR and adjoining Railworld Wildlife Haven site, looked after by volunteers of the 125 Preservation group, which is headed by Craig Owen, the owner of the Swedish railcars at NVR. The five include two vehicles from the 1972-built prototype Class 252 high speed diesel train, which were used in the ‘Jolly Fisherman’ fish and chip special. They include Mk.3 prototype HST Trailer Standard coaches Nos. 42355 and 42357, and first-built No. 40904 production Mk.3 Trailer First Buffet No. 40904. As reported in issue…

THE Babbacombe Cliff Railway in Torquay reopened on Sunday, July 16 after being closed for 10 months following the death of an engineer. Services on the funicular railway, which first opened in 1926 to link Babbacombe Downs with Oddicombe Beach, had been shut since the engineer, who was in his 70s, died from serious injuries in what was described as an industrial accident. In October, the Health and Safety Executive served an improvement notice to the railway, highlighting safety and maintenance failures that were said to place lives at risk. The owner, registered charity Babbacombe Cliff Railway Community Interest Company, issued a statement saying that the tragedy did not result from any malfunction of the line. It then undertook at £250,000 refurbishment, which included the renewal of track switches, track…

THE surviving remains of a country station that last saw passenger trains in 1959 is on the market with a guide price of £650,000. Estate agent Savills is handling the sale of the site of Ryhall & Belmesthorpe station, the only intermediate station on the short Stamford & Essendine Railway, which was worked by the Great Northern Railway. The station was situated to the immediate south of a level crossing at the west end of Main Street in the Rutland village of Belmesthorpe, near Stamford, with its goods yard situated to the north of the crossing. It opened on November 1, 1856, and closed to passenger on June 15, 1959. The line continued to provide freight services until March 4, 1963. The station’s buildings have disappeared, apart from the platform,…

JULY 6 was a busy day for Devon-based overhaul contractor Leaky Finders Ltd, as one completed project departed to return home, only to be immediately replaced by another, all ready to begin. Since its arrival at the works in June 2021, the Bodmin & Wenford Railway’s GWR 2-6-2T No. 5552 has seen rapid progress on its overhaul, which initially started with the firm being contracted just to undertake work on the bottom end. Amid much other work, this has included the removal of all horn blocks and repairs to cracks in these and the frames around the horn apertures. A cracked section of frame at the front of the right-hand side has also been replaced. Cylinders have been realigned, horn blocks ground square and all-new bushes fitted to coupling and…

The Railway Touring Company’s ‘White Rose’tour brought about a rare sight for motive power in the nation’s capital on July 15. Originally advertised to be worked by LMS Princess Coronation Pacific No. 6233 Duchess of Sutherland, which has been temporarily pulled from traffic for firebox and axlebox repairs, substitute motive power for the outward journey was sourced thanks to West Coast Railways, which supplied Bulleid Merchant Navy 4-6-2 No. 35018 British India Line. With the empty stock arriving at 7.02am, the rare sight of a Merchant Navy at the starting point for the East Coast Main Line went almost unnoticed by many, with platforms at King’s Cross sparsely populated by enthusiasts – astark contrast to those at the following stopping points of Stevenage, Huntingdon and Peterborough. Examples of the class…

A TWO-DAY specialist survey of the Glasgow & South Western Railway’s Ayr Station Hotel, which is threatened with the demolition of its south wing by South Ayrshire Council, may prove to be a lifeline. Ed Morton, the director of structural engineers within the Morton Partnership, was drafted in by SAVE Britain’s Heritage Group to carry out the first in-depth survey for some time of the scaffolded and shrouded building. Mr Morton has worked on major projects including York Minister, Sheffield Cathedral and St Bride’s Westminster Church, and has been the driving force behind saving many buildings on the verge of demolition. After accessing the station hotel by climbing its scaffolding and getting under the protective shrouds, he said: “The hotel is topend construction, very well built and very high quality.…

August 5 ‘English Riviera Express’ Northampton, Kingswear and return. Steam-hauled from Taunton. Loco: 60007 Sir Nigel Gresley. ST 5 ‘Cumbrian Mountain Express’ London Euston, Carlisle and return. Steam-hauled from Carnforth (outward) to Preston (return). Locos: Electric: Class 86 TBC. Steam: TBA. RTC 6 ‘Pembroke Coast Express’ Salisbury, Carmarthen and return. Loco: 2x Class 37 TBC. 2x class 33 TBC. PT 6 ‘The Waverley’ York, Carlisle and return. Loco: 60103 Flying Scotsman. RTC 8 ‘The Pendle Dalesman’ Lancaster, Carlisle and return. Steamhauled throughout. Loco: TBA. WCR. 9 ‘The Kentish Belle’ London Victoria, Canterbury and return. Loco: 45596 Bahamas. RTC 10 ‘The Dalesman’ York to Carlisle and return. Steam-hauled from Hellifield (outward). Loco: TBA. WCR 12 ‘Newhaven Nonsense’ London Victoria, Eastbourne and return. Loco: DEMU 1001. UKRT 12 Settle & Carlisle steam…

THE Kent& East Sussex Railway’s historical Tenterden Town station building, which dates from the original line’sopeningin1903, and the Victorian signal box at the same location are to be restored to ensure their long-term future as the railway continues its recovery from the dark days of the Covid pandemic. Described by KESR chairman Simon Marsh as “truly special and iconic” and by a local dignitary as some of the area’s “finest jewels,” the two wooden structures are showing signs of decay which, it is feared, could become irreversible if not tackled soon. The green light for the work, which follows the awarding of a £21,000 grant by a charitable trust, has led to the railway launching a heritage buildings fund appeal to raise a further £25,000 to cover the estimated total…

RAPID progress is being made on the restoration of former Sutton Miniature Railway 15in gauge Atlantic No.1 Sutton Belle, which is undergoing its first major service since 2002. The locomotive, which started life as a kit of parts bought from Bassett Lowke by enthusiast Douglas Clayton in 1912 and was completed in 1933 by Cannon Iron Foundries, has been stripped back to base metal, and work is ongoing to paint and reassemble the locomotive and tender. A new steel boiler is currently being fabricated by Denver Light Railway in Bloxwich, near Walsasll, and when complete, final assembly comes with big hopes of having it back in steam during 2024. No. 1 was sold to the 15in gauge SMR in Sutton Park, Sutton Coldfield, in 1948, and when that line closed…

UNRESTOREDWR 4-6-0 No. 7027 ThornburyCastle has been booked tohaveitsboilerliftedatTyseley LocomotiveWorkssoitcanbeusedon new-build GWR 47XX‘Night Owl’2-8-0 No. 4709. As reported, Richard Croucher, of the Great Western Society’s 4709 Project Group, has said that the purchase of the seventh surviving Castle will save more than £500,000 by not having to build a new boiler for No. 4709 and speed up progress by about five years. One of No. 4079’s previous owners, West Somerset Railway plc chairman Jonathan Jones-Pratt, in January 2020 sold it to a supporter of the Great Central Railway, who had it delivered to Loughborough pending restoration. However, it was later sold to the 4709 Group. Jonathan has since approached the group about buying the locomotive back to keep it intact so that it can be restored in its own right.…

THE Isle of Wight Steam Railway has completed the restoration of its 1860s Midland Railway five-ton crane. Bought by the Isle of Wight Central Railway in 1912, the crane, still with grease axleboxes, survived until the 1960s when it was acquired by the Vectrail scheme, which aimed to reopen the Ryde to Cowes line. When this floundered, the crane passed to the Wight Locomotive Society and made its way to Havenstreet on the last train from Newport in 1971. In the early days of the steam railway, the crane was used extensively for locomotive overhauls and the construction of Wootton station. Now retired from active service, it is usually on display in the railway’s Train Story Discovery Centre.  Over the last two years, staff and volunteers at Havenstreet completely dismantled…

BLACKPOOL tramcar No. 645 has been acquired by the National Tramway Museum in Crich. Donated by Blackpool Transport Services, the museum intends to use No. 645 as a possible combined second access tram and one-person operation tram. The transport cost, plus a significant donation to help restore the Centenary tram to operational condition, have been covered by regular museum volunteers Peter and Susan Whiteley. The museum currently has one access tram, which can accept wheelchairs and passengers with walking difficulties by use of a hydraulic lift, which must be prebooked a week prior to use. Peter said: “I realised that the tram would possibly make a good access tramcar as it has a flat saloon floor, is eight feet wide, and has offset centre doors, which makes the body very…

THE Scottish Railway Preservation Society has been awarded £144,290 from the National Heritage Memorial Fund’s Covid-19 Response Fund to help complete the restoration of National Museums of Scotland-owned LNER 4-4-0 D49 No. 2712 Morayshire. Museum of Scottish Railways director Becky Peacock said: “The funding was awarded due to Morayshire’s importance as an item of national importance and to ensure its continued running as an operational locomotive. The overhaul will be a mixture of contractor work offsite by LMS and volunteer work based at Bo’ness. We have been lucky that the funding award will cover the cost of outsourcing sections of the work while we undertake other elements in the engineering workshop.” Owned by the National Museums of Scotland, Morayshire has been on loan to the Scottish Railway Preservation Society since…

DARTMOOR Railway Association volunteers welcomed a team from Network Rail for a Community Rail Day at the Meldon Viaduct station site. Situated at what was the terminal point of the now defunct heritage Dartmoor Railway and adjacent to Meldon Quarry, the station has become overgrown in recent years. Although the station is now NR property, the DRA retains a presence in the adjacent quarry sidings, where it has several items of rolling stock stored. The last heritage trains ran in 2019 before the operator, Dartmoor Railway Community Interest Company, went into administration in February 2020. On July 5, a combined team of nine DRA regulars and seven NR staff concentrated on removing vegetation and starting to renovate the platform shelter, with one final job being to repaint the platform edge.…

SEVERN Valley Railway-based LMS Stanier mogul No. 2968isoncourse to return to traffic later this year after its boiler, complete with lagging and cladding, was lifted back on to the chassisonJuly14forthefirsttimesince August 2014. With many refurbished components being reunited with the locomotive every week, the 2-6-0 is set to reappear as LMS No. 2968 before returning to the Bridgnorth paintshop over the new year period for full lining out and conversion to its as-built 1934 guise, LMS No. 13268, for the first time in the heritage era. This livery includes the rare sight of a white cab roof interior and ‘scumbled’ upper interior cab panels. Visitors to Bridgnorth may have seen magnetic vinyls temporarily attached to tender and chassis displaying a QR code that directs anybody with a passing interest to…

WELCOME breathing space has been given to the UK’s heritage railway sector by the Government after an amendment to the Energy Bill – which would have seen an outright ban on domestic coal mining – was removed during a debate. The Heritage Railway Association welcomed the removal during the June 20 committee debate of the amendment proposed in the House of Lords to ban new coal mining. At the committee meeting, Andrew Bowie MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Energy Security, argued that there is still a place for coal that is mined in the UK. The committee heard that the climate change narrative on coal has focused too heavily on electricity generation alone and has not considered other uses for coal – many of which…

TWO tank engines from the Lambton, Hetton& Joicey Railway in County DurhamprovedtobethestarsofJuly 14-16 NorthTyneside Railway gala. Kitson 0-6-2T No. 4263 of 1904 No. 29, from the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, was reunited with its former shedmate, privately-owned Hunslet Austerity 0-6-0ST No. 3686 of 1948 No. 60. While it ran on the Lambton line, it was built for the National Coal Board, with cab and bunker cut down to a smaller loading gauge for working the Lambton Drops coal staith in Sunderland. A third visitor was Stephen Middleton’s Embsay & Bolton Abbeybased Hudswell Clarke 0-6-0ST No. 1208 of 1916 Illingworth, which in April 2022 was renamed Nightingale and Seacole in honour of nursing pioneers Florence Nightingale and Mary Seacole. The intensive gala timetable saw both passenger trains and demonstration freight, with…

THE biggest-ever heritage era gathering ofWestern Region diesel hydraulics is planned forthe SevernValleyRailway’s September 28-October 1 Autumn Diesel Bash. Rounding off the line’s season celebrating 50 years of diesel preservation, Class 42 D821 Greyhound and Class 52s D1015 Western Champion and D1062 Western Courier will operate alongside a selection of visiting locomotives, while Class 52 D1013 Western Ranger will be on display, as will be Class 35 Hymek D7029 as it undergoes restoration. Further ‘diesel dash-themed’ events to take place around the event, including photographic shoots and excursion days, will be announced later. The gala follows this year’s hugelysuccessful Spring Diesel Festival, which attracted more than 7000 passengers with an historic line-up of 22 locomotives in service across all classes and eras, as reported in issue 307. SVR managing director…

A CELEBRATION of the 140th anniversary of Brighton’sVolk’s Electric Railway is to be held on August 12/13. Brighton & Hove City Council and the Volk’s Electric Railway Association have arranged a series of events to commemorate the opening of the 2ft 8 ½in gauge line, the world’s oldest still-operational electric railway, in August 1883. At 11.15am on Saturday, August 12, all trains will line up near Aquarium station. At 11.45am, welcome speeches will be given by the Mayor of Brighton & Hove, Coun Jackie O’Quinn, and guests, the BBC News and Classic FM broadcaster and journalist Nicholas Owen and TV presenter Tim Dunn (Secrets of the London Underground, Architecture of Railways), near the Steve Ovett statue in Madeira Drive. At noon, there will be a procession of trains including the…

WORK by some of the world’s leading railway artists will be on display at Kidderminster Railway Museum from mid-August in a public exhibition that is an annual treat of colour, variety and pictorial skill. Railart 2023 is organised by the prestigious Guild of Railway Artists and will showcase 60 paintings, most of which will be new and available for purchase. Among those contributing will be guild fellows John Austin, Philip Hawkins and Malcolm Root. Guild exhibition organiser Anna Bastin said the paintings on show would include work not only by the three fellows, but also by full and associate members. “It is an annual event that is eagerly anticipated by our members and public alike, and without doubt visitors are in for a treat and can look forward to an…

TWO formerWar Department diesels from the 1940s will be reunited at the AvonValley Railway as its annual 1940s weekend pays tribute to the shunting locomotives that kept so many yards running smoothly. Taking on the title Salute To Shunters, the September 16/17 event will see Andrew Barclay 0-4-0DM No. WD70042 Overlord visit from the Historic Dockyard at Chatham, being reunited with the AVR’s own No. WD70043 Grumpy for the first time in more than 70 years. Both Grumpy and Overlord were built in 1941 as part of a batch of 20 locomotives ordered by the WD from the Drewery Car Company, which sub-contracted the construction of 10 to Andrew Barclay at Kilmarnock Works. They were initially allocated to the Longmoor Military Railway before being exported to France in September 1944,…

MEMORIES of trainspotting in the days of steam come in various forms to those fortunate enough to have experienced the era first-hand. Some may remember with fondness standing at their local station watching locomotives come and go, eyeing the drivers with a mixture of admiration and visual pleas to be allowed on the footplate. For others, it was a case of solely writing down numbers in anticipation of new underlinings in the much-loved Ian Allan ABCs. Some may have had the unadulterated joy of a nearby locomotive depot enticingly crying out to be ‘bunked,’ and others living near London would have had the incomparable delights of those cathedrals of steam, the former ‘Big Four’ termini. Wartime trainspotter Roger Elsom was in the local station category, having acquired at the age…

The railway networks on the Isle of Man could perhaps be viewed as an oddity by some, for they rely entirely on heritage rolling stock to deliver an advertised commuter service – something mainland Britain has long since done away with. On the Southern half of the island, running for 151/2 miles between Douglas and Port Erin, the steam trains continue to weave their way through the countryside and towns as they have done so for the last century and a half. The island before steam was a community of farmers and crofters. Rich mineral deposits led to large mines being established that provided huge quantities of lead and zinc to the industrial north of England, with the mines at Laxey initially using hydropower. The first instances of steam power…

THE boiler of new-build Peppercorn A1 Pacific No. 60163 Tornado has passed both its hydraulic and steam tests. During the weekend following the hydraulic test, a fire was lit in the boiler at Darlington Locomotive Works to ensure that it was warmed through, slowly building steam as the week began. Boiler inspector Peter Cairns was booked for a midweek appointment, and after an examination he issued a 12-month certificate for No.60163. “A great team effort has led us to this milestone, a huge step towards Tornado’s triumphant return to the rails!” read a statement from The A1 Steam Locomotive Trust. Following the test, the works team began the task of trimming and fixing the boiler lagging. The boiler was then booked to be taken by road to Locomotive Maintenance Services,…

LNER A4 Pacific No. 60007 Sir Nigel Gresley has become the first steam locomotive to pass through the recently-opened £16 million Marsh Barton station in Exeter. The station, located in the city’s largest trading estate and near to the Riverside Valley Park, was developed by Devon County Council in collaboration with Network Rail and Great Western Railway. Additional funding came from the Department for Transport’s New Stations Fund, Heart of the South West Local Enterprise Partnership, Exeter City Council and Teignbridge District Council. Opening ceremony An inauguration ceremony, officiated by Transport Secretary Mark Harper, was held on July 3, the same day Mr Harper opened the new Dawlish sea wall (see separate story opposite), the station opening to passengers the following day. It is served by hourly GreatWestern Railway services…

LITTLE space is available on Saphos Trains tours until October. Full trains include the ‘Settle & Carlisle Fellsman’ on September 20, the ‘English Riviera Express’ on August 5, 12, 19 and October 18, and the ‘Golden Hind’ on August 24 and September 6. Limited places are available for the ‘Welsh Marches’ on August 31, the ‘English Riviera’ on September 2, the ‘Lakelander’ on September 30 and the ‘Golden Arrow’ on October 4. All tours in the north have a choice of steam from the Locomotive Services Limited pool. Visit https:// saphostrains.com…