The only magazine specialising in narrow gauge railways. We recall the past, and offer comprehensive, in-depth coverage of today’s narrow gauge scene. We speak with authority to our readers, many of whom run narrow-gauge railways.
“The full extent of what Peter saved is becoming clear – without his efforts few, if any, of these locos would likely still exist…” Welcome to NGW198 and I must start this issue with a note of congratulation – to the team responsible for the latest and most jaw-dropping new-build project we’ve seen for some time. As you will read over the page, a private group is recreating a Hunslet NA/5 2-8-4 pannier tank, as built for the Dholpur State Railway in India – a truly monster loco which when finished has an agreement to run on the Welsh Highland Railway. Remarkably this project has been underway for some three years, reaching the stage of a rolling chassis with cylinders cast and the boiler under construction, with virtually no-one outside…
A new-build version of one of the largest Hunslet narrow gauge locomotives ever built is set to operate on the Welsh Highland Railway (WHR), and could enter service in as early as 2028. On 13th September, hours after a small ceremony for the former South African Railway NG15 2-8-2 recently returned to service on the WHR saw it officially given the name ‘Kalahari’, members of the Welsh Highland Railway Society attending the group’s AGM were given details of the new-build project. A small independent team in Somerset is constructing an ‘improved’ version of a Hunslet ZA/5 class 2-8-4 pannier tank, the final two of which were built in 1959 for the Dholpur State Railway in India. Remarkably the build has been going on for some three years in complete secrecy,…
The Ffestiniog Railway was the venue for another successful Bygones weekend on 3rd-5th October, despite the best efforts of the weather to disrupt the event. The weekend which traditionally sees the line celebrating its heritage with the likes of Victorian-era train sets and staff and visitors in period wear, neatly coincided with the arrival in the UK of Storm Amy – the first storm of the winter season in Europe and a record-breaking cyclone that caused major damage and left three people dead in France and Ireland. Regular NGW correspondent Steve Sedgwick attended the Bygones event and described the weather as extreme. “Winds exceeded 50mph and the rain at times was horizontal,” he said. “Unsurprisingly, conditions were very uncomfortable for FR staff and volunteers – it was painful to be…
New horsepower came to the Talyllyn Railway on 13th-14th September when the line focused its annual Heritage Weekend on its slate history. For the first time since 1946, the event slate waggon moved by horse – this was a common sight in the days of the Bryn Eglwys quarry, horses being used to pull waggons along the level sections of the line’s mineral section, such as between the Alltwyllt and Cantrybedd inclines. Local company Carnog Working Horses, which has previously undertaken horse logging work in the area, supplied working horse Molly which hauled the wagon along a section of temporary track laid in the field below Abergynolwyn station. Saturday’s trains focused on the Talyllyn and Corris Railways in the pre-preservation era, employing original carriages from both railways and waggons from…
The Lynton & Barnstaple Railway’s Woody Bay station is among seven rail structures that have been given Grade II listed status by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport as part of the Railway 200 celebrations. The Woody Bay listing covers the station building, former stable block and signal cabin, excluding its lever frame which is not original. The L&B now has two listed sites, Woody Bay and the Chelfham viaduct. A spokesman for the L&B described the listing as testament to the foresight and dedication of the line’s volunteers, supporters and staff over the last few decades. “We are also pleased that Historic England have acknowledged the role that narrow-gauge railways played in the development of the railways more widely across the UK,” he added.…
The Talyllyn Railway will stage a three-day Gala next year to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the mid-Wales 2ft 3in gauge line’s first year as a heritage railway, which marked the birth of the railway preservation movement. The Talyllyn Railway Preservation Society was formed at a meeting in Birmingham on 11th October 1950, five days after the line operated what was widely expected to be its final service following the death of owner Sir Henry Haydn Jones that July. The TRPS aimed to preserve and run the railway for future generations and on 14th May 1951 operated its first public train, in the process kick-starting the global railway preservation movement. That first train will be commemorated on 14th May 2026 by the running of a special service for invited representatives…
