Heritage Railway 183 2013-11

HeritageRailwayOpinion

Midnight express: LMs ‘Black Five’ 4-6-0 no. 45231, right, stands at the buffer stops at King’s Cross during filming of new movie the imitation game starring Keira Knightley and Benedict Cumberbatch on October 19. see the full story on pages 62-63. JOHN TITLOW

Editor Robin Jones [email protected] 01507 529305 Deputy editor Brian Sharpe [email protected] Publisher Dan Savage Senior contributing writers Geoff Courtney, Cedric Johns Contributors Fred Kerr, Roger Melton Designer Tim Pipes Reprographics Jonathan Schofield Group production editor Tim Hartley Divisional advertising manager Sandra Fisher [email protected] Advertising representative Craig Amess [email protected] 01507 529310 Subscription manager Paul Deacon Marketing manager Charlotte Park Production manager Craig Lamb Circulation manager Steve O’Hara Publishing director Dan Savage Commercial director Nigel Hole Managing director Brian Hill Editorial address Heritage Railway magazine Mortons Media Ltd, PO Box 99 Horncastle, Lincs LN9 6LZ Website www.heritagerailway.co.uk General queries and back issues 01507 529529 24 hr answerphone [email protected] www.classicmagazines.co.uk Archive enquiries Jane Skayman [email protected] 01507 529423 Subscription: Full subscription rates (but see page 32 for offer): (12 months 12 issues, inc post and packing) – UK £53.30. Export rates are also available – see page 32 for more details. UK subscriptions are zero-rated for the purposes of Value Added Tax.

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he Autumn Great Gathering at the National Railway Museum, marking the 75th anniversary of the day when Britain topped the world in terms of steam engineering, has proved another dazzling success – hot on the heels of July’s first event. The attendance figures were again phenomenal. However, the greatest success of Mallard 75, plus London Transport Museum’s Metropolitan Railway 150 celebrations and the Bluebell Railway’s local economy-changing East Grinstead extension this year, has been to achieve what some despairing preservationists might have hitherto thought impossible. That is, as far as the general public at large is concerned, these events have made heritage railways fashionable, as opposed to a niche interest, once again. The heritage sector should expect no less – after all, Britain invented steam railways, and now we have witnessed cutting-edge museum events which have polished the jewels in our crown and shown everyone else how it should be done. Just like Mallard did on Stoke Bank on July 3, 1938, the NRM has both underlined and enhanced its position as the world leader in its field. Yet in other areas of conserving Britain’s proud railway history, we are lagging too far behind. What would have happened if the USA had invented the steam locomotive? Every site connected with the development of early railways would be a national monument. Here in Britain, Cornwall has never made enough of the fact that it was the home of Richard Trevithick, inventor of the steam railway locomotive. Neither is enough being done to promote Durham far and wide as the cradle of the world’s railways. As visitors to the Great Goodbye original line-up of all six A4s in February will see, the Locomotion museum is a

truly magnificent modern facility. Yet near the opposite end of the Shildon branch (part of the Stockton & Darlington Railway, the world’s first public steam line), the splendid Head of Steam Museum at Darlington North Road station is now faced with closure due to financial cutbacks being made by the local council. Conservationists have also expressed concern that more and more of the Stockton & Darlington is being allowed to disappear. What is desperately needed throughout County Durham is a comprehensive review of all surviving artefacts from the formative years of railways, and practical means of marketing them as an international destination for intellectual tourism. Beamish Museum with its replica early steam railways is magnificent, as is the nearby Tanfield Railway, but far more needs to be done in the region as a whole to rediscover this rich yet fastdisappearing legacy. A unified approach could see countywide steam heritage tour trails set up, nationwide marketing campaigns stressing the steam connection on road signs, and major grant aid sought to preserve those existing artefacts away from the obvious places en bloc. Dare I say I would love to see a section of the S&D, rails on stone blocks and all, recreated on part of the original line that is no longer in use, as a sizeable tourist attraction and valuable educational resource. We have shown what we can do to celebrate the zenith of steam railways. Now let’s do the same for their formative years... before yet more disappears and it is too late. Bang the drum for Durham and we bang it for all of Britain too. Robin Jones Editor

Heritage Railway

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Contents

Issue 183 November 21 – December 18, 2013

News 6

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Cover

HeaDLiNe News

New Gresley P2 to be named Prince of Wales as £100k appeal runs 50% over; Network Rail on site at Loughborough for new GCR bridge; North Norfolk Railway plans regular steam services to Cromer; the day when Tornado hit 90mph twice; and Bahamas is coming to the Heritage Railway office!

LNER A1 Pacific No. 60163 Tornado accelerates towards Castor on the Nene Valley Railway on November 3. BRIAN SHARPE

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News

Oliver Cromwell heads first train from Severn Valley to Bluebell Railway; GWR prairie gets cut-down cab to fit Underground tunnels; oldest tube coach taken through London streets in Lord Mayor’s Show; mystery of Mallard record breaking trip guard solved; Flying Scotsman clears another comeback hurdle; Broadway bridges appeal nears £300k in two months; royal visit marks North Yorkshire Moors Railway 40th; Aln Valley officially opened, Nene Valley offered old Wansford station for £50k; ‘stolen’ A1 nameplate discovered by sea scouts claimed on behalf of owner; thieves target burned-

out Zig Zag Railway; Class 14 acquired for Severn Valley; Foxfield remembers Willamthorpe Colliery; and new threat to close Darlington’s Head of Steam musem.

Regulars 54

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ceNtre

Classic Western Region steam, with Kinlet Hall crossing Oldbury viaduct with a photo charter on the Severn Valley Railway, by Phil Jones.

MaiN LiNe News

‘Black Fives’ for Steam Dreams’ ‘Cathedrals Express’; stardom for LMS steam duo in King’s Cross Keira Knightley late-night movie filming; Bittern all set for two 90mph trips in December and Tangmere may be back for Christmas.

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MaiN LiNe itiNerary

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PLatforM

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raiLwayaNa

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scaLe Heritage raiLway

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off tHe sHeLf

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UP & rUNNiNg

Brian Sharpe’s definitive guide to steam and heritage modern traction railtours in the coming month. Where your views matter the most. Geoff Courtney on latest prices and sales. London Transport Class 20s and pannier and prairie tanks.

sUBscriBe to HERITAGE RAILWAY!

Take out a 13 issue subscription to Heritage Railway – the preservation magazine written entirely by people who remember first-hand the British Railways steam era – and be first with the news that matters.

Choice Christmas gis and calendars. Brian Sharpe’s complete listing of museums and operational heritage lines.

106 tHe MoNtH aHeaD

Our new at-a-glance guide to the big events coming up in the next four weeks, with Heritage Railway, as usual, bringing unrivalled coverage.

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Above: Double Fairlie Merddin Emrys rounds the curve on the Dduallt spiral on the Ffestiniog Railway with a 30742 Charters slate train. KARL HEATH

32 www.heritagerailway.co.uk

Features SPECIAL FEATURE

46 MagnifiCenT severn

Keeping the wheels turning at Britain’s busiest preserved railway is no mean task, as Paul Appleton found out when he went to meet members of the Severn Valley Railway’s management team.

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Coal Tank no. 1054 unsung hero

Pete Skellon presents a profile on LNWR Webb Coal Tank No. 1054, the Ingrowbased engine in the care of the Bahamas Locomotive Society which played a more pivotal role in the history of steam preservation than is generally realised.

74 46 www.heritagerailway.co.uk

66 74 heroes of hisTory

e line-up of all six surviving A4 Pacifics at the National Railway Museum in July which marked the 75th anniversary of Mallard’s record-breaking feat attracted more than 138,000 visitors and has been hailed as one of the most successful events of all time in the heritage sector. How do you follow that up? By bringing together the drivers and firemen who worked on these magnificent machines on the East Coast Main Line. Robin Jones was there.

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HeadlineNews

The P2 fit for a prince! By Robin Jones

THE P2 Steam Locomotive Company’s new-build Gresley 2-8-2 is to be named in honour of Britain’s number one royal steam fan – Princes Charles. The locomotive, a modern example of the most powerful express passenger locomotives to operate in Britain, will be named Prince of Wales, marking his 65th birthday which was on November 14. The Queen has approved the use of the prince’s title name for the locomotive, news which was announced as the £100,000 Founders Club appeal for the preliminary stages of the project passed the £150,000 mark within just two months, wildly exceeding expectations aid underlining the phenomenal level of interest in what is clearly the faster-ever new-build project to take off.. The P2 company is a subsidiary of registered charity The A1 Steam Locomotive Trust, builder and owner of No. 60163 Tornado. Prince Charles has cemented a long relationship with Tornado, which was officially named by him and the Duchess of Cornwall at York station on February 19, 2009. From there No. 60163 hauled the Royal Train to Leeds with the prince on the footplate. Tornado made its second appearance on the Royal Train on February 4, 2010, taking the prince and the Duchess to the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester, and onwards to Crewe. The engine’s most recent royal appointment came on July 22-23, 2012, the first overnight Royal Train for 50 years, taking the prince from Kemble to Bishop Auckland and Alnmouth before working the stock on to Edinburgh. A surprise guest then was the Most Reverend Justin Welby, who later became the

How the new Mikado named in honour of heir to the throne will appear. P2SLC

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Jonathan Clay’s painting of P2 No. 2007 Prince of Wales. P2SLC

Archbishop of Canterbury. As reported in Heritage Railway issue 179, the prince visited the National Railway Museum to board the footplate of record breaker Mallard on July 22, the day that his grandson George was born. The prince is patron of the Mallard 75 celebrations. P2 company chairman Mark Allatt said: “The Prince of Wales has been a fantastic supporter of Tornado and along with the Duchess of Cornwall formally named the new locomotive in 2009. Since then, Tornado has hauled the Royal Train on no fewer than three occasions on behalf of Prince Charles, so we are only too delighted to be able to confirm the name for No. 2007 in his honour. “It is well known that the prince has a passion for our heritage and a particular interest in steam, but also the skills and craftsmanship required to build a steam locomotive from scratch. “It is a clear demonstration that the UK can still turn its hand to

quality heavy engineering, making use of modern design and construction techniques while engaging and showing a new generation that nothing is beyond the realms of possibility.” The overwhelming response to the initial appeal means that the frames of Prince of Wales will be cut in the spring of 2014. There have been many steam locomotives named after the Prince of Wales over the years. These included Gresley class A3 No. 2553 (later No. 60054) Prince of Wales, sister locomotive to No. 4472 Flying Scotsman, named by the future King Edward VIII on a visit to Doncaster Works on November 11, 1926, and was scrapped in 1964; and Vale of Rheidol Railway 2-6-2T No. 9. The aim is to develop, build and operate an improved P2 for both main line and heritage railway use. The P2s were designed by Sir Nigel Gresley to haul 600 ton trains on the arduous Edinburgh to Aberdeen route. However, the design was never fully

developed and they were rebuilt into Pacifics by his successor Edward Thompson in 1943-44 and scrapped by 1961. The new P2 will, like Tornado, be numbered as the next in the series – No. 2007. Prince of Wales will be the seventh member of the class and will demonstrate how the design can be fully realised through use of modern computer design and modelling techniques, enabling it to deliver its full potential, hauling passenger trains at high speed across the national network. It is estimated that £5 million will be needed to build No. 2007 over seven to 10 years, with funds being raised through regular monthly donations, donations dedicated to specific components, commercial sponsorship, loans and a bond issue. The formal launch of the project will take place in February. ➲ For more information about the P2 Project and details on how you can join the Founders Club, visit www.p2steam.com

The front of the completed P2 Prince of Wales. P2SLC Inset above: The pattern for the Prince of Wales nameplate. P2SLC www.heritagerailway.co.uk

BR Standard 4MT 2-6-0 No. 76084 approaches Weybourne on the North Norfolk Railway on October 24. The locomotive may haul the line’s first regular services to Cromer. BRIAN SHARPE

North Norfolk aims to make Cromer ‘extension’ reality EXCLUSIVE By Robin Jones THE North Norfolk Railway is bidding to extend its steam services eastwards to Cromer. The Poppy Line is seeking an arrangement similar to that of the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, which has special dispensation to run to Whitby and Battersby over Network Rail’s Esk Valley Line. Now that the Station Road level crossing is in place, the NNR hopes to get permission to use it on a regular basis and operate trains along the Bittern Line to Cromer, a bigger resort than Sheringham with a huge potential market. The stumbling block at Cromer is the lack of a run-round loop or space to lay one alongside the

single-track platform. The land was sold off as surplus to requirements by British Rail and is now occupied by a supermarket. As a result, NNR trains would have to run in top-and-tail mode between Sheringham and Cromer. Heritage trains would also call at West Runton, where the station is renowned for its national awardwinning gardens maintained by the local station adopters. The Sheringham to Cromer route was once, like the NNR, part of the Midland & Great Northern Joint Railway and arguably its most scenic section. The NNR is negotiating with a Train Operating Company to make running into Cromer happen. If it is given the green light, it will have a route which runs alongside a popular holiday coast, similar to the Dartmouth Steam Railway.

While there has been much talk over the years of re-extending the NNR back into Holt town centre and maybe on to Melton Constable or even beyond as part of the Norfolk Orbital Railway scheme, running over Network Rail metals into the major resort of Cromer has been viewed as the more lucrative and feasible target, following the completion of the level crossing. One of the first locomotives to be certified for hauling regular services over the Bittern Line could be BR Standard 4MT 2-6-0 No. 76084, which recently returned to steam after a restoration from Barry scrapyard condition spanning more than two decades. Running into Cromer will require Train Protection & Warning System equipment to be fitted to any locomotive that runs there from the NNR.

LMS ‘Black Five’ 4-6-0 No. 44767 George Stephenson already has TPWS and the NNR needs another locomotive, and is looking for No. 76084 to be that locomotive. Owner the 76084 Locomotive Company Limited launched an appeal to upgrade the locomotive for main line running at its annual general meeting at the National Railway Museum in York on November 9, several of those present immediately sponsoring some of the parts needed. The group has now contacted all shareholders and supporters asking them to sponsor a component for the project, possibly by paying in instalments over three years. ➲ To find out how you can help No. 76084 be on the first NNR train from Holt to Cromer, email [email protected] or telephone 07986 559777.

A1 out for up to six months for mid-term overhaul By Cedric Johns

THE A1 Steam Locomotive Trust’s 4-6-2 No. 60163 Tornado could be out of action for up to six months while it undergoes an extensive intermediate overhaul in 2014. The locomotive, which made its first main line test runs five years ago, has now clocked up 70,000 miles. What may be its final main line run before overhaul takes place on November 23 when it works a Steam Dreams ‘Cathedrals Express’ from Waterloo to Ludlow and Shrewsbury via Woking, Salisbury, Bath and Hereford. The trust’s operations director Graeme Bunker said that the A1 could be out of traffic for up to www.heritagerailway.co.uk

six months when work commences in January. Subject to two meetings held before the end of the year, the directors will make decisions influencing the nature of the overhaul. Questions to be answered include a decision on whether to lift the boiler and return it along with the foundation ring to the original German manufacturer in Meiningen or place the work in this country. “We will probably put the major part of the work entailed out to tender,” said trust chairman Mark Allatt. There is also the question of where the 4-6-2 is to be based during the overhaul and, equally importantly, the long-term question of where the A1 is to be shedded. The trust has recognised that Southall will not be a viable proposition and

to this end discussions are currently taking place regarding two possible new locations. Tornado participated in the Mid-Hants Railway’s October 25-27 autumn gala and later moved to the Nene Valley Railway for the November 2-3 gala. If no other commitments are arranged after November 23, it is likely that December will be used to prepare the engine for its overhaul. Looking to the longer term, Mark said that the trust has begun talks which could lead to the “inhouse” promotion of its own main line rail hours featuring Tornado. He added that when the intermediate overhaul is complete, Tornado is likely to carry its current BR express passenger blue livery for another year. Heritage Railway

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HeadlineNews

Great Central new bridge: Network Rail team on site By Robin Jones

A NETWORK Rail team has inspected the site of the planned bridge over the Midland Main Line at Loughborough which will connect the two Great Central Railways. The team made the site visit on Friday, November 8, as a signal sighting exercise to ascertain what work might be required when the bridge is built. Network Rail, which has been contracted to build the long-awaited bridge within the next two years, is also preparing to submit a planning application to Charnwood Borough Council. Meanwhile, the GCR’s £1 million Bridge to the Future appeal has been boosted by a £15,000 grant from Leicestershire-based charity the Edith Murphy Foundation, which previously gave money towards the restoration of the listed canopy at Loughborough Central.

As we closed for press, the appeal was heading towards the £300,000 mark, having reached nearly a third of the overall target since it was launched six months ago. The bridge must be in place before the MML is electrified. Network Rail has agreed to carry out the work by 2015, but that still depends on the outcome of the appeal. Two bridge decks recovered from Reading station have been surveyed and preliminary reports show them to be in good order. They will be placed end to end to create the single track link line, supported on new abutments and a central pier, between the fast and slow lines of the MML. Test drilling is expected on both sides of the MML shortly and needs to be completed prior to the new abutments being designed. GCR managing director Bill Ford said: “It might have taken us decades to get to this point, but reunification of the two halves of

The Network Rail team which inspected the site of the planned Great Central Railway bridge. DENNIS WILCOCK

Network Rail staff at the abutments of the bridge which carried the original Great Central Railway over Railway Terrace in Loughborough. Have orange jackets ever been so warmly welcomed by the enthusiast fraternity? DENNIS WILCOCK

the GCR is under way. “The energy and commitment of Network Rail is incredible. We’re of course most grateful to the Edith Murphy Foundation for its wonderful donation. The foundation’s commitment to reunification is incredible. This is a project moving forward!” Great Central Railway (Nottingham) director Alan Kemp said: “It has been an unbelievable year. From a long term aspiration 12 months ago, reunification is suddenly real and making rapid progress.

“The support from across the heritage rail sector has been extraordinary. In 2014 we need to keep our fundraising up to ensure the bills can be met as they arrive. “A donation of £10 a month would make the difference. The more money we raise, the quicker we will have the entire reunification scheme complete. “The readers of Heritage Railway have been so supportive. It’s been a great start – but now we all need to join in to ensure the success of this most exciting infrastructure project.”

➲ One off donations can be made online at www.gcrailway.co.uk/unify Copies of the GCR’s Swithland Gala fundraising DVD, as reviewed in Heritage Railway last issue, are still available. Containing 75 minutes of highlights from the gala, shot from multiple angles, it costs £25 with every penny going to the Bridge to the Future appeal. Order by email to [email protected]

Revealed: the day when Tornado hit 90mph twice

NEW £3 million A1 Peppercorn Pacific No. 60163 Tornado has twice reached speeds of 90mph on the main line, one of its former drivers has publicly stated. Speaking at a public meeting on Saturday, October 26, the first day of the National Railway Museum’s Autumn Great Gathering of all six surviving LNER Gresley A4s, Dave Court said that he took the A1 to 90mph twice on its third test run over the East Coast Main Line between Newcastle and York on November 18, 2008. Dave, who drove A3 Pacific No. 4472 Flying Scotsman through 17 states on its ill-fated tour of the US in the Sixties, which left owner Alan Pegler bankrupt, said that Tornado reached 90mph before Darlington and again south of the town while approaching Croft during the run. The test train was being handled by train operating company DB Schenker, with no input from the locomotive’s builder and owner, The A1 Steam Locomotive Trust.

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No prior dispensation had been obtained by DB Schenker, the body solely responsible for the test runs, for the A1 to run above the maximum permitted speed of 75mph. “The design speed is 90mph and I took it up to 90mph with 14 coaches on,” Dave Court told an audience of around 150 at the museum, as part of a five-member panel of former drivers and firemen who had handled A4s under British Railways. “I got suspended on the last run for speeding,” he told the meeting which was open to members of the public. Rumours that Tornado had reached 90mph have since been circulating among the enthusiast fraternity, but no official confirmation has ever been given. The late-night test run, which ended early the following day, would have seen Tornado run in grey primer before its first livery was applied at the NRM. Trust chairman Mark Allatt declined to comment. The A1 Steam Locomotive Trust has been

talking for several years about applying to have Tornado registered to run at 90mph, but no date for any test run to this end has been set. Dave Court, who drove Tornado on all of its three inaugural test trips, also revealed that an A4, No. 60009 Union of South Africa, had run at an average speed of 80mph on Saturday, June 15, 2004, while hauling a Steamy Affairs trip from Newcastle to York with 13 coaches on, in conjunction with the NRM’s Railfest 2004 event. On June 29, A4 No. 4464 Bittern set a new preservation-era steam locomotive speed record with a maximum speed of 92.8mph near Arlesey in Bedfordshire on the first of three authorised high speed runs to mark the 75th anniversary of Mallard’s 126mph world steam speed record in 1938. Earlier, on May 29, Bittern set a new official record by reaching 91.5mph during late-night tests on the Great Western Main Line, but with prior dispensation. ➲ Heroes of history – pages 74-79.

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BR Standard 4MT 2-6-0 No. 76079’s new cylinder stands at Tees Components on November 8 after the new valve liners were shrink fitted. The frost can still be seen on the liners as well as the cylinder. ADRIAN DENNIS

More North Yorks Moors steam in 2014

LMS Jubilee 4-6-0 No. 45596 Bahamas accelerates away from Nottingham with a train for Derby in connection with the 150th anniversary of the Midland Counties Railway on June 4, 1989. BRIAN SHARPE

Bahamas is coming to Heritage Railway PRESERVATION icon LMS Jubilee 4-6-0 No. 45596 Bahamas is to visit Heritage Railway’s offices. The Ingrow-based locomotive will be visiting our base in Horncastle, Lincolnshire, early on Tuesday, November 26. It will be the first steam locomotive in the Lincolnshire town for around half a century, and also the first Jubilee to ever visit Horncastle. Bahamas will be on display in our main car park in Morton Way – postcode LN9 6JR – from dawn to around 2pm. Members of the public are welcome to visit and take photographs. Bahamas’ visit has been sponsored by Mortons Ltd, which also publishes our sister titles The Railway Magazine and Rail Express. Bahamas will be travelling through the night from its home on the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway to Tyseley Locomotive Works, where the contract for its overhaul was signed on October 31. Tyseley’s Bob Meanley said: “We are extremely pleased to have been successful with our tender to carry out the overhaul of Bahamas. On a personal level I have known Steve Allsop and the Bahamas team for many years and have the highest regard for the work which they have carried out in the past on both Bahamas and the Coal Tank. “Everyone at Tyseley Locomotive Works is looking forward to developing the relationship with BLS and starting to overhaul 45596 in the coming months.” As previously reported, the Heritage Lottery Fund has given £776,000 for the restoration of Bahamas and LMS riding van No. 8761. The external restoration of the van at Shildon by Rail Restorations North East Ltd is well advanced. Once it has been returned to Ingrow, BLS members will convert it to an exhibition and learning centre. The return of the coach to Ingrow will enable the Bahamas Locomotive Society to recruit a Lotteryfunded audience development co-ordinator. This role is also being supported by both the KWVR and the Vintage Carriages Trust. Details of the job, for which applications are invited

www.heritagerailway.co.uk

by December 27, can be found on www.bahamas45596.co.uk or obtained by email from [email protected] The Horncastle branch railway from Woodhall Junction opened on August 11, 1855, and lost its passenger service on September 12, 1954, with freight ending on April 5, 1971. The station building was demolished in the Eighties and the site is now occupied by Bush Tyres and by the Granary Way housing estate. One of the warehouses in the goods yard survives and the trackbed to Woodhall Spa is now a long distance footpath. ➲ LNWR Coal Tank: special feature, pages 66-73.

Bahamas Locomotive Society chief engineer Steve Allsop and Tyseley’s Bob Meanley alongside sister locomotive No. 5593 Kolhapur after signing the contract for No. 45596 Bahamas on October 31. BLS

HAVING struggled at times to maintain a full steam service in 2013, the outlook for 2014 services on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway looks brighter. BR Standard 4MT 2-6-0 No. 76079 should return to service following its intermediate overhaul and cylinder replacement and should be joined by NELPG’s Q6 0-8-0 No. 63395 following completion of boiler repairs. It is hoped that a new running agreement will be struck for BR Standard 9F No. 92214 Cock o’ the North, with the remainder of the fleet consisting of Lambton 0-6-2T No. 29, LMS ‘Black Five’ No. 45428, Standard 4MT 4-6-0 No. 75029, B1 4-6-0 No. 61264 and A4 No. 60007 Sir Nigel Gresley. It is possible that USATC S160 No. 6046 may pay a further visit from the Churnet Valley Railway for the peak season. For the longer term, the boiler from S15 No. 825 has been sent to a contractor for repairs intended to return it to service in a short space of time, although it seems unlikely to return for 2014, although West Country Pacific No. 34101 Hartland may do so. The pace of rebuilding BR Standard 4MT 2-6-4T No. 80135 is starting to increase. SR Schools 4-4-0 No. 30926 Repton is due to enter the works at Grosmont before too long so that its boiler can be lifted out of its frames for assessment of its condition and the repairs needed. ➲ A photographic charter organised by Neil Cave on the NYMR on Friday, November 15, will have B1 4-6-0 No. 61264 running southbound on a mixed train of box vans with BR red and coaches to represent a Mallaig fish train. The cost per person is £65 and further details can be obtained by emailing [email protected]

➲ All the lAtest News

For breaking stories from the world of heritage railways go online at:

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News

INBRIEF

➲ THE Boiler and Engineering Skills Training Trust has appointed Richard Gibbon, the popular former head of engineering at the National Railway Museum, and Tony Simons, formerly engineering team leader at York College, to help complete its training plan for submission to the Heritage Lottery Fun. The group is aiming for a national programme of 10 bursary-funded one-year trainees in boiler repair and manufacture in 2014/2015 and welcomes expressions of interest in trainee placement from companies involved in boiler repairs in the steam heritage sector by emailing [email protected] or [email protected] ➲ JASON Cross is holding a photographic charter at Beamish Museum featuring LNER Y7 0-4-0T No. 985 and the venue’s Grimsby & Immingham tram in BR green livery on November 16, for £30 per attendee. The two-part charter has a morning session from 8am until 10am, followed by a night shoot from 4.30pm until 8pm. Email [email protected] for further details. ➲ THE Ken Hoole Trust has awarded a £6000 grant to replace the doors on the NER Autocar Trust’s trailer autocoach. The condition of the old timber doors was poor and the grant has paid for new replacements which are now being fitted. The 1903-built NER autocar set, the forerunner of today’s modern diesel and electric multiple units, is set to be completed by autumn 2015. ➲ CONTRACTORS sandblasted the LNER tender for the North British Locomotive Preservation Group’s new-build B17 ‘Footballer’ 4-6-0 No. 61662 Manchester United on October 24. It will now be repainted in BR Brunswick green. More details of the scheme are available at www.engine61662appeal.co.uk ➲ TWO BR AF type containers at Wigan Springs Branch are on offer. Designated by the former Railway Heritage Committee, they are believed to be the last of their type, and would be available to any railway prepared to restore and display or use one. More details are available from Chris Austin at [email protected] or on 07913 653594. ➲ A PRESENT for his young son half a century ago has brought a £48,000 payback for retired agricultural merchant Leslie Almond, 90. He sold a lifetime’s collection of model railways – 500 lots – at Newcastleupon-Tyne auctioneer Anderson and Garland. One locomotive dated back to 1896.

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Oldest Tube carriage joins Lord Mayor’s Show By Robin Jones THE fairytale comeback of Metropolitan Railway Jubilee carriage No. 353 reached new heights... when it became a float for the Lord Mayor of London’s Show on Saturday, November 9. As the oldest Underground carriage still in use, it was invited to join the annual spectacle in the capital’s streets – rather than below them – to mark the 150th anniversary of the world’s oldest subway line. It was seen by an estimated half million people who lined the streets to glimpse the pageant. The carriage and its passengers, which included London Underground staff and representatives from the charities the Railway Children and London Transport Museum, joined alongside a carnival of horses and carts, marching bands, vintage cars, giant robots, helicopters, tractors, penny farthings and the magnificent Gold State Coach belonging to the Mayor and aldermen. No. 353, which had a second life on the Weston, Clevedon & Portishead Railway after being ousted from the Metropolitan Line by electrification, was restored at the Ffestniog Railway’s Boston Lodge works with backing from the Heritage Lottery Fund and the Friends of London Transport Museum. Earlier in the year, No.353 was ‘marked’ by Alderman Fiona Woolf and the Master Carman, Neil Coles in a centuries old cart-marking ceremony. Normally reserved for road vehicles, an exception was made for the carriage because of the 150th anniversary.

Passing the Old Bailey, Metropolitan Railway carriage No. 353 makes history by running through the streets of London, not below them! TfL

Mike Brown, managing director of London Underground and London Rail, said: “The Tube has always played an important role in the economic development of the London and UK economy so it seems fitting that we should take part in a festival in one of the world’s major financial centres. “We’ve supported Railway Children for many years. Sharing a float with the charity at the Lord Mayor’s Show is an excellent way to highlight how the organisation is helping to transform the lives of children living on the streets.” Railway Children works with children who live on the streets in India, East Africa and the UK. It aims to reach street children as soon as possible, keeping them safe, getting them home and saving them from a life on the streets. The charity works with governments and communities to achieve a world where no child ever has to live on the streets. No. 353 will be back on the rails for a day of ‘bargain price’ steam,

Sam Mullins, chief executive of London Transport Museum (left) with Rob Capener from the charity Railway Children. TfL

running over the Uxbridge branch of London Underground’s Metropolitan Line to mark the finale to the hugely-successful Met 150 celebrations. Sunday, December 8 will see five return trips from Harrow-on-theHill to Uxbridge, marking the 100th anniversary of the town’s station next year. It is likely be the last time that steam trains ever run into Uxbridge, said a spokesman for the organiser, London Transport Museum. Metropolitan E class 0-4-4T No.1 will pull the train from Harrow-onthe-Hill to Uxbridge, with one of the two London Transport-liveried Class 20 diesels hauling on the return leg. On standby will be the Flour Mill’s GWR Prairie in maroon livery as L150, and with its new cut-down cab (see separate story). Passengers can choose between travelling in No. 353 or the museum’s 1950s British Rail 4TC coach set. Tickets to ride in No. 353 are £25, but children under 11 are not allowed to travel in it. Seats in the 4TC set are £15. The ticket price includes a free limited edition souvenir brochure. Children under three can travel free of charge, but will need to sit on their parent or guardian’s lap. Heritage train service tickets are not valid on regular London Underground services. Uxbridge station was opened on July 4, 1904 by the Harrow & Uxbridge Railway, with trains hauled by steam until the line was electrified a year later. The original terminus buildings were demolished in the 1960s. To guarantee a seat, tickets can be booked at www.ltmuseum.co.uk and on 0207 565 7298. www.heritagerailway.co.uk

LNER coach fleet expands again

LNER K4 2-6-0 No. 61994 The Great Marquess pilots LMS Princess Coronation Pacific No. 46233 Duchess of Sutherland past Burrs during the East Lancashire Railway’s October 27-28 steam gala. PHIL JONES

Unveiled: the Underground prairie tank now fitted with a cut-down cab! EXCLUSIVE By Robin Jones BILL Parker’s go-anywhere GWR prairie No. 5521 is set to venture where no member of the class has gone before – in the London Underground tunnels. While secondhand GWR pannier tanks were used on freight and works trains by London Underground from the mid-fifties until 1971, no prairie ever ventured inside the tunnels beneath the capital because of the loading gauge. However, the Flour Mill Colliery has now built an alternative cab for No. 5521, with lowered roof, so it can fit inside the tunnel clearances. As we closed to press, the cab was being painted in maroon to match the Underground livery carried by No. 5521 as part of the Metropolitan Railway 150 celebrations. It will then make its debut on the Underground on December 8, as back-up for a series of five return trips from Harrow-on-the-Hill to Uxbridge. Afterwards, still with its cutdown cab, it will return to the Bluebell railway for another hire period. The new cab should allow

The new cab fitted to L150 inside the Flour Mill workshops at Bream in the Forest of Dean. BILL PARKER

No. 5521 to run anywhere on the Underground sub-surface lines apart from the deep tubes. It will be able to run between Ruislip depot and London Transport Museum’s Acton depot, and can go anywhere where Metropolitan Railway E class 0-4-4T No. 1 can. It may well be considered for the two weekends of running on the Hammersmith & City line next August and the third weekend to a mystery destination as yet unannounced. Since being rebuilt from Barry scrapyard condition, No. 5521 has

travelled further afield than any other member of its class. It hauled regular suburban trains in Poland, even though it is not certified for main line use in the UK, and even piloted the Venice-Simplon Orient Express out of Budapest. It has regularly featured in the Met 150 trips between Wembley Park, Harrow and Amersham earlier this year. The museum has been selling a specially-commissioned OO gauge model of No. 5521 in its L150, but with a standard sized cab.

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THE LNER Coach Association’s fleet is poised to expand once more with the impending acquisition of 1922-built NER open first No. 2118 from the Great Central Railway-based Tinplate Trust. As HR closed for press, final details of the transfer of ownership were being sorted out and arrangements were being made for its transport to an off-railway based storage site. Although never a teak panelled carriage, it was nevertheless almost certainly painted in simulated teak during its period of NYMR ownership. Although built just a year or so earlier than the very similar open third No. 945, which is at an advanced stage of restoration at Levisham, it was not ‘Greslified’ in the same way as No. 945 and never received Pullman gangways, although it did acquire Gresley bogies. In later years it entered departmental service at Bounds Green depot, where it was used as a degreasing coach, but much interior woodwork survives. It was acquired by the LNERCA because it illustrates one half of the design evolutionary tree that led to the standard LNER stock that forms the bulk of the group’s collection, and it is of course an NER-designed coach destined to run on a former NER line. It is not intended to start work on restoration just yet as the association has its hands full with new projects in the form of Thompson corridor composite No. 18477 and ECJS dining car No. 189, but is expected to form the basis of a follow-on application to the Heritage Lottery Fund on completion of 189. Ultimately, Nos. 189 and 2118 are expected to form the basis of a high quality vintage dining train.

‘Black Five’ derails at Whitby siding

THE tender of LMS ‘Black Five’ 4-6-0 No. 45428 Eric Treacy was derailed at Bog Hall sidings near Whitby on October 29. North Yorkshire Moors Railway general manager Philip Benham said there was no danger to the engine crew or passengers as the locomotive was travelling at a very low speed into the siding beneath the New Bridge. The points at the Network Rail-owned siding are manually operated. Only the rear axle of the tender was derailed and there was no damage to the locomotive. An investigation was immediately launched and the tender was later rerailed by a team from Grosmont.

see page 32 or www.classicmagazines.co.uk Heritage Railway

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News

Oliver Cromwell heads Bridgnorth to Sheffield Park railtour first By Cedric Johns and Robin Jones BR BRITANNIA Pacific No. 70013 Oliver Cromwell made heritage era history by becoming the first locomotive to head a railtour from one heritage line – in this case the Severn Valley – on to the Bluebell Railway. The Railway Touring Company’s ‘Blue Bell Explorer’ was not the first steam hauled charter to use the East Grinstead connection to the Bluebell Railway – that happened on September 10 when Tornado arrived with a Steam Dreams ‘Cathedrals Express’ – but it was the first occasion when two independent railways were linked by steam since the halcyon days of the ‘Green Train’ when BR Standard 5MT 4-6-0 No. 73096 worked the train off Mid-Hants Railway metals to the West Somerset Railway in March 2000.

Then, the Mid-Hants provided the whole train – locomotive, rolling stock, kitchen car and staff, buffet, an on train shop, train manager, stewards and support crew. There was more history in the making when the train arrived at Sheffield Park, completing the first ‘freight’ movement between the two lines by a steam hauled excursion. Five metal casks of beer – Bewdley Bright – were loaded at Bewdley and offloaded on the Bluebell. The consignment, comprising approximately 200 pints, brewed by Bewdley Brewing Company, was a gift from the Severn Valley Railway to assist the Bluebell to raise funds for the overhaul of LBSCR ‘Terrier’ 0-6-0T No. 72 Fenchurch. The Railway Touring Company’s Nigel Dobbing was congratulated

Below: BR Standard Britannia Pacific No. 70013 Oliver Cromwell heads south towards the Bluebell Railway passing West Brompton station on the West London line. The restored façade of the original Metropolitan and District line station is dwarfed by Earls Court exhibition centre. This backdrop may change considerably because the exhibition centre, being a prime location, could be demolished under a controversial housing redevelopment scheme. JOHN TITLOW

on seizing the moment by transferring his train from its original starting point, Worcester, to Bridgnorth. The success of the ‘Blue Bell Explorer’ which incidentally, called at both Birmingham’s New Street and International stations en route, may open the eyes of railtour promoters to the potential of planning similar charter trains between heritage railways. The trip was followed by another incoming charter on Saturday, November 9, when RTC’s fully-booked ‘Bluebell Explorer’, arrived from London Victoria behind Bulleid West Country light Pacific No. 34046 Braunton. Being topped and tailed either end with a steam locomotive, unlike previous incoming charters which have used diesel haulage for part of the return trip, it was the first all-steam excursion to the Bluebell since the East Grinstead extension was opened. On the rear was ‘Black Five’ No. 44932, After the train left Sheffield Park, it reversed again at Hurst Green and ran to Uckfield before returning to Victoria.

Steam Dreams subsequently announced the first trip to depart from Sheffield Park. On July 3, a ‘Cathedrals Express’ will run from Sheffield Park to Cambridge and Ely. Two days later, in another first, Steam Dreams will be running a tour from Alresford on the MidHants Railway to Sheffield Park. The motive power for these trains, operated by West Coast Railways, has yet to be announced. The extension has brought in unexpected traffic for the Bluebell. In October, Rail Head Treatment Trains operated by Network Rail were off-loaded on to Bluebell Railway metals at Sheffield Park from road transport and assembled at Horsted Keynes. Network Rail’s Class 73 electrodiesels No. 73213 and No. 73207 ventured on to the line on October 31 to collect them. Meanwhile, the line’s Keep Up The Pressure £170,000 appeal to fund overhauls for four boilers of big locomotives essential for operating the extended line, had reached nearly £100,000 as we closed for press.

Oliver Cromwell’s route from Bridgnorth unusually took it through Birmingham New Street station, before taking the West Coast Main Line to Willesden Junction. NEVILLE WELLINGS

The British Guild of Travel Writers presented the line with a ‘highly commended’ award for the extension at its gala dinner at London’s Savoy Hotel on

November 3 on the eve of the World Travel Market. In the Best UK Tourism Project category, awarded to a recent project that not only has high

tourist potential but also benefits the local community, the Bluebell and the Titanic Museum in Belfast came joint second behind the new Mary Rose Centre in Portsmouth.

The award was received by Bluebell Railway trustee Roger Garman. ➲ No. 44932 on the ‘Blue Bell Explorer’: picture on page 62.

No. 70013 takes its train past the site of Freshfield Halt on the Bluebell Railway. ANDREW STRONGITHARM www.heritagerailway.co.uk

Heritage Railway

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News

Flying Scotsman clears another hurdle on way to 2015 return

By Robin Jones

THE National Railway Museum is to spend a further £776,000 on completing the overhaul of A3 Pacific No. 4472 Flying Scotsman. In August, newly-appointed NRM director Paul Kirkman said the locomotive, which cost £2.31 million to buy with £2.89 million spent on its overhaul to date, would be restored to running order despite cutbacks in the museum’s budget, but had to clear two hurdles. Firstly, an outside contractor needed to be appointed, to carry out 15 work packages identified in an independent report by engineering specialist First Class Partnerships into the long-running and well over-budget overhaul. Secondly, the main frames must be found to be in a condition where the locomotive can be economically repaired. That cannot be established until the cylinders are removed... but it is not thought that there will be a major problem. As first reported on our www.heritagerailway.com website and facebook.com/heritagerailway page on October 29, the first obstacle has now been cleared, with the appointment of Ian Riley to complete the overhaul at his Bury workshops.

Museum’s overspend

Work on the locomotive had previously been undertaken at his workshops before a halt was called because of the museum’s overspend, and independent advice was

programme of ongoing maintenance and helping to resolve any issues that may arise. After that time, the NRM will again take full control of the locomotive, with First Class Partnerships again providing advice. No decision as to which livery will be carried by No. 4472, currently in wartime black as No. 503, has been made, said a museum spokesman. The cost of the overhaul has been compared to that of building a similar locomotive, A1 Pacific No. 60163 Tornado, from scratch for £3 million five years ago. The extra money will be found from within the Science Museum Group’s funds.

Corrective work

Flying Scotsman in the works at the National Railway Museum in York. ROBIN JONES

sought – one option being to stop the overhaul and leave Flying Scotsman as a static exhibit because of the soaring cost. However, when the museum acquired the locomotive with public funds and donations in 2004, it pledged to keep the locomotive running on the main line. The locomotive returned to Bury on October 29, a few hours after the contract with Ian had been signed in accordance with the museum’s tendering processs. His task is now to overhaul the locomotive to a standard whereby it is fit to operate within the stringent

requirements of today’s modern railway network. Provided there is no problem with the side frames, the work will take 16 months to complete, it has been estimated. Paul Kirkman said: “We are pleased to have appointed a contractor with the specialist skills and expertise required for the final stages of the project. “We are now progressing cautiously towards completing the restoration, subject to reviewing the condition of the main side frames.” Under the deal, Riley & Sons will operate No. 4472 on the main line for two years, including a

The bill could rise even more, however, if problems are found with the main side frames, and a decision is taken to continue with the restoration. The remaining works that will be undertaken at Bury include the alignment of the middle steam cylinder. All three steam cylinders are also currently oversize and need to be fitted with new liners and rebored to a nominal 19in diameter. This corrective work on the cylinders means that they will have to be separated from the frames. A museum statement said that the timescales involved with the remaining stages of the restoration mean that Flying Scotsman will not operate on the main line before the summer of 2015, 11 years after it was bought for the National Collection.

Riley to move as East Lancashire upgrades workshop NEWLY-reappointed Flying Scotsman restorer Ian Riley has been told he will have to move his business from the Grade II listed former locomotive works at the East Lancashire Railway’s Baron Street site. The railway wants to upgrade the 170-yearold building – believed to be the world’s oldest standard gauge locomotive workshop still used for its original purpose – to further its goal of becoming self-sufficient in all aspects of heritage locomotive restoration and refurbishment by the summer of 2015. Riley & Son Engineering Ltd currently takes up half of the building, having occupied the space under a licence agreement with the railway since 1993, with both organisations having worked in partnership in the intervening years. The building was a key element in the aborted NRM+ project which was at the core of a major railway heritage display and skills development

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centre for the North West. The scheme failed due to cutbacks in Heritage Lottery Fund grant aid at a time when money was being diverted to pay for the London 2012 Olympics. Ian Riley said: “We identified the need for more modern and more suitable premises some time ago and this initiative will give us the impetus to take our business to the next level. “We have outgrown the space and facilities we have available to us at Baron Street and if we are to keep pace with the changing needs of our customers we need to move up a gear. “The ELR has always been important to us but we do understand the need for the railway to become less reliant on the industry’s supply network and become more self-reliant. We’re hopeful that we may still yet be able to retain a physical connection with the ELR.” ELR chairman Peter Duncan stated: “This development is of immense strategic significance to the future of the ELR and its

sustainability as a heritage steam and diesel railway. Having the ability to manage our locomotive fleet, in every aspect of day-to-day operation and maintenance, is going to be a key element to meeting the objectives we set ourselves back in 2010 for doubling the railway’s visitor numbers within just 10 years. “The increased ability to manage our own affairs, in this respect, cannot be understated. “While we recognise that there will be some upheaval to Riley & Son’s business activity we are committed to ensuring that the process is handled sensitively and in consultation and cooperation with Ian and his team. I am confident that we will be able to demonstrate, once the transition is complete, that we have dealt with the relocation in a considerate and professional manner.” The ELR also foresees opportunities arising for undertaking contract works for other heritage railways and locomotive owners.

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Ludgershall branch could become a heritage line

A SECOND part of the former Midland & South Western Junction Railway may become a heritage line. The Swindon & Cricklade Railway already occupies part of the route which ran between Andoversford near Cheltenham and Andover, and which was one of the first to be rubber-stamped for closure when Dr Richard Beeching was appointed as BR chairman in 1961. Now moves are underway to turn the southernmost stretch into a tourist attraction. The line between Andover and Ludgershall has remained open so that transport tanks and other equipment can be moved in and out of the Defence Equipment & Support Rail & Container Terminal at MoD Ludgershall, which serves Salisbury Plain. However, the line is used infrequently, and a scheme to convert it to a heritage line has been started under the banner of the Mid Wessex Railway Preservation Society. Discussions with South West Trains and Network Rail about access to Andover station have been started. The scheme is being backed by local MPs Sir George Young and Claire Perry, Ludgershall Town Council chairman Owen White told a meeting.

New engine shed for Hayes Knoll THE Swindon & Cricklade Railway has launched an appeal for £10,000 to allow a new engine shed to be built at Hayes Knoll. The railway has saved around two thirds of the overall cost, but needs extra money to complete the job. Once the shed is completed, it will free up space in the existing three-road restoration shed behind the current northern terminus. The new shed is planned to cover roads 4 and 5 in Hayes Knoll yard as an extension of the restoration shed. The railway wants to hire an outside contractor to build it so it can concentrate on its southern extension to Taw Valley Halt, adjacent to Mouldon Hill Country Park, which will open in 2014 and its northern push towards Cricklade.

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Record run guard identified

LNER goods guard Harry Croucher is fourth on the right in the now legendary picture of the crew after the record breaking run taken at Peterborough. Also in the picture are fireman Thomas Bray, driver Joe Duddington and inspector Sam Jenkins. NRM

By Robin Jones THE National Railway Museum has nailed the identity of the mystery guard who took part in Mallard’s 126mph world speed record run. LNER goods guard Henry ‘Harry’ Croucher was pictured alongside the rest of the train crew several seminal photographs taken after the run on July 3 1938. His identity remained a mystery until his daughter Julie Slater, from London, contacted the National Railway Museum in York. Julie, 85, got in touch with the NRM’s associate curator of railway vehicles Bob Gwynne and arranged to visit the museum on November 8 during the Autumn Great Gathering of all six surviving A4 Pacifics, including Mallard, with her son Richard Slater from Nottingham. She produced family photographs to prove that her dad was on board the train as it raced down Stoke Bank, after being drafted in as part of the hitherto secret world steam speed record attempt team. Her late brother Bert also worked for the LNER, before he died in a naval battle while serving during the Second World War. Bob said: “Our Mallard 75 celebrations have given us a new strand in the Mallard story. There is absolutely no doubt the man in the family photos Julie provided is the

Julie Slater in the cab of Mallard during the Autumn Great Gathering. NRM

same man as in the picture taken of the record-breaking crew at Peterborough. “Harry would have been quite pleased at being asked to work on that Sunday’s ‘brake trial’ as it would have meant double time, but of all the crew in the picture he looks like he found it quite a hair-raising experience. “Unfortunately he’d already passed away before our 50th anniversary celebrations, so it has taken the added publicity surrounding the 75th anniversary to encourage Julie and her family to step forward and talk about their strong connection to our celebrity locomotive.” In the Great Hall, Julie said: “I feel overwhelmed that I’m here. Now I can let everyone know who my father was.” ➲ Heroes of history – pages 74-78.

Out-of-ticket S160 is sold THE North Yorkshire Moors Railway has sold its USATC S160 2-8-0 No. 2253 to a private member. The out-of-ticket locomotive has been sold in exchange for cash and the transfer of ownership of several items of rolling stock from the individual concerned to the NYMR. The rolling stock involved

comprises several wagons used in the demonstration freight train plus Mk 1 BG 80959, built at Derby in 1951 and converted into a disabled saloon. A condition of sale is that No. 2253 is removed from the NYMR for restoration, and it is not yet known if it will return once restoration is complete. Heritage Railway

15

News Repatriated coach to make Minehead debut REPATRIATED GWR Brake Composite coach No. 6705 is set to enter regular West Somerset Railway traffic next year. It will be the first vehicle to enter traffic from the West Somerset Steam Railway Trust’s Heritage Carriages Project. No. 6705 was built by the GWR at Swindon in 1938 and withdrawn from traffic in 1967. It was overhauled at Swindon and shipped to a railway museum in Vermont, US, and latterly kept at Scranton, Pennsylvania. It was brought back to the UK in 2007 and the bodywork was partly restored at Crewe. Restoration is now being completed at Williton, through a combination of volunteer input and contract work with the Williton-based West Somerset Restoration team. The running gear has been overhauled and external bodywork largely completed. The work remaining is to complete internal restoration of the carriage, reconnect pipe work in the lavatories, replace steam heat connections, provide the bellows for the corridor connections and reupholster the seats. Internal staining and varnishing is needed along with the final application of topcoats of paint externally. Passengers will be able to experience the soft cushions, the comfortable springing, leather window straps and polished woodwork of another era. Much of this work will be carried out by the regular team of around eight volunteers. The trust will need to contract out the work on the upholstery, gangway bellows and steam heat connections. Contract costs are estimated to be £6000 and materials required around £1000. ➲ An appeal for funds to complete the restoration has been launched. Anyone who would like to help is asked to contact the trust at 20A Park Road, Bromley, Kent, BR1 3HP.

facebook.com/ HeritageRailway 16 Heritage Railway

Better reliability on the Severn Valley By Paul Appleton

FOLLOWING last season’s locomotive shortages when the Severn Valley Railway was down to just two operational steam locomotives during the peak summer season, 2013 has fared much better with a greater reliability and less failures. The decision was taken to carry out extensive maintenance on two of the stalwarts in the fleet, Ivatt 4MT 2-6-0 No. 43106 and Collett 4-6-0 No. 7812 Erlestoke Manor, during last winter’s closed season. The Ivatt required a new drag box, but it was decided to carry out interim repairs to the boiler at the same time, earning the locomotive a new full 10 year boiler ticket. Meanwhile extensive bottom end work on Erlestoke Manor was carried out, going well beyond the basic maintenance normally administered, the project being undertaken jointly by the Erlestoke Manor Fund’s members and the SVR’s engineering department.

Eight operational locomotives

The result has been two trouble-free locomotives, while the railway also brought in on a season long hire, the Furness Railway Trust’s newly overhauled GWR 0-6-2T No. 5643. This loan has helped maintain a fleet of eight operational locomotives, which apart from washouts, have been available for traffic virtually all year. The rest of the operational fleet has included SR rebuilt Bulleid

West Country Pacific No. 34053 Sir Keith Park, WR 15XX 0-6-0PT No. 1501, GWR large prairie No. 5164, GWR small prairie No. 4566 and clocking up the highest mileage on the SVR so far this year, GWR Churchward 28xx 2-8-0 No. 2857. No. 5164, due to bow out part way through 2013, had its boiler ticket extended to the end of the year so that it could operate trains during the busy Santa special period. With the return of loaned No. 5643 to its owners, the fleet will be down to six operational locomotives, so work is currently focused on getting the boiler of SR West Country Pacific No. 34027 Taw Valley finished over the winter, its bottom half and tender already complete in the workshops at Bridgnorth.

First out of workshops

Railway officials hope Taw Valley will be ready for running in some time in the spring, but first out of the workshops should be ex-Port Talbot Railway/GWR 0-6-0ST No. 813. Although its size precludes it from operating normal service trains on the railway, it does make appearances at galas and is a useful ambassador to the railway going on hire elsewhere and earning valuable steaming fees. The restoration of ex-GWR/NCB Kitson-built 57XX 0-6-0PT No. 7714 has been delayed due to ongoing work on the bottom end, especially on the locomotive’s inside cylinders which have required extensive work on their realignment and have required new liners. It is hoped to test fit the

partly repaired boiler and firebox assembly – which being from No. 5764 is a Swindon product – into the newly wheeled frames shortly, but it is thought unlikely that the pannier will return to service during 2014.

Bradley Manor

The other potential returnee in 2014 is the Erlestoke Manor Fund’s other Manor, No. 7802 Bradley Manor, which is the subject of a fast-track overhaul, with the bottom end currently at Tyseley Locomotive Works, while the boiler is in the boilershop at Bridgnorth. MPD staff at Bridgnorth have repeatedly voiced concern that the railway needs at least eight operational locomotives to maintain the line’s intensive timetable, especially on summer weekends when up to six locomotives are regularly needed. Allowing for routine washouts and maintenance, any failure puts the department under extreme pressure, so another ‘loan signing’ during 2014 can’t be ruled out as the available fleet of resident engines will be down to seven, allowing for No. 813’s unsuitability. Meanwhile, the railway has been named Best Tourism Experience in the 2013 Visit Worcestershire Awards for Excellence. The award was presented to assistant visitor services manager Lisa Smith at the Destination Worcestershire’s annual tourism conference held at Stanbrook Abbey in Callow End on October 24. ➲ Feature – pages 46-52

Radstock revival back on

The Bowes Railway held a firework display on Saturday, November 2, with Barclay 0-4-0ST No. 2274 of 1949 No. 22 in the centre. DAVE HEWITT

A FRESH bid has been made to revive the GWR line from Frome to Radstock. The North Somerset Railway revival, first mooted in the late Nineties, has been relaunched with a poster campaign by Friends of Radstock Railway Land. The group said that much of the track along the eight-mile route is still in place and can be reused once it has been overhauled and the necessary infrastructure put in place. A revived line could boost the former mining town of Radstock, linking it to the national network at Frome. The new North Somerset Railway Company has submitted its own plans for the revival, including a station in the town and others along the line. See www.northsomersetrailway.com

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HS2 may flatten miniature railway

GNR N2 0-6-2T No. 1744 worked on the Bo’ness & Kinneil Railway for the three weekends and is seen approaching Snab Bridge with the delayed first train of the day on October 27. This train, the 10.45am from Bo’ness, departed almost an hour late due to Colas Railfreight’s No. 56087 failing on the platform line at Manuel and having to be rescued and brought to Bo’ness. The train was worked in top-and-tail mode with D49 4-4-0 No. 246 Morayshire to save on run-round time and ran non-stop between Bo’ness and Manuel in both directions. IAN LOTHIAN

Last Class 427 vehicles to be preserved PETER Spokes, owner of preserved Class 421 4-CIG trainset No.1399, has been given vehicles Nos. 70904, 76397 and 76398 from Class 427 4-VOP unit No. 3905 by the 5-BEL Trust. The trust, in an advanced stage of the project to recreate the ‘Brighton Belle’, has retained motor coach 62366 as a source of operational spares for it. The Class 427 units were originally converted from standard Class 423 4-VEP units for Gatwick services. After the creation of the Gatwick Express dedicated service the units were designated for South London Metro services and reclassified Class 423/9, later Class 423/2.

The vehicles of unit No. 3905 are now the last of their type, as sister unit No. 3918 will be used for spares to the 5-BEL project and Class 423 No. 3417 is the only remaining complete 4-VEP trainset. The plan is to transfer the vehicles to Eastleigh Traction & Rolling Stock Maintenance Depot where they will join vehicle No. 76818 from Peter’s Class 421 4-CIG unit No. 1399 and then be moved to the Dartmoor Railway to be used alongside unit No. 1399 as hauled stock supporting resident Class 205 ‘Thumper’ units Nos. 205018/32. The vehicles will be restored to the South Central Connex striped

livery with South Central branding; the only other unit to bear this livery is Class 421 1753 which is not accessible to the public. Peter has achieved this remarkable success, including the £2000 cost of remedial work to make the coaches fit for main line moves, from his own resources supported by family and friends but now needs the help of others. This can be in terms of money or – more importantly – a source of spares to help maintain and operate these unique vehicles. Further details of the vehicles, their history and how to help Peter preserve them can be found at www.400series.co.uk

‘Teddy Bear’ moves to Bridgnorth A GROUP of Severn Valley Railway supporters, calling themselves the Class 14 Diesel Fund, have secured former BR Type 1 0-6-0DH No. 9551 from its base at the Royal Deeside Railway in Aberdeenshire. Following an inspection on September 2 when it was started up, the locomotive, which has the nickname Angus, was expected to move to the SVR in November, where it will be based at Bridgnorth, also the base for the Western Locomotive Association, owner of two other diesel hydraulics in Class 52s Nos. 1013 and 1062. The locomotive requires some work on its hydraulic transmission before it can haul trains and is reported to be the culmination of several months looking for a suitable locomotive, suggesting the ‘Teddy Bear’ will have a specific role at the railway. D9551 has been at the Royal Deeside Railway’s base at Milton of Crathes since arriving from the West

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Somerset Railway in 2000. The six-cylinder Paxmanengined 650hp locomotive is one of 56 locomotives built at Swindon in 1964/5, designed to operate short distance freights, trip work and yard shunting. Their lives in BR service were shortlived as many of the duties they were designed for simply disappeared, so many found their way into industrial use and around 19 have survived into preservation, with a few other examples exported abroad for further use in industry. D9551 was allocated to 50B Hull Dairycoates until December 1968 when it was acquired from BR by British Steel Corporation for use at Corby steelworks, where it was retired in June 1981. It moved to the West Somerset Railway the following year where it saw regular use. It is currently in two-tone green livery and is vacuum fitted, so able to operate passenger trains if required.

THE PLANNED £42.6 billion High Speed 2 route will bulldoze through a popular miniature railway championed by Pete Waterman. The 7¼n gauge Echills Wood Railway moved to Kingsbury Water Park near Tamworth in 2005, after being squeezed out of the Royal Showground at Stoneleigh, its home since it was formed in 1972. Now it could be on the move again, if the controversial plans for HS2 become reality. The route for the HS2 spur to the East Midlands cuts through the miniature line’s Sandy Curve section. Now the railway’s officials are planning to lodge a major compensation claim. Echills Wood manager Jeff Stevens said: “We will be wiped out by the HS2 spur to the East Midlands. “We will have to lift track, move things around and find different ways of working. We will be making a compensation claim which will run into thousands. One ton of track alone costs £12,000.” Peter Waterman is an honorary member of the little railway and opened its Harvester and Far Leys stations. At the same time, he is part of the Government’s high speed task force charged with ensuring taxpayers get value for money Echills Wood takes its name from the railway’s original home, a small copse at the Royal Showground, Stoneleigh.

Class 37/9 sold out of preservation

THE SEVERN Valley Railway-based Ruston 906 Group has confirmed the sale of its preserved Class 37/9 No. 37906 to Europhoenix following an assessment of resources and the consideration of a return to operating condition. The R906G committee has been aware of a decreasing number of shareholders able to support the upkeep and maintenance of the locomotive and now that this has reduced to an unsustainable number the decision was taken to ask shareholders to consider a sale and a prospective purchaser was sought. The call was answered by Europhoenix, which has committed itself to restore the locomotive to working order, a point that satisfies one of the main concerns of the shareholders, and a written agreement has now been signed to agree the sale of No. 37906. The R906G has admitted its sadness at the situation but feels the sale will better guarantee the future of the locomotive with the promised return to working order helping to make the sale more palatable.

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News

Scouts’ nameplate windfall hit by police hunt for owner By Geoff Courtney WHAT initially appeared to be the straightforward auction of a Peppercorn A1 Pacific nameplate which was set to net a group of sea scouts a £10,000 windfall has turned into a saga with more twists and turns than an Agatha Christie novel. As revealed exclusively in last month’s Heritage Railway, members of the 1st Canvey Island Sea Scout group in Essex recovered the plate – Wilson Worsdell from No. 60127 – from a local pond they were dredging in the summer. After realising it may be of value the group’s leader, Richard Lotz, reported the find to his local police, who told him that nobody had reported it missing or stolen and that it would be their property if it was not claimed within 21 days.

Authenticated

With no claimant coming forward within the three-week limit, Richard had the plate authenticated by Great Central Railwayana, and it was entered into the auction house’s sale to take place at Stoneleigh Park, Warwickshire, on January 18, with the proceeds, which have been estimated at £10,000, to go to scout funds. However, Richard’s delight turned to disappointment when he received a telephone call from a former railwayman who had read the article in last month’s issue of Heritage Railway and said that he was the plate’s custodian, having been asked to look after it many years ago by a friend with whom he had lost contact. The caller told Richard that he was living on Canvey Island when the nameplate, along with another – Robert the Bruce from LNER A2 No. 60510 – and a ‘Heart of Midlothian’ express headboard, were stolen from his garage in the summer of 2003. He said he had reported the theft to his local police, but there had been no insurance claim as the items were not insured.

Owned by a friend

The man who called Richard is Dan Langley, a 62-year-old former London Transport railway driver now living in Eastbourne. He told Heritage Railway: “The two nameplates and headboard are 18 Heritage Railway

Nameplate mystery: LNER A2 No. 60510 Robert the Bruce passes Portobello near Edinburgh with an express in 1955. One of the Pacific’s nameplates is missing after being stolen from a garage on Canvey Island in July 2003, at which time nameplate Wilson Worsdell from A1 No. 60127 was also taken but has recently been found in a pond. NORMAN PREEDY ARCHIVE

owned by a friend, Brian Douglas, who was a fireman at King’s Cross. He lived with his parents in a flat at King’s Cross, and in about 1998 he asked me to look after the plates and headboard for safe keeping. “At that time I lived in Canvey, and I put them in my garage. In about 2000 Brian’s father died and his mother soon after, and Brian moved, I believe to Wales. I don’t know the circumstances of him moving or why he didn’t take the plates – he had no car so possibly he couldn’t transport them.

Told the police

“I lost touch with him, and then in 2003 the plates and headboard were stolen from my garage with some tools in what would have been a two to three person job. I reported the theft to the police at the time. Then I read the article in last month’s Heritage Railway and thought ‘love a duck’, so I contacted Richard Lotz and told him I was the plate’s custodian, and I have subsequently told the police the whole story.” Dan, who retired in 2011 after a 43-year railway career, said he could not explain how or why the plate ended up in the pond, which was about a mile from his then home, from which he moved in about 2005. Nor does he have any idea of the whereabouts of the Robert the Bruce nameplate or ‘Heart of Midlothian’ headboard. To validate his story, Dan said it would help if Brian could be found. “I don’t even know if he is still alive, but if he is he would be

in his late 60s or maybe early 70s.” However, Dan considers the plate is his to sell, and he said that any money raised would go towards the new P2 locomotive fund, as this was Brian’s favourite class of engine. “I wouldn‘t want the scouts to be disillusioned, and I would also make a donation to them,” he pledged.

Formal notice

After initially telling scout leader Richard Lotz following the nameplate find in the summer that they had no record of the theft being reported 10 years ago, Essex police later said that Dan had indeed reported it, as they had tracked down his crime report dated July 2003. What was becoming an everchanging scenario became more so on November 1, when staff at Great Central Railwayana were served a formal notice by police instructing them not to sell the plate, following which Essex police spokesman Bill Stock, who described the case as “complex”, issued a statement saying that new information had come to light and Essex police were trying to establish who owned the plate. However, on November 7, Essex police appeared to wipe their hands of the affair by issuing another statement saying: “As the property is currently not within the possession of Essex Police, we have advised the interested parties to make contact with each other and come to an amicable solution. If this cannot be achieved, they will need to consider civil court

proceedings.” The statement, though, added that the retention order issued to Great Central Railwayana would remain in place until a decision was made on ownership of the nameplate. The apparent anomaly in which Essex Police had declared it a civil – and thus not a police – matter yet would not lift the order stopping Great Central selling the plate remains unexplained. Scout leader Richard Lotz said: “The police told me it was not a matter for them any more, and is a civil matter between the scouts and Dan Langley, and then I learn their ‘stop’ notice is still in place. I don’t know where I stand.” He added that he was looking at ways of tracing Brian Douglas.

Extremely complex

Great Central director and auctioneer Mike Soden said: “What appeared to be the straightforward sale of a nameplate has become an extremely complex scenario. We accepted it in good faith as the sea scouts had made all the correct enquiries, but it is better this happening now rather than a couple of days before the auction, when the plate would have been advertised and catalogued.” He said work on cleaning the plate after its 10 years in the pond had stopped, and would not recommence until the situation had been clarified by all parties. “The authenticity of the plate is not in question, and we look forward to auctioning it when the matter is settled.” www.heritagerailway.co.uk

Another big success for Mallard 75 NEARLY a quarter of a million people have visited the National Railway Museum for Mallard 75 events so far. For the first Great Gathering of all six surviving LNER A4 Pacifics in July, a total of 138,481 visitors turned up at the York venue, setting a new NRM record. The second event, the Autumn Great Gathering, which ran over 17 days from October 26 until November 11, was attended by 108,419 visitors, including for the Locos In a Different Light evening event and the morning early bird photographic sessions before the museum opened. After the end of proceedings on November 11, the three operational A4s, No. 4464 Bittern – which is due to head two runs of up to 90mph along parts of the East Coast Main Line in December (see separate story, Main Line News, pages 56-63), No. 60007

Sir Nigel Gresley and No. 60009 Union of South Africa, left to resume their duties elsewhere. The two A4s temporarily reimported from North America, No. 4489 Dominion of Canada and No. 60008 Dwight D. Eisenhower, will remain on static display at the museum alongside No. 4468 Mallard until February, when they will depart for Barrow Hill roundhouse where an LNER gala is being held on February 8-9. It is intended that the pair will be joined there by two of their operational sisters. Afterwards, all six will line up together for the final time at the Locomotion museum in Shildon for the Great Goodbye from February 15-23. Afterwards, the repatriated pair will be shipped back across the Atlantic, probably by April. ➲ Heroes of history: see pages 74-78.

E1 0-6-0T W2 Yarmouth heads out of the tunnel into Ventnor West station. PHIL MARSH COLLECTION

Ventnor West station for sale THE main station building of Ventnor West station is up for sale at a suggested price of £250,000. The former station house is a stone-built construction 170ft above sea level with stunning panoramic views over the English Channel. The building comprises of three bedrooms and a bathroom upstairs with a kitchen/breakfast room and lounge with a natural stone fireplace with a cast iron stove downstairs. It is known locally as the Old Station House and agent Webb Jenkins says that this is a great renovation project and a chance to purchase a property of huge historical importance to Ventnor. It has had a local blue plaque fixed to it acknowledging its significance. The station was opened in 1900 and closed in 1952 despite being on what many considered to be the most scenic coastal line in southern www.heritagerailway.co.uk

England. Ventnor West was at the end of a branch line built by the Newport, Godshill & St Lawrence Railway in the late 1890s, running for six miles from Merston. It was operated by the Isle of Wight Central Railway then the Southern Railway and closed by British Rail in 1952, an early casualty of nationalisation. The line was built with freight and passenger facilities but failed financially as the route to Ventnor from Ryde via Shanklin was already well established (and faster) by 1900. Ventnor West station was a mile from Ventnor and the route had an expensive tunnel to maintain at St Lawrence, plus the line was prone to disruption from landslips as it also ran along a cliff edge. It is now surrounded by modern houses in a housing estate which occupies the former railway station land. Heritage Railway

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News

INBRIEF

➲ ONE of the world’s first railway tunnels which runs beneath Leicester is to open to visitors. The mile-long Glenfield Tunnel, built 1829-32 by George Stephenson, was used to transport coal on the Leicester & Swannington Railway but fell into disrepair after closing in 1966. A £500,000 restoration project to strengthen the tunnel’s crumbling walls has led to the Grade II-listed heritage structure being able to welcome visitors again. ➲ THE Railway Preservation Society of Ireland wants to find a new home for 5ft 3in gauge LMS (NCC) woodenbodied V14 luggage van No.404, representative of a type originally built in 1936. Since 1983 it has been used as a stationary storeroom at Whitehead and lacks bogies. However, it could potentially be turned into a moving carriage again. For more information email [email protected] by November 30. ➲ THE Middleton Railway has launched a £40,000 appeal to pay for a new running shed, and is offering supporters the chance to have their names inscribed on bricks. The Middleton Railway Trust has already raised around £10,000 for the project, for which plans have now been submitted. It is hoped that the shed will be completed in time for the start of the 2014 programme. Telephone 0113 2710320 for information or to buy a brick or visit www.middletonrailway.org.uk ➲ THE historic war memorial at King’s Cross station was redesigned and reinstated at a dedicated service held on Sunday, October 27, at the station ahead of London Poppy Day. Placed into temporary storage during the £550 million redevelopment of King’s Cross station, which was recently completed, the newly designed memorial commissioned by Network Rail aims to echo the 11 soldiers depicted by John Singer Sargent’s well-known 1919 painting Gassed. ➲ DIDCOT Railway Centre is to offer a rail experience day on GWR steam railmotor No. 93 on Tuesday, July 8. The event costs £450 and will be limited to six people and includes a site tour, lunch and a year’s membership of the Great Western Society. Further details are available at 01235 817200. ➲ THE Talyllyn Railway is to reintroduce daily running from Sunday, April 6, to Sunday, November 2. The change follows an experiment of not operating services on Fridays in the off-peak season this year. On July 22, an evening heritage train will be run, with runpasts and stops at points of interest.

20 Heritage Railway

Broadway push share issue nears £300k in two months

By Robin Jones

THE Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway’s £500,000 Bridges to Broadway share offer has raised more than half of its target within two months. As we closed for press, cheques for the appeal were arriving at the rate of £5128 a day. The phenomenal rapid response from well-wishers since the appeal was launched at Broadway station on September 30 has meant that work can now begin on preparing tender documents to be issued in January, followed by the vetting of potential contractors. The total cost of the project to repair five bridges between the current railhead at Laverton and Broadway, as outlined in Heritage Railway issue 182, is £1.5 million, of which the share offer constitutes a third. Officials are amazed at the public response, with supporters again being prepared to dig deep into their pockets following the success of the £1 million appeal to repair the landslips at Gotherington and Chicken Curve. G/WR spokesman Ian Crowder said it was planned to repair or rebuild the bridges in reverse order, starting at Little Buckland, the first bridge north of Laverton.

As each bridge is completed, tracklaying can proceed to the next one. The last to be undertaken will be the one crossing Station Road, by far the most expensive. A road closure will be needed to remove the decks. It is hoped that the first heritage era trains will run into Broadway in 2016, possibly before the new station buildings are completed. However, by the time the track reaches the Cotswold tourist magnet, the platforms will be in a useable state, said Ian. As the station lies nearly a mile from Broadway town centre, local councils are looking into the possibility of providing a shuttle bus for passengers. Meanwhile, Malcolm Temple, who launched the share issue, has resigned after five years as company chairman of the line. Malcolm, 69, who also spent six years as its financial director and steering the railway through the difficult times of its double landslip calamity, said he wanted to pursue other charitable and political interests. The board has appointed Alan Bielby as acting chairman and Christopher Bristow as financial director, both of whom are already directors and volunteers with the railway.

Alan said: “Malcolm leaves the railway knowing it is in good hands and well placed for the future. It is currently enjoying its best-ever year. Volunteer numbers are increasing; passenger numbers have already exceeded our previous best (in 2009) and this augurs well for the longer term future. “Malcolm has made a significant contribution to the railway during a very challenging period, at the same time helping to lay the foundations for the railway’s future commercial success as well as its expansion to Broadway and beyond.” The arrival of GWR 4-6-0 No. 7820 Dinmore Manor, representative of a type that regularly worked on the Stratfordupon-Avon to Cheltenham line, is now expected in the new year. *The share offer involves a minimum investment of £100. It is being made under the Government’s Enterprise Investment Scheme which means that income tax payers benefit from tax relief of 30% on any purchase. Therefore, a purchase of £1000 of shares will cost only £700. Shareholders will also enjoy generous free travel concessions and a unique share certificate. Further information is available at www.gwsr.com

The Cornishman members’ magazine wins national accolade from the HRA THE Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway Trust’s quarterly members’ magazine The Cornishman has been voted best in Britain. On October 27, volunteer editor Steve Standbridge was presented with the Heritage Railway Association plaque by its president, Lord Richard Faulkner of Worcester. The magazine is named after the only named express train to pass over the Stratford-uponAvon to Cheltenham line ‘The Cornishman’, which ran daily between Wolverhampton and Penzance. The judges said that the magazine is “jam packed with content, well presented and to a very professional standard”. Lord Faulkner, who is also a patron of the G/WR, presented a

Lord Faulkner (left) presents the award to Steve Standbridge. GWR

plaque to Steve, who said: “I have almost lost count of the number of photographs I have looked at and stories I have edited over the past 20 years.

Receiving this award is, of course, a huge honour.” The award plaque will be displayed in the Flag & Whistle tearooms at Toddington station.

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INBRIEF

➲ VOLUNTEERS clearing vegetation from the banks of the Trent & Mersey Canal in Rugeley have discovered the remains of a former tramway built to supply coal, arriving by canal, to the stationary steam engine at the nearby water works a century ago. Members of the Lichfield branch of the Inland Waterways Association hope that the line of the tramway can be marked out.

The North Yorkshire Moors Railway’s 40th anniversary royal train: Lambton, Hetton & Joicey Colliery 0-6-2T No. 29 with the GWR Hawksworth saloon at Grosmont on October 15. PHILIP BENHAM

Duke of Gloucester visits NYMR THE Duke of Gloucester has made his third visit to a heritage railway this autumn. After earlier visits to the Bluebell Railway and Rushden Transport Museum, as reported in Heritage Railway issue 182, he rode on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway from Pickering to Levisham and back during a visit to Ryedale on October 15, as part of the line’s 40th anniversary year. At Pickering station, he was introduced to the chairman of Ryedale District Council, Coun Janet Frank, and Pickering’s mayor, Coun Sue Cowan. The duke met several volunteers, who launched the railway in 1973 with many of them still active on the line, having helped build it up into Britain’s most popular heritage railway. He was also able to see the final stage of the Pickering Train of Thought project where the resurrection of Marshes Road

Watched by Neal Clarke, NYMR plc chairman, Lord Crathorne, Lord Lieutenant for North Yorkshire, NYMR general manager Philip Benham and NYMR Trust chairman Murray Brown, the Duke of Gloucester, the Queen’s cousin (third from right) talks to Chris Cubitt, driver and trust vice-chairman. NYMR

signal cabin as a demonstration signalling installation is approaching completion. Along with some volunteers and officers, the duke then enjoyed lunch on board the line’s GWR

Hawksworth saloon hauled by Kitson 0-6-2T No. 29. From Pickering, the duke visited the new Peat Rigg Outdoor Training Centre and Scarborough Engineering Week.

You can help Elsecar win the People’s Millions! HERITAGE Railway readers can help the Elsecar Heritage Railway receive major funding for a substantial project – from their armchair at home. The railway has reached the final of ITV’s The People’s Millions with a chance of winning enough Lottery cash to fund the project. The railway wants to use the money to create a four-acre Cortonwood Coal Mining Memorial Park, a museum and www.heritagerailway.co.uk

memorial garden, an industrial archaeology trail and a sound and visual archive of local mining history plus a picnic and play area to commemorate three centuries of coal mining in South Yorkshire. The project will involve local mining communities and the park will be located where the year-long miners’ strike began in 1984. Del Tilling of the Coalfield Memorial Railway said: “The Elsecar to Cortonwood steam

railway is dedicated to recognising the toil and sacrifice of many generations of local miners, and to preventing the heritage of the nationally important Cortonwood Colliery site from disappearing, like the rest have done.” Members of the public are invited to vote for their favourite project between 9am and midnight on November 25. To get the telephone number, log on to www.peoplesmillions.org.uk.

➲ TWO restored 1920s carriages were offered for auction following the retirement closure after 29 years of Dunkleys Restaurant at Castle Ashby station in Grendon Road, Whiston, Northamptonshire, along with a collection of railwayana and Royal Train memorabilia. The wheeled vehicles, which sit on tracks, were adapted at Wolverton Works in the Eighties using original parts. An online timed auction held by W&H Peacock was set for 11am on November 20. ➲ THE 2ft gauge Hayling Seaside Railway will not be running Santa specials, due to contractual issues connected to the recent granting of a further one year lease on the line’s main station and depot. December trains will, however, still run to the railway’s normal schedules, every Saturday, Sunday, bank holiday and market day Wednesday, plus daily during the school holidays apart from Christmas Day. On December 21-22, 24 and January 1, trains will be hauled by the Hampshire Narrow Gauge Railway Trust’s 1919 Bagnall 0-4-0ST Wendy continuing its period on loan from the Bursledon Brickworks Museum. ➲ TWO-car DMU set Nos. 51909 and 56271, the backbone of the Somerset & Dorset Heritage Trust’s operation at Midsomer Norton station, was taken by low loader to the East Somerset Railway at Cranmore in October. Scheduled repairs and restoration, particularly around the corridor ends of both coaches, are long overdue and this problem rendered the connecting doors unserviceable while the unit was in traffic at Midsomer Norton recently. Welding and plating will be required among other work. ➲ PROGRESS continues on the creation of new Class 23 ‘Baby Deltic’ D5910 with news that Class 37/3 37372 has been cut in two at Barrow Hill as a prelude to the installation of the Napier T9 engine unit. ➲ THE conservation and restoration of the historic Orenstein & Koppel 500mm gauge wagon, found beneath Bath Spa station during recent development work, is to be undertaken at the Barry Rail Centre.

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News

Welcome aboard Aln Valley

The Duke of Northumberland stands on the running plate of Barclay diesel No. 615 shortly after the ribbon-cutting ceremony. AVR

By Robin Jones AFTER two decades of campaigning, the Aln Valley Railway has been officially opened. At a ceremony at Alnwick’s Lionheart industrial estate base of Britain’s newest heritage railway on October 30, landowner and railway president the Duke of Northumberland cut a tape to declare the line open. Opening the railway, the Duke said: “To see this coming to fruition is a real thrill.” The ceremony was attended by special guests including the line’s vice-president, Berwick MP Sir Alan Beith, founding chairman Stuart Manley of Barter Books and Jack Forsyth and Ken Middlemist – the last surviving driver and fireman from the line in BR days. They were met by the chairman Martin Robinson and escorted around part of the Lionheart site including the steam and diesel locomotives and rolling stock which were on display in the shed yard. They also visited the completed compartments of the BR

The official opening train departs from Alnwick (Lionheart) station. AVR

The Duke of Northumberland cuts the tape at Alnwick (Lionheart) to declare Britain’s newest heritage line open. DAVE HEWITT

Mk.1 coach under restoration in the shed. The guests then walked the 30 chains from the loco shed to the station platform where the duke cut the ribbon. The duke was presented with a wooden plaque bearing a mounted cast iron replica North Eastern Railway seat-back sign bearing the legend ‘Lionheart’. Sir Alan was presented with a wooden plaque bearing a mounted cast iron reproduction 52D shedplate. In BR days, 52D was the shed code for Tweedmouth of which Alnmouth was a sub-shed; Alnwick (Lionheart) shed is now deemed to be the second sub-shed of Tweedmouth. The duke and Sir Alan then rode on the footplate as Barclay diesel No. 651 hauled the replica NER brake van several hundred yards to the yard headshunt and back, while other dignitaries rode in the brake van. This locomotive was chosen for the inaugural train as it worked at nearby Whittle Colliery, and was driven by Ken, who had

councillors, representatives of local commerce and industry, railway companies and tourism. The event also marked the launch of the Let’s Get to Alnmouth appeal for money to help the railway extend from the new station site down on to the trackbed of the former NER branch to Alnmouth, where services will, hopefully, connect with those on the East Coast Main Line. Spokesman Roger Jermy said: “There is a certain amount of relief among everyone that in the last 20 months since we moved to the Alnwick site we have managed to make significant progress to have an official opening. “It is a landmark because there has been lots of years of planning and legal work, but we have got on to the site and we have a station building, sidings, steam and diesel locos and we are in the position where we can have proper trains running.” The line was closed by BR in 1968 and the track was lifted shortly afterwards.

transferred from BR to the National Coal Board. The trip was followed by a buffet in the lco shed provided by the railway’s partner the Pottergate Pantry. The Pottergate Centre, based in Alnwick, provides education for adults with learning difficulties and the Pottergate Pantry is its business venture. The carers and their clients run the cafe at Alnwick Lionheart as part of their outreach programme – a partnership believed to be unique among heritage railways in entering into a partnership of this kind. Sir Alan Beith cut the ‘AVR Official Opening’ cake with the help of Kay Seymour-Walker, a past chairman of the railway. Musical entertainment was provided by one of the railway’s volunteers, Ron Bernstein, who, with a barbershop acapella group, will be recording an Aln Valley Railway CD of railway songs, including a special track This is the Aln Valley Railway. More than 120 VIP guests included county and district

Two First World War locomotives for Warley show

TWO genuine First World War locomotives are to join the chassis of new-build LMS Patriot No. 45551 The Unknown Warrior at this year’s Warley National Model Railway Exhibition on November 23-24. Baldwin 4-6-0T No. 778 (44656/1917) is one of the 495 locomotives supplied to the British War Department by the works in Philadelphia. After the war, No. 778 was sent for further service in India, where it remained until the 1980s. It was restored to working order and original appearance by the Greensand Railway Museum Trust, and is based at the Leighton Buzzard Railway. It is still the only working example of its class in Britain. Also coming to the event at the National

22 Heritage Railway

Exhibition Centre near Birmingham is MotorRail Simplex ‘protected’ petrol tractor No. 3098 (1377/1918). Built too late to take part in the military action, it spent its working life in the more mundane surroundings of Knostrop sewage works in Leeds. It is on long-term loan to the Leighton Buzzard Railway from the National Railway Museum. The exhibition will also be the platform for the relaunch of an appeal by the Greensand Trust, for the restoration of what is believed to be the oldest surviving ‘armoured’ 40hp Simplex, and the only one still with its original petrol engine and transmission. No. 2182 (MR 461/1917) saw active service

with the War Department Light Railways before spending several decades at the Furness Brick & Tile Works, Askham-in-Furness. It was preserved as an exhibit at the Museum of Army Transport, Beverley, and was presented to Leighton Buzzard after the venue closed. The upper parts of the armour plating were removed many years ago for practical reasons, but were replaced by wooden replicas in preservation. The restoration of authentic metal armour is a key part of the restoration plan, as is the rebuild of the engine and transmission, which have not run for over 50 years. It is hoped that the work can be completed by 2016, in time for the centenary of the start of Motor Rail production in nearby Bedford.

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World’s oldest electric line faces funding shortfall THE future of Brighton’s Volks Electric Railway is under threat through shortage of funding, it has been claimed. Fears have been expressed that the line could become unsafe to operate in future years if substantial grant aid is not forthcoming. Local Tory councillor Geoffrey Theobald told a recent meeting of the Brighton and Hove City Council: “I always fear we will get to the situation where the trains can’t be repaired and the service will be put in a very difficult position. “It’s really quite important to the city.” The railway, opened by Victorian

Second landslip hits services at Wensleydale

THE Wensleydale Railway has suffered a second landslip this year, leading to services being curtailed. The latest landslip at Akebar has cut off the western end of the line, leaving the railway with a potential £40,000 bill. It was only eight months ago that a similar amount of money was spent on rectifying a landslip in the locality. The latest landslip forced the cancellation of a special bonfire night train running from Leyburn to a fireworks display at Bedale on Saturday, November 2. However, volunteers have pledged to work flat out to have the line operational before Santa services start. Railway director Angus Made said that the problems stem from the fact that the embankment at Akebar comprises ash, which has moved with the recent heavy rainfall. He said: “We have kept a diesel unit at the western end, so we will be running trains from Finghall up through Wensleydale to Redmire. Our Santa specials which are hugely popular will also still go ahead from Leeming Bar.” The railway already faces disruption with the A684 level crossing at Aiskew being replaced in mid November weeks after an accident when a cyclist was injured. The new crossing is innovative and new to the UK with a depressable rubber strip which will minimise the risk of cycle wheels slipping into the rail.

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inventor Magnus Volk, is the oldest electric railway in the world still in use, and is of paramount historical significance. However, the local authority said that there are problems with the seafront railway’s outdated stock sheds which are propped up by scaffolding and leak. The council has set aside £250,000 for a new temporary shed, and work could start in the spring. However, a bid for £1.47 million from the Coastal Communities Fund to provide solar panels and create the world’s first solar powered electric railway failed in January. A recent bid for Heritage Lottery

funding failed, but a revised application to turn the railway into an all-weather attraction has now been submitted. Volk’s Electric Railway Association spokesman Peter Williams said: “We are confident there is a strong case for Volk’s Electric Railway to receive Lottery funds.” However, council finance director Catherine Vaughan said if the bid proved successful, all avenues of external funding for the railway had been exhausted. “At that point, we will need to decide if we have to allocate additional funding from our own budgets,” she said.

Coun Ken Dixon, Stocktonon-Tees Borough Council cabinet member for arts, leisure and culture, leader Coun Bob Cook and costumed volunteers from Preston Park Museum and Grounds, Lucy Passman, Anita Sanderson, Barry Jones and Catherine Barnett, with the new Locomotion No. 1 sculpture. STOCKTON-ON-TEES BOROUGH COUNCIL

Steel locomotive sculpture in Stockton is unveiled A GIANT steel sculpture celebrating Stockton’s world railway heritage has been installed at a gateway to the town. The 60ft-long steel 2D model of Locomotion No. 1, which hauled the first train over the Stockton & Darlington Railway, the world’s first public steam-operated line, in 1825, has been erected next to the new St John’s Crossing junction at the southern end of the town. The £38,000 piece of public art was designed by Stokesley artist Steve Tomlinson, who attempted a

new interpretation of a 19th century engraving of Timothy Hackworth’s locomotive. LED lights are to be added to illuminate the sculpture in the evenings in a dazzling array of colours. The sculpture is the first of two featuring the locomotive which are being installed in Stockton. The second, the Stockton Flyer, is an automated sculpture that will emerge from a stone plinth in High Street, gushing steam and clanking into life at set times each day.

Time capsule station for sale NORTHUMBERLAND’S Norham station, said to be a time capsule from its closure under the Beeching Axe in 1965, is on the market for £420,000. The Grade II listed station, which dates from 1851 and still has its original signalbox, waiting room, platform, engine shed and goods shed, was bought for £800 by the last stationmaster and signalman Peter Short who kept all the original features and turned it into a free museum, which closed in 2010.

His three children are now selling it with three acres of land. The station stood on the 23 mile NER line from Tweedmouth to Sprouston Junction, Kelso via Coldstream. In 1948, the line was used for three months as a diversionary route from the East Coast Main Line which was flooded. Richard Landale, of Sale & Partners, who is handling the sale said: “Norham appears to still be a working station, so much has been preserved.”

Could Caernarfon branch be reopened?

FFESTINIOG & Welsh Highland Railway volunteers have been looking at the potential for reviving the seven-mile Caernarfon to Bangor branch. The branch closed in 1970, after being used to bring in visitors to the investiture of the Prince of Wales at Caernarfon Castle the year before. The track and some bridges were removed but the trackbed still exists. Spokesman for the would-be revivalists Andrew Thomas said that a standard gauge line could be run off the existing Holyhead to Chester line at Menai Bridge and run to a station next to the Morrisons supermarket on the eastern side of Caernarfon. There, it would meet an extended Welsh Highland Railway which would run through the old tunnel under the Maes. Andrew said that the project could be achieved for around £28 million, and would provide the missing link in a 90 mile cuircular trip including the Conwy Valley line and both narrow-gauge railways. Lord Dafydd Elis Thomas, Welsh Assembly member for Dwyfor Meirionnydd, said it would give a major boost to tourism as well as helping commuters, and hed was 100% behind the idea. Restoration of a railway would require a bridge to be rebuilt at Felinheli, an infilled cutting at Balaclava Square in Caernarfon dug out and the tunnel cleared. Arriva Trains Wales proposed restoring the branch more than a decade ago, but the now defunct Strategic Rail Authority said its plans were “not practicable”.

The railway with purple steam

A NEW railway will open in Norfolk – with an engine that emits purple steam. An order for the locomotive and four carriages has been placed by Tom Blofeld, founder of the Bewilderwood treehouse adventure park at Horning and creator of the Boggles and Twiggles children’s stories, with Stratford-upon-Avonbased manufacturer Severn Lamb. Planning permission for the narrow gauge line on the theme park, opened in 2007 and which now has 160,000 visitors annually, has been given. It is set to take six months to build and be open by May. The 80-seater train will take families into new areas of the wood and marshes on a 15 minute journey along a one-and-a half mile track, introducing them to new Boggles and Twiggles characters.

Heritage Railway

23

News NYMR boost bodes well for Whitby

THE North Yorkshire Moors Railway has seen its income from tickets increase by around 9.5% compared with the same period in 2012, although results in some other areas have not matched this increase, yielding an overall increase of about 4% on turnover. A figure which gives grounds for encouragement for the planned increase in services to Whitby from 2014 onwards is that more than 50% of tickets sold now include travel to Whitby. At the same time, operating costs have been controlled to the point where they are running at a similar level to 2012. Preparations for the modifications at Whitby – where the NYMR is to get its own platform – and Grosmont continue. All the funding for the work is now in place and sign-off on the project agreement between the NYMR and Network Rail was expected to be complete by the end of November, with work on site at Whitby expected to begin early in 2014. Work has already started at Grosmont with the construction of a short length of retaining wall at the north end of the station to create space for the point rodding to the crossover from the NYMR to the branch to be installed.

British Engineerium founder dies

JONATHAN Minns, the founder of the British Engineerium in Hove, died at his Sussex home on October 13, the day after his 75th birthday. With the aid of friends, in 1971 he saved the Grade II* listed derelict Victorian Goldstone water pumping station and restored it to create the attraction on a shoestring budget of just £350 as the world’s only centre for the “teaching of engineering conservation”. One of his prize exhibits was a 22in model of Stockton & Darlington Railway pioneer Locomotion No. 1, made by George Stephenson. There was also an 1802 model engine signed by Richard Trevithick in the collection. He collected road, rail, marine and stationary steam engines, traction engines and a host of memorabilia across different fields. Currently closed for restoration, the Engineerium is set to reopen in 2016. One of Jonathan’s uncles was hovercraft inventor Sir Christopher Cockerell. The funeral took place on October 31, starting with a traction engine procession on Chesham Road, Kemp Town. He is survived by his wife Vanessa and their two daughters.

24 Heritage Railway

LBSCR ‘A1X ‘Terrier’ 0-6-0T No. 8 Freshwater passes Smallbrook Farm during the Hayling Island branch commemorative gala on the Isle of Wight Steam Railway on November 10. OLIVER GOODMAN

Nene Valley offered old Wansford station for £50k, but… EXCLUSIVE By Robin Jones THE Nene Valley Railway has launched a £150,000 SOS appeal to cover the cost of achieving its longheld dream of buying and restoring the original Wansford station building. It has now been offered the yellow stone building at a bargain price of £50,000. However, far more money needs to be raised to carry out basic protective repairs to save it from falling into ruin, and this is now the subject of the latest appeal. The Nene Valley Railway Heritage Centre Group was set up in 2003 to rescue the old Wansford station building and develop it as a restored Victorian railway station with displays and exhibits telling the story of the Northampton to Peterborough line. However, it was initially thought that it would have to raise £700,000 to buy the attractive and ornate Grade II listed building, which has stood empty for many years, along with the station yard. However, the owner, the adjacent transport and warehousing firm J A Hutchinson (Wansford) Ltd, has now agreed to sell the station building, but not the yard, to the railway at a knockdown price. It is in urgent need of restoration to prevent it from becoming a ruin. Standing beside platform 3, in October 2011 the building, designed by J W Livock, appeared on the list of the 10 most threatened Victorian and Edwardian buildings published by the Victorian Society. Huntingdon District Council's

Buildings at Risk Register lists the station building as category 1, the highest category. The station opened along with the Northampton & Peterborough Railway in 1845, and for a time was the railhead for Grantham, as it lay on the Great North Road. Wansford closed for regular passenger services on July 1, 1957, although they continued to run over the line to Northampton until 1964 and Rugby until 1966. Not being able to get access to the station building, the NVR built a new headquarters and on the opposite side of the line. In 2004, the heritage line received a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund to appoint a project planning officer to develop plans for a heritage centre in the old station. Five years later, a bid for major Lottery cash was turned down because the railway could not get written confirmation from the

owner that it would be willing to sell the building at an agreed price. Now the owner has agreed to dispose of the structure, the only original station building surviving on the NVR, for £50,000, which roughly corresponds to what the railway raised from its first appeal. As HR closed for press, the sale of the building was still under negotiation but was understood to be in its final stages. This is only the first step in what will undoubtedly be a very costly restoration. Once the sale is completed, the aim is to resume the HLF bid for the restoration of the building under the leadership of NVR general manager Hannah Forman. ➲ Would you like to help save old Wansford station? Donations will be welcomed at Station Appeal, Nene Valley Railway, Wansford station, Stibbington, Peterborough PE8 6LR.

Diesel action alongside old Wansford station, now the subject of an emergency £150,000 appeal. BRIAN SHARPE www.heritagerailway.co.uk

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News

£½ million home for prized carriages By Geoff Courtney

WORK has started on a £½ million carriage shed that will be home to the Kent & east Sussex Railway’s collection of prized vintage vehicles. Located at Rolvenden on the opposite side of the tracks to the railway’s locomotive depot, the building will be nearly 400ft long – equivalent to five Mk.1 carriages – and comprise four roads with associated sidings. Site work has already been completed, allowing tracklaying and construction of the shed itself. The project includes nearly a mile of track, eight points and realignment of the current line, all of which is being undertaken by volunteers; and it is expected the shed will have been built by next spring and the entire project completed by the summer. The work is being funded by the Rother Valley Railway heritage Trust, which is also working closely with the KeSR on bridging the twomile gap between the two railways. RVR trustee Mike hart said: “For too long the wonderful collection of KeSR carriages, which includes

several Victorian vehicles, has suffered in the open, and the trust is delighted to be helping its sister organisation the KeSR in providing this long overdue covered accommodation. “This project will also help prepare the line for its link to the RVR at Robertsbridge by increasing the life of these carriages and so reducing the load placed on the already overstretched carriage restoration team.” *The KeSR was forced to cancel its 50th anniversary commemoration of the closure of the hayling Island branch on November 2 due to the nonavailability of the two A1X ‘Terriers’ that were to star in the event. Both Nos. 32670 and 32678 had problems which precluded them from taking part, and instead the railway ran a normal service. General manager Graham Baldwin said: “We couldn’t run a hayling Island celebration without ‘Terriers’, so we called it off. “It was really disappointing – it is the first time in my nine years at the railway that we have had to cancel a special event unless due to snow.”

Rolvenden rush hour: No. 23 Holman F. Stephens (right) departs from Rolvenden with a Bodiam-bound train on December 3, 2011, while USA 0-6-0T No. 65 takes on water prior to continuing its journey to Tenterden. In the shed yard on the left is A1X ‘Terrier’ 0-6-0T No. 32678, which had to cry off from the railway’s Hayling Island celebration on November 2. The new KESR carriage shed is to be built on the far right beyond the signalbox, and when completed next summer will provide cover for such vintage vehicles as that being hauled by No. 23. GEOFF COURTNEY

Patriot wears its poppies with pride

Irish steaming problems – but new station opens

NeW-build LMS Patriot 4-6-0 No. 45551 The Unknown Warrior was decorated with poppies and was seen by visitors to the Llangollen Railway works as part of Remembrance weekend events. The Unknown Warrior is dedicated to the fallen from all conflicts and has been endorsed by the Royal British Legion as the new National Memorial engine. The Unknown Warrior is expected to be completed by 2018 – the 100th anniversary of the Armistice, if sufficient funds can be raised to complete the locomotive. The recently launched Boiler Loan Scheme has so far raised £75,000 towards building the new boiler that will be built by LNWR heritage Ltd at Crewe. The driving wheels, which have been sponsored by Heritage Railway readers, arrived at Llangollen on November 11 for fitting beneath the chassis. The rolling chassis will be displayed at the National Memorial Arboretum near Lichfield on Thursday, November 21, between 1-3 pm. It will then be transported to the Warley National Model Railway exhibition at the National exhibition Centre near Birmingham on November 23-24.

The Railway Preservation Society of Ireland’s much troubled 2-6-0 No. 461 has been the cause for yet more concern after the Dublin & South eastern Railway engine ran an overheated big end on October 19. Previously plagued with steaming problems, this latest incident happened when the K2 was returning light engine from Dublin Connolly on a positioning run to Dundalk before working a special to Whitehead and return for the Dundalk Railway heritage Society the following day, October 20. Instead of steam, the special was worked by an NIR diesel which earlier had brought the empty stock from Whitehead. A week later, the 2-6-0 was moved with care back to Whitehead where a heritage engineering Ireland team of engineers dismantled the troublesome big end to establish the cause of overheating. Working against the clock, the engineers are hoping to return the K2 to health because the engine is needed back at Dublin in time for December’s Santa Specials. It seems that Dundalk is not a happy hunting ground for the 2-6-0, as the engine was twice ‘stopped’ there in 2012 following big end problems. Meanwhile Northern Ireland Railways has applauded the society for its acceptance of the need to adapt to changes on the modern network. Appreciation was voiced by Translink general manager Mal McGreevy when he officially opened Whitehead’s new widely praised period style £270,000 station building on October 16. The station building, based on a Belfast & Northern Counties Railway design, represents the first phase of a £4 million development programme being carried at the society’s Whitehead complex.

www.heritagerailway.co.uk

The front of the new Patriot and its nameplate decorated with poppies. ANDREW LAWS/LMS-PATRIOT PROJECT

Heritage Railway

27

News

INBRIEF

➲ PROGRESS continues on the creation of new Class 23 ‘Baby Deltic’ D5910 with news that Class 37/3 37372 has been cut in two at Barrow Hill as a prelude to the installation of the Napier T9 engine unit. ➲ CLASS 122 ‘bubblecar’ No. 55012 has been moved from the North Norfolk Railway to the Ecclesbourne Valley Railway for the resolution of engine problems, which have dogged the unit in recent times. There is no immediate intent to use the unit with resident sister vehicle No. 55006 but it is hoped to do so once the problems are resolved.

➲ THE Bodmin & Wenford Railway is to apply for a wedding and civil partnership licence for newly restored showpiece 1881-built GWR Special Saloon No. 248, which was used privately by the future Edward VII. ➲ A REPLACEMENT diesel electric locomotive for the Isle of Man Railway has been completed in the US and is due to be delivered in December. ➲ THE 14th annual Carriage Restorers Convention, organised by National Railway Museum conservation manager Stathis Tsolis and staged in the NRM’s conservation workshop on November 9-10, attracted an attendance of more than 70 delegates from around the country. ➲ THE Swanage Railway has earned a supporting tourism accolade at the 2013 Poole Tourism Awards for “significantly increasing” the number of visitors to the locality. ➲ THE Kingdom of Fife Railway Preservation Society has been awarded an £8000 local council grant to resurface the entry road into its Kirkland yard in Leven. ➲ THE Epping Ongar Railway has installed a new water crane at North Weald station with the help of local company DGR Mechanical Services. ➲ THE Barry Rail Centre has been awarded a contract for the testing and commissioning of the unique Class 70 diesel electric No. 70099, on which three months of driver training began in November. It has also landed a major contract for wagon storage. ➲ SOPRANO Rebecca Newman is starring in a Christmas music video filmed at the Derwent Valley Light Railway station at Murton, with a cast of children and adults from the local theatre company We Are Theatre.

➲ All the lAteSt NewS

For breaking stories from the world of heritage railways go online at:

www.heritagerailway.co.uk

28 heritage Railway

LMS Jubilee 4-6-0 No. 45699 Galatea storms up Shap at Greenholme with Vintage Trains’ ‘Cumbrian Jubilee’ on November 9. MAURICE BURNS

Surprise restoration for GNR(I) By Hugh Dougherty

THE Railway Preservation Society of Ireland has announced the surprise return to steam of a locomotive that had been at the back of its restoration queue for the last 10 years. Great Northern Railway of Ireland Q Class 4-4-0 No. 131, built by Neilson Reid in Glasgow in 1901, has attracted funding and match funding under a £1.3 million Heritage Lottery Fund and GROW South Antrim scheme to return it to main line condition by November 2014. The contract has been given to the Railway Preservation Society (Ireland)’s PSI’s Whitehead-based Heritage Engineering (Ireland) Ltd company and work has already started on the major project. Non-destructive testing has been carried out on the boiler and some components will be manufactured by Heritage Engineering to replace missing ones. All work will be carried out to strict deadlines to meet the conditions of the funding package. No. 131, originally named Uranus, is a remarkable survivor having passed to Coras Iompair Eireann after the break-up of the GNR (I) board in 1958 following a

The frames of GNR(I) 4-4-0 No. 131 in Whitehead. HUGH DOUGHERTY

lifetime of work on the PortadownDerry road and in and around Clones and Enniskillen on the Irish North section. It was withdrawn from service in 1963 by CIE and stored for possible preservation, being exhibited in GNR (I) sky blue, a livery never carried by the 16-strong Q Class in service, for an open day at Inchicore Works in 1969. It was later mounted on a plinth at Dundalk station, but released to the now-defunct Great Southern Railway Preservation Society at Mallow in 1984, where the locomotive was dismantled for restoration and a superheater element was purchased from the Severn Valley Railway. However, the scheme failed and the component parts of No. 131 were eventually rescued and brought back to Inchicore works,

before they were transferred to the RPSI at Whitehead in May 2003. There, it was relegated to storage as a kit of parts for possible eventual restoration, but without any real hope of this happening in the short term. Charles Friel of the RPSI said: “We were delighted to learn that we could go ahead with No. 131 when the cash came up quite suddenly and now it’s all systems go to meet the deadlines. “This is a locomotive that we have always wanted to restore, but which stayed well down the queue for very practical and financial reasons. There are some dismantling challenges as the components have been lying around for many years, but we’re confident that the work will be done in time and it should be in steam this time next year. “The fact that we’re concentrating on 131 doesn’t mean that our more famous GNR(I) 4-4-0, No. 171, Slieve Gullion, won’t also be progressed with the target of returning it to service in 2014 as well; and with compound No. 85, now being fitted with TPWS and OTMR systems for main line use and expected to be in service in the New Year, it means that we could have three GNR(I) 4-4-0s in service for our golden jubilee year.”

West Somerset freelance mogul bows out THE West Somerset Railway’s ‘freelance’ mogul No. 9351 has bowed out of service after 10 years. On November 3, it headed the 4.10pm train from Bishops Lydeard to Minehead prior to its withdrawal for the statutory 10-year heavy overhaul. Since the locomotive, converted from unrestored Barry scrapyard GWR prairie No. 5193, entered service on September 30, 2004, it has covered 96,409 miles on

the West Somerset and 265 during a visit to the Severn Valley Railway, making 96,674 miles overall. The mogul is built to a Great Western design that was never implemented by the company. In the 1930s, the Swindon Works drawing office was looking at ideas for replacing the 50-year-old Dean Goods 0-6-0s, but instead opted for a new design of 0-6-0 in the form of the 2251 class. www.heritagerailway.co.uk

GalaSpecial

Mid-Hants end of season is a shining spectacular By Brian Sharpe THE autumn gala season was rounded off over the weekend of October 26- 8 with a three-day eight engine spectacular on the Mid-Hants Railway.

The working home fleet of Bulleid West Country Pacific No. 34007 Wadebridge, SR Schools 4-4-0 No. 925 Cheltenham, 2-6-0 No. 31806 and 4-6-0 No. 850 Lord Nelson, and LMS ‘Black Five’ 4-6-0 No. 45379, was augmented by no

fewer than three visiting Pacifics from the Southall stable. Jeremy Hosking’s main line registered Bulleid West Country Pacific No. 34046 Braunton and BR Standard Pacific No. 70000 Britannia plus blue-liveried LNER

A1 Pacific No. 60163 Tornado made the journey to Alton in convoy the week before the event. Inclement weather immediately after the gala delayed the return of the Pacifics, but they were able to leave once the gales had subsided. Left: West Country Pacifics No. 34046 Braunton and No. 34007 Wadebridge are captured at Bishop Sutton in a rare glimpse of sunshine at the Mid-Hants steam gala. MATTHEW TOMS Right: Visiting BR Standard Pacific No. 70000 Britannia passes Bowers Grove Wood with the 9.30am from Alresford on October 27. WARWICK FALCONER Below: Nos. 34046 Braunton and 34007 Wadebridge are seen on Wanders Curve, Soldridge with the 10.05am from Alresford on October 27. WARWICK FALCONER

30 Heritage Railway

News

BBQ chat saves Rowntree’s loco from cutter’s torch By Geoff Courtney

A 53-year-old locomotive has been saved from the cutter’s torch and will operate on a heritage railway in its former home city after husband and wife Tony and Glynnis Frith hatched a rescue plan during a summer barbecue. The 0-4-0 diesel shunter was built by Ruston & Hornsby in 1960 for Rowntree & Co of York, and worked there as No. 3 until being transferred to the confectionery company’s Newcastle upon Tyne plant in 1980, being withdrawn in 1987 when rail operations ceased. No. 3 was donated to the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, and in 1988 was loaned to the Middleton Railway in Leeds, where it saw passenger service before moving to Locomotion at Shildon in 2006. In July this year the NYMR included No. 3 on a disposal list, which required all items to be bought before the end of the year, failing which they would be offered for scrap. It was this list that alerted Glynnis – who with her husband is a volunteer on the Derwent Valley Light Railway in Murton Park, York – to the probable demise of the former Rowntree 0-4-0. “I read about the list on my phone in early July while Tony was cooking a barbecue, and when I told him No. 3 was included he said he was

DIESEL SAVIOURS: Tony and Glynnis Frith at the Derwent Valley Light Railway with the former Rowntree’s diesel shunter they have saved from the scrapman and brought home to York. GLYNNIS FRITH

determined to rescue her from the gas axe,” said Glynnis. “He talked me into agreeing to buy it, but it didn’t take a lot of talking, for like him I did not want to see more of our heritage being lost forever, because once it’s gone, it’s gone. “We had seen her at Shildon last year, outside the museum tucked away from general access, and Tony asked a member of staff if he could take a photograph as we were from York and this was a Rowntree York locomotive.” Tony, a 61-year-old delivery driver for a small York company, said:

“When Glynnis told me the NYMR was offering items for sale and those not sold would be scrapped by the end of the year, I said we had to save a York locomotive, it would be coming back home and a piece of local history that we couldn’t let be scrapped. “We both decided it would be great to save a York loco and have it on the Derwent Valley Light Railway, so we gathered up our savings and purchased it.” The Ruston arrived at Murton Park in September, and has since run under its own power.

Tom Deakin, the railway’s publicity manager, said: “No. 3 is now back in its home town 33 years after it left, and it is expected that it will be in service next year after some work over winter.” The DVLR runs over a half-mile stretch of the former 15 mile York Layerthorpe to Cliffe Common, near Selby, line that opened in 1912 and closed in 1981. In addition to two former BR diesels, Class 03 03079 (D2079) and Class 14 D9523, the railway is home to two other 0-4-0 diesels with local connections, a 1953 Ruston & Hornsby that worked for British Sugar at York and Selby, and an exYorkshire Grain Driers loco built by John Fowler & Co in 1947. Glynnis, who is 58 and a ration accountant at an Army training camp, said: “When we took the photo of No. 3 at Shildon last year we never thought we would actually own it. “I have to pinch myself because I would never have thought we would own a loco. “I am proud that we have saved No. 3 and that she is back in York where she started her working life and spent 20 years. What better place for her to be based than on the Derwent Valley Light Railway, which in its operational days linked up with the branch to the Rowntree factory?”

Top railwayana auction houses in tie-up By Geoff Courtney

TWO major railwayana auction houses have forged a link to cater for the growing demand for online bidding. They are Great Central, one of the country’s leading live railwayana auction specialists, and Railwayana.net – whose internet sales are developing a growing reputation. Under the deal, Railwayana.net – which is run by Chris France – will become part of the Great Central group, but retain its name. It will continue to hold up to four internet auctions a year, all of them catalogued compared with just two per year as at present. Mike Soden, a Great Central director with Dave Jones and also its auctioneer, said: “With the younger generation of railwayana collectors becoming a large and influential segment of the market, internet bidding is becoming 34 Heritage Railway

increasingly important, and it is an area we would like to develop.” Under the deal, Great Central will source most of the items going under the metaphorical hammer and handle administration, with Chris continuing to run the auctions themselves. “Chris France has been running increasingly successful internet auctions as Railwayana.net for a number of years, and under our tieup that expertise will now be available to Great Central,” said Mike. “I have known him for many years and admired what he has built up. His internet auctions are well run, straightforward, popular, and greatly respected. I believe that a combination of our resources and his knowledge of this sector of the market will be a winner.” Chris, who is 65, said: “I am delighted to team up with Great Central, which has become the country’s top railwayana auction

house, and look forward to working with them. Internet auctions are a different way of doing things, and an expanding one.” He founded Railwayana.net in 2001, when he estimates that probably no more than one person in 100 was online. “How different things are now,” he said. Great Central now has five strings to its bow – its flagship live auctions held quarterly at Stoneleigh Park in Warwickshire; a major postal auction held under the Sheffield Railwayana name; twice yearly live sales at Bloxham, Oxfordshire, of up to 1000 secondary lots; occasional live ticket auctions in London, and now Railwayana.net Dave Jones and Mike Soden first teamed up in October 1986 under the RCN Auctions name with sales in Leicester. This became Kidlington Railwayana Auctions in 1993 and then Great Central Railwayana – and relocation to

INTERNET DRIVE: Chris France of Railwayana.net is to spearhead a major push by Great Central Railwayana into the world of internet auctions after the two companies announced a tie-up. GEOFF COURTNEY

Stoneleigh Park – in April 2007. Mike has been a railwayana collector since 1960 whenhe put his name down with BR for the nameplate Banbury Castle, from No. 7011, which he still owns. www.heritagerailway.co.uk

David Cation’s winning image of Scots Guardsman, taken on a Canon EOS 5D with EF 70 – 200mm f2.8 L IS USM lens at 200mm. 1/320 sec, f/5, ISO200, and tripod, and processed in Adobe Photoshop CS5 – colour balance and contrast adjusted.

Scots Guardsman goes Forth to win national competition A STUNNING image of LMS Royal Scot 4-6-0 No. 46115 Scots Guardsman hauling a railtour over the Forth Bridge has won the Network Rail-sponsored Lines in the Landscape Award. The winning photograph in that category at this year’s Take a View’s Landscape Photographer of the Year competition was taken by David Cation, an amateur photographer from Glasgow. His entry was judged the best of around 500 photographs that capture Britain’s extensive rail network and its relationship with our landscape. David said: “The Forth Rail Bridge had recently been repainted and I timed this visit to North Queensferry to coincide with the crossing of a steam train. I was drawn to the finesse of the details within the massive structure and chose the gap in the bracing to frame the locomotive.” Competition founder and renowned landscape photographer Charlie Waite selected the winning image. He said: “You can almost hear the clatter of the train as it passes through this cat’s cradle of brilliant Victorian engineering, now given a new lease of life by modern paint technologies and the efforts of Network Rail. Nostalgic? Yes... why not? A wonderful image.” Ten other entries to the Lines in www.heritagerailway.co.uk

the Landscape Award have also been commended by Charlie Waite and have had their image printed in Landscape Photographer of the Year: Collection 7, published by AA Publishing on October 31, at £25. The book showcases around 150 of the best entries and all the category winners. Network Rail chief executive David Higgins said: “The many thousands of bridges and viaducts we manage and maintain form a significant part of the British landscape but few are as spectacular or as well loved as the Forth Rail Bridge.” As the winner of the award, David has the option of joining a flight in Network Rail’s inspection helicopter, which has onboard infrared technology to monitor thousands of miles of track, or a ride on the New Measurement Train, a converted high speed train that is used to capture geo-technical track data safely. Commended in the same category was Dorset entrant Alan Courtney’s view of a charter headed by BR Pacific No. 70000 Britannia heading the ‘Bath Spa Express’ through Parkstone, taken from an overbridge after dawn. Alan said: “As the smoke and steam began to dissipate, I managed to get this more unusual ‘going away’ shot with the sun’s early

Alan Courtney’s view of Britannia was taken on a Panasonic Lumix DMC-G2 with 14-140mm lens at 48mm,1/250 sec, ISO100. It was processed from Raw to Jpeg and cropped in Adobe Lightroom, with some slight adjustments to levels.

morning rays penetrating the darkness of the cutting and illuminating the rails and sides of the coaches giving a retro, yet strangely contemporary, picture.”

The best images from this year’s competition will be displayed at an exhibition at the National Theatre in London from December 7 to February 8. Heritage Railway

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News

Zig Zag Railway decimated by blaze now hit by thieves A MiLiTArY exercise was being blamed for causing a bush fire in Australia’s Blue Mountains which incinerated part of a heritage line. eleven vehicles, including a rail motor, were destroyed as the fire swept through the depot of the Zig Zag railway at Clarence, Lithgow. now to add insult to injury, thieves have targeted some of the surviving areas of the new South Wales heritage line, which had been undergoing repairs in order to restart operations after a number of issues led to it suspending services. on the afternoon of Wednesday, october 16, during a live munitions exercise at the Marrangaroo army depot west of Lithgow, a fire broke out in dry grass on the range, said a spokesman for the railway. Fanned by strong, hot, westerly winds it rapidly moved eastwards to the forested hillside on the northern side of Lithgow. rated as “out of control”, the fire raged around northern fringes of the State Mine area of Lithgow. Police ordered the railway’s caretaker to leave and the access road closed to all but emergency vehicles. By the Thursday, a huge pall of smoke hung over the Zig Zag

end of the Lithgow Valley as the now named ‘State Mine Fire’ continued on towards Clarence. on Friday morning, railway staff and volunteers were horrified to find that a depot containing the vehicles had been gutted. All four of its standard gauge sleeping cars used for accommodation, six of its 3ft 6in gauge wooden-bodied carriages and one Queensland railways 2000 class diesel rail motor, a type dating from 1956, were destroyed. only one steam locomotive suffered heat damage. The converted sleeping carriage where the caretaker lived was destroyed along with her entire belongings. The workshop office was destroyed and the burning remains dropped on to the machine shop below it. However, the carriages and locomotives inside the shed survived. There were no fatalities. The relay hut for an outer home upper quadrant signal and associated wiring was gutted, while around 1000 sleepers were destroyed along with four sets of point timbers. Several containers of spares parts – including flu and boiler tubes – were also destroyed. The local fire service saved the

Above: Parked beside the office, Rail Motor coach No. 2016 was the last fire victim on the storage road. MICHAEL FORBES Left: The mezzanine level offices burned and collapsed onto the machinery space in the workshop below. MICHAEL FORBES

The remains of Queensland Railways Rail Motor coach No. 2008 and a Hyrail-equipped Toyota truck stored on site. All pictures MICHAEL FORBES

line’s terminal station. However, since the fire, thieves targeted the railway’s surviving workshop, taking a generator, water pump and some brass and copper screws, further excerbating the helpless line’s problems. Sooty, the railway depot’s cat, had been relocated to domestic accommodation the week before. Some of the line’s losses were covered by insurance, but several historic items are just irreplaceable. Chief executive officer Michael Forbes said: “We’ve had fires before but this is the first one that’s gone through the workshop, the first time we’ve suffered damage to this extent. This is just mind-bending.” The caretaker was “lucky to escape with her life”, he said, and was left with only the clothes on her back. He said it would take more than a year for the railway to recover. in a statement, the Australian Defence Force said it would investigate the circumstances of the fire near Lithgow, which began on

its land, the same day that an explosive ordnance training activity was being carried out. The Zig Zag railway runs over the Lithgow Zig Zag line which was part of the Main Western line from october 1869 until october 1910 when the section was replaced by the Ten Tunnels deviation. it was reopened as a heritage railway in october 1975. in June last year, the railway closed for an indefinite period following accreditation issues with the new South Wales Government. Following talks, it had been intended to resume services in october, but the plans were scuppered by the fire. ➲ The Zig Zag Railway has appealed for help in its bid to recover from the fire. Anyone wishing to make a donation is invited to write to the railway at PO Box 1, Lithgow, NSW 2790, Australia. Direct donations may be made at www.zigzagrailway.com.au

Price is right as Talyllyn appoints new general manager Pioneer preservation outfit the Talyllyn railway has appointed a new general manager. Changes to the line’s senior management have seen Chris Price being appointed as general manager to work with chief executive Dave Scotson. The move followed a review into the management structure of the railway, which showed that additional resources were urgently needed to oversee the line’s management and development.

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Chris was previously employed as the line’s workshop supervisor before becoming general manager at the Fairbourne railway. in recent times, he has been employed by the Workers education Association for Wales. He was elected as a member of the Talyllyn railway Preservation Society’s governing council, serving as its chairman between 2007 and 2010. in his new role Chris will be responsible for

the strategic and commercial management of the railway company with responsibilities in marketing, human resources and business development. Dave will continue to be responsible for the operation and running of the railway. Company chairman Gareth Jones said: “We feel that now we have a senior management team, which will be able to take the railway forward into the future.”

www.heritagerailway.co.uk

INBRIEF

➲ PEAK Rail has arranged with East Midlands Trains to include its line between Matlock, Darley Dale and Rowsley to be shown on the local pocket timetable for the Nottingham-Matlock service. The connection arrival and departure times for the heritage line’s services will also be shown, making the whole document more relevant and appropriate to the services at Matlock. There will also be a new pictorial display about the railway and places of interest in both the waiting room on platforms 2/3 and the first class lounge at Derby station.

Pacific beside the North Sea: LNER A3 No. 2577 Night Hawk lights up the ECML beside the North Sea in a painting that earned its artist John Austin the top award in the recent Guild of Railway Artists’ Railart 2013 exhibition at Locomotion, Shildon.

Artist John scoops top award again By Geoff Courtney SERIAl winner John Austin has once again been voted the public’s favourite railway artist in a poll at locomotion in Shildon, earning him the accolade for the 16th year in succession. His triumph came at the Guild of Railway Artists’ Railart 2013 exhibition, at which 65 paintings by 21 members were displayed. The winning work was titled North Sea – Night Hawk, and showed lNER A3 No. 2577 (BR No. 60078) in a dramatic night setting against a dark and brooding sky. The winning painting, which earned John the lawrence

Hammonds Award rose bowl, is voted on by visitors to the exhibition, and his triumph means John, who lives in Dawlish, has won the award 20 times in total. Second place overall, and winner of the George Busby Memorial Award for best water-based painting, went to David French for his depiction of Class 66 diesel 66011 on a rainy day at Carlisle. David, a 69-year-old retired carpet designer of Kendal, Cumbria, has been painting since childhood, mainly of railways but also other subjects, including wildlife. He was a trainspotter in the mid to late 1950s in the northeast, his local shed being Mirfield (56D) and one of his regular

haunts leeds Holbeck, location of shed 55A. An lMS enthusiast – his favourite locomotives were the Jubilees – he has fond memories of many classes which frequented the area, and he remembers he and his friends, one of whose father was a fireman, dubbing the Standard 9F 2-10-0s ‘spaceships’ not because of any advanced design but due to the wide gap above the driving wheels. The exhibition, which closed on October 6, was the fourth annual Railart event staged by the guild at Shildon, and was described by guild chief executive officer Frank Hodges as of interest to not only railway enthusiasts but also people who appreciated fine art.

Lease paves the way to Wadebridge THE Bodmin & Wenford Railway has signed a new lease on its 6½ mile trackbed with owner Cornwall Council, paving the way for a renewed push to Wadebridge. For the last 27 years, the railway has operated on a temporary lease, renewable every five years, originally with North Cornwall District Council. The lease was transferred to the unitary authority, Cornwall Council, upon its inception three years ago. After a lengthy period of negotiations led by Keith Searle, the chairman of the Bodmin & Wenford Railway Trust who was also the railway’s first general manager, there is now a 35-year lease costing £9750 per year in rent. Keith reiterated that the railway’s primary goal was to extend to Wadebridge.

www.heritagerailway.co.uk

Railway spokesman Jimmy James said: “This is a significant milestone in the history of the Duchy’s premier steam railway. A temporary lease was clearly an unsatisfactory arrangement for a developing heritage railway. “We can now focus on future developments. Security of tenure will allow access to grants, and will provide greater incentives for investment. “It will permit co-operation with national network operators, and ties in with Cornwall Council’s plans for better ‘connectivity’ and the development of Bodmin itself. The volunteers of the BWR have already made huge strides over the last 25 years in creating one of Cornwall’s major tourist attractions.

➲ LONG-serving Keighley & Worth Valley Railway safety officer Michael Goodall has died after 47 years’ service with the line. Michael lost his battle with cancer at the age of 75 on September 29. A wreath was carried by a train as a mark of respect. The railway’s chairman Dr Matt Stroh said: “His job with British Rail meant we never had a safety briefing without him being able to give us an anecdote about a situation he’d previously experienced.” ➲ THE Caledonian Railway’s longserving Barclay 0-6-0ST No. 2107 of 1941 Harlaxton, which has masqueraded as No. 1 Thomas for the past six years, has been withdrawn from service for a 10 year overhaul including extensive firebox repairs. Dismantling of the engine, which formerly ran on the North Norfolk Railway, began after its last steaming on September 1, and the boiler was delivered to Israel Newton at Cromford on October 2. ➲ VILLAGE archivists helping housing developers piece together the history of the Oakhill Brewery malthouse site near Shepton Mallet have uncovered traces of the 2ft gauge railway which linked it to the Somerset & Dorset Joint railway main line at Binegar. They have also tracked down eyewitness accounts of the day-to-day operations of the line. The malthouse is being turned into 25 new homes. ➲ IN A bid to boost the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway as a prime tourism destination, the line’s authorities are revamping all 14 stations along the 50 mile route, with new signboards informing passengers about its UNESCO world heritage status. The first station to be revamped is Sukna. ➲ A TEAM of Lloyds Bank volunteers has helped clear weeds and debris from the Helston Railway. Manager Graham Bingham and 11 of his staff from Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking’s West Cornwall base turned out to lend a hand.

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News

New threat to ‘vital’ Head of Steam Railway Museum DARLINGTON’S Head of Steam museum could be closed in two years’ time if fresh external funding is not found. The museum, based at North Road station on part of the Stockton & Darlington Railway, could fall victim to cutbacks, Darlington Borough Council has warned. The local authority needs to save £15 million over the next six years, and is looking at saving money by axing its financial support for the museum. Its aim is to transfer the running of the museum back into the community by March 2016. The council will spend two years looking for bodies willing to take on the museum, which has George and Robert Stephenson’s pioneering 0-4-0 Locomotion No. 1, the first locomotive to run on the world’s first public steam-operated railway, as its star exhibit. Fears have been expressed that it could be moved out of the town if the museum closes. Also on static display is another engine from the line, 1845-built 0-6-0 No. 25 Derwent. The council’s assistant director for policy and regeneration John Anderson revealed that talks had

museum but also enhance it. Senior councillors considered a report on the authority’s draft medium term financial plan for 2014 to 2020 at a meeting on November 13. The report listed potential spending cuts of £13.8 million and a 2% annual increase in council tax. The threat to the museum comes at a time when a new group, the Friends of Stockton and Darlington Railway, has expressed concern that more and more of the original route of 1825 is being lost, to the detriment of local heritage. At its inaugural meeting at the town’s Burns Tavern on October 15, NER 2-4-0 No. 1463 of 1885 is one of several classic exhibits inside the Head of Steam the group demanded that the museum. ROBIN JONES surviving parts of the route should be signposted to allow visitors to been ongoing for several months to well as the Darlington Railway follow it. It also wants the slogan keep the museum open and make it Preservation Society, the North East ‘birthplace of the railways’ added to more attractive to visitors. Locomotive Preservation Group signs in the town. He said that the local authority and Network Rail, which runs the Already, significant stretches of believes that the museum, next door Darlington to Shildon branch, a the line engineered by George to the former Hopetown Carriage surviving part of the Stockton & Stephenson have been lost to Works where A1 Pacific No. 60163 Darlington Railway which is still developments in the town. Tornado was completed more than in use. The group is to support a multifive years ago, is vital to the John Anderson said that the agency rail heritage group which regeneration of the northern side of museum was under threat of has been established to formulate the town. closure; but added that there was plans to celebrate the bicentenary of The negotiations have included hope that other partners could be the Stockton & Darlington Railway The A1 Steam Locomotive Trust as found who would not only save the in 2025.

Cock o’ the North plate and unique lamp collection for sale at Stafford in 2014 A UNIQUE collection of railway lamps amassed by a director of the Birmingham firm that made them is coming up for auction. The collection of 138 lamps may cover every one produced by Smith’s Newhall Lamp Works over the past century. They were collected by Arthur Smith, a director of the firm based in Cato Street. A selection of the lamps will be offered for sale at the next Stafford Railwayana auction on January 11. The firm was originally founded by Walter Harry Smith in 1896 as W H Smith and was owned and managed by three generations of the family. At first it made ships’ lamps, but switched to railway lamps because of the intense local competition. A catalogue from 1914/15 states the firm was the ‘Sole Manufacturer for the Celebrated McCalls Patent Cart Lamp’. The 1960s saw the demand for 38 Heritage Railway

paraffin railway lamps start to decline and gradually over the next two decades all the Birmingham lamp manufacturers were forced to shut down. Smith’s Newhall Lamp Works was the last, ceasing trading in 1988 under Arthur’s directorship. His collection represents items obtained over many years and includes works patterns, lamps left for repair and never reclaimed and purchases from closing sales of competitors such as George Polkey, TD Bladen and Eli Griffiths . After a one-off auction at Toddington, Railwayana Auctions UK Ltd has moved back to Stafford, but to the new venue of

the Blessed William Howard Catholic High School, Rowley Avenue ST17 9AB. Among the steam locomotive nameplates at the auction are A3 Pacific No. 60105 Victor Wild, WR 4-6-0 No. 5908 Moreton Hall, LNER D49 Hunt 4-4-0 No. 361 The Garth and the replacement steel nameplate from BR Britannia Pacific No. 70031 Byron. One of the star items at the auction, however, especially in view of the soaraway success of the launch of the scheme to build a new Gresley P2, is an original brass worksplate from No. 2001 Cock o’ the North. After Gresley’s death, the 20802 was rebuilt by Edward Thompson in 1944 as a Pacific and was a forerunner of his A2 class. The worksplate bears an additional casting in brass which was added that year to signify the rebuilding. Further details are available at ukrailwayana.com

Above: Southern Railways tail lamp made by Smith’s Newhall Lamp Works. Left: One of the firm’s level crossing gate lamps. www.heritagerailway.co.uk

News

Scottish autumn

By Brian Sharpe

SINCE steam returned to the West Highland extension from Fort William to Mallaig in 1984, the operation has gone from strength to strength, with the season getting longer and longer. A bonus for photographers is that the end of

Running downhill towards Mallaig, No. 62005 passes Kinloid on October 14. MARK FIELDING

the season sees the lineside transformed by the colours of autumn. Another tradition in recent years has been the annual Scottish steam charter train which tempts a trainload of photographers to the West Highlands for a weekend at the end of the ‘Jacobite’ season. This year, operation of the train was undertaken by West Coast Railways

direct for the first time, with photographer Ben Collier dealing with the bookings. Unfortunately the weather did not play ball but West Coast intends to repeat the exercise next year and the photographers who elected for an extended stay to cover the last week or two of regular services were nevertheless rewarded with some memorable images.

LNER K1 2-6-0 No. 62005 passes Mallaig Junction with ‘The Jacobite’ as it accelerates away from Fort William on October 22. DAVE COLLIER

LMS ‘Black Five’ 4-6-0 No. 44871 passes Polnish. DAVID PRICE

News

Williamthorpe remembered By Martin Creese OVER the years the Foxfield Railway has become a bastion of all things to do with industrial and colliery railways. While former British Railways engines have been rare visitors that have carried their ‘industrial’ liveries, NER Y7 0-4-0T No. 1310 and GWR Pannier tank No. 7754 were previous ex-BR visitors. This October a little spell was broken with the visit from the Great Central Railway and with thanks to the owner of Fowler 3F 0-6-0T No. 47406. The idea was to evoke Williamthorpe Colliery in Nottinghamshire which in the last days of steam gained its place in the affections of railway enthusiasts by running some of the last surviving ‘Jinties’, steam working at the colliery finally finishing on Friday, October 6, 1967, when the lease with British Railways came to an end. Now-preserved No. 47383 which is currently on display in the Engine House at Highley on the Severn Valley Railway and lost trio of Nos. 47289, 47313 and 47629 along with J94 0-6-0ST No. 68012 were regulars in latter days. The locomotives were provided from Hasland (16H) and then on closure of that shed in 1964 from Westhouses (16G). The colliery, which is located close to Holmewood, south east of Chesterfield, opened in 1905, closing finally in 1970. The idea for a Williamthorpe recreation was not a new one and 10 years or so ago, long time coconspirator Bob Branch and I hatched plans to take No. 47383 to Foxfield. It is probably the only time I can say that Thomas the Tank

LMS 3F ‘Jinty’ 0-6-0T No. 47406 running in disguise as No. 47629 sets off from Foxfield colliery.

Engine intervened in organising a charter as No. 47383 became the SVR’s Thomas. As they say, good things come to those who wait, and I was therefore really appreciative when Richard Barnett contacted me asking if I would like to arrange a photo charter to support the Foxfield Railway on this occasion. So it was that on Friday, October 12, I arrived at Foxfield

Bagnall 0-6-0ST Florence No. 2 banks the train away from the colliery.

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Colliery to the sight of No. 47406, now running in disguise as No. 47629 and complete with later BR crests with vinyls courtesy of Nigel Brazier, and Bagnall 0-6-0ST Florence No. 2. With the railway’s rake of 16-ton mineral wagons to play with, the assembled photographers explored the cameos that the colliery creates and the crews played to the galleries with a

great selection of runpasts. The weather was challenging to say the least with plenty of sunshine all around, while we were on the receiving end at times of a good dowsing. The afternoon saw the ‘Jinty’ tackle the 1-in-19 of Foxfield bank both solo and with Florence No. 2 banking. My thanks to the crews and everyone involved from the railway in the event.

The ‘Jinty’ tackles the 1-in-19 of Foxfield bank. www.heritagerailway.co.uk

News

On November 12, D1015 Western Champion worked its first daylight freight since being hired in by GBRf. Having previously worked an overnight Wellingborough-Scunthorpe steel train, it passes through Leicester station with 11 empty JNA boxes in tow on 6D02, the 11.21am Wellingborough-Mountsorrel stone empties. ANDY SMALL

Unique British railbus faces scrapping in USA By Robin Jones A BRITISH-built prototype railbus in a US museum faces being scrapped because sufficient funds to repatriate it cannot be raised in time. LEV2, which was built by D Wickham of Ware in Hertfordshire using a bus body supplied by Leyland Motors, is currently stored at the Connecticut Trolley Museum in East Windsor, Connecticut. However, it had been deemed as not appropriate for its collection and has been offered for sale as it is taking up valuable space. The museum is prepared to sell the vehicle to the UK-based LEV2 Wickham/Leyland Railbus Repatriation Project at a very cheap price, but the stumbling block is the estimated £70,000 repatriation cost, which is way beyond the reach of the group’s budget. The museum is now looking at either removing the body and scrapping the chassis, or relocating the entire unit to another place on its site for use as a storage car. The seats will be removed and disposed of, and the car altered as required for use as storage. Again, if this proves to be nonfeasible, then LEV2 will be scrapped. The museum has agreed a one month stay of execution but said that if it receives no formal offer within that time, one of these two options will be followed. The origin of the railbus dates back to British Rail’s decision to look again at the concept from the mid-1970s, and a prototype four wheel vehicle was developed jointly by British Leyland and the British Rail Research Division. Several single and two-car railbuses were built 44 Heritage Railway

LEV2 pictured at the Connecticut Trolleybus museum on April 11, 2009. PETER WREFORD

and tested, in co-operation with Leyland, hence the name LEV (Leyland Experimental Vehicle). The first three single car prototypes were essentially Leyland National bus bodies mounted on a modified HSFV1 four-wheeled rail chassis. The prototype two-car railbus became BR Class 140. The sole member of the class, No. 140001, is preserved at the Keith & Dufftown Railway, where the ultimate aim is to restore it to running order. It formed the basis of the design of the production Class 141 Pacer sets introduced in 1984 and the Class 142s the following year. LEV2 was ordered by the USA’s Federal Railroad Administration as part of an energy efficiency programme instigated by President Jimmy Carter following the oil crisis of the 1970s. At around 50ft long it was over 10ft longer than the LEV1, the original prototype of 1978 which worked both in the USA and in the UK, and is now preserved at the North Norfolk Railway. Built to British Rail drawings on Wickham

Order No. 15700 and given Wickham Works No. 11382 it was fitted with a Leyland 690 turbocharged engine (No. 7964290/E0690/3007) and has suspension based on the High Speed Freight Vehicle but with flexicoil springing. The body was built at Workington Works of Leyland Vehicles’ Bus Division. LEV2 left Wickham’s Ware Works on October 1, 1980 and underwent testing on the Old Dalby Test Track near Melton Mowbray. The railbus has had six different owners in the last 30 years in the USA. Following export, it was used on an experimental extension of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (Boston) commuter service to Concord, New Hampshire. When that experiment was ended in 1981, LEV2 was sold to Amtrak for use on the Northeast Corridor, but it was soon removed from service following an accident at a crossing. It was subsequently sold to the Steamtown Museum in Scranton, Philadelphia for use as a shuttle, but was damaged during repair and sold for scrap. It was bought from the scrap dealer by the Durbin & Greenbrier Valley Railroad, a tourist railroad in West Virginia, and later sold to the Connecticut museum, where it remains to this day. LEV2 Wickham/Leyland Railbus Repatriation Project spokesman Jonathan Flood said: “Considering this unique Wickham/Leyland Railbus has survived for so long, it would seem a great shame if it were to end up being scrapped.” ➲Anyone interested in repatriating LEV2 is invited to email [email protected] www.heritagerailway.co.uk

www.heritagerailway.co.uk

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Magnificent

Severn

GWR 4-6-0 No. 4936 Kinlet Hall heads a photo charter towards Hampton Loade on October 9. KEVIN WHITEHURST

A new vantage point for photographers: ex-BR(NE) J72 No. 69023 passes under the new footbridge at Highley during the 2012 spring gala.

Keeping the wheels turning at Britain’s busiest preserved railway is no mean task, as Paul Appleton found out when he went to meet members of the Severn valley railway’s management team.

I

t is early afternoon on a pleasant summer’s day at Bridgnorth and two locomotives are in steam in the yard behind platform two. The footbridge gives a grandstand view as chunky BR(WR) 0-6-0PT No. 1501 and Ivatt 4MT ‘mogul’ No. 43106 bask in the sunshine, steam drifting from their cylinder drain cocks and traces of smoke gently drifting skyward. No. 7812 Erlestoke Manor waits patiently at the head of eight coaches in platform one, as the relative silence is broken as another ex-GWR engine, Churchward 2-8-0 No. 2857, draws into the station. There are another two engines in steam further down the line towards Kidderminster: ex-SR rebuilt Battle of Britain Pacific No. 34053 Sir Keith Park and GWR large prairie No. 5164, both on timetabled trains. Anywhere else and this would be a steam gala, but this is an ordinary Friday at the Severn Valley Railway. No. 2857 is on a footplate experience working, using the spare path in the three-train timetable ‘B’. It is not unusual for there to be at least one other locomotive in steam, sometimes a spare locomotive, ready should there be a failure, but more likely undergoing preparation ready for the weekend, or being tested after a boiler washout and minor repairs. It is often said that the railway needs an operational fleet of around 10 locomotives in order to cover for the occasional, inevitable failure and allow for routine maintenance and scheduled boiler washouts. In 2012 this was brought into sharp focus when available locomotives were reduced to just two – No. 43106 and No. 7812 – with the line’s resident diesels being called upon to fill the breach. The railway had suffered an unlucky spate of failures, while the entry into service of No. 34053 and the return of Hawksworth 0-6-0PT No. 1501 were delayed. Broken springs on Stanier mogul No. 42968, motion repairs on small prairie No. 4566, a ‘flat’ on No. 5164 and boiler problems on No. 2857 showed the wide range of problems that any railway can typically have to face. But all at the same time? This wasn’t the first time the railway’s motive power department had been stretched to breaking point. Boiler problems caused by the hard water supply reduced the operational fleet to one locomotive during the late 1990s; the most unsuitable, but heroic under the circumstances, ex-Port Talbot Railway/GWR 0-6-0ST No. 813. This led to investment in a reverse osmosis water treatment system being installed and immediately brought the required improvements. Getting the fleet up to 10 serviceable locomotives is quite a challenge, because while the engineers are busy trying to fix the operational fleet when they break down, they are not able to put the time into getting locomotives undergoing overhaul back into traffic. With an intensive daily timetable stretching ➲ Heritage Railway

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To Ironbridge from Easter through to So how will the Severn Valley October, plus the intensive Railway keep the plates spinning in N future? No. 5164 is due to ‘retire’ at pre-Christmas schedule, there Boiler Shop is precious little time for the the end of 2013, but the next ‘big’ BRIDGNORTH hard-pressed boiler shop and MPD & engine due to enter traffic is engineering teams to keep Workshop Oldbury another Bulleid Pacific, topping up the fleet, and with No. 34027 Taw Valley, not Viaduct locomotive tickets expiring as expected to return until some River they do after a maximum of 10 stage in the summer. Works Knowlesands Severn manager Ian Walker puts a years’ service, the railway needs Tunnel to introduce at least one new positive spin on things: “There locomotive every year to was a realisation some years keep up. ago that investment Eardington Halt Hay Bridge Since the latter part of 2012, would be required if the (closed) once all the ‘sick’ engines had been works was going to keep repaired, the operational fleet has stood at the railway supplied eight locomotives, but with the expiry of with locomotives. The No. 42968’s ticket at the beginning of 2013 and railway has invested and Hampton Loade no prospect of a ‘new’ locomotive appearing from restructured its the works, the railway took the decision to hire in workforce and the Furness Railway Trust-owned Collett 0-6-2T facilities so that it No. 5643, to insure against a similar thing can cope with happening as the year before. the demands Country Park Halt thrown at it.” Engine House

Kidderminster carriage shed.

Highley

There are Visitor Centre currently 25 full-time Kidderminster railway museum. Borle Viaduct employees in voluntary rota, so that paid staff can work the locomotive alongside volunteers every day of the week. Most engineering of the paid staff are enthusiasts as well, so you department at often see them here on their days off too.” Bridgnorth and the new At any one time there are a number of contract apprentice training Arley jobs going through the works, such as exscheme is well under way. Harrogate gasworks 0-6-2T Barber, a narrow Ian Walker himself is a gauge engine from the South Tynedale product of the railway’s Victoria Bridge foresight, serving as an Trimpley Railway, which is due to have its boiler overhaul completed imminently; the apprentice in the workshops Furness Railway Trust’s Austerity No. 150 during the 1990s, as did his rightwhich is also in for boiler work; hand man, Duncan Ballard. “We are starting to see the benefits now,” Ian Northwood Halt and the former Duke of told me. “Our priority is to keep the KIDDERMINSTER North Star trains running, but we do need to Carriage Works Museum generate sufficient revenue from our outside contract work in order to help To Tenbury Diesel Depot N Viaduct cover the huge operational costs of Carriage Shed S Viaduct Network keeping the works running. Rail W Midlands “We are also seeing a healthy increase in Safari Park volunteer numbers,” Ian told me, “now that our BEWDLEY Foley Park C&W facilities are so good, people want to come and Bewdley Falling Sands Restoration help. Some weekdays you can have as many as 50 Tunnel Viaduct or 60 people busy working away. It’s a real hive of activity. We also have seven day working with a To Stourport

General view of the boiler shop on October 25 with boilers belonging to No. 7802 Bradley Manor on the extreme left, No. 813 (in front of Taw Valley’s) in the middle, and the SVR’s steam crane front right.

The carriage works at Kidderminster.

SVR TIMELINE OF MAJOR INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS 1970 Opened to Hampton Loade

1989 New Boiler Shop completed

1974 Opened to Bewdley

1984 Opened to Kidderminster (new station opened July 30)

2004 Victoria Bridge refurbishment completed

1996 Country Park Halt opened (April 4)

1990 Kidderminster Museum opened

1987 Kidderminster signal box and signalling commissioned Nov 21

2008 Line re-opened March 21 - total cost £3.8m

2006 Kidderminster concourse canopy and east wing completed

2000 Kidderminster Carriage Shed completed

2000 Reverse osmosis water treatment plant installed

2008 Worcester Road Bridge refurbished. Cost £150,000

2010 Installation of Kidderminster Engine Line 2 bay platform 2010 Wheeldrop installed in Bridgnorth MPD. Cost £180,000

2007 Storms closed line June 19. Emergency appeal launched June 25

2009 Highley footbridge built. Cost £250,000

2007 Engine House completed (opened March 2008 due to line closure). Formally opened 21.10.09 by Duke of Gloucester. Cost £3.4m

2009 Installation of rollerdoors to MPD Bridgnorth

■ All projects funded by a number of sources. Considerable amounts of volunteer planning and work. Also support from the Guarantee Company, the HLF, ERDF.

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www.heritagerailway.co.uk

GWR 4-6-0 No. 4936 Kinlet Hall at Hampton Loade. This locomotive is staying on the SVR until the end of the year to help out with Santa Train services. PHIL JONES

Sutherland’s private locomotive, Dunrobin, which is subject to a complete overhaul on behalf of Beamish, the North of England Open Air Museum. The works also completed the construction of a brand new boiler for the Talyllyn Railway’s No. 2 Dolgoch in 2011, while at the other extreme it can supply, from stock, steam engine consumables such as brake blocks and firebars, or make you a full set of firebox stays. Looking to the future, Ian expects the number of locomotives available to increase to a far healthier level: “We are making more space available in the main shed by removing ‘Tranter Towers’ so that we can carry out more locomotive overhauls at any one time.” ‘Tranter Towers’ is a series of storage containers with timber frame structures above them, set up inside the shed

many years ago under the guidance of former works manager, Ray Tranter, and used for storage of materials and spares, and (upstairs) for staff mess room facilities. New off-site storage at a secure industrial unit close by and a reorganisation of the area immediately outside the shed means they can now be dispensed with and at the end of October, staff and volunteers were making good progress in reclaiming the space, which still has the old rails in situ. Ian is confident that Taw Valley will be ready in time for summer next year. The firebox was in the process of having the last of its 3000-plus stay holes drilled and reamed in late October – a slow and painstaking task – with around a third of the stays also fitted. “813 will be finished first, then Taw Valley with (ex-GWR/NCB) pannier

2012 Overhaul of reverse osmosis water treatment plant. Cost £14,000 2013 Re-signalling Kidderminster/ Main Line Link. Cost £14,000

2012 Drainage and Relay of Station Platforms Arley. Cost £200,000 2012 Bewdley Tunnel (480yds long) refurbished – cost £250k ■ Circa £1m spent on track and infrastructure maintenance and repairs since 2008.

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The Engine House at Highley.

ITEMS ON DISPLAY IN THE ENGINE HOUSE VISITOR CENTRE, HIGHLEY

As at October 2013 48773 47383 45110 80079 686 The Lady Armaghdale 600 Gordon King George Saloon Highley Mining Co wagon

7325 46443 TPO

No. 7714 following towards the end of the season,” Ian told me. No. 7714 has had a stop, start resurrection so far, with work being put to one side while more pressing jobs are tackled, but a concerted effort to finish it is now under way. Also in the workshops and likely to be among the next to appear is another ex-GWR Manor, No. 7802 Bradley Manor, with the boiler under heavy repair at Bridgnorth while the bottom end is tackled at Tyseley Locomotive Works. Completion could be by the back end of 2014 or early 2015. Other overhauls under way are those on ex-BR Standard 4MT No. 75069 which is a longer term job, while after 27 years out of traffic, a start is about to be made on SVR flagship No. 4930 Hagley Hall. The accompanying table shows the availability of motive power over recent years and the projected availability through to 2018. With as many as five sets of carriages in use on gala weekends and four plus the dining set on Sundays, maintenance of the carriage fleet is another ‘Forth Bridge’ task, which needs careful planning and management. There are over 60 carriages on the railway including a complete rake of Gresley teak coaches, a GWR chocolate and cream set, LMS maroon set and two sets of BR Mk.Is, one in 1950s carmine and cream, the other in later BR maroon. In addition there is the six-coach dining set and the LMS ‘Venturer’ dining coaches that are added to the LMS set on Sundays. Two special observation saloons are also available to hire and are added to service trains as required. Each normal service train is a nominal eight coaches and each set has a spare vehicle to allow maintenance of one vehicle from each at any time. Most of the work is carried out in the old goods warehouse at Kidderminster which has been dubbed ‘North Star Works’, with additional work taking place at Bewdley. ➲ Heritage Railway

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LOCOMOTIVE AVAILABILITY 2010-2018 LOcOMOTive 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 Ex-PTR/GWR 0-6-0ST No. 813 BR(WR) Hawksworth 0-6-0PT No. 1501 GWR Churchward 2-8-0 No. 2857 High Season GWR Collett 57xx 0-6-0PT No. 3650 Only High Season GWR Collett ‘2884’ Class 2-8-0 No. 3802 Only GWR Churchward 2-6-2T No. 4566 GWR Collett 4-6-0 No. 4930 Hagley Hall GWR Collett 2-6-2T No. 5164 May-Dec GWR Collett 0-6-2T No. 5643 GWR Collett 0-6-0PT No. 5764 GWR Collett 57xx 0-6-0PT No. 7714 GWR Collett 4-6-0 No. 7802 Bradley Manor GWR Collett 4-6-0 No. 7812 Erlestoke Manor SR rebuilt ‘West Country’ No. 34027 Taw Valley SR rebuilt ‘Battle of Britain’ No. 34053 Sir Keith Park LMS Stanier 2-6-0 5MT No. 42968 BR(LMR) Ivatt 2-6-0 4MT No. 43106 LMS Stanier 5MT 4-6-0 No. 45110 LMS Ivatt 2MT 2-6-0 No. 46443 BR Standard 4MT 4-6-0 No. 75069 High Season BR Standard 9F 2-10-0 No. 92212 Only 9 8 9 8 9 10 11 12 12 Note: at the time of writing this is proposed and subject to change according to individual loco owners, funding, etc.

Signalling

The SVR is one of the most comprehensively signalled heritage railways and has a training school located upstairs in the North Star Carriage Works at Kidderminster. It operates on the Tyer’s Electric Train Token system between Bridgnorth and Bewdley North, with the section from Bewdley South to Kidderminster being Track Circuited and signalled using Acceptance Levers. The double track section between Bewdley North and South ‘boxes is Absolute Block. With the exception of the connection with Network Rail, lower quadrant semaphore signals are used throughout. All signalboxes are of GWR outline, either original or replica, except for Arley which has the former LNWR ‘box from Yorton on the Crewe-Shrewsbury line.

In an attempt to slow down the deterioration of the operational fleet, and therefore the frequency with which major overhauls take place, the railway invested in a new carriage storage facility to protect them. The four-road shed is a fifth of a mile long and can store up to 56 coaches and was completed in 2000, along with a carriage cleaning plant hidden from public view on its north side. In fact the SVR has always taken investment in its infrastructure very seriously and has a track record of improvements and new facilities that are the envy of the preservation world. As well as its various extensions to the ultimate goal at Kidderminster, it has built a complete terminus station on the old BR goods yard at Kidderminster, complete with its impressive concourse roof, built the Engine House at Highley where out of ticket locomotives are protected from the elements, embarked on a refurbishment programme for all of its viaducts and bridges, including the impressive Victoria Bridge in 2004, built a brand new boiler shop at Bridgnorth, installed a wheel-drop facility in the main shed at Bridgnorth, built a replacement footbridge at Highley and opened a new halt at Country Park – to mention just a few of the projects that have been completed. The devastating floods in 2007 are well documented, costing £3.8 million to repair washed out sections of trackbed, with a further £1 million spent since on maintaining the track and drainage. The storm damage, which could have meant the loss of the SVR as we know it for good, coincided with the arrival of the railway’s GWR 2-6-2T No. 4566 heads south from Bewdley with a photo charter goods train on October 8. ROBERT FALCONER

LOCOMOTIVES IN THE OVERHAUL QUEUE Projected date for return to traffic 813 2014 4930 2017 34027 2014 75069 2017 7714 2014 4150 2018* 7802 2015 45110 2018 42968 2016 *ex Barry loco, estimate only, subject to funding by group

The following locomotives will follow but no commitment can be made to dates or order of overhaul 47383, 7325, 7819**, 80079, 600, 46443, 5764, 5164, 2047, 6634, 48773 ** on display at McArthur Glen shopping centre in Swindon until at least 2018

SVR STEAM LOCOMOTIVE MILEAGES Bridgnorth MPD with No. 4930 Hagley Hall, just arrived from the Engine House at Highley, ready for its overhaul to commence, on October 6.

e Severn Valley Railway has approximately 13,000 members, of which around 10% (1300) actively volunteer on the railway. current general manager, Nick Ralls. “It was something of a baptism of fire,” he told me, “I wasn’t quite prepared for what greeted me in my first weeks. Just about all of my first year at the SVR was spent trying to get the railway rebuilt, organising fundraising and planning work with the railway’s engineering teams. It was a very difficult time, but with the help of a great many people, including other railways and organisations, we pulled through and the railway is sounder now than at any time.” I asked Nick – who was previously with the National Trust – how running the SVR compared to his old job. “It is completely different. The SVR is like a big family, with around 80 full-time staff and hundreds of volunteers, all passionate about ‘their’ railway. There was so much that needed doing behind the scenes, structures that needed to be put in place, paperwork and processes. I am not one for creating red tape just for the sake of it, but certain things just needed doing. Nothing quite prepares you, but I am very proud of what has been achieved in my six or so years at the railway so far.” The share issue launched on October 1, 2012, has recently closed having raised just over £2 million, an amazing result in these cash-starved times, but one that will allow the railway to forge ahead with its Bridgnorth development plans, the next major investment being made. The original proposals met with resistance from the railway’s own supporters, which the SVR’s boards and

management have listened to and, having worked closely with its specially formed conservation and heritage committee, was due to unveil its modified plans on November 26 to the Holdings Board and, after a period for its content to be considered, will be staging a Q&A with key stakeholders on January 26. “It is important that we protect the heritage of the station at Bridgnorth,” Nick told me, “but we have a real problem in that the station wasn’t designed to handle 200,000 passengers every year, and it can’t cope. We need better facilities for our visitors, including catering and toilets, and better facilities for our valued volunteers and staff.” The share issue also headlines the funding of the restoration of No. 4930, the restoration of vintage GWR carriages and the Heritage Skill Engineering Training Academy initiative. “We continue to invest in the railway’s infrastructure,” Nick continued, “planning permission has been granted for a new diesel depot at Kidderminster, with work due to start some time in 2014 or 2015. We are also planning to spend some money tidying up Bewdley station, including the island platform canopy, which needs repairing, while both viaducts also need expensive work on them. It’s never ending!” With so much investment in the railway, I wanted to know if there was any likelihood of the railway expanding its operation in terms of line length, especially to the World Heritage Site at Ironbridge Gorge. “It is all we can do to run the

1501 2857 3650* 4566 5164 5764 7802 7812 30120* 31806* 34053 42968 43106 46443 80072*

2010

2011 3,501

6,947 9,635 5,680 6,648 8,560

6,006 8,000 195 10,289

5,312 9,289 3,049

8,888 7,335 5,511 674

55,120

50,399

2012 1,766 4,403 1,582 7,263 7,215 8,439 478 917 3,557 7,352 10,109

53,081

* Locomotives on extended visits Does not include locomotives visiting for galas only

■ Annual coal consumption is approx 2,000 tons

16-mile railway that we already have, so any expansion would have to be funded by a separate body. We simply cannot risk the future of the present railway.” Extending the railway north towards Ironbridge is thought to be very difficult, but not impossible, the first hurdle being to cross the road leading to Bridgnorth tunnel, as it was raised many years ago and there would no longer be sufficient clearance for traffic passing below. At the north end of the tunnel, there is encroachment on to the old trackbed, so any new track would require a deviation of some sort. Once beyond there, the trackbed is clear ➲

Severn Valley Railway Gradient Map

www.heritagerailway.co.uk

Heritage Railway

51

DIESEL LOCOmOTIVES 1013 BN 1062 Op, BN 821 Op, KD 9551 BN 8188 Op, KD 8059 Op, KD 20177 for spares 5410 KD 7029 KD 50031 Op KD 50035 KD 50044 50049 KD 12099 Op, KD 9012 Op, KD O8896 for spares 3802 3586 Op, BN 3201 Op, KD 3022 2960 Ind Op, KD 2957 Ind Op, BY 2961 Ind Op, BN 51941, 50933, 52064, 56208, 59250 Class 108 DmU Op, BY Key: Op=operational, KD=Kidderminster, BN=Bridgnorth, BY=Bewdley

The railway’s Timetable C has a booked diesel turn. D1062 Western Courier is about to leave Bridgnorth on the 11.55 to Kidderminster on a Saturday in June 2013.

SVR NEW-BUILDS BR Standard 3MT 2-6-2T No. 82045 The project to build a brand new 'Class 3' for use on the SVR is progressing at an impressive pace, with the chassis virtually complete at Bridgnorth, driving wheels produced and being completed at the SDR and cylinder patterns produced and ready for manufacture. It is planned to build a new boiler – possibly at the SVR – with work due to start once the necessary funds have been raised. For further details of the 820145 Steam Locomotive Trust go to www.820145.org.uk Catch Me Who Can A replica of one of Richard Trevithick’s early locomotives that was built locally at the Hazledine Foundry in Bridgnorth in 1808, has been built at the SVR by Trevithick 200, a local history group formed to mark the locomotive’s 200th anniversary in 2008. The original was built to publicise the possibilities of the steam locomotive and was operated at Euston in London on a circular track where the public were charged one shilling to experience the ‘steam circus’. It is steamed on special occasions and attends local carnivals.

until you get to Jackfield, where again the trackbed has been breached for other uses, including a new road. Expansion of services at the other end of the line is in fact much more likely. “We have been in talks with the local train operating companies about having through services from the main network,” which Nick says is possible thanks to the newly remodelled main line connection at Kidderminster. “It could include a new park and ride facility at Foley Park where modern train services could terminate at a new platform without using our own stations at Kidderminster or Bewdley.” And what of the volunteers, the railway’s beating heart? I wondered whether the railway might be facing a crisis with its ageing volunteer base and its ever-increasing demands on them. “I think we are reasonably well off at the moment,” was Nick’s initial reaction, who himself is a

volunteer guard. “I mean, we cannot afford to be complacent, but I think we do quite well. You see patterns with these things; the early retirement packages have now just about disappeared, but even so, we do get a lot of new faces looking for something purposeful to do, and you tend to get new groups of friends forming here and there. It’s a thriving community and I think for the foreseeable future, the SVR has a strong and loyal band of active supporters.” With so much going on, it is easy for the casual visitors to take it all for granted. As they marvel at the busy scenes on a normal day in the life of the SVR, with steam trains coming and going in seemingly endless fashion, how many of them realise just what it takes, and how much money is consumed, in keeping the wheels turning and the steam engines running? ■ ➲ I am grateful to Nick Ralls, Ian Walker and the SVR staff for their help in compiling this article.

PASSENGER NUmBERS AND TURNOVER ■ Passenger figures usually top 200,000 each year, among the highest of any UK heritage railway, with 202,522 passengers carried in 2012.

52 Heritage Railway

■ Annual turnover regularly reaches £5.5

million, In 2011 it reached £5,538,945, second highest to 2009’s £5,617,131.

The Severn Valley Railway Charitable Trust Formerly known as the SVR Rolling Stock Trust, the SVR Charitable Trust was launched in May 2012. Originally set up to safeguard the future of locomotives and rolling stock on the railway, its remit has expanded to include infrastructure, buildings and other developments. It actively seeks regular contributions, sponsorship, one-off donations, bequests, gifts and any other avenues of fundraising to safeguard the future of the SVR, to provide educational facilities and specialist skills training. Its stated aim is to “make the Severn Valley Railway a heritage site of international standing in the coming years”. To obtain more information and find out how you can become involved go to www.svrtrust.org.uk or telephone 01299 406502, or you can email Shelagh Paterson, fundraising manager at [email protected]

Severn Valley Railway contact details ■ General Enquiries Tel: 01299 403816 Website: www.svr.co.uk ■ Locomotive Engineering Services Tel: 01746 764361 Website: www.svr-engineering.co.uk ■ Carriage Restoration Services Tel: 01299 406512 Website: www.svr-engineering.co.uk www.heritagerailway.co.uk

Visiting GWR 4-6-0 No. 4936 Kinlet Hall crosses Oldbury viaduct south of Bridgnorth on the Severn Valley Railway with a photo charter. PHIL JONES

Mainline News

Compiled by Cedric Johns

‘Black Fives’ for ‘Cathedrals’ IN A move which underlines the significance of Steam Dreams’ recent switch to train operating company West Coast Railways, two ‘Black Fives’ will be heading south on December 3 to work six ‘Cathedrals Express’ trips during the three weeks to Christmas. The engines, Ian Riley’s Stanier 4-6-0s No. 44871 and No. 45407, will make rare appearances in London’s termini beginning with a departure from Victoria to Bath on December 5, the ‘Express’ travelling via Woking and Guildford thence along the Portsmouth Direct Line calling at Petersfield, Southampton suburb Hedge End and Eastleigh before proceeding on to Salisbury and then via the Westbury Line. Four days later, the two 4-6-0s are booked to head a train from Ipswich to Winchester. Picking up at Colchester, Shenfield and West Hampstead, the ‘Express’ is to be diesel hauled to west London where steam takes over for the journey down the South West Main Line, a probable first. On December 12 – a day later than originally planned – an ‘Express’ is booked to depart Horsham destined for Ely diesel hauled picking up at Dorking, Leatherhead, Cheam and Kensington Olympia where the two ‘Black Fives’ couple on for the remainder of the trip. Due to length restrictions en route, the 4-6-0s are separated for

trains running on December 14 and 16. The first, from Southend, heads for Chichester via pick-up stops at Upminster and West Hampstead then via Clapham to join the Portsmouth Direct Line. The second trip, Steam Dreams’ annual visit to Sherborne, takes a much changed route to reach Somerset’s abbey town. Departing Victoria, the ‘Express’ runs down the Brighton line calling at Purley, Redhill, Haywards Heath, Hove and Chichester before then heading onwards via Havant, Eastleigh and Salisbury. Finally the pair of 4-6-0s are booked to head Steam Dreams’ annual ‘White Cliffs Christmas Luncheon Train’ Sunday, December 22. The journey starts at Canterbury, thereafter the train runs around the north of Kent picking up at Rainham, Meopham and Bromley South before running into London and stopping at Clapham High Street. After that the ‘diner’ heads south to Edenbridge and Tonbridge then completes the outward circuit by heading back to Canterbury. This is likely to be another ‘first’, ‘Black Fives’ doubleheading a train through the Kentish countryside. Had Bert Hitchen’s ‘Black Five’ No. 45231 remained at Southall along with No. 44932, the jointly shared depot would have become a

hotbed of Stanier 4-6-0s on the arrival of Ian Riley’s pair. By way of a change, A4 No. 4464 Bittern – fresh from its high speed runs – takes an ‘Express’ out of King’s Cross for York on December 19. Redated from November 28, the train is due to make calls at Potters Bar, Stevenage and Peterborough then speeds down the East Coast Main Line. The luncheon train on December 22 concludes Steam Dreams’ 2013 programme, a year which has been full of incident and change, but the tour promoter has already planned ahead for the coming year. The first departure in 2014 is a trip to the York and Shildon railway museums, on Sunday, February 23, the final day of the Great Goodbye, the last line-up of all six surviving A4 Pacifics. Stopping only at Stevenage and Peterborough, motive power has yet to be allocated. On March 1, a ‘Cathedrals Express’ marks St David’s Day with a train out of Paddington diesel hauled for Shrewsbury before steaming down the Central Wales line. The following Wednesday an excursion departs Broxbourne, diesel hauled and after picking up at Bishops Stortford, Cambridge, Ely and Peterborough, the train is to be steam hauled both ways from Hellifield over the Settle & Carlisle line to the citadel and a passenger break before the return.

Four-day south west outing for Britannia ON PAPER the Railway Touring Company day excursion from Poole to Kingswear on Saturday, October 19, looked an attractive proposition for potential passengers but on closer scrutiny the operational logistics involved were extraordinary. The excursion, ‘The Dartmouth Express’, timed to depart Poole at 6.13am, called at Bournemouth, Southampton, Eastleigh and Salisbury and ran to Westbury where a reversal took place. To reach that intermediate stage of the journey, BR 7P 4-6-2 No. 70000 Britannia – replacing booked engine, GWR 4-6-0 No. 5029 Nunney Castle, which had failed with a holed blower ring – had worked the empty stock plus a trailing diesel from Southall to Poole the previous day. Departing west London at 9.45am on the Friday, the mixed convoy reached Poole at 3.50pm and stabled overnight in the town’s goods yard. Because there are no turning facilities, the nearby Branksome triangle being breached not after Bournemouth West station was closed and track lifted in 1964, the ‘Express’ set off from Poole on the Saturday diesel

56 Heritage Railway

powered, the ‘Brit’ positioned at the rear for the 95 mile trip to Westbury. On arrival, the train reversed, Britannia now in the driving seat for the second phase of the excursion scheduled to depart Westbury at 8.59am. After a pathing stop of seven minutes at Clink Road Junction, the ‘Express’ headed down the West of England Main Line to Taunton for a 40 minute watering stop. On the move again, the 4-6-2 breasted Whiteball but then was braked for a brief pathing stop at Tiverton, then proceeded via Exeter St Davids, Dawlish and Newton Abbot to Paignton and Kingswear arriving at 1.05pm, the overall journey taking some six hours for the 215 miles from coast to coast. Turned at Churston, the ‘Brit’ backed down on to its train for a 5.30pm departure picking up passengers at Paignton en route. Returning via Newton Abbot and Exeter, the ‘Express’ stopped at Taunton for water before proceeding back to Westbury via Cogload Junction and Castle Cary arriving at a timed 8.58pm. The rest of the trip was diesel powered, with Britannia at the rear.

Arriving at Poole just before midnight, the empty stock and both locomotives were then shunted into the goods yard where the ensemble stayed through Sunday until Monday morning. Now facing the right direction, the 4-6-2 and empty train departed Poole at 10.10am for Southall travelling by way of Parkstone bank, the New Forest and Woking before turning right at Addlestone Junction and heading for Clapham, Willesden (reversal), Acton Main and Southall, arriving 3.30pm So ended a four day stint for Britannia and two sets of support crews, who worked hard to fulfil an obligation to RTC when it became known that Nunney Castle would not be available. In total the ‘Brit’ was in steam for five days covering some 650 miles. It didn’t stop there however. Having reached Southall on the Monday, the 4-6-2 joined Tornado and Braunton the next day for the 50-mile trip to Ropley via Alton and, as reported separately in News, pages 30-31, the Mid-Hants Railway’s autumn gala.

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LMS ‘Black Five’ 4-6-0 No. 44871 crosses Glenfinnan viaduct with a West Coast Railways’ ‘Jacobite’ service. DAVID PRICE

Three Pacifics on two coaches IN AN unusual movement, three Pacifics and two coaches formed a train travelling out from the west of London to Alton via Clapham Junction, Woking and Aldershot on Tuesday, October 22. The ‘train’ consisted of rebuilt West Country No. 34046 Braunton, leading, followed by A1 No 60163 Tornado and BR 7P No. 70000 Britannia plus two support coaches. The three 4-6-2s worked down the South West Main Line tender first travelling at a maximum of 45mph. Departing Southall at 9.30am they were routed via Acton Main, Willesden and Clapham Junction to Woking where they swung left for Alton arriving on platform two at around 1.30pm. Why? The explanation is simple – all three engines moved from Southall via Alton to run through the (opened) crossing gates to gain access to Mid-Hants metals in readiness to participate in the railway’s autumn gala week ending October 25-27. Apparently the gala’s organisers requested that the trio arrived smokeboxes facing Alton. The by-product of that request

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meant that the 4-6-2s were facing the right way when departing after the event. Two 4-6-2s departed coupled together on Monday, October 28, the West Country heading for Stewarts Lane as standby engine for resident Merchant Navy No. 35028 Clan Line, planned to complete its annual check and repair in time to haul the ‘British Pullman’ around the Surrey Hills luncheon route on November 1, Britannia heading for Southall with the support coach. Timed to depart Alton at 9.20am, the two engines did not get away until after midday because most of the old Southern Region was closed while fallen trees and other storm damage debris were being cleared from the lines. Tornado had to wait even longer. Booked to leave just after 5am on the Monday, its move was cancelled and it was not until mid-Tuesday morning that the A1 was moved by a Devon & Cornwall Railways (now DC Rail) diesel direct to the Nene Valley Railway’s November 2-3 gala. Plans to visit Wimbledon depot for attention to the 4-6-2’s tender wheels on the Tuesday were cancelled.

UK Railtours launches ‘diners’ IN WHAT has been described as a three-way joint venture, UK Railtours is launching a series of new steam hauled railtours aimed at the ‘discerning diner’ market. As briefly reported last issue, the new venture is shared between three participants, UK Railtours, Jeremy Hosking’s Locomotive Services Limited and Creative Rail Dining Limited. UK Railtours is taking the all-important front-ofhouse position promoting the tours, and Locomotives Services is providing motive power from a small pool consisting of A4 Bittern, BR 7P Britannia and West Country Braunton. On-train catering is to be the responsibility of Creative Rail Dining. UK Railtours chief executive John Farrow said the planned project envisages running one ‘diner’ a month commencing Monday, December 23. “Our aim is to provide quality rather than quantity with a catering emphasis very much on the use of locally sourced produce and regional menus” he said. He said that the December 23 train ‘The Salisbury Christmas Diner’ will depart Waterloo behind West Country No. 34046 Braunton at around 9.50am, breakfast being served as the ‘Diner’ travels down the South West Main Line to the cathedral city via Basingstoke and Andover. Returning to London Victoria mid-afternoon, a fivecourse lunch will be served. Next year, several of these trains are to be planned for travel via the East Coast Main Line. Heritage Railway

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Mainline News

Changes at DB Schenker

CONCURRENT to the loss of over 40 steam-hauled ‘Cathedrals Express’ bookings, Train Operating Company DB Schenker Rail UK has announced that it is making structural changes to its organisation. In an official statement from the German-owned company made to Main Line News, Rob Smith, head of communications, indicated that the firm is realigning its UK leadership and organisational structure. “DB Schenker is replacing its business segments with dedicated sales and production units”, he said. “The realigned structure will enhance customer relationships through four sales sector groups who will be responsible for establishing, growing and maintaining focused and robust ongoing relationships. “In parallel with realigning the organisation, DB Schenker has also been recruiting staff to strengthen teams in key areas. DB Schenker Rail UK has also recruited 70 new drivers backed by an ongoing recruitment drive to cover the next five years.” However, he added that the recruitment drive did not include drivers taken on specifically for steam services, but nevertheless the company will continue to use drivers from the existing pool of footplate crews to man steamhauled trains. Having lost the Steam Dreams’ business, future demand for experienced enginemen will be maintained by UK Railtours, Pathfinder Tours, Riviera Trains – for its ‘Torbay Express’ season – and Venice-Simplon Orient Express ‘British Pullman’ trains, an estimated total to date of 40-plus bookings for the remainder of this year and into 2014. Rail industry sources are of the opinion that DB Schenker will use next year as a period of consolidation prior to expanding its business interests, including steam operations, in 12-14 months’ time. The newly-realigned organisation, led by chief operating officer Geoff Spencer, will be fully operational with effect from January 1.

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Compiled by Cedric Johns

Bittern prepared for two 90mph December ‘Streaks’ ALL eyes will be on sections of the East Coast Main Line when the two much anticipated – and delayed – 90mph runs behind A4 No. 4464 Bittern are scheduled to take place. As with the first trip on June 29, when Bittern set a new heritage era official speed record of 92.5mph on its run from King’s Cross to York, Network Rail has given special dispensation for it to exceed the existing 75mph ceiling for steam traction to mark the 75th anniversary of sister engine No. 4468 Mallard’s 126mph triumph in 1938. The trips, originally scheduled for the summer, were postponed because of the fire risk. Departing diesel-hauled from Bristol Temple Meads at 5.35am on Thursday December 5, Pathfinder Tours’ ‘Tyne Tees Streak’ makes calls at Bristol Parkway, Cam & Dursley, Cheltenham, Barnt Green, Tamworth High Level and Derby en route to York. On arrival, the A4 replaces the

diesel for its high speed run to Newcastle. Departing York at 11am, the ‘Streak’ heads up the East Coast Main Line via Darlington and Durham, timed to arrive Newcastle at 12.20pm. Passengers are free to enjoy some four hours at leisure during which time the A4 will be checked over and prepared for the return dash back to York. Whether Bittern is given a clear road in either direction and hits 90mph remains to be seen, as from the ‘off ’, the organisers have always said that planned maximum speeds cannot be guaranteed. After that excitement the return journey stopping at ‘all outbound stations’ will no doubt be something of an anticlimax. The final act of Bittern’s high speed adventures takes place two days later, on Saturday December 7, when Locomotive Services’ ‘Capital Streak’ sets from York at 2.15pm south bound to cover 84 derestricted miles of the East Coast Main Line via Grantham

and the legendary Stoke Bank to King’s Cross. It is during this run that the A4’s owner and a major collector of steam locomotives, Jeremy Hosking, will draw the winning ticket number which will earn one lucky enthusiast the special commemorative chime whistle carried by Bittern during the high speed train’s three prolonged but memorable outings. Outbound from London, passengers join their train not at King’s Cross as originally planned but Finsbury Park, departing 8.15am, picking up at Potters Bar 8.30am for what is hoped to be a non-stop run to York with a Class 90 at the head of proceedings. Tickets will be accepted by train operating companies for the short journey from King’s Cross to Finsbury Park. Ticketing agent Peter Watts said he was confident both trains would be full on each of the two days. ➲ Heroes of history – feature, pages 74-79.

Coach a fitting present for Lizzie’s 80th CURRENTLY under overhaul at Tyseley, Locomotive Works, LMS 4-6-2 No. 6201 Princess Elizabeth, celebrated its 80th anniversary on November 3 by receiving a birthday present in the shape of a new support coach. Having disposed of its previous vehicle when ‘Lizzie’ was stopped for overhaul in 1993, the Princess Elizabeth Locomotive Society subsequently hired in support coaches – up and until the big red engine was withdrawn for attention towards the end of last year. Now, thanks to a society member – reports spokesman Keith Wood – the situation has been reversed with the acquisition of BR Mk.2C brake corridor (F) built in Derby circa 1970. Originally numbered M14123, the coach was allocated to London Midland Region West Coast duties. Renumbered 17123 in 1986/87, further changes made in 1992 resulted in the vehicle carrying its present – and third – No. 35507. Withdrawn from service in 2000 following a spell with Regional Railways – when it was used in the famed North Wales

Class 37 turns – the coach is set for overhaul running concurrently with work on No. 6201. Keith Wood said that when ‘Lizzie’ first returned to the main line in 1976, the 4-6-2 was based at Bulmers Hereford premises with Great Western 4-6-0 No. 6000 King George V and Bulleid 4-6-2 No. 35028 Clan Line. Then, engines operating out of Hereford – the home of the 6000 Locomotive Association – were confined to short trip small geographic areas. The one support coach, owned by the 6000 Locomotive Association – a BSK restored in maroon livery – was shared between the individual locomotive owning groups when widely available vacuum sets of coaches were available. The maroon made it stand out from the BR blue-grey stock usually forming a small number of steam charters. The BSK was an early example of a privately owned vehicle. As for 80-year-old ‘Lizzie’, the 4-6-2 was the second of Stanier’s new express passenger engines designed and built in Crewe in 1933 to replace Royal Scots 4-6-0s which required an engine

change at Carlisle when working Euston-Glasgow trains. As might be expected, the design was clearly influenced by Stanier’s time at Swindon: a domeless tapered boiler, low degree superheat and a number of smaller features like axlebox and bogie design. When built – there were 12 in total excluding No. 6202, the experimental turbine driven engine – the front end had a certain visual similarity to Collett’s ‘Kings’. When early in 1956 the Western Region experienced bogie problems with the ‘Kings’ and withdrew them for rectification, two Princess Royal 4-6-2s were seconded to Old Oak Common to work two hour expresses to Birmingham and ‘Cornish Riviera’ duties. The engines involved were No. 46207 Princess Arthur of Connaught and No. 46210 Lady Patricia. No. 6201 Princess Elizabeth is best remembered for its record-breaking run on November 16, 1936, when it covered the 401.5 miles from Euston to Glasgow in 5 hours 52 minutes and 39 seconds hauling a seven-coach train.

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On its first run through the Hope Valley since June 1968, BR Standard Britannia Pacific No. 70013 Oliver Cromwell climbs through Edale with the Railway Touring Company’s ‘Cheshireman’ on October 19. ANDREW SOUTHWELL

Tangmere repairs progressing, with Christmas a target REPAIRS to Southall-based Battle of Britain 4-6-2 No. 34067 Tangmere are nearing completion at Carnforth, three months after the Bulleid went north for attention to its firebox outer. Towed from Southall as far as Crewe by another 4-6-2, No. 70013 Oliver Cromwell, No. 34067 finally reached Carnforth behind a diesel on July 25. The work, including coded welding plates on both sides of the fire box, has been completed but it was necessary to remove the 4-6-2’s cab, fittings, part casing and cladding to gain access. It was hoped that the repairs would be completed in time for Tangmere to play its part in the

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build-up of pre-Christmas traffic working out of London to the south and west during November and December. On paper, Tangmere was appropriately booked to head Railway Touring Company’s ‘Kentish Belle’ Armistice Day special from Victoria routed through Battle of Britain country via Dartford, Gravesend and Margate returning by way of Sandwich, Dover, Ashford and Tonbridge, Monday November 11. Instead, the special was worked by ‘Black Five’ No. 44932 which was brought south as cover for Tangmere. With the 4-6-2’s availability in doubt it is possible that the ‘Black

Five’ will work another Railway Touring Company train, the ‘Capital Christmas Express’, departing Weymouth for Waterloo on Saturday November 23, the train calling at Poole, Bournemouth, Christchurch, Southampton and Eastleigh.

‘Double Home’

Tangmere might be back in steam in time to head RTC’s ‘Christmas Markets’ trip from Poole stopping at Bournemouth, Christchurch, Southampton, Eastleigh and Salisbury en route to Bath and Bristol, on Thursday, November 28. From support crews’ perspective, departures from Weymouth and

Poole usually mean a type of ‘double home’ working inasmuch that engines and rolling stock have to run down the coastal route the day before and stay overnight. Having completed the trip it is not unusual for trains and support crews to stay overnight for a second night before the empty stock can be worked back up the main line to the London area. Tangmere’s next booking is dated for Saturday, December 7 – heading the Railway Touring Company’s ‘Bath Christmas Market’ from Three Bridges to Bath calling at Haywards Heath, Preston Park, Hove, Worthing, travelling on via Havant, Eastleigh and Salisbury.

Heritage Railway

59

Mainline News

Compiled by Cedric Johns

Classic diesel traction ends 2013 Pathfinder railtours PATHFINDER Tours is using classic diesel traction to end its 2013 railtours programme. Its ‘Maybach Meanderer’ trip features Western Region Class 52 No. D1015 Western Champion on Saturday, December 14. Then on Saturday, December 28, a Deltic is incorporated in Pathfinder’s ‘Winter Settler’ excursion. The final train in the programme, albeit on Saturday, January 11, is a ‘Gricer’s Special’ utilising a pair of Class 20s for a loop and spur lines adventure. Currently on hire to GBRf for stone-hauling duties, Western Champion joins the ‘Meanderer’ at Bescot for a trip to Quainton Road station adjacent to the Buckingham Railway Centre. Starting from Crewe at 8am with a Class 67 at its head, the train picks up at Stafford,

Wolverhampton, Tame Bridge Parkway, Birmingham New Street and Cheltenham. Routed via the Golden Valley, Sapperton, Swindon and Didcot, the ‘Meanderer’ heads for Oxford and the ‘branch’ through Bicester to Claydon L&NE junction where the train reverses for the short journey to its destination. Having allowed passengers time to explore the site, the ‘Meanderer’ heads on south via Aylesbury, Princes Risborough, climbing Saunderton and on to the London suburbs. Taking the Greenford line though Acton, Western Champion runs on to the West Coast Main Line, with hopes of a fast run perhaps touching 90mph back to the West Midlands via Cheddington and Rugby. Deltic D9009 Alycidon enters the frame on December 14 working

the ‘Winter Settler’ from Sheffield up and over the Settle & Carlisle Line to the borders city. Departing Crewe with a Class 67 on the front end, the ‘Settler’ calls at Stafford, Wolverhampton, Walsall, Tamworth High Level, Burton-on-Trent, Derby, Chesterfield and Sheffield where the Deltic takes over for a run via Doncaster, Leeds, then joining the Aire Valley heads on through Keighley and Skipton to Hellfield. Following a two hour break, the ‘Settler’ return to Sheffield via the Tyne Valley route to Newcastle where, joining the East Coast Main Line, it turns south for a fast run through York to Doncaster and the stainless s/teel capital. Pathfinder’s current programme closes with its ‘Deviationer’ worked by a pair of Class 20s discovering old and new loops and spur lines over which many

gricers probably enter in their rail mileage logs. The train will be formed of 1950s-style chocolate and cream Mk.1 stock hauled by a brace of Class 20s not often seen on passenger trains these days with a Class 37 on the rear to assist with reversing movements. Departing Crewe on Saturday, January 11, the ‘Deviationer’ picks up at Stafford, Lichfield Trent Valley, Tamworth Low Level and Nuneaton. As a taster of the flavour of this trip, the opening itinerary from Crewe includes travelling via Wigston South curve, Kettering via Up and Down slow lines, Sharnbrook Junction, Bedford, Silkstream Junction, Cricklewood, Carlton Road Junction and more. This train was reported to be virtually full by the first week in November.

Hastings DEMU on Olympia Express FOR the fifth successive year Hastings Diesels Limited is promoting an exclusive one-off trip to Kensington Olympia for the London International Horse Show on Saturday, December 21, with its much travelled ‘Slim Jim’ DEMU No. 1001. As in past years the six-car unit, the ‘Olympia Express’, will depart Hastings at 8.30am making calls at Battle, Robertsbridge, Etchingham, Wadhurst, Tunbridge Wells and Tonbridge before travelling on via Bromley South to Kensington Olympia at 11am well in advance of the afternoon performance. The return journey departs Kensington at 5.35pm. Return train only fares cost £36 or £125 for a group of four seats. A limited number of popular show tickets are available priced £88 inclusive of return rail travel from any station en route. The unit’s buffet will be open during both legs of the trip and is

supported by an ‘at seat’ trolley service. This trip provides a welcome end of season boost for members and supporters who continue to seek funds for the purchase of GSM-R which in its absence has severely restricted Hastings Diesel’s plans to run excursions this year. Nevertheless, No. 1001 visited Slade Green depot at the invitation of Southeastern Trains which opened the premises to staff and friends on Saturday, September 14, the unit being the only representative of the heritage movement among modern rolling stock. Routed from St Leonards, the six car unit travelled via Hastings, Robertsbridge, Tonbridge, Sidcup and Crayford arriving right time. It was Hastings Diesels’ 57th main line excursion since No. 1001 returned to the network in 1996 working the ‘Hastings DEMU Phoenix’ tour around Kent.

Class 40 returns to main line SR Bulleid West Country Pacific No. 34046 Braunton and LMS ‘Black Five’ 4-6-0 No. 44932 topped and tailed ‘The Blue Bell Explorer’ railtour from Victoria to the Bluebell Railway on November 9. The first railtour to depart from Sheffield Park steam hauled passes under Three Arch Bridge on the approach to Horsted Keynes behind No. 44932. DAVID HAGGAR

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THE Class 40 Preservation Society had both its locomotives on the main line at the beginning of November when Class 40 D335 was towed from the ELR’s Bury base to Barrow Hill by Class 55 D9009 Alycidon. On arrival there, they were joined

by Class 40 D345 which then towed D335 and No. 55009 to Tyseley Locomotive Works where they underwent tyre turning. D345 towed the convoy back to Barrow Hill on November 8 where D9009 was deposited, leaving the Class 40s to return to Bury. www.heritagerailway.co.uk

Mainline News

Compiled by Cedric Johns

The ‘extras’ during filming at King’s Cross. JOHN TITLOW

King’s Cross movie stardom for two LMS ‘Black Fives’ By Cedric Johns and John Titlow

A PAIR of ‘Black Fives’ have starred alongside actors Keira Knightley and Benedict Cumberbatch in late evening filming sequences at King’s Cross station for a new movie. The ‘Fives’, Bert Hitchen’s 4-6-0 No. 45231 and David Smith’s No. 44932 – declared fit after a

new valves for old stoppage – were given ‘walk on’ parts in the film, as exclusively reported in Main Line News (HR issue 182). Having departed Southall at 7.15pm, the two 4-6-0s and their four-carriage trains were routed over the North London line via Acton Main, Willesden, Gospel Oak and Harringay to Ferme Park reception sidings where the ‘train’

LMS ‘Black Five’ 4-6-0s Nos. 45231 and 44932 side by side at King’s Cross. JOHN TITLOW

was held for 30 minutes. After reversing at nearby Hornsey, it remained stationary for another 45 minutes before being allowed to proceed to Harringay where the crews were left kicking their heels another 30 minutes. The line through Camden Road was not used due to a derailment there. Eventually given a ‘green’ for King’s Cross, the pair and their

At the bufferstops at the ‘new’ light and airy King’s Cross station is LMS ‘Black Five’ 4-6-0 No. 45231. JOHN TITLOW

62 Heritage Railway

carriages arrived at adjacent platforms at 10.45pm. While filming took only a matter of minutes to get the trains ‘in the can’, the engines and crew were kept hanging about before and between sequences. The film, The Imitation Game, is based on the true story of Alan Turing, the British wartime cryptographer who was instrumental in cracking Nazi Germany’s Enigma code. The atmospheric setting included signage, platform luggage, porters and extras wearing 1940s-style clothing, all of which added to the illusion of a wartime railway. Evacuee children were being handed cardboard boxes with string which contained gas masks and were at the windows of the train to wave goodbye with labels around their necks. When filming ended, a diesel was on hand to haul both engines and coaches back to Ferme Park en route to Southall running via Gospel Oak, Willesden and Acton Main, arriving just after 2am on the Sunday. It didn’t end there for the support crew, who of course then had to attend to disposal of the two engines. The event was kept under wraps for fear of crowds of enthusiasts invading the station and was so secret that the crews of the locomotives were given little or no details of the filming apart from being told to prepare them for the movement to King’s Cross. The film company appeared happy for www.heritagerailway.co.uk

LMS ‘Black Five’ 4-6-0 No. 45231 stands at King’s Cross. JOHN TITLOW

pictures to be taken of the trains by passers-by, but not of the filming itself, even on mobile telephones. York Road, at the side of the station, was full of filming vehicles and equipment was being brought into the station at around 11pm on the Saturday – with platforms 4 and 5 closed off completely. There was a strong security presence and access to the platforms was restricted with barriers erected. Bert Hitchen said that the sight of the two 4-6-0s at the revamped home of Gresley A4s was hardly authentic, but with tight camera angles and quickly moving sequences the general public will probably be none the wiser when www.heritagerailway.co.uk

the film is released around the country. The following Tuesday, October 22, No. 45231 departed Southall light engine for the Bluebell Railway. Getting away at 10.30am the 4-60 ran via Acton Main, Kensington Olympia to Clapham Junction – 10 minute pathing stop – then proceeded via East Croydon and Oxted, arriving East Grinstead at 1.20pm. Since then, the 4-6-0 has been in daily action during the school half term holidays. As previously reported, No. 45231 is to overwinter on the railway until next March. Heritage Railway

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Main LineItinerary

BR Standard Britannia Pacific No. 70013 Oliver Cromwell passes Meadowhall on the approach to Sheffield with the Railway Touring Company’s ‘Cheshireman’ on October 19. ALAN WEAVER

NOVEMBER ■ SAT 23: ‘CATHEDRALS EXPRESS’ London, Shrewsbury and return. Steam hauled throughout. Loco: No. 60163 Tornado. SD ■ SAT 23: ‘ELGE EXPLORER’ Tyseley, Ely and return. Steam hauled throughout. Loco: No. 4965 Rood Ashton Hall. VT ■ SAT 23: ‘CAPITAL CHRISTMAS EXPRESS’ Weymouth, Waterloo and return. Steam hauled throughout. Loco: No. 34067 Tangmere. RTC ■ SAT 23: ‘TYNESIDER’ Newcastle, King’s Cross and return. Steam hauled: Newcastle, King’s Cross. Loco: No. 60009 Union of South Africa. RTC ■ THUR 28: ‘BATH & BRISTOL CHRISTMAS MARKETS’ Poole, Eastleigh, Salisbury, Bath, Bristol and return. Steam hauled throughout. Loco: No. 34067 Tangmere. RTC ■ SAT 30: ‘CATHEDRALS EXPRESS’ Euston, Chester and return. Steam hauled throughout. Loco: No. 70000 Britannia. SD ■ SAT 30: ‘CHRISTMAS WHITE ROSE’ Cambridge, York and return. Steam hauled throughout. Loco: No. 60009 Union of South Africa. RTC ■ SAT 30: ‘CHRISTMAS CHESHIREMAN’ Bristol, Hereford, Chester and return. Steam hauled throughout. Loco: No. 70013 Oliver Cromwell. SD

DECEMBER ■ SUN 1: ‘MELTON MOWBRAY CHRISTMAS MARKET’ Tyseley, Melton Mowbray and return. Steam hauled throughout. Locos: L94 and No. 9600. VT ■ THUR 5: ‘CATHEDRALS EXPRESS’ Victoria, Petersfield, Salisbury, Bath and return. Steam hauled throughout. Locos: Nos. 44871 and 45407. SD ■ THUR 5: ‘TYNE-TEES STREAK’ Bristol, York, Newcastle and return. Steam hauled: York, Newcastle and return (incl 90mph running). Loco: No. 4464 Bittern. PATH 64 Heritage Railway

■ SAT 7: ‘CAPITAL STREAK’ King’s Cross, York and return. Steam hauled: York, King’s Cross (incl 90mph running). Loco: No. 4464 Bittern. LSL ■ SAT 7: ‘SURREY HILLS LUNCHEON’ Victoria, Guildford, Redhill, Victoria and return. Steam hauled throughout. Locos: No. 35028 Clan Line. VSOE ■ SAT 7: ‘LINDUM FAYRE’ King’s Cross, Spalding, Lincoln and return via Grantham. Steam hauled throughout. Loco: No. 60009 Union of South Africa. RTC ■ MON 9: ‘CATHEDRALS EXPRESS’ Ipswich, Winchester and return. Steam hauled: Willesden, Winchester and return. Locos: Nos. 44871 and 45407. SD ■ WED 11: ‘CHRISTMAS SUSSEX BELLE’ Victoria, Redhill, Eastbourne, Hastings, Sevenoaks, Victoria. Steam hauled throughout. Loco: No. 34067 Tangmere. RTC ■ THUR 12: ‘CATHEDRALS EXPRESS’ Horsham, Ely and return. Steam hauled: Willesden, Ely and return. Locos: Nos. 44871 and 45407. SD ■ THUR 12: ‘YORK YULETIDE EXPRESS’ Norwich, York and return. Steam hauled: Norwich, York, Ely. Loco: No. 60009 Union of South Africa. RTC ■ FRI 13: ‘SURREY HILLS LUNCHEON’ Victoria, Guildford, Redhill, Victoria and return. Steam hauled throughout. Locos: No. 35028 Clan Line. VSOE ■ SAT 14: ‘CATHEDRALS EXPRESS’ Southend, Chichester and return. Steam hauled throughout. Loco: No. 44871. SD

■ SAT 14: ‘CHRISTMAS WHITE ROSE’ Tyseley, York and return. Steam hauled throughout. Loco: No. 5043 Earl of Mount Edgcumbe. VT ■ SAT 14: ‘CHRISTMAS WHITE ROSE’ King’s Cross, York and return. Steam hauled throughout. Loco: No. 60009 Union of South Africa. RTC ■ SAT 14: ‘MAYBACH MEANDERER’ Crewe, Cheltenham, Didcot, Quainton Road and return. Loco: D1015 Western Champion. PATH ■ MON 16: ‘CATHEDRALS EXPRESS’ London, Haywards Heath, Salisbury, Sherborne and return. Steam hauled throughout. Loco: No. 44871. SD ■ THUR 19: ‘CATHEDRALS EXPRESS’ King’s Cross, York and return. Steam hauled throughout. Loco: No. 4464 Bittern. SD ■ SAT 21: ‘SURREY HILLS LUNCHEON’ Victoria, Guildford, Redhill, Victoria and return. Steam hauled throughout. Locos: No. 35028 Clan Line. VSOE ■ SAT 21: ‘CHRISTMAS YORKSHIREMAN’ Victoria, Bedford, Chesterfield, York and return. Steam hauled: Victoria, York. Loco: No. 60009 Union of South Africa. RTC ■ SUN 22: ‘CATHEDRALS EXPRESS’ Canterbury East, Bromley South, Redhill, Tonbridge, Dover, Canterbury, Bromley, Redhill, Tonbridge. Steam hauled throughout. Locos: Nos. 44871 and 45407. SD ■ MON 23: ‘SALISBURY CHRISTMAS DINER’ Waterloo, Salisbury, Victoria and return. Steam hauled throughout. Loco: No. 34046 Braunton. SD

TOUR PROMOTERS LSL RTC SD

Locomotive Services Ltd (bookings via Pathfinder or Steam Dreams) Railway Touring Company 01553 661500 Steam Dreams 01483 209888, 0845 310458

PATH UKRT VT VSOE

Pathfinder Tours 01453 835414 UK Railtours 01438 715050 Vintage Trains 0121 708 4960 Venice Simplon-Orient-Express 0845 077 2222

 The information in this list was correct at the time of going to press. We strongly advise that you confirm details of a particular trip with the promoter concerned.

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The Coal Tank withdrawn and awaiting its fate at Crewe Works in May 1939. The engine was reprieved, overhauled and returned to traffic in January 1941. HugH W RoxbuRgH

‘Coal Tank’ No.1054,

unsung hero?

Pete Skellon reports on a locomotive which played a more pivotal role in the history of steam preservation than is generally realised.

O

f all the multifarious topics concerning the history of railways there is perhaps one that has failed to be recognised as worthy of systematic research. It is the history of heritage railways. Perhaps this is a consequence of its perceived ‘newness’, its origins being within our memory, but if this is so, do we know its origins? What were the key moments that paved the way for today’s heritage railway movement? Many may know the tale behind the Talyllyn and Bluebell railways and their ground-breaking rise from the ashes, but the story is not necessarily as simple as that. And if we consider that it is the steam locomotive which holds the emotive, tangible, and evocative answer to the question ‘why?’ this story must have commenced somewhere. A few will be aware of the ‘preservation’ of Invicta, Rocket, and Lion, but what about the

schemes proposed and supported by the enthusiast for the enthusiast? Perhaps the answer to this question is with the purchase in 1960 of the LNWR ‘Coal Tank’ No.1054, a historically important locomotive that until recently has been something of an ‘unsung hero’. Purchased in September 1960 by the Webb Coal Tank Engine Preservation Fund, this scheme proved that collecting money by appealing to the enthusiast ‘in the street’ was a format for success – one that was worthy of emulation by others. Until then, the private preservation of steam locomotives had relied on either the generosity of a railway company (the LBSCR Gladstone was presented by the Southern Railway to the Stephenson Locomotive Society in 1927) or the personal wealth and friendly connections of an individual (Captain Bill Smith and his purchase of J13 No.1247 in 1959).

So what makes the Coal Tank remarkable?

Above: The Coal Tank as recently arrived at Crewe Works and ready for scrap for a second time, May 1959. IngRoW Loco ARcHIve Left: The leaflet produced by J M Dunn to raise awareness of the bid to save 58926.

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In the gloom of Abergavenny MPD during 1957, and No. 58926 with snowplough awaits any sign of snow. IngRoW Loco ARcHIve

The story begins on January 5, 1958, when the Stephenson Locomotive Society (SLS) organised the last train on the Abergavenny to Merthyr route in South Wales. As this was former LNWR territory, a request was made to use the last surviving Coal Tank, No.58926, then in store at Abergavenny and fitted with a snowplough in case of inclement weather. The request was agreed, the snowplough removed, and the engine duly prepared for its last foray across the Heads of the Valleys route. Together with ‘Super D’ 0-8-0 No. 49121, this last train successfully and very publicly placed itself into the history books, on to 16mm film and exposure on BBC local TV news. For some members of the SLS, the engine had something of a special quality. They realised that here was an engine that worked both freight and passenger trains over a wide expanse of the country and served some of the largest areas of population; it could be described as the first successful mixed traffic locomotive. Despite their quantity production – a total of 300 were built – and their ‘community-support’ role which extended for more than 70 years, they were often overlooked by enthusiasts keen on larger and more glamorous locomotives. Not those few www.heritagerailway.co.uk

In its former guise as LMS No. 7799, at Arley on the Severn Valley Railway during September 2012. Pete skellon

in the SLS however. They considered the feasibility of preventing the Coal Tank from going the way of many of its predecessors – towards the scrapyard. One of those few was Geoffrey Platt. This college lecturer with a passion for model railways had used the Coal Tank as a prototype for a series of detail drawings of LNWR locomotives for articles published in The Model Railway Constructor during the 1940s. He and his likeminded SLS associates approached British Railways to see if it would consider selling them the engine. Surprisingly perhaps, the reply they received was positive. For a reason now lost in the past, the initiative proved abortive. What is known, however, is that Geoffrey Platt was determined to find a way that would succeed.

Preservation schemes

At this point it is worth putting into context the other ‘preservation’ schemes of that time. Three months after the closure of the South Wales Heads of the Valleys route, the section of railway between Lewes and East Grinstead also closed. The following year, in July 1959, the Bluebell Railway Preservation Society was formed in an attempt to save the line and reestablish the train service. ➲ www.heritagerailway.co.uk

No. 1054 and the Liverpool & Manchester Railway 1838-built Lion share passenger rides at the Dinting Railway Centre during 1980. Hubert ParrisH Heritage Railway

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Meanwhile, in November 1958 at the time No. 58926 was withdrawn from service, the Railway Preservation Society was formed in London under the chairmanship of Noel Draycott. Also during 1958, the Consultative Panel for the Preservation of British Transport Relics was formed to assist and advise the British Transport Commission on matters relating to the preservation of transport relics.

Various suggestions

Bahamas Locomotive Society volunteers line up in front of No. 1054 at Dinting in 1980, having recently completed its overhaul and restoration. DENNIS BuSSEy

This panel comprised members of leading societies connected with all forms of land transport and it would go on to play an important role in the creation of the BTC’s museum at Clapham, under its Curator of Historical Relics, John Scholes. Upon its formation, the panel heard various suggestions from ‘non-member railway societies’, one of which was the Stafford Railway Circle. This group considered there was a need to preserve examples of small locomotives, of which only a few older specimens then existed. At the top of their list of six was Coal Tank No. 58926. The panel was chaired by A J Boston, then the vice-president of the SLS. The honorary secretary was W O Skeat, who represented the SLS, and among other members was Geoffrey Platt, who represented the Historical Model Railway Society (HMRS). It was at the fourth meeting of this panel, in January 1960, that Bill Skeat reported: “…no real progress had been achieved with regard to the preservation of the last remaining LNWR Webb ‘Coal Tank’ despite the assistance which had been given to the individuals concerned by the panel and by the commission.” John Scholes went on to report that he had “made representations to Mr MacLeod for the reprieve of this locomotive to give an opportunity for a fund to be raised for its preservation, and that Mr MacLeod had been favourably disposed towards this course.” Alastair MacLeod was the supplies and contract manager for the BR LM Region and so responsible for the disposal of such objects. It was also fortunate that he was a railway enthusiast. He had helped regenerate the Romney Hythe & Dymchurch Railway after the Second World War and would become a vice-president of the HMRS.

Openly criticised

No. 1054 passes Ingrow with a KWVR evening service on June 21, 1986; the location would later become the engine’s home. BRIAN SHARPE

The LNWR six-wheeled coupled side tank coal engine Introduced in 1881. A tank engine version of F W Webb’s first design, the Coal Engine, introduced in 1873. The Coal Engines were a development of Ramsbottom’s Special Tanks of 1870, which were in turn a development of the DX of 1852. Termed ‘Coal Tanks’ by the enthusiast press in the 1920s, the class eventually totalled 300, all of which were built at Crewe. The last 30 incorporated the development work undertaken on the first 270 – in effect a Mark 2 version – to which all were converted. No. 58926, built in 1888, was the last to survive and was withdrawn from service in November 1958. It had previously been withdrawn in January 1939, but was reprieved on the outbreak of the Second World War and

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returned to service in December 1940. The full story of the Coal Tanks, Bashers Gadgets and Mourners has been published by the Bahamas Locomotive Society and is available from 22 Windsor St, Barrow-inFurness, Cumbria LA14 5JR for £25 including post and packing. Further information, including details of how you can support the ‘Coal Tank’ through membership of the BLS, can be found on the website at www.bahamas45596.co.uk

The panel’s role in deciding which were the most appropriate locomotives worthy of saving was difficult. Indeed the final selection recommended to the BTC would be openly criticised in numerous letters in both the national and railway enthusiast press. It is perhaps not surprising that the Coal Tank was not included on the recommendation list sent to BTC early in 1960. The March edition of the SLS Journal announced the panel’s decision about the Coal Tank and by April things began to look decidedly precarious for the engine’s future. It was then that Geoffrey Platt took some action and wrote to a friend, J M Dunn. Max Dunn had not long taken early retirement from his position as shedmaster at Bangor MPD, and when asked by Platt if he would be willing to become the treasurer of the fund to buy the Coal Tank, he willingly agreed. In his letter of acceptance he added: “It’s a funny world. The confounded things have given me more headaches, heartache, sleepless nights and tearful mornings, not to say weary days, than almost any other class of engine – and here I am wanting to keep one as a memento!” Dunn wasted no time. He was able to placate MacLeod sufficiently to have the engine’s stay of www.heritagerailway.co.uk

execution extended until June, and so provide more time to raise the necessary funds. MacLeod’s empathy towards the project also gave rise to the offer of a discount on the selling price. He suggested that by removing certain parts which were of BR origin and which could be returned to stores for reuse – for example the vacuum-operated regulator equipment for working motor trains – the sale price of £666 could be reduced to £500. And so the Webb Coal Tank Engine Preservation Fund was born. Dunn lost no time in preparing an appeal leaflet for distribution through the leading railway societies, although he was careful not to mention the reduction in price. He also wrote an article for The Railway Magazine providing some of his own experiences of looking after these engines when he was a locomotive fitter in South Wales.

Too little action

By June the fund had reached the sum of £92. There was some deliberation on establishing a committee to take control of the fund’s affairs. Seven people were considered but, and perhaps a sign of things to come with such organisations, there was too much talk and too little action. With no real evidence of anyone willing to become involved, it fell to Dunn, Platt and Skeat to make the decisions on the engine’s future – should it have one. But have one it did. Money was forthcoming and during September 1960, just five months after Dunn agreed to help, he was able to pay the final instalment on the purchase price. Funds continued to arrive and so £150 was found to have the engine cosmetically restored to its former LNWR identity as No.1054 at Crewe Works. The restoration was completed the following year, April 1961, and, as Crewe wished to have it removed as soon as possible, a search for a home became urgent. The recently-revived Middleton Railway had been approached, but without available covered accommodation this idea was not pursued, despite the Hunslet Engine Co in Leeds being considered as a temporary home. An alternative location was the recently acquired base of the Midlands area group of the Railway Preservation Society (RPS) at Hednesford in Staffordshire. Here they did have rudimentary covered accommodation, and it was to here the engine was sent and where it remained for the next three years.

Far from ideal

During its stay at Hednesford, the fund’s three officers came to the realisation that they had to relinquish their responsibilities for the engine. The accommodation was far from ideal, the paintwork was beginning to deteriorate and they had no time or opportunity to contribute to the engine’s upkeep in a practical way. Consideration was given to handing over the engine to the RPS, until a chance meeting on a Scottish railtour between Skeat and Mr F Clough of the Industrial Locomotive Preservation Joint Committee led to the engine being offered to the National Trust. It was at the National Trust ‘s Penrhyn Castle property in North Wales where an industrial railway museum was to be created. This was an appropriate site for such a museum, for the Penrhyn estate had been built on the profits from slate and had used an extensive narrow-gauge railway network to help in its shipment. Negotiations with the National Trust proved successful and No. 1054 was officially handed over inAugust 1963. It was not until the following year, however, that the tricky arrangements of www.heritagerailway.co.uk

No. 58926, along with the NRM’s Super D No. 49395, re-enacts the last train to Merthyr of 1958 at Oakworth on the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway. JOHN HILLIER

On the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway displaying its former identity as 58926, February 2012. PEtE SkELLON

transporting the engine to Penrhyn were completed. Although the engine was now on public display, the available space gave limited viewing for visitors and proved unsuitable for serious conservation work; No. 1054 began to fade from most enthusiasts’ consciousness. With the growth of the railway preservation movement and everimproving facilities, however, agreement was reached with the Bahamas Locomotive Society for it to care for the engine at the Dinting Railway Centre. It was to here that No. 1054 moved in September 1973.

Rocket 150

Other than tidying some of the paintwork, little was done to the engine while the society’s restoration team were engaged with the overhaul of No. 6115 Scots Guardsman. Following the completion of the ‘Scot’, which went on to make a successful but fleeting return to the main line, a concerted effort was made on the Coal Tank to

have it operational and ready to take part in ‘Rocket150’. This event in 1980 celebrated 150 years since the opening of the Liverpool & Manchester Railway. Following an intense period of activity and some painstaking restoration by the society’s volunteer members, No. 1054 steamed to Bold colliery to take part in the festivities. The engine then became one of the Dinting centre’s regular engines providing brakevan rides for visitors. No. 1054 reappeared on the main line in 1984 when it was booked to haul a series of private specials from Manchester Victoria to Brewery Siding to help celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Wilsons brewery at Newton Heath. Two years later the Coal Tank went on ‘holiday’ to the Keighley & Worth and Severn Valley railways. Its return to Dinting was something very special. It hauled a four-coach train from Shrewsbury to Stockport, one organised by the SLS in honour of its member Arthur Camwell and to celebrate his 80th ➲ Heritage Railway

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No. 1054 at Haworth. JOHN HILLIER

No. 1054 goes home Blaenavon High Level Station on Friday, September 13, 2013. At the platform, and pointing uphill, is No. 1054. Behind it is No. 49395 and five Mark 1 coaches. 1054 carries replica headboards pronouncing ‘SLS Special’ and ‘Last Train AbergavennyMerthyr’, while 49395 sports the ‘Ebbw Vale and Rhymney Branches’ version. As ‘owners’ reps’, myself and Steve Allsop are with No. 1054. The herd of photographers from the private charter train scurry to the front of the leading engine to record the scene. With the photographers back in the train, the scene is set to re-enact once more the ‘Last Train to Abergavenny’ of 55 years earlier. I reckon this is the third last train re-enactment, the two previous being on other railways. This though is a bit special, being only a stone’s throw from where the original ‘last train’ worked. This one will run the full route of the PBR nonstop to Whistle Inn; those on Saturday and Sunday will terminate at Furnace Sidings. The ski slope that is the Pontypool & Blaenavon Railway is two-miles in length. With no level stretch of railway, there are lots of 1-in-30 somethings and even a 1-in-24, all pointing uphill, so travelling along the route is an interesting experience. Plenty of care and rigorous adherence to operating practices is essential, especially when working the Coal Tank light engine downhill. Perhaps somewhere in that engine shed in the sky, Max Dunn is looking down contemplating that saving 1054 was worth the effort and that, despite his reservations about seeing the engine in steam and working, the engine looks fine and works well. He may consider that his time at Tredegar would have been much easier if ‘his’ Coal Tanks had been in a similar condition to that of 1054. And maybe a slight smile would spread across his face as he considered that the task for which he volunteered in April 1960 had truly born fruit, and in a way he could never have envisaged.

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A view of the photographers from the footplate of No. 1054 during a photo charter on the Pontypool & Blaenavon Railway, October 13, 2013. PEtE SkELLON

birthday. It was ‘Cam’ Camwell who had organised that last train from Abergavenny to Merthyr in 1958 and was thus fitting that the same locomotive was used. No. 1054 celebrated its centenary in various states of dismantlement during its second overhaul. This was completed in time for the last steam weekend at Dinting, during Easter 1990. The site then closed to the public and the collection was forced to move home to the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway. The engine thus had the honour of being the last engine to receive an overhaul and the last to operate brakevan rides at the centre. Although now based at Haworth and used on the KWVR vintage train service, No. 1054 occasionally worked further afield and visited the Battlefield Line and Llangollen Railway before withdrawal in 1998 for its next 10yearly boiler overhaul. Funding such work has always been a struggle, so an application to the Heritage Lottery Fund was made to help finance the engine’s third overhaul in preservation, with a grant of £154,000 forthcoming. This overhaul proved to be long and extensive in nature and the engine was not completed and steamed until October 2011. The following year the engine was ‘in traffic’

and to help with its ‘interpretation to a wider audience’, one of the prerequisites of the HLF award, it underwent an identity transformation. Its LNWR identity of No. 1054 was changed to its former BR guise as No. 58926. Then followed, along with the NRM’s Super D, re-enactments of that last train to Merthyr of 1958. The first was on the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway in February 2012, followed by their appearance at the ‘Steel Steam and Stars’ gala on the Llangollen Railway during the spring. The Coal Tank then regressed to its ‘pre-1928’ LMS freight persona as No. 7799, a livery not seen for some 80-odd years, and in this guise visited the Severn Valley Railway. For 2013, the engine reverted to its LNWR No. 1054 identity. Following a visit to the Great Central Railway in May, it went on to celebrate its 125th ‘birthday’ during September with a return ‘home’ to Abergavenny and operation on the Pontypool and Blaenavon Railway. The weekend following it was at the NRM’s Locomotion at Shildon for its gala, returning to its Ingrow Loco Museum base, where on October 19, the Institution of Mechanical Engineers presented it with its Engineering Heritage Award. Some may wonder why this apparently

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No. 1054 and Super D No. 49395, depart from Furnace Sidings on the Pontypool & Blaenavon Railway. JOHN HILLIER

mediocre tank locomotive, which they might consider has no engineering refinement, should receive such a prestigious award. Perhaps it is worth reflecting on some pertinent facts. There are not many locomotives working today which link primitive designs with those of much later, which provide an insight into Victorian railway working and which continue to operate in the same manner as when built. There are even less which witnessed locomotive development with the introduction of power brakes, improved draughting arrangements, uprated boiler pressures, improved boiler feed injectors, and yet appear to have remained visually unchanged. And while it can be argued that there may be other locomotives that could have some of these attributes, No. 1054 encapsulates them all. Most significantly, however, it was the first to be purchased for preservation wholly by public subscription. As such, the success inspired Roger Bell to write to Max Dunn and to ask how it was done. Roger then went on to help start a fund to buy No. 6201 Princess Elizabeth. The wheels were well and truly in motion; others followed suit, and the story of locomotive preservation by the ‘masses’ provided the success we reap today. So what of our unsung hero? Perhaps, at long last, its contribution to today’s heritage railway movement is being recognised more and more. It is, after all, an important and worthy piece of our railway heritage and has a unique story to tell. ■

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No. 58926 departs from Damems on the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway. JOHN HILLIER Right: The cover of the R&CHS Railway Book of the Year 2012, published by the Bahamas Locomotive Society as the major interpretative element of the HLF award to fund the overhaul of the Coal Tank. Below: Professor Isobel Pollock from the Institution of Mechanical Engineers presents the Engineering Heritage Award to Steve Allsop, BLS chief engineer.

Footplate crew of No. 1054 at the Pontypool & Blaenavon Railway on October 13, 2013. From left: Steve Vincent, PBR fireman; Steve Allsop, BLS chief engineer; and Alex Hinshelwood, PBR driver. PEtE SkELLON

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Railwayana

by Geoff Courtney

High fives for Dave and Mike as Crewkerne leads the way WITH eight nameplates selling for five figures – two of which exceeded £30,000 – and also a worksplate doing likewise, the smiles of Great Central’s Dave Jones and Mike Soden after their October 12 auction at Stoneleigh were understandable. Star of the show was a nameplate, town coatof-arms and scroll set from SR West Country class No. 34040 Crewkerne, which went under Mike’s hammer for £34,500, although this was given a good run for its money by Duchess of Rutland from LMS Princess Coronation No. 46228 (£30,500). Not wishing to be left out, the GWR put up a good fight, thanks to both Kenilworth Castle with its matching cabside numberplate from No. 4097 (£20,000) and a combined name, number and worksplate from Bulldog No. 3341 Blasius (£18,000). The Southern Railway also muscled in, with Hurstpierpoint from Schools class No. 30918 realising £12,000. Completing the five-figure realisations was a trio each at £10,000 – Saint Martin (GWR Hall class No. 4900) and LNER pair

➲ FORMER Sheffield Railwayana director Chris Dickerson has found a new railway role – on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway. Chris and his wife Jo recently moved from Bedfordshire to Pickering, and both have become volunteers on the scenic line at Goathland where the hit TV series Heartbeat was filmed. Although he has never worked on a preserved line, Chris brings a professional background to his new role, thanks to a 30 year railway career with BR and finally EWS, for whom he was European operations manager prior to retiring in 1998. He will continue to run Paddington Ticket Auctions with Brian Moakes, but meanwhile is looking forward to the NYMR Santa season. “It will be nice to put something back after my professional career,” said the 62-year-old, who starts with platform duties but hopes to progress to being a guard.

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Saint Johnstoun (A1 No. 60162) and Nottinghamshire (D49 No. 62723). Dipping below five figures were Bombay (LMS No. 45576) at £9000 – Amethyst from fellow Jubilee No. 45700 was the only main line steam nameplate that failed to sell – Bradshaw (LMS Patriot No. 45518) at £6200 and Linette from Southern Region

Standard 5MT No. 73087 (£4500). The worksplate that also made it into five figures was from LNER 1937 Doncaster-built Gresley A4 No. 60031 Golden Plover (£11,000), although on a more humble level at £1600 was a similar plate from LNER L1 class No. 67704 which created interest as it was the last Darlington-built loco to carry such

a plate. Two smokebox numberplates which vied for top of their category were 62684 from LNER D11 Wizard of the Moor and 73087 from Standard 5MT Linette, the former fetching £2550 and the latter £2500, bought by the buyer of the 4-6-0’s nameplate. An iconic late-1930s LNER poster of ‘The Coronation’ by Frank Mason went for £6300, a Highland Railway longcase clock for £4600 and headboard ‘The Irishman’ from the Glasgow-Stranraer boat train sold for £2500. A clutch at £2400, two at £2300 and £2000, comprised respectively a Barry Price original painting of Nos. 5072 and 34065 – both named Hurricane – at Oxford, the bunker plate from IoW No. W33 Bembridge, a Cambrian Railways’ gold pass in the name of Viscount Churchill, and Eastern Region totem station sign Broxbourne. “Excellent,” said Mike as everyone drifted home. “Some categories are doing extremely well, such as worksplates, including foreign examples.” The prices quoted exclude a buyer’s premium of 10% (+ VAT).

GWR follows LMS and SR to the top THE LMS emerged triumphant at Crewe on October 5 thanks to No. 45515 Caernarvon, and the Southern Railway at Stoneleigh a week later with West Country No. 34040 Crewkerne, so it was perhaps fitting that the GWR scooped top spot at Great Northern’s auction at Poynton on October 19, when Lockheed Hudson from Castle class No. 5081 sold for £25,000. Although outfought by the GWR, the LNER was far from shamed, with Mons Meg (A2 No. 60504) realising £12,500 and Papyrus from A3 No. 60096 making £12,000, albeit the latter not under Ian Wright’s hammer but subsequently. Completing the UK mainline steam successes were two from the LMS, The South Staffordshire Regiment at £11,000 (Royal Scot No. 46143) and Swiftsure (Jubilee No. 45716) at £9500. Crosby Hall (GWR No. 4992) and Lord Roberts (BR Standard Britannia No. 70042) failed to find new homes, but mainline diesel representative Cambrian (Warship D806) went for £5200 and a nameplate, cabside and bunker numberplates and EAR letters set from East African Railways ‘Mountain’ class 4-8-2+2-8-4 Beyer Garratt No. 5908 Mount Loolmalasin for £2250. A 1924 Doncaster worksplate from LNER A3 Pacific No. 60047 Donovan sold for

£6000 – curiously, a similar item from 1937 Doncaster-built A4 No. 60004 William Whitelaw went for £1500 less, surely providing someone with the bargain of the day – but both were eclipsed by the £7200 that was raised for an 1851 Vale of Neath Railway longcase clock. Other lots worthy of mention include a GWR Queen Victoria royal train locomotive headlamp complete with royal crown mounted on the top (£4500), smokebox numberplate 70014 from Britannia Iron Duke (£3600), Killamarsh Central totem station sign (£2900) and 4055 cabside numberplate from GWR Star class Princess Sophia (£2200). The headboard category was a close-run thing, ‘The Night Scotsman’ claiming the honours at £2500, just £100 more than ‘The Royal Highlander’. The former, which ran the 268 miles from King’s Cross to Newcastle nonstop en route to Edinburgh, was the longest year-round non-stop train on the ECML. GNR director Dave Robinson said of this, his debut auction: “The highlights of the day were obviously the mainline nameplates, but others were the Vale of Neath clock and the royal train lamp. If we are supported by collectors both buying and selling, another auction is planned for next June.”

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North Wales trumps the Colonies

A TOWN in North Wales trumped a former British colony at David Lewis’s Crewe Heritage Centre auction on October 5, when nameplate Caernarvon sold for £10,000, just shading the £9500 for British Guiana. The former was from LMS Patriot No. 45515 and the latter from another LMS representative, Jubilee No. 45601, so continuing the crest of a wave that members of this class are currently riding. Third place went to Eastham Grange (GWR No. 6835) at £6500, followed by Leslie Runciman from LNER B1 class No. 61238 (£4800). Not far behind came the first non-nameplate, a cabside numberplate from GWR Castle class No. 5062 Earl of Shaftesbury, which went under the hammer for £3500. Three other named locomotives to feature were GWR No. 1006 County of Cornwall, No. 71000 Duke of Gloucester and GWR No. 6828 Trellech Grange, each of which surrendered

its smokebox numberplate at £1750, £1600 and £1550 respectively, although this trio was beaten by the smokebox from Crosti-boilered Standard Class 9F No. 92026 (£2300). The Duke example was not from the BR era but from the Pacific’s early days in preservation. Other realisations included headboard ‘The Thames-Clyde Express’ (£2750), totem Walker Gate (£2400), a Furness Railway handlamp (£2300), and a whistle from an unidentified streamlined LMS Princess Coronation Pacific (£2000). Outside the centre, No. 61994 The Great Marquess gave brakevan rides, Duke of Gloucester and A4 No. 60009 Union of South Africa were in the yard, and Jubilee No. 45699 Galatea passed twice on railtour duty. “With the prices achieved, the variety on offer and the locomotives on site, this was our best auction to date,” said David. “It went very well.” The prices exclude buyer’s premium of 10%.

Platform lamp shines at Wickham A SOUTH Eastern & Chatham Railway platform lamp from Cranbrook outshone the opposition at Solent’s October 26 auction, going under Nigel Maddock’s hammer for £1550. The station, on the Paddock Wood-Hawkhurst line, opened in 1893 and was located two miles from the town it purported to serve. It closed with the line in June 1961. Totem station sign Exeter St David’s was another four-figure realisation, at exactly £1000, followed at £900 by a collection of three Irish single line tablets from the Northern Counties Committee Londonderry PortDungiven line and the smokebox numberplate from LMS 2-6-2T No. 40199, built at Crewe in 1938 and withdrawn in 1961 (£810). Hot on the smokebox’s heels was an 8in dial wall clock marked B.R(S) which fetched £800 and another Southern Region item, a nameplate from Southbourne signalbox on the Havant to Chichester line that was built by the Southern Railway in 1928 and closed in 1991 (£780). The auction’s star www.heritagerailway.co.uk

item, nameplate Tobago from LMS Jubilee No. 45635, failed to sell. The prices exclude buyer’s premium of 10%. “There was a very good attendance with some good prices achieved, especially considering we were the fourth auction on successive Saturdays,” said Nigel. “Tobago didn’t sell, but otherwise our lowest number of unsolds shows the auction scene is buoyant.” Heritage Railway

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HERoEs of HisToRy!

The line-up of all six surviving A4 Pacifics at the National Railway Museum in July to mark the 75th anniversary of Mallard’s record-breaking feat attracted more than 138,000 visitors and has been hailed as one of the most successful events of all time in the heritage sector. How do you follow that up? By bringing together the drivers and firemen who worked on these magnificent machines on the East Coast Main Line, reports Robin Jones.

T

he steam railway locomotive first appeared in public in 1804 when Richard Trevithick demonstrated one on the Penydarren Tramroad, and 25 years later, the blueprint for the development of the concept was set by George and Robert Stephenson’s engine Rocket. More than a century later, the steam locomotive was honed to near perfection in the form of Sir Nigel Gresley’s streamlined A4 Pacifics, with No. 4468 Mallard setting a stillunbroken world steam speed record of 126mph on Stoke Bank south of Grantham on the East Coast Main Line. Few would doubt the genius behind the design and production of the A4s, which inspired not only their generation but several afterwards, and still continue to do so. Yet no matter how brilliant the architect of a steam locomotive might be, its performance is ultimately down to the men on the footplate. When former National Railway Museum director Steve Davies dreamed up plans to repatriate No. 60008 Dwight D. Eisenhower and No. 60010 Dominion of Canada for a unique line-up of all six survivors, as exclusively revealed in Heritage Railway, it was his associate curator of rail vehicles Bob Gwynne

The last run of driver Joe Burgess (right) on April 27, 1953. Fireman Alf Smith is in the background. The pair worked on Mallard for four years in the Forties. At the Autumn Great Gathering, Alf described Joe as an engineman, not a driver, “a real gentleman”, and the A4s as “engines built miles before their time”. He said that 100mph was no problem for them and he had records of them reaching 115mph.

who came up with the idea of staging the biggest reunion of A4 fireman and drivers in the heritage era. For two years, attempts were made to track down the surviving locomen, many now in their late eighties and early to mid nineties.

You might have thought that the public would have had enough of A4s after the first Great Gathering in July. This picture was taken at 10am when the museum opened at the start of the Autumn Great Gathering on October 26. By the end of the day, nearly 12,000 people had turned up to see the once-in-a-lifetime line-up, followed by another 8000 on the Sunday. ROBIN JONES

At last, on October 26, at the start of the Autumn Great Gathering, the second of three line-ups of the six A4s where again on display in the Great Hall were Mallard alongside No. 60009 Union of South Africa, No. 4464 Bittern, No. 60007 Sir Nigel Gresley and the temporarily repatriated and cosmeticallyrestored pair No. 4489 Dominion of Canada and No. 60008 Dwight D. Eisenhower; more than 75 footplate veterans were assembled at the museum, many meeting for the first time since the end of steam. Many old drivers’ tales were exchanged, as if they had just happened yesterday, and told to interested members of the public, of whom there were nearly 12,000 on that opening day. Several of them brought along their diaries, proudly kept since their days on the footplate and shovel. So many former drivers and firemen turned up for the event that they had to be divided into two rooms. There was one for King’s Cross ‘Top Shed’ and another for those who were based at the other major East Coast Main Line sheds. There were representatives from Edinburgh Haymarket, York, Doncaster, Gateshead, New England, Carlisle, and Newton Heath.

Bittern, the heritage era steam speed record holder, following its 92.5mph run in July, illuminated during the lighting competition. ROBIN JONES

When Prince Philip was thrown out of bed

Walter Blazey, 88, a regular fireman on Dwight D. Eisenhower for two years, began work as cleaner at Top Shed in 1941. His first job was to clean another Gresley masterpiece – the experimental W1 No. 10000 ‘Hush-Hush’, the only 4-6-4 tender locomotive to run in Britain. It had hit a bullock the day before, and the remains had to be cleaned off. He then spent 13 years as a fireman on A4s, before he worked as a driver for 25 years. In total, he spent 48 years’ service at the legendary King’s Cross shed. He also fired on No. 60003 Andrew K. McCosh when it was being fitted with AWS equipment, and recalls the corridor in the tender being filled up with batteries, and had four months on No. 60006 Sir Ralph Wedgwood. Walter broke his arm when he was a fireman on an A4 by catching it on the water scoop handle on the tender as he took on water at speed at Balby south of Doncaster. In the 1950s, he recalled taking Bittern past Essendine at 117mph. Like many fellow ECML drivers, when dieselisation came, Walter went ➲

The A4 drivers and firemen from King’s Cross ‘Top Shed’ came together on the first day of the Autumn Great Gathering. NRM

Former drivers and firemen from York shed. NRM

The winning Da Vinci School team and Dominion of Canada. KIPPA MATTHEWS/NRM Heritage Railway

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Gateshead shed veteran Beresford Bowes talking to Bob Gwynne. NRM

Alfred Smith, a former King’s Cross driver, now 92. Walter ‘Wally’ Blazey is on the far left. NRM

on to drive Deltics. He fondly recalled an occasion when, on a King’s Cross to Doncaster turn in 1959, he brought the Royal Train down to 18mph at Potters Bar so sharply that everyone in the sleeping cars, including the Duke of Edinburgh, fell out of bed. “Prince Philip walked straight past me,” he recalled. Sam Jenkins, the traction inspector, the same who had been on the footplate of Mallard as it set its immortal world record, told him sharply to report to his office the next morning. After entering with some trepidation, Walter was told that the sudden braking was not his fault and had been traced back to a valve that had not worked correctly. Alfred Smith, 92, recalled Mallard ascending Stoke Bank at 90mph during speed trials in 1952 with King’s Cross shedmaster Peter Townend on board. “Suddenly the connecting rope snapped and Peter Townend was out of the corridor tender as fast as anyone could move,” he recalled. Tony Blaxill was a fireman on Sir Nigel Gresley, alongside driver McKinley (known as “everything happens to me Mac”), on July 21, 1959, when it ascended the gradient to Stoke Tunnel at 90mph. It was only two months before that No. 60007 had set a postwar steam record speed of 112mph locally. Grantham was passed above the permitted speed of 70mph, and soon No. 60007 was running at a constant 100mph, the flat crossing at Newark-on-Trent again being passed in excess of the speed limit. On May 23, 1952, he was interviewed by Wynford Vaughan-Thomas on a BBC schools programme I Want to be an Engine Driver. He explained all the intricacies of operating Mallard to the Welsh broadcaster on camera.

The man who drove all six survivors

Special pride of place went to Maurice Dakin, who worked on all six surviving A4s during their British Railways days. “I fired most of the A4s that were at King’s Cross,” he said. “I enjoyed it all so much – they were all good memories.” Maurice was there at the start of the first Great Gathering on July 3. “It is fantastic that all six have come together again,” he said. Reg Turner, 91, began as a cleaner in April 1941, was a fireman on the A4s during the Second World War, passed as a driver in 1961 and ended his railway career driving InterCity 125 High Speed Trains up to 1987. “The A4s were very good locomotives,” he said. They could hold a speed of 80-85mph quite easily.” He drove A4s until they were withdrawn in the 1960s, including Bittern on one of its last trips. King’s Cross driver Rob Birch, who started on the railways in 1947 at the age of 14, recalled an incident when he was on the footplate of Mallard with the 9.20am from King’s Cross when, after passing the water troughs at Newark, a lump of coal flew through a window of a house near a level crossing. Police were called over fears that someone could have been injured. Anthony Coulls, the NRM’s senior curator of rail vehicles, spoke to Albert ‘Sid’ Strachan, who was based at Doncaster and now lives at Balby. He said that he had known Joe Duddington, the driver on Mallard’s record run – and claimed that he himself had driven an A4 faster than No. 4468 achieved on that day. Aged 18, he began work at the Doncaster Carr yard after transferring from ‘The Plant’. He said: “I asked if I could be a fireman at 18 and by the time I was 26 I was a driver, just working in the depot. You had to be

John Anthony and his wife at the reception for former A4 locomen on October 26. NRM

John Black and Hugh Jones, who worked at Doncaster Works. NRM.

A4 veteran Harry Wilson in front of a montage of the museum’s A4 photographs. The drivers who attended the reunion added names to many other staff in the pictures who the museum had hitherto been unable to identify. NRM

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Former A4 driver George Purnell fired for Mallard fireman Tommy Bray. NRM

Spectacular smoke effects combined with lighting raised the profile of post-war steam record holder Sir Nigel Gresley. ROBIN JONES

experienced before you could drive on the main line so I spent time as a fireman. “You didn’t get the chance to put your shovel down. I would be shifting six to eight tons of coal on each trip, but I got used to it. “I used to wish I had the chance to have another go at Mallard’s world record because I think we could have beaten it. As it was I think the fastest I reached in one of the A4s was 90mph.” Many of the locomen spoke of an age in which the driver’s word was law. One driver at

King’s Cross was so protective of his personal space on the footplate that he drew a demarcation line in chalk and told his fireman never to step over it. The long, arduous backbreaking hours of driving a steam locomotive along the ECML ended with dieselisation, which at a stroke brought vastly improved working conditions. However, when asked at the end of a question and answer session whether they would do it all over again in the steam era, the five-man panel of drivers was unanimous. Most certainly, they said. Bob Gwynne said: “This must be one of the biggest get-togethers of steam loco crew in recent times.”

Six A4s in many different lights

The Autumn Great Gathering encompassed the now-annual Locos In a Different Light competition, in which teams of students from all over Britain are invited to use theatrical lighting to highlight the heritage of exhibits. The event, which was part of the Illuminating York festival, saw the line-up of six A4s bathed in a variety of coloured lighting and artificial smoke effects. Theatricality, energy consumption, conservation and safety – not necessarily the most striking display – were the criteria by which the teams were judged by industry professionals at a VIP preview evening on October 29. Hertfordshire’s Da Vinci Studio School of Creative Enterprise, whose students had illuminated Dominion of Canada in fluorescent lighting which reflected that nation’s flag, was announced as the winner. Coming second was York College (Union of South Africa) and in third place was the University of South Wales (Mallard). Last year’s winners, Rose Bruford College, finished fourth (Sir Nigel Gresley) followed by Barking & Dagenham College (Bittern) and University of South Wales (Dwight D. Eisenhower). ➲ Left: Dwight D. Eisenhower and Union of South Africa together during Locos in a Different Light. JAMES SHUTTLEWORTH www.heritagerailway.co.uk

Retired locoman Preston Kyme reunited with an A4. NRM Left: Reg Turner, who was based at York shed. ROBIN JONES Below left: Tony Blaxill, a fireman with experience of A4s running above 100mph. ROBIN JONES Below right: Maurice Dakin worked on all six surviving A4s under British Railways. ROBIN JONES

Albert ‘Sid’ Strachan, who wanted to have a crack at breaking Mallard’s record. NRM Heritage Railway

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Above: The six A4s as they have never been seen before and never will be again: 21st century theatrical lighting technology illuminates Gresley’s masterpieces in the Locos In A Different Light competition inside the Great Hall. KIPPA MATTHEWS/NRM

During the following four evenings, the event was open to the public free of charge. Over and above the bumper daytime attendances, Locos In a Different Light attracted 10,399 visitors – a figure which compares very favourably with a well-attended gala at a top heritage railway over a similar period of time.

Packed once again

AS with the first Great Gathering, the autumn event saw queues tailing back from both entrances of the museum on many days, even late into the afternoons.

A total of 108,419 people attended the museum by the time the event officially ended on November 11, including the visitors to the lighting competition. Afterwards, Nos. 60007 Sir Nigel Gresley and 60009 Union of South Africa departed to resume their duties, leaving four A4s on display in the Great Hall. The third in the series of Mallard 75 line-ups is the Great Goodbye, which will be staged at the Locomotion museum in Shildon from February 15-23, after which Dwight D. Eisenhower and Dominion of Canada will return to North America. ■

During the Autumn Great Gathering, the National Railway Museum’s souvenir shop has done a roaring trade in these large ceramic Mallard tiles, priced £25 each. ROBIN JONES A star product produced on behalf of the museum to mark Mallard 75 is this sizeable illuminated paperweight containing images of all six surviving A4s. Selling for £225 each, the first batch was limited to 50, but more will be made if the demand is there.

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Once more, a glow is emitted from the cab of Union of South Africa inside what was previously York shed. ROBIN JONES www.heritagerailway.co.uk

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Platform

TrackTalk Smaller new builds are losing out to bigger projects

I read with great interest Stuart Gibson’s letter on bulk ordering of crank-haft forgings in issue 182. If only it were so simple. even if they were all the same that is not the problem – it’s a matter of funding. as a member of the Holden F5 Trust it is safe to say that the Ner G5 is far more advanced than the F5 but as a group we do co-operate with others. Our chimney pattern was also used for the J15, and our small wheel pattern will be used to cast four wheels for the new Claud Hamilton – all still dreams at the moment, but it will happen. The problem is that fundraising seems to be much slower in this part of the country and there are so many larger main line new builds on the go, soaking up funds. The small historic locomotives for heritage railways appear to be on the back burner. a Ger F5 will run on the epping Ongar railway again, given time. Derrick Martin, Hornchurch, Essex

Picture was at Epping not Ongar

reGardING the “shock eviction” from Mangapps railway Museum for the new-build Fr5 team in News, issue 182: the caption for the picture which states it was taken at Ongar couldn’t be more wrong. The F5 is either leaving – or entering epping loco shed, and the J15 is standing in the adjacent shed yard with a loco ash or coal wagon behind. The coaches are interesting as the epping-Ongar push pull sets were formed of a pair of Gresley coaches. The vehicle furthest from the camera is certainly a Gresley vehicle, however, the vehicle beside the camera is a Thompson vehicle as indicated by its steel body and window design. I remember the unused loco shed at epping as well as the BTH Type 1s shunting the yard when I was small – I lived in epping from my birth in 1955 until 1975. Simon James, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire.

WRITE TO: Platform, Heritage Railway, PO Box 99, Horncastle, Lincs LN9 6LZ E-MAIL: [email protected]

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Readers’ letters at the heart of the heritage railway scene

Could Tornado be based at Loughborough Central?

reGArDING Tornado and the move by Steam Dreams to use West Coast as its partner: perhaps in some ways this is no bad thing. Apart from King’s Cross to edinburgh, Tornado’s starting appearances on the main lines north of the Thames Valley have been infrequent. I know the operators state that trips from the South east can guarantee to bring in the money, but having seen and occasionally travelled on well loaded excursions from the Midlands and North I do not think that argument is justified. Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham, Leeds, Sheffield and

the east Midlands are large conurbations and certainly would justify more steam excursions. I feel that Tornado’s greatest problem is not having a central rail connected base on which it can be used on a worthwhile basis when not visiting heritage railways or out working on the main line. The National railway Museum sites are rail connected, but have no mileage to run a locomotive in traffic. There are many good heritage lines but none with sufficient mileage and with suitable permanent way to enable locomotives to run at anything like the speed which they were

a sledgehammer to crack a walnut? THe prosecution of the lady who led children trackside at Bedale on the Wensleydale railway, as reported in issue 182, was correct... but was it wise? The feeling is that she has been made an example of. To even the occasional visitor it is evident that many feet, probably mostly unauthorised, tread this short path between the platform end and the foot crossing in question. Not that it excuses anyone, but there is plenty of space either side of the running line at that point, and although it is on a curve, all trains are travelling slowly. In practice, with

reasonable care, no one should be in any danger. As children were involved this case was different, but wouldn’t a personal visit from a Wensleydale railway officer have sufficed? The lady would soon realise her recklessness, even if she hadn’t done already. There is also the Pr aspect. Local newspapers are likely to have featured this quite heavily, and a number of people will be more sympathetic to the individual than a railway which has had more than its fair share of ‘crossing conflict’ lately. Phillip Crossland, Nafferton, Driffield, East Yorkshire

Correspondent Ken Mumford sent us this sketch of the Grade II listed Nine Arches viaduct at Tredegar, which was drawn by a friend who was in the same class at Bedwellty Grammar School in the Rhymney Valley. The correct name for the 1864-built limestone structure is Blaen y Cwm viaduct. It carried the Brynmawr to Nant y Bwch section of the line that eventually became the Merthyr, Tredegar and Abergavenny Railway, popularly the Heads of the Valleys Railway. The last passenger train crossed it on January 5 ,1958, and it is now part of National Cycle Route 46. “To think that trains once ran between these two towns over this viaduct,” said Ken. “It still stands as a tribute to Victorian engineering.”

designed for. However, it does seem to me that the future bridge over the Midland Main Line at Loughborough could be a heaven sent opportunity for Tornado to have the benefit of the best of both worlds – easy access to all of Network rail plus the opportunity to run over 18 miles of rail and a DB Schenker depot just up the road at Toton. Perhaps the A1 Trust should be thinking along these lines and preparing to out-base Tornado at Loughborough GC in the future. After all, the Great Central was part of the LNer. John Ramsden, email

BR liveries: it wasn’t always this way I refer to Derrick Martin’s letter in issue 181. It has not always been the case that Br liveries proliferated in preservation. Indeed, from the late 1960s well into the 1980s, pre-nationalisation liveries were favoured. This was partially because Br was less than enthusiastic about preserved locomotives being seen in public bearing its livery, as it tarnished its modern image, and partially because preservationists wanted to put the dying days of steam behind them, and rekindle memories of happier grouping and pre-grouping days. If my memory serves me correctly, the application of Br liveries gained favour from around the 1990s onwards. My own theory regarding the application of liveries to preserved locomotives is that the key factor is the shared memories of those who own (whether individually or in a society), fund or work on the locomotives. In the early days of preservation these ‘movers and shakers’ would probably have been harking back to before the Second World War as a kind of lost ‘golden age’ of the railways. Today’s preservationists probably view that ‘golden age’ as being the 1950s, when the railways had a postwar resurgence. Hence the widespread application of Br liveries. That is my theory. I could, of course, be wrong... Mark Kelly, email

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The (very) brief reappearance of buried locomotive

CONCeRNING Geoff Courtney’s article in issue 181 about New Zealand Government Railways locomotive No. ab745, it appears that one little bit of its post-derailment history has been lost along the way. In 1973, another wash-out of the embankment at hawera partially uncovered No. 745 and so, before it could be reburied, I and a number of colleagues from Steam Incorporated – including then president Ian Welch – travelled from Wellington to inspect it with a view to rescuing it. however, when we examined No. 745, the decision was made to leave it where it was due to bending of the frames and many other parts. We did think about just removing the boiler for use as a spare for other abs that had been preserved but, in the end, decided not to. So No. 745 was not totally ‘entombed’ for the 45 years Geoff ’s article mentions. I’m sure I’m not telling you anything you don’t already know but, just in case, the name Pacific for the 4-6-2 wheel arrangement was adopted because the very first class of locomotives in the world with that wheel arrangement was the NZGR Baldwin-built Q class – a precursor to the a – of which the ab was a development. Yet again, Geoff, great articles. Thank you. David R Holt, Queensland.

BR Standard 9F 2-10-0 No. 92214 Cock o’ the North on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway on September 28. DAVID TROUT

What’s in a name? The proposed new Gresleydesigned P2 2-8-2 is now on the starting blocks. I look forward to seeing this magnificent machine out on the mainline in the nottoo-distant future and I wonder what it will be called? I hope it will follow North British Railway and LNeR practice and be given a classic Scottish name in keeping with fellow classmates such as Cock o’ the North, Mons Meg or Thane of Fife. Currently the name of Cock o’ the North is being kept alive by the Class 9F No. 92214 beautifully turned out in mixed traffic livery and running on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway. The names drawn from the Waverley novels of Sir Walter Scott were inspirational in the NBR Scott class and atlantic passenger engines and later on the Director class engines sent to Scotland. Names such as Cuddy Headrigg, Jingling Geordie, Wandering Willie, Dumbledykes, Laird of Balmawhapple, etc.

were pure delight. and later some of the Peppercorn a1 Class shared names from Scott literature such as Madge Wildfire, Meg Merrilles and Redgauntlet. Surely the LNeR – of all the Big Four companies – had the most interesting loco names. Many of the Pacifics were blessed with the names of famous racehorses – Shotover, Blink Bonny, Galtee More and Dante for instance. Perhaps the least inspired were those named after railway directors and senior management – Lord Faringdon, William Whitelaw among them. But who could resent Sir Nigel Gresley having his 100th Pacific being named after the great man? Then there were the locos named after birds – Osprey, Wild Swan, Golden Eagle and Kingfisher among them. Who would have thought that the swiftest of them all would turn out to be a duck? David Trout, Durham

Railways did exist before 1948 I have to say how strongly I agree with Derrick Martin’s letter in issue 81. Some months ago you printed a letter from me which you nicely titled ‘Cage that lion’ in which I deplored that BR lion dominating most restored locomotives. even a glance at the classy photographs in Heritage Railway will show just about every locomotive with a BR lion on the tender. Mr Martin is right to ask “Can anyone explain why?” I have yet to see an LMS ‘Black Five’ without that wretched logo, although I believe there are a couple of static examples extant. Only once have I seen a Bulleid Pacific in malachite green

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with Southern on the tender. Now I read that Tyseley, which many enthusiasts regard as the modern Swindon, has put Nunney Castle into BR livery. even Didcot, that bastion of all things Great Western, is at it with 0-4-2 T No. 1466 and 2-6-0 No. 5322 now black with the BR lion. Okay, this was done as usual for a revenue-raising photographic charter which begs the question what is it with photographers? Why do they wish to perpetually record images of engines in non-original appearance? are restorers ashamed of proudly emblazoning Great Western, LMS, Southern, or

LNeR on their locomotives? I will be disappointed but not surprised if Lady of Legend and County of Glamorgan eventually emerge from Didcot with the dreaded lion on their tenders. Christopher Nash, Norfolk. ➲ One big problem with Big Four liveries is the comparative lack of sufficient appropriate rolling stock to go behind them. Would you prefer to see a GWR-liveried locomotive on a BR-liveried train, or a matching set? The BR liveries from ‘living memory’ have traditionally been popular, but maybe more indeed could be done here to rectify the balance, cash willing? – Editor

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Morgan

News A4 No. 60024 Kingfisher on the scrap line at Hughes Bolckow.

Our great heritage skills achievement Not only is the preservation sector about saving locomotives and rolling stock for posterity, but it is also about keeping steam era skills alive among the generations that followed afterwards, writes Heritage Railway Association chairman David Morgan.

Kingfisher mystery In PLaTFORM, issue 180, Eric Oates enclosed a photograph of withdrawn a4 no. 60024 Kingfisher being turned by hand on the aberdeen Ferryhill turntable prior to despatch southwards to scrap merchant Hughes Bolckow of north Blyth. He asks the question was Kingfisher being turned so that it could be hauled south along the East Coast Main Line nose first? although I did not see it travelling to north Blyth, Eric’s theory for the turning at Ferryhill is probably the correct one, as when Kingfisher arrived on the Bolckow scrap line it was facing south. assuming it joined the Blyth and Tyne at Morpeth this would involve a reversal, as the southbound link off the East Coast Main Line had at that time not been built. a second reversal would then be

required at Bedlington which would then result in Kingfisher facing south on entering the Hughes Bolckow siding. My photograph taken in november 1966 shows Kingfisher standing on the Hughes Bolckow scrap line. On the scrap line in front of no. 60024 was a Q6, a J27, a B1, then sister locomotive no. 60034 Lord Faringdon, again facing south having also travelled from aberdeen Ferryhill after being withdrawn a few weeks before Kingfisher. Two other a4s were also scrapped at Hughes Bolckow. The first was Gateshead’s no. 60001 Sir Ronald Mathews in January 1965 and the last was no. 60026 Miles Beevor from Crewe Works in September 1967 after it had been cannibalised for the overhaul of Sir Nigel Gresley. Trevor Gregg, email

Make the most of the A4s we have over here

Many of us are starting to hear rumours that unknown persons are offering millions of pounds for Dwight D. Eisenhower and Dominion of Canada. Though it seems a great idea, I’d just like to point out a couple of things to the millionaires and dreamers alike. We have four ‘streaks’ in this country, Union of South Africa owned by John Cameron, and Bittern by Jeremy Hosking. Mallard is the flagship of the national Railway Museum and it has no plans to return it to main line running. This leaves Sir Nigel Gresley, which is owned by the a4 Society. I would suggest instead of trying to spend your hard

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earned cash or your lottery winning on depriving the americans of the other two streamlined beauties, you could join the a4 Society for as little as £20 a year, do as much as you like and spend likewise. In 2015 no. 60007 goes into the workshops for its 10-year overhaul. The figure we need will be well over £500,000, and we would as always welcome new members and volunteers. If you would like to help the only society-owned a4 please visit our website at www.sirnigelgresley.org.uk Paul Bush, the Sir Nigel Gresley Locomotive Preservation Trust Ltd

O

ne theme that seems to unite all the political parties appears to be the need to encourage apprenticeships, if only to enhance the employment prospects of the young. In that, it seems, heritage railways are at one with our political masters for the simple reason that the relevant skills are so essential for the continuation of the heritage sector whose activities might otherwise fade away with them. In many ways heritage railways have become more self-sufficient. In the early days, many of the engineering teams were self-taught but in that era there were more men around with traditional skills, who were prepared to impart their wisdom to us. The equipment needed to carry out restoration and maintenance increasingly became obsolete itself and would become available to early pioneers quite cheaply, if not free of charge. So we were lucky. The north norfolk Railway, of which I have the honour to be president, is a classic example of this development. It started with a single length of track some 2¾ miles long – actually, not even that, as the track had been removed to a point some 500 yards short of Weybourne – and no covered accommodation. The former bookstall area on Sheringham station’s platform hosted the railway’s first workshop and much of the work was carried out in the open, come rain or shine. We were offered the frame of the old M&Gn shed at norwich City and lo and behold a shed was built on the site of some old bottle pits at Weybourne. The original shed has since been expanded to cover more general workshops and a carriage shed, with machinery capable of undertaking a wide variety of tasks. now it has been announced that Chatham Steam will move to norfolk as the nnR widens its engineering expertise. It has for some time carried out restoration and maintenance work for third parties but I suspect that with this business merger, it will pursue a stronger marketing campaign similar to that of the South Devon, when it took over Roger Pridham’s business. The Great Central Railway has similarly developed its engineering expertise and capacity during recent

years and has established apprenticeships. The railway has a history of going out and bringing in work from other railways, businesses and large organisations for testing, training and some general engineering work. With the establishment of a satellite museum for the national Railway Museum, this is likely to increase. Indeed some of the new premises at Leicester north are now occupied by a training organisation. So we have come a long way from those early days when a handful of volunteers slaved away in the open to restore and then maintain our locomotive fleet. The other advantage of these enterprises is that smaller railways which do not have the resources to fund or man their own engineering department have an increasing number of suppliers who can address their needs. Furthermore, we are building up a paid workforce whose future seems even more certain than those employed by some of the larger commercial practices. after all, the activities of a heritage railway are difficult to outsource to another country in the Far East or other parts of asia. Recognising this, the Heritage Railway association has set up an Heritage Engineering and Training Group (HEaT G). I do not think that this should be restricted to the engineering divisions, although that is where this has started. The Boiler & Engineering Skills Training Trust has now obtained charitable status and a Lottery grant to pursue its aims more vigorously concentrating first on boiler skills. The fact that it has succeeded in persuading Richard Gibbon (formerly head of engineering at the national Railway Museum) and Tony Simons (formerly engineering team leader, york College) to lead this project is certainly a feather in its cap. In the United States they still remember Richard’s visit to Sacramento when he enthused a huge audience speaking to them from the footplate of a British locomotive parked outside its railway museum building in the Californian sunshine. I am sure that Richard and Tony will do the same for the next generation. I think there is a great future to be had out there. www.heritagerailway.co.uk

ScaleHeritageRailway

Thank Hornby’s lucky Star

BRITISH steam owes a massive debt of gratitude to GWR chief mechanical engineer George Jackson Churchward, whose locomotive designs marked the watershed between those of Victorian times and the 20th century. He followed up his revolutionary Saint class 4-6-0 with the 73 Stars. The prototype for the 4000 express passenger locomotive class was an experimental locomotive, No. 40 North Star, built to a 4-4-2 wheel arrangement for comparative trials with fourcylinder de Glehn compound locomotives that the GWR had bought from France. These trials established the benefits of the balanced fourcylinder layout. However, Churchward chose to produce the class with simple steam expansion and the 4-6-0 wheel arrangement he had introduced with the Saints. He followed the de Glehn design with the outer cylinders driving the centre axle, while the pair of inside cylinders were set forward to drive the leading driving axle. The design featured two sets of Walschaerts valve gear between the frames, with the valves to the outside cylinders driven by rocking levers. Construction of the production class (Nos. 4001 to 4072) started in 1907. Churchward’s successor Charles Collett, an innovator rather than an outright inventor,

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honed the Star design to perfection with his Castle 4-6-0 which appeared in 1923, and was immediately at the cutting edge of locomotive design. Five Stars were rebuilt as Castles. The first Star to be withdrawn was No. 4016 The Somerset Light Infantry (Prince Albert’s) from Old Oak Common in August 1925. However, 47 survived into British Railways ownership. These locomotives saw service right up to British Railways days, but were steadily withdrawn in the early Fifties. The last in service was No. 4056 Princess Margaret which was withdrawn in October 1957. Sole survivor of this groundbreaking class is No. 4003 Lode Star which was withdrawn in 1951. Saved as part of the future National Collection, it was first overhauled in Swindon Works for preservation and is now a static exhibit in the town’s STEAM museum. Because of its historic value as being preserved ‘as was’, it is unlikely that it will be ever be allowed to be restored to running order again, so if we want to see one in action, we will have to wait until the Great Western Society at Didcot considers building one from scratch, or sit back and

simply enjoy Hornby’s magnificent new model. The first Star to be issued as the latest major release by the Margate manufacturer is No. 4018 Knight of the Grand Cross. This locomotive emerged from Swindon Works on April 30, 1908, and was withdrawn from Wolverhampton Stafford Road on April 30, 1951. Both engine and 3500-gallon tender of the Hornby model are up

to the expected level of superb fine detailing, and as such excel, filling a major gap in the OO scale proprietary GWR fleet. As with the full-sized versions, there is no problem with pulling power. The model appears in GWR Brunswick green livery with the shirt button emblem.

HORNBY R3166 GWR Star 4-6-0 No. 4018 Knight Of The Grand Cross GWR Brunswick green, pristine finish, DCC Ready. £134.99

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Live steam Gauge 1 Tornado helps full-size version TORNADO, the locomotive which blazed a trail for steam in the 21st century, is now appearing in Gauge 1 as a live steam model. Leading small-scale live-steam manufacturer Accucraft and Tornado builder and owner The A1 Steam Locomotive Trust have combined to produce the 45mm gauge model. Accucraft’s 1:32 scale model is butane gas-fired with slide valves, and the cylinders are fitted with drain cocks. The chassis is constructed from stainless steel, while the boiler is copper and the cab and tender are constructed from etched brass.

The cab controls include a steam regulator, gas regulator, reverse lever and lubricator. The gas tank is located inside the tender and there is an axle pump with bypass valve and water hand pump with check valve. It has a Walschaerts reversing gear. Its working pressure is 60psi, and its length over buffers is 29½in. The minimum radius over which it can operate is 8ft.

The model will be available next year in apple green, BR express passenger blue and BR Brunswick green. A1 Trust chairman Mark Allatt said: “Just as Tornado has brought pleasure to countless numbers of steam enthusiasts, we hope that this wonderful miniature Tornado will do the same.” Graham Langer, general manager of Accucraft UK and a

member of the A1 Trust, said: “It has been a joy to work with the trust producing a faithful replica of Tornado, sales of which will help raise funds for the full-size locomotive.” The model will be available from the trust, Accucraft UK and selected retailers. The retail profit from sales of this superb model will go to the trust.

ACCUCRAFT S32-12A Gauge 1 A1 4-6-2 Tornado Lined apple green, rimless chimney with BRITISH RAILWAYS logo ACCUCRAFT S32-12B – Lined BR blue, rimmed chimney, early emblem ACCUCRAFT S32-12C – Lined BR green, rimmed chimney, early emblem ACCUCRAFT S32-12D – Lined BR green, rimmed chimney, late crest

£2895 £2895 £2895 £2895

Lanky tank to help Locomotion THE next exclusive edition in the National Railway Museum’s National Collection in Miniature OO gauge series is the first locomotive to be built at the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway’s Horwich Works in 1889. No. 1008 was the first of John Aspinall’s Class 5 2P 2-4-2Ts, which originally had 18in by 26in cylinders giving a tractive effort of 18,955lb. In 1905, George Hughes introduced a Belpaire firebox to replace the original round-topped boiler. From 1910, this boiler was also fitted to rebuilt locomotives. Some were push-pull fitted. Out of 270 built, 110 were inherited by British Railways in 1948, but by 1961, all but three had been scrapped, including No. 6762, which had been sold to the Wirral Railway in 1921 and was the only engine from that line to survive into nationalisation. No. 1008 worked across the L&Y system on local passenger trains mainly, apart from a spell being tried out on London commuter trains in 1926. Returning to its native North

West, it continued in service for the LMS and then BR until 1954, when it became part of the British Transport Commission’s Collection of Historic Relics. It was restored to its original condition in 1958, and is preserved as a static exhibit in the National Railway Museum. The Bachmann model, produced for the Locomotion museum at Shildon, appears in pre-Grouping livery. It is available exclusively from the museum shop at Locomotion and through the online outlet at www.locomotionmodels.com Orders are limited to two per customer initially. Profits are ploughed back into conserving the full-size exhibits at Locomotion, where the Great Goodbye line-up of all six surviving A4s will be held from February 15-23.

Diesel shunter for the steam age BACHMANN’s latest edition of its go-anywhere all-purpose Class 08 diesel shunter appears in early BR black livery, with red coupling rods. Black livery was originally applied to shunting engines, and before diesels took over the main line, the 08s were numbered in the 13XXX series.

This locomotive, No. 13050, which carried the early lion and wheel emblem, is ideal for anyone modelling the early British Railways steam era of 1948-56. A mini size 8 pin decoder is required for DCC operation due to restricted space inside the engine bonnet.

BACHMANN 32-14A Class 08 shunter BR black livery, early emblem DCC Ready.

£71.95

BACHMANN/NRM Lancashire & Yorkshire 2-4-2T No. 1008 L&Y livery £95 plus postage and packing. www.heritagerailway.co.uk

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Offtheshelf The Bristol-Radstock-Frome Line

By colin g maggs (softback, Oakwood Press, 240pp, £18.95, ISBN 08536117266)

This is a timely publication in view of the refreshed campaign to reopen the surviving Radstock to Frome line as the North Somerset Railway. This GWR crosscountry route was built partially as a broad gauge mineral line tapping into the North Somerset coalfield and was subsequently constructed as standard gauge throughout. Coal was the primary reason for its existence, with passenger transport a poor second. Indeed, passenger services were withdrawn as early as 1959, not even surviving long enough to come under Dr Beeching’s auspices. Kilmersdon Colliery closed in 1973, leaving just Marcroft Wagon Works, which ceased operations in 1988. Since then, debates have raged about the future of the line, which is now very much overgrown with a Sustrans cyclepath alongside it. Is there room for another heritage railway, with the East Somerset Railway close by, or should it be restored as a local passenger route in its own right? Radstock and Midsomer Norton were hit hard by the closure of local mines. A rail connection ideally to either Bristol via this route, or to Bath via the Somerset & Dorset, would surely regenerate these towns by providing effective commuter services, kick-starting local housing markets, while helping to solve traffic congestion in both cities. Radstock to Frome would link in to services to Swindon and beyond. All this is, hopefully, one for the future, but in the meantime, this excellent factpacked volume unveils the forgotten history and heritage of this neglected route in detail. It is superbly illustrated with archive black-and-white photographs throughout.

LMS-Patriot Project Fundraising Calendar

(The LMS-Patriot Co Ltd, PO Box 3118, Hixon, Stafford ST16 9JL, lmspatriot.org.uk/warrior_items.html, £8 plus £4 postage and packing)

The LMS-Patriot Project has produced a superb A3 size calendar featuring 12 different Patriot works of art by famous railway artists including Philip D Hawkins FGRA, John Austin FGRA, Jonathan Clay, Colin Wright, Craig Tiley and G S Cooper. The calendars are supplied in sturdy card envelopes to protect them. Proceeds from the calendar go directly towards helping to build new Patriot 4-6-0 No. 45551 The Unknown Warrior.

Main Line To The West: The SouTheRn

RailWay RouTe BeTWeen BaSingSToke & exeTeR – PaRT FouR: The BRanch lineS By John nicholas and george Reeve (hardback, Irwell Press, 312pp, £29.95, ISBN 978 1 906919 62 7)

Here is the fourth and final instalment of a meticulously-detailed profile of the Basingstoke to Exeter line. As the title suggests, it deals with the myriad of branch lines that supplied traffic to the main route, from daily freight to summer holidaymakers. They range in size from the Basingstoke & Alton Railway, famous for the location filming of the movie Oh, Mr Porter! to the Lyme Regis, Seaton, Sidmouth and Budleigh Salterton and Exmouth branches, to the obscure Park Prewett Hospital Railway. It is packed from start to finish with archive black-and-white photographs and track diagrams of stations, halts and major features on the line. Books on most of these branches have appeared before, but the value here is placing them in the context of the railway system as a whole, and this volume does that job admirably. Highly recommended.

Vintage Steam calendar

(Bahamas Locomotive Trading Ltd., 6 Highfield Lane, Bury, BL9 8DR, www.bahamas45596.co.uk £5 plus £1.20 postage)

This annual offering from the Bahamas Locomotive Society features 13 black-andwhite pictures by the late Eric Oldham, one of the great lineside photographers of the mid-20th century. His collection survives and his nephew is working with the society to give the pictures a wider audience than in his day. This calendar is the first of what is hoped to be many publications highlighting Eric’s work.

Avon Valley Railway calendar

(Avon Valley Railway, Bitton station, Bath Road, Bitton, Bristol BS30 6HD, £3.99)

The railway’s calendar produced in association with the Bristol Post, features illustrations of a remarkable variety of motive power to have been seen on the line in recent times, ranging from three Great Western pannier tanks to a Polish 0-6-0T, plus even a Great Eastern J15 0-6-0.

The Swanage Branch in Colour:

The ulTimaTe aRchive By andrew P m Wright (hardback, Kingfisher Productions, 112pp, £20, ISBN 978 0 9573367 3 5)

This profuselyillustrated book aims to be exactly what it says on the cover, with pictures of the well-known LSWR branch in the BR steam era continuing through modernisation to closure. It is interesting to compare the archive views from the 1960s and 1970s with the familiar views of the line as it is today after a successful preservation project. The author is familiar to Heritage Railway readers as a regular contributor and he has assembled a variety of illustrations which capture the unique atmosphere of the line through the Purbeck Hills.

The Industrial Tramways of the Vale of Llangollen By J R Thomas & D W Southern (softback, Oakwood Press, 72pp, £9.95, ISBN 0853617273)

Oakwood Press continues to do railway heritage a great service by publishing texts on obscure lines that many readers might not know even existed, as well as the popular mainstream standard gauge lines. So if you thought you knew all about the Llangollen Railway, think again. This book looks at several small-scale industrial horse-worked concerns serving quarries at Corwen, Deeside, Maesyrychen and Ruabon Brook. Even more obscure are the Vivod Forestry railways, where 2ft gauge lines using Baguley petrol-mechanical locomotives were laid to harvest timber as part of the war effort. At Penybont, the J C Edwards Brick and Tile Works used steam locomotives and invested in a Motor-Rail, four-wheeler to work its standard gauge branch. The book is a bargain if only in view of the archive photographs which would otherwise never be seen. It is a fascinating insight into a wealth of little local lines that served a valley that was once far more industrious than today.

Giants of Steam calendar

By Phil Jones (Icarus Art Calendars, £10, ISBN 978 1 907412 329 4)

This big lavishly illustrated full colour calendar features 12 stunning images of steam in the heritage era by regular Heritage Railway contributor Phil Jones. Main line and heritage lines are featured depicting a variety of motive power from Bittern and Tornado to an Ivatt mogul and a ‘Jinty’.

Bradshaw’s Railway Map Great Britain and Ireland 1852; Railway Map of Great Britain and Ulster 1923, and Bradshaw’s Railway Map Central Europe 1913 (Mapseeker Archive Publishing, 01922 458288, oldmapsandimages.co.uk £14.99)

Despite the widespread availability of digital alternatives, printed maps remain objects of perennial fascination and a mine of historical information. The Bradshaw 1852 map is a godsend to students of the embryonic national network who often end up confused by the names of early railways. Just where did the first South Eastern Railway lines run, or what was the limit of the LBSCR empire in its formative years? This map will tell you at a glance. It need not be said that the 1923 map is a perfect record of the system at the Grouping, a seminal point in railway history. It shows the lines gathered into their ‘Big Four’ constituents as well as the few that remained independent. As with the 1852 map, the Central Europe map ties in with the relevant Bradshaw guide, as reprinted in

Steam Twilight

By david Percival (softback, 112pp, £18.95, Lineside 25, ISBN 978 0 9566762 3 8)

This new collection of David PercivaI’s black-and-white photographs covers the period of the 1960s, from 1962 until the end of that decade. As the title suggests, images of the final years of BR steam traction form the bulk of the content but the infant preservation movement is also acknowledged. The author presents what he describes as his ‘personal interpretation’ of the steam age in its twilight years by grouping the pictures together in themes which, in most cases, follow on from one to another. Although his photographs have appeared in books and magazines over the past 50 years or so, the selection he has made for this volume includes around 150 images which have never previously been published.

recent times by Middleton Press. Printed on quality parchment-style paper with Ordnance Survey-style card covers, these make for top-notch Christmas gifts, and we eagerly look forward to seeing this excellent range expanded. See the advertisement on page 99 for more details.

Iron Road: The Railway in ScoTland

By P J G Ransom (softback, 334pp, £20, Birlinn, ISBN 978 1 84158 728 8)

“A nation’s railways reflect national characteristics”. This opening sentence provides a flavour the author gives not only to the Iron Road in Scotland, but also that nation it serves. This history of Scotland’s railway is a vision of the past, as well as giving us food for thought about the future of transport in this country. This sumptuously illustrated book is bursting with photographs, drawings and posters from the glory days of the railway and the author has excelled in charting the rise and decline of this iconic transport system. More than that, the book looks at the railway in particular relation to Scotland and the Scottish nature, illustrated with a remarkable variety of views of the country’s railways throughout the years. Recommended to anyone with an interest in the railways of Scotland.

Dawn to Dusk:

a colouR-Rail JouRney ThRouGh The 1950S and 1960S By Paul chancellor (hardback, Ian Allan, 96pp, £20, ISBN 978 0 7110 3786 1)

Anyone looking for a colour image of a particular location of the railways of yesteryear will quickly find that ColourRail is a first port of call. This book is published as a tribute to one of Britain’s most exhaustive collections, at a time when it is ceasing slide copying and moving into the digital age. Delving into its deep archives, this book contains many beautiful yet rarely seen quality images from the collection, at locations the length and breadth of the country. A seaside excursion to Barry Pier, a B1 picking up steam as it departs Cambridge for Liverpool Street with a red-and-cream set plus parcel van, A4 Kingfisher at Stirling in its twilight days of 1966: there are a total of 140 images, each offering their own degree of fascination and enchantment from the final years of the steam era.

Plastic totem signs

(Off The Rails, Unit 1-4 The Triangle, 95 Commerce Way, Lancing, West Sussex BN15 8UP, 01903 751700, offtherailsonline.com Prices start from £12)

Can’t afford the huge price of buying an original totem from your favourite station? Never mind – help is at hand. Off the Rails produces a series of polystyrene miniature versions in the colours of all six BR regions. From Aberbeeg to Yoker High, there are more than 2700 stations to choose from. Great for decorating a layout room or study, and an ideal stocking filler.

UpandRunning

a gWR goods train headed by 2-6-2t no. 8 Llywelyn on the approach to Capel Bangor on the Vale of Rheidol Railway on October 27. ROBERT FALCONER

Brian Sharpe’s full listing of operational lines and museum venues sOuth East

■ AMBERLEY WORKING MuSEuM Narrow gauge, ¼ mile, Arundel, West Sussex. Tel: 01798 831370. www.amberleymuseum.co.uk Running: Dec 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22. ■ BENtLEY MINIAtuRE RAILWAY Narrow gauge, one mile, Bentley Wildfowl & Motor Museum, East Sussex. www.bentleyrailway.co.uk Running: W/Es. ■ BLuEBELL RAILWAY Standard gauge, 11 miles, footplate experience, wine & dine, Sheffield Park, East Sussex TN22 2QL. Tel: 01825 720800. www.bluebell-railway.co.uk Engines: 263, 92212, 1638, 178, B473, 323, 592, 45231. Running: Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-24. ■ EASt KENt RAILWAY Standard gauge, two miles, Shepherdswell, Dover. Tel: 01304 832042. Running: Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-24. ■ EAStLEIGH LAKESIDE RAILWAY Narrow gauge, 1¼ miles, footplate experience. Running: W/Es + school holidays. ■ HAStINGS MINIAtuRE RAILWAY Narrow gauge, 600 yards, Rock a Nore Road, Hastings, East Sussex Running: W/Es + school holidays. ■ HAYLING SEASIDE RAILWAY Narrow gauge, one mile, Hayling Island, Hants. www.haylingseasiderailway.com Running: W/Es, Weds + sch hol. ■ ISLE Of WIGHt StEAM RAILWAY Standard gauge, five miles, Havenstreet, Isle of Wight. Tel: 01983 882204. www.iwsteamrailway.co.uk Engines: 8, 11, 24. Running: Dec 7, 8, 14, 15, 20-24. ■ KENt & EASt SuSSEx RAILWAY Standard gauge, 10½ miles, footplate experience, wine & dine, Tenterden, Kent. www.kesr.org.uk Tel: 01580 765155. Engines: 65, 3, 6619, 32678, 1638. Running: nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22-24. ■ LAVENDER LINE Standard gauge, one mile, footplate experience, wine & dine, Isfield, East Sussex. Tel: 01825 750515. www.lavender-line.co.uk Running: Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22 ■ MID HANtS RAILWAY Standard gauge, 10 miles, footplate experience, wine & dine, Alresford, Hants SO24 9JG. www.watercressline.co.uk Tel: 01962 733810. Engines: 31806, 34007, 850, 925, 45379. Running: nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 20-24.

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■ ROMNEY, HYtHE & DYMCHuRCH RAILWAY Narrow gauge, 13½ miles, footplate experience, New Romney, Tel: 01797 362353. www.rhdr.org.uk Running: nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 20-24. ■ ROYAL VICtORIA RAILWAY Narrow gauge, one mile, Netley, Southampton. Tel: 0238 045 6246. www.royalvictoriarailway.co.uk Running: Dec 14, 15, 21, 22. ■ SIttINGBOuRNE & KEMSLEY RAILWAY Narrow gauge, 1¾ miles, Sittingbourne, Kent. Tel: 01795 424899. www.sklr.net/index.htm Running: nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22. ■ SPA VALLEY RAILWAY Standard gauge, five miles, footplate experience, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Tel: 01892 537715. www.spavalleyrailway.co.uk Running: nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-24.

sOuth WEst

■ AVON VALLEY RAILWAY Standard gauge, three miles, footplate experience, wine & dine, Willsbridge, Glos. www.avonvalleyrailway.org Tel: 0117 932 7296. Running: nov 24, 30, Dec 1, 7-9, 14, 15, 21-24. ■ BODMIN & WENfORD RAILWAY Standard gauge, 6½ miles, footplate experience, wine & dine, Bodmin, Cornwall. www.bodminrailway.co.uk Tel: 01208 73666. Engines: 5552, 30120, 6435, 4247, 4612, 3298. Running: Dec 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-24. ■ DARtMOutH StEAM RAILWAY Standard gauge, seven miles, wine & dine, Paignton, Devon. Tel: 01803 555872. Engines: 7827, 5239, 4277. www.dartmouthrailriver.co.uk Running: Dec 14, 15, 21-24. ■ DEVON RAILWAY CENtRE Narrow gauge, ½ mile, Bickleigh, Devon. Tel: 01884 855671. www.devonrailwaycentre.co.uk Running: Dec 14, 15, 21-23. ■ EASt SOMERSEt RAILWAY Standard gauge, two miles, Cranmore, Somerset. Tel: 01749 880417. [email protected] Engine: 5637 Running: Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-24. ■ LYNtON & BARNStAPLE RAILWAY Narrow gauge, one mile, Woody Bay, north Devon. 01598 763487. www.lynton-rail.co.uk Running: Dec 14, 15, 20-24.

■ MOORS VALLEY RAILWAY Narrow gauge, one mile, Ringwood, Hants. Tel: 01425 471415. www.moorsvalleyrailway.co.uk Running: W/Es + sch hols. ■ PLYM VALLEY RAILWAY Standard gauge, ½ mile, Marsh Mills, Plymouth, Devon. www.plymrail.co.uk Running: Dec 1, 8, 15, 22. ■ SEAtON tRAMWAY Narrow gauge, three miles, Harbour Rd, Seaton, Devon. Tel: 01297 20375. www.tram.co.uk Running: Dec 15, 21-24. ■ SOutH DEVON RAILWAY Standard gauge, seven miles, footplate experience, wine & dine, Buckfastleigh, Devon. Tel: 0843 357 1420. www.southdevonrailway.co.uk L92, 3205. Running: Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 18-23. ■ SWANAGE RAILWAY Standard gauge, six miles, footplate experience, wine & dine, Swanage, Dorset. www.swanagerailway.co.uk Tel: 01929 425800. Engines: 80104, 30053, 34028, 34070, 6695. Running: nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-24. ■ SWINDON & CRICKLADE RAILWAY Standard gauge, three miles, footplate experience, Blunsdon, Wiltshire. Tel: 01793 771615. www.swindon-cricklade-railway.org Running: nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22.. ■ WESt SOMERSEt RAILWAY Standard gauge, 20 miles, footplate experience, wine & dine, Minehead, Somerset TA24 5BG. Tel: 01643 704996. www.west-somerset-railway.co.uk Engines: 88, 3850, 4160. 7828, 6960. Running: nov 30, Dec 1, 6-11, 14, 15, 21-24.

East anglia

■ BRESSINGHAM StEAM MuSEuM Narrow gauge, one mile, Diss, Norfolk. Tel: 01379 686900. Running: Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-24. ■ BuRE VALLEY RAILWAY Narrow gauge, nine miles, footplate experience, Aylsham, Norfolk. Tel: 01263 733858. www.bvrw.co.uk Running: nov 23, 24, 30, Dec 1, 6-8, 13-15, 20-24. ■ COLNE VALLEY RAILWAY Standard gauge one mile footplate experience, wine and dine, Castle Hedingham, Essex. Tel: 01787 461174. www.colnevalleyrailway.co.uk Running: Dec 8, 14, 15, 21, 22. www.heritagerailway.co.uk

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UpandRunning

In specially dirtied condition, LMS ‘Black Five’ 4-6-0 No. 44806 passes Garthydwr with a photo charter on the Llangollen Railway. OLIVER GOODMAN

■ EAST ANGLIAN RAILWAY MUSEUM Standard gauge, ¼ mile, Wakes Colne, Essex. Tel: 01206 242524. www.earm.co.uk Open: Daily, Running: Dec 1, 8, 15, 22. ■ MANGAPPS RAILWAY Standard gauge, one mile, near Burnham on Crouch, Essex. Tel: 01621 784898. www.mangapps.co.uk Running: Dec 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22, 24. ■ MID-NORfOLk RAILWAY Standard gauge, 11½ miles, footplate experience, Dereham, Norfolk. Tel: 01362 690633. www.mnr.org.uk Running: Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-24. ■ MID-SUffOLk LIGHT RAILWAY Standard gauge, 1⁄4 mile, Brockford, Suffolk. www.mslr.org.uk Running: Dec 1, 8, 14, 15, 22. ■ NENE VALLEY RAILWAY Standard gauge, 7½ miles, footplate experience, Wansford, Peterborough, Cambs. Tel: 01780 784444. www.nvr.org.uk Engines: 73050, 45337. Running: Dec 1, 4, 7, 8, 11, 14, 15, 18, 21-24. ■ NORTH NORfOLk RAILWAY Standard gauge, 5½ miles, footplate experience, Sheringham, Norfolk NR26 8RA. Tel: 01263 820800. www.nnrailway.co.uk Engines: 8572, 5619, 76084. Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-24. ■ WHITWELL & REEPHAM RAILWAY Standard gauge, ¼ mile, Reepham, Norfolk. Tel: 01603 871694. www.whitwellstation.com Running: W/Es , (steam: first Sunday). Santa: Dec 7, 8, 13-15, 20-22.

MIDLANDS

■ AMERTON RAILWAY Narrow gauge, one mile, Stowe-by-Chartley, Staffs. Tel: 01785 850965. www.amertonrailway.co.uk Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-24. ■ APEDALE VALLEY RAILWAY Narrow gauge, ½ mile, Apedale, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffs. Running: Dec 14, 15, 21, 22. ■ BARROW HILL ROUNDHOUSE Standard gauge, ¼ mile, Chesterfield, Derbyshire. Tel: 01246 472450. www.barrowhill.org.uk Open: W/Es. ■ BATTLEfIELD LINE RAILWAY Standard gauge, five miles, Shackerstone, Leics. Tel: 01827 880754. battlefield-line-railway.co.uk Engine: 3803. Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-24. ■ CHASEWATER RAILWAY Standard gauge, two miles, Walsall, West Midlands. Tel: 01543 452623. www.chasewaterrailway.co.uk Running: Dec 1, 3, 5, 7, 8, 10, 12, 14, 15, 21, 22, 24.

94 Heritage Railway

■ CHURNET VALLEY RAILWAY Standard gauge, 5¼ miles, footplate experience, wine & dine, Cheddleton, Staffs. Tel: 01538 360522. www.churnet-valley-railway.co.uk Engines: 69621, 6046. Running: Dec 1, 4, 7, 8, 11, 14, 15, 21, 22, 24. ■ DEAN fOREST RAILWAY Standard gauge, 4¼ miles, footplate experience, wine & dine, Norchard, Lydney, Glos. Tel: 01594 843423. www.deanforestrailway.co.uk Engines: 1450, 9681. Running: Dec 8, 14, 15, 21, 22, 24. ■ ECCLESBOURNE VALLEY RAILWAY Standard gauge, eight miles, Wirksworth, Derbyshire. 01629 823076. www.e-v-r.com Running: Dec 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22. ■ EVESHAM VALE RAILWAY Narrow gauge, 1¼ mile, A46 north of Evesham, Worcs. Tel: 01386 422282. Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-24. ■ fOXfIELD RAILWAY Standard gauge, 5½ miles, Blythe Bridge, Staffs. Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22, 24. ■ GLOUCESTERSHIRE WARWICkSHIRE RLY Standard gauge, 12 miles, footplate experience, wine & dine, Toddington, Glos. Tel: 01242 621405. www.gwsr.com Engines: 7903, 2807, 8274, 5542. Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-24. ■ GREAT CENTRAL RAILWAY Standard gauge, eight miles, Loughborough, Leics LE11 1RW. Tel: 01509 230726. www.gcrailway.co.uk Engines: 48624, 47406, 46521, 78019, 777. Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 11, 14, 15, 18, 21-25. ■ MIDLAND RAILWAY-BUTTERLEY Standard gauge, 3½ miles, footplate experience, wine & dine, Ripley, Derbyshire. Tel: 01773 570140. Engines: 23, 73129. Running: Nov 16, 17, 23, 24, 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 12, 14, 15, 20-24. ■ NORTHAMPTON & LAMPORT RAILWAY Standard gauge, two miles, Pitsford, Northants. Tel: 01604 820327. nlr.org.uk Running: Dec 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22. ■ NOTTINGHAM TRANSPORT HERITAGE CENTRE Standard gauge, four miles, Ruddington, Notts. Tel: 0115 940 570. Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22, 24. ■ PEAk RAIL Standard gauge, four miles, Matlock, Derbyshire. Tel: 01629 580381. Running: Dec 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-24. ■ PERRYGROVE RAILWAY Narrow gauge, B4228, Coleford, Glos. Tel: 01594 834991. Running: Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-24. ■ ROCkS BY RAIL Standard gauge, ¼ mile, Cottesmore, Rutland. Open Sun, Tues, Thurs, Running: Dec 21, 22. ■ RUDYARD LAkE RAILWAY Narrow gauge, 1½ miles, Leek, Staffs. Tel: 01995 672280. www.rlsr.org Running: Dec 7, 8, 14, 15.

■ RUSHDEN TRANSPORT MUSEUM Standard gauge, ¼ mile, Rushden, Northants. Running: Dec 7, 8. ■ SEVERN VALLEY RAILWAY Standard gauge, 16 miles, footplate experience, wine & dine, Bewdley, Worcs DY12 1BG. www.svr.co.uk Tel: 01299 403816. Engines: 1501, 4566, 5164, 7812, 2857, 34053, 43106. Running: Dec 1, 3-5, 7, 8, 10-12, 14, 15, 17-24. ■ STEEPLE GRANGE LIGHT RAILWAY Narrow gauge, ½ mile, footplate experience, Wirksworth, Derbyshire. Tel: 01629 580917 www.steeplegrange.co.uk Running: Dec 7, 8. .

NORTH WEST

■ EAST LANCASHIRE RAILWAY Standard gauge, 12 miles, footplate experience, Bury, Lancs. Tel: 01617 647790. www.eastlancsrailway.org.uk Engines: 80080, 49395, 61994. Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-24. ■ ISLE Of MAN STEAM RAILWAY Narrow gauge, 15½ miles, Douglas, Isle of Man. Tel: 01624 662525. www.iombusandrail.info Running: Dec 14, 15, 21, 22. ■ LAkESIDE & HAVERTHWAITE RAILWAY Standard gauge, 3½ miles, near Ulverston, Cumbria. Tel: 01539 531594. Engines: 42073, 42085. Running: Dec 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22. ■ MANCHESTER MUSEUM Of SCIENCE & INDUSTRY Standard gauge, ½ mile, driver experience, Castlefield, Manchester. Open: Daily. Tel: 0161 832 2244. Open: Daily. ■ RAVENGLASS & ESkDALE RAILWAY Narrow gauge, seven miles, Ravenglass, Cumbria. Tel: 01229 717171. Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 20-23. ■ RIBBLE STEAM RAILWAY Standard gauge, one mile, Preston, Lancs. Tel: 01772 728800. Running: Dec 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-23. ■ STAINMORE RAILWAY Standard gauge, half mile, Kirkby Stephen East Station, Kirkby Stephen, Cumbria CA17 4LA. www.kirkbystepheneast.co.uk Open: W/Es. Running: Dec 8. ■ WEST LANCASHIRE LIGHT RAILWAY Narrow gauge, Hesketh Bank, Lancs. Tel: 01772 815881. Running: Dec 14, 15, 21, 22. ■ For more details when planning your day out, visit the HRA website: http://heritagerailways.com

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UpandRunning

NORTH EaST

■ aPPleBy-FrodinGhaM rly Pres soCiety Standard gauge, 15 miles, Tata Steelworks, Scunthorpe, North Lincs. Tel: 01652 657053. www.afrps.co.uk Running: Dec 14 (not Santa). ■ Bowes railway Standard gauge, one mile, Springwell, Tyne & Wear. Tel: 01914 161847. Open: W/Es. ■ CleethorPes Coast liGht railway Narrow gauge, two miles, Cleethorpes, North East Lincs. Tel: 01472 604657. Running: Dec 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-23. ■ derwent valley railway Standard gauge, ½ mile, Murton Park, Layerthorpe, York. Engine: 69023. Tel: 01904 489966. Running: Easter. ■ elseCar railway Standard gauge, one mile, Elsecar, South Yorks. Footplate experience. Tel: 01226 746746. www.elsecarrailway.co.uk Open: Daily. Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22. ■ eMBsay & Bolton aBBey steaM railway Standard gauge, five miles, Embsay, Yorks. Engine: 52322. Running: Nov 24, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22. ■ KeiGhley & worth valley railway Standard gauge, five miles, footplate experience, wine & dine, Keighley, West Yorks BD22 8NJ. Tel: 01535 645214. www.kwvr.co.uk Engines: 43924, 90733, 1054, 45305, 95820. Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 6-8, 13-15, 20-22, 24. ■ KirKlees liGht railway Narrow gauge, four miles, Huddersfield, West Yorks. Tel: 01484 865727. Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 20-23. ■ linColnshire wolds railway Standard gauge, 1½ miles, Ludborough, Lincs. Tel: 01507 363881. lincolnshirewoldsrailway.co.uk Running: Dec 7, 8, 14, 15. ■ Middleton railway Standard gauge, 1½ miles, Hunslet, Leeds. Tel: 0113 271 0320. www.middletonrailway.org.uk Engine: 1310. Running: Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22, 24 . ■ north tyneside railway Standard gauge, two miles. North Shields. tel: 0191 200 7146. www.ntsra.org.uk Open: W/Es, Running: Dec 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22. ■ north yorKshire Moors railway Standard gauge, 18 miles, wine & dine, Grosmont, North Yorks. Tel: 01751 472508. Engines: 45428, 75029, 61264, 60007. Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22.

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■ south tynedale railway Narrow gauge, 3½ miles, Alston, Cumbria. Tel: 01434 382828/381696. www.strps.org.uk Running: Dec 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22. ■ tanField railway Standard gauge, three miles, Gateshead, Co Durham. Tel: 01913 887545. www.tanfield-railway.co.uk Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-24. ■ wensleydale railway Standard gauge, 12 miles, Leyburn, North Yorkshire. Tel: 0845 450 5474. Running: Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-24.

HOME COUNTIES

■ BuCKinGhaMshire railway Centre Standard gauge, ¼ mile, footplate experience, Quainton Road, Bucks. Tel: 01296 655720. www.bucksrailcentre.org Engine: 30585. Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22. ■ Chinnor & PrinCes risBorouGh railway Standard gauge, 3½ miles, Chinnor, Oxon. Tel: 01844 353535. www.chinnorrailway.co.uk Engine: 1369. Running: Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22. ■ Cholsey & wallinGFord railway Standard gauge, 2½ miles, Wallingford, Oxon. Tel: 01491 835067. www.cholsey-wallingford-railway.com Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22. ■ didCot railway Centre Standard gauge, footplate experience, Didcot, Oxon. Tel: 01235 817200. www.didcotrailwaycentre.org.uk Engines: 93, 3650, 5322, 6023. Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22. ■ ePPinG onGar railway Standard gauge, five miles, Ongar, Essex. Tel: 01277 365200. www.eorailway.co.uk Engine: 4141. Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-23. ■ leiGhton BuZZard railway Narrow gauge, 2¾ miles, Leighton Buzzard, Beds. Tel: 01525 373888. www.buzzrail.co.uk Running: Dec 1, 4, 7, 8, 11, 14, 15, 18, 21-23.

Warship diesel-hydraulic D821 Greyhound departs from Bewdley during the Severn Valley Railway diesel gala. ANDREW NORSWORTHY

WalES

■ Bala laKe railway Narrow gauge, 4½ miles, Llanuwchllyn, Gwynedd. Tel: 01678 540666. www.bala-lake-railway.co.uk Running: Easter. ■ BreCon Mountain railway Narrow gauge, 3½ miles, Merthyr Tydfil, Glamorgan. Tel: 01685 722988. www.breconmountainrailway.co.uk Running: Nov 30-Dec 23 except Dec 2, 9, 16. ■ CaMBrian heritaGe railways Standard gauge, ½ mile, Llynclys Junction. Tel 01352 770413. www.cambrianrailways.com Running: Dec 8, 15, 22. ■ Corris railway Narrow gauge, ¾ mile, Maespoeth, Machynlleth. Tel: 01654 761303. www.corris.co.uk Running: Dec 14, 15. ■ FairBourne railway Narrow gauge, two miles, Fairbourne, Gwynedd. Tel: 01341 250362. Running: Dec 21, 22. ■ FFestinioG railway Narrow gauge, 15 miles, Porthmadog, Gwynedd LL49 9NF. Tel: 01766 516000. www.festrail.co.uk Running: Dec 14, 15, 21, 22 (Santa), 4, 5, 11, 12, 18, 19 (non-Santa). ■ Gwili railway Standard gauge, two miles, Bronwydd Arms, Carmarthenshire. Tel: 01267 238213. Running: Dec 7, 8, 14, 15, 21,-24. ■ llanBeris laKe railway Narrow gauge, three miles, Llanberis, Gwynedd. Tel: 01286 870549. Running: Dec 7, 8, 14, 15, 21. ■ llanGollen railway Standard gauge, 7½ miles, footplate experience, wine & dine, Llangollen, Denbighshire LL20 8SN. Tel: 01978 860979. www.llangollen-railway.co.uk Engines: 3802, 44806, 6430, 7822, 80072. Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 20-24. ■ PontyPool & Blaenavon railway Standard gauge, two miles, Blaenavon, Torfaen. Tel: 01495 792263. Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22.

■ Heritage Railway cannot be held responsible for any inaccuracies or changes within material published in good faith. We advise readers to telephone before travelling long distances. www.heritagerailway.co.uk

Christmas Gift Guide

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Heritage Railway

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UpandRunning

Quarry Hunslet 0-4-0ST Una runs alongside Lake Padarn near Gilfach Ddu on the Llanberis Lake Railway with a David Williams photo charter on October 25. MALCOLM RANIERI ■ TALYLLYN RAILWAY Narrow gauge, 7½ miles, footplate experience, Tywyn, Gwynedd. Tel: 01654 710472. www.talyllyn.co.uk Running: Dec 22-24. ■ TEIFI VALLEY RAILWAY Narrow gauge, two miles, Henllan, Carmarthenshire. Tel: 01559 371077. Running: Nov 22-24, 29-Dec 1, Dec 6-8, 13-24. ■ VALE OF RHEIDOL RAILWAY Narrow gauge, 11¾ miles, Aberystwyth, Ceredigion. Tel: 01970 625819. www.rheidolrailway.co.uk Engines, 8, 9. Running: Dec 14, 15, 21-23. ■ WELSH HIgHLAND HERITAgE RAILWAY Narrow gauge, one mile, Porthmadog, Gwynedd. Tel: 01766 513402. www.whr.co.uk Running: Dec 14, 15. ■ WELSH HIgHLAND RAILWAY Narrow gauge, 26 miles, Caernarfon, Gwynedd. Tel: 01766 516000. Running: Running: Dec 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22. ■ WELSHPOOL & LLANFAIR LIgHT RLY Narrow gauge, eight miles, Llanfair Caereinion, Mid Wales. Tel: 01938 810441. www.wllr.org.uk Engines: 822, 823, Running: Dec 14, 15, 21, 22.

ScOTLAND

■ ALMOND VALLEY RAILWAY Narrow gauge, ¼ mile, Livingston, West Lothian. Tel: 01506 414957. www.almondvalley.co.uk/Railway.html

■ BO’NESS & KINNEIL RAILWAY Standard gauge, five miles, Bo’ness, West Lothian. Tel: 01506 822298. www.bkrailway.co.uk Engine: 246. Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22. ■ CALEDONIAN RAILWAY Standard gauge, four miles, Brechin, Angus, Tel: 01356 622992, www.caledonianrailway.com Running: Dec 8, 14, 15, 21, 22. ■ KEITH & DUFFTOWN RAILWAY Standard gauge, 11 miles, Dufftown, Banffshire. www.keith-dufftown-railway.co.uk Running: Dec 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22. ■ LEADHILLS & WANLOCKHEAD RAILWAY Narrow gauge, one mile, Leadhills, Strathclyde, Tel: 0141 556 1061. www.leadhillsrailway.co.uk Running: Dec 7, 8. ■ ROYAL DEESIDE RAILWAY Standard gauge, one mile, Milton of Crathes, Kincardineshire. www.deeside-railway.co.uk Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-24. ■ STRATHSPEY RAILWAY Standard gauge, 10 miles, Aviemore, Inverness-shire. Tel: 01479 810725. www.strathspeyrailway.co.uk Engines: 46512, 828. Running: Dec 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-24.

■ Entries on these pages relate to heritage lines operating public services during the current month. Locomotives listed are those of main line origin expected to be steamable on the railway at some stage during the current month. Entries in December relate almost exclusively to Santa special seasonal services except where indicated otherwise and advance booking for these trains is necessary in most cases.

IRELAND

■ CAVAN & LEITRIM RAILWAY Narrow gauge, ½ mile, Dromod, Co Leitrim. Tel: 00353 7838 599. www.cavanandleitrim.com Running: Sat-Mon. ■ DOWNPATRICK & COUNTY DOWN RLY Standard gauge, four miles. www.downrail.co.uk Running: Dec 4, 5, 7, 8, 11, 12, 14, 15, 18, 19, 21, 22. ■ WATERFORD & SUIR VALLEY RAILWAY Narrow gauge, two miles, Kilmeaden, Co Waterford. www.wsvrailway.ie Running: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21-23. ■ WEST CLARE RAILWAY Narrow gauge, Moyasta Junction, Co Clare.

RAILWAY MUSEUMS BEAMISH County Durham. North of England. Open Air Museum. Open: Tues-Thurs, W/Es.

LOCOMOTION: THE NATIONAL RAILWAY MUSEUM AT SHILDON Co Durham. Open: Daily.

BERE FERRERS STATION Bere Ferrers, west Devon. Open: W/Es. Tel: 07813 360066.

LONDON TRANSPORT MUSEUM Covent Garden Piazza. Open: Daily.

COL. STEPHENS RAILWAY MUSEUM Tenterden Station, Kent. Open: W/Es. Tel: 01580 765155. CONWY VALLEY RAILWAY MUSEUM Betws-y-coed, Conwy. Open: Daily. Tel: 01690 710568. MUSEUM OF SCOTTISH RAILWAYS Bo’ness. Open: Daily Apr-Oct. IRCHESTER NARROW gAUgE RAILWAY MUSEUM Near Wellingborough, Northants. Open: Suns. KIDDERMINSTER RAILWAY MUSEUM Kidderminster, Worcestershire. Open: SVR operating days. Tel: 01562 825316.

98 Heritage Railway

SOMERSET & DORSET RAILWAY TRUST Washford, Somerset. Open: Weekends. Tel: 01984 640869. STEAM – MUSEUM OF THE gWR Swindon, Wilts. Open: Daily. Tel: 01793 466646.

MIDSOMER NORTON Silver Street, Midsomer Norton. Open: Suns/Mons.

ST ALBANS SOUTH SIgNALBOx & MUSEUM St Albans City station, Open: see website www.sigbox.co.uk Tel: 01727 863131.

MONKWEARMOUTH STATION MUSEUM Sunderland, Co Durham. Open: Daily. Tel: 01915 677075.

CREWE HERITAgE CENTRE Vernon Way, Crewe. Open: W/Es + B/H. Tel: 01270 212130.

NATIONAL RAILWAY MUSEUM York. Open: Daily. Tel: 01904 621261.

ULSTER FOLK & TRANSPORT MUSEUM Cultra, Co Down. Open: Tues-Sun.

PENRHYN CASTLE INDUSTRIAL RAILWAY MUSEUM Bangor, Gwynedd. Open: Daily except Tues. www.nationaltrust.org.uk SHILLINgSTONE STATION Shillingstone, Dorset. Open: Sat, Suns and Wed. Tel: 01258 860696.

VINTAgE CARRIAgE MUSEUM Ingrow, West Yorks. Open: Daily. Tel: 01535 680425. YEOVIL RAILWAY CENTRE Yeovil Junction, Somerset. Open: Certain Sundays and special events.

www.heritagerailway.co.uk

Christmas Gift Guide

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Heritage Railway

99

Christmas Gift Guide

100 Heritage Railway

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Christmas Gift Guide

Web Watch

To advertise on our Web Watch page contact Craig Tel: 01507 529310 or email: [email protected] www.heritagerailway.co.uk

Heritage Railway

101

Stay a While

The Old Manse Hotel 19, MiddlEtoN roAd, PickEriNg, Yo18 8Al.

THE OLD MANSE is an Edwardian House, with extensive grounds and large car park, just a 4 minute walk from NYMR. Special Breaks are available throughout the year. Lunches are served on Tuesday Wednesday and Friday only local produce used. Dinner is also available. The OLD MANSE was awarded Trip Advisor 2012 and 2013 we do our upmost to ensure our customers are delighted. Our Christmas Menu is now available from the 1st week in December until the 23rd. Party bookings welcome. The Old Manse is owned and run by Valerie who looks forward to welcoming you. 10 ensuite rooms wi fi tea coffee making central heating log fire reservations. Licensed choice menu.

01751 476484

www.oldmansepickering.co.uk

Ace Hostel

MicklEgAtE HousE, 88-90 MicklEgAtE, York, Yo1 6JX

LOCATED on historic Micklegate and opened in summer 2009, Ace York is a budget hostel with a difference. As soon as you see the Georgian splendour of this great house with its impressive proportions, delightful flagstone entrance, and take in the many original features of this magnificent 1752 town house, you will appreciate its tremendous location, elegant simplicity, and impressive value for money. Choose from spacious and comfortable double, family & twin bunk rooms; or four, six, eight, ten or fourteen bed en suite dorms. Each room is well and simply appointed for convenience and affordability; yet the whole of the hostel is air-conditioned throughout for that little touch of luxury! All the en suite double & family rooms have 18th century fireplaces, flat-screen TV's, safes, towels, dressing gowns, toiletries, and a selection of complimentary hot beverages. Twin

01904 627720 102 Heritage Railway

bunk rooms also have flat screen TV's, safes, towels and beverages. Dorms all have their own bathrooms, individual reading lights and lockers. The TV & games room, outdoor courtyard & laundry facilities are located in the converted cellar; featuring ancient oak beamed ceilings. On the ground floor we have a bar at reception, serving beer, wine & ciders; a guest kitchen and internet lounge with free Wi-Fi throughout the ground floor and basement. Ace is only a 4 minute walk from the rail and bus stations, and is well located for a stroll around the city. Enjoy a visit to the Minster, Railway Museum, Jorvik Viking Museum, York Dungeon and the historic Shambles. There are also plenty of designer boutiques, shops, bars, cafes, and restaurants, plus great entertainment at any time of the year! Prices start from just £16 per person, per night for B&B!

Awarded 'Best Atmosphere' in November 2012 by Hostelbookers.

No.2 Hostel in England, February 2012 by HostelWorld No.3 Hostel in England, January 2012 by HostelWorld

www.ace-hotelyork.co.uk www.heritagerailway.co.uk

Stay a While

Quality Accommodation close to your favourite railways MID SUFFOLK

CORNWALL

CORNWALL/DEVON BORDER

FFESTINIOG/WHR

NORTH YORK MOORS

NORTH YORKSHIRE

PENRHYNDEUDRAETH near Porthmadog

Bungalow, sleeps 4, GCH, superb views, available all year. Ffestiniog trains pass below. No pets.

Tel: 01766 770740

Email: [email protected]

CUMBRIA

WEST SOMERSET

BLUE ANCHOR

Spacious bungalow on beach by Blue Anchor Station. Two bedrooms, sleeps 4. Fully equipped kitchen, TV, patio, BBQ.

01984 634242 www.blueanchor-beach-bungalow.co.uk

MID NORFOLK

WEST SOMERSET

HEART OF WALES

R A IL W A Y C A R R IA G E H O L ID A YS

In th e b ea u tifu lW elsh m a rch es, a tT itley ju n ction sta tion . LU X U R Y S E L F C A T E R IN G C A M P IN G C O A C H E S •C oronation Scotssleeper, 1930sLM S carriage,sleepsupto 4 . •A rrow vale sleeper196 0sBR M k1 carriage,2 en-suite bedroom s, sleepsupto 6 .

Tel:01544 3406 22

w w w .titleyju n ction sta tion .co.u k

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NORTH NORFOLK

WORTH VALLEY

BRIDGE COTTAGES

Bronte Hotel

• Very comfortable cottages • Beside NNR • Quiet rural location • Holt Station 5 mins • Short breaks • Open all year

www.bridge-cottage-holidays.co.uk

Tel: 01263 577847

Haworth

YTB ★★★

Short walk to K&WVR line, ample free parking. Comfortable lounges and restaurant.

Double rooms from £45, Singles from £25, En-suite available.

Tel: 01535 644112

To advertise on this page contact Craig Tel: 01507 529310 or email: [email protected]

email [email protected] www.bronte-hotel.co.uk

Heritage Railway

103

ExprESSgooDS

CLASSIFIEDS

Telephone Craig Amess on 01507 529310 • [email protected]

HErITAgE rAILWAY, po Box 99, HornCASTLE Ln9 6LZ BOOKS

BARRY JONES

Specialist in the sale and purchase of secondhand railway and steam road transport literature.

Railway timetables, posters, maps, publicity photographs and official items. Model railway and railway collectables always sought.

28 Marine Crescent, Worthing BN12 4JF

Tel: 01903 244655 Email: [email protected]

CLOCKS

DVD

DVD

104 Heritage Railway

EVENTS

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HERITAGE REPLICAS

MISCELLANEOUS

SPECIALIST PAINTS

MODELS

TRIMMING & UPHOLSTERY

PHOTOGRAPHY

RAILWAYANA

WANTED

PROPERTY

WANTED

RESTORATION

WEB WATCH

Deadline for advertising in the next issue is Wednesday 4 December Call Craig on 01507 529310 www.heritagerailway.co.uk

Heritage Railway

105

The month ahead Right: WR 4-6-0 No. 7812 Erlestoke Manor stands at Bitton station during a visit to the Avon Valley Railway. MARTIN CREESE

After a few of weeks of scaleddown services, the heritage lines launch into one of their busiest and most demanding periods – it’s Christmas and the Santa special season is upon us. Many railways operate some of their most intensive timetables in December and it’s not just a case of running trains; stations and trains have to be decorated, there are presents to wrap and distribute and much of the work has to be carried out in cold and often dark conditions. The festive season can be one of the most profitable periods for our heritage lines and most report fully booked trains year after year. The combination of frequent services, heavy trains and (sometimes) Christmas card weather conditions of sun, frost and snow make December a productive time for lineside photographers . As usual, Heritage Railway will be bringing you the best of the action from across the country as the year draws to a close.

Heritage Railway will as usual be bringing you all the action from events large and small.

SPecIaL eveNTS

December

November 23, 24: WARLey NATioNAL MoDeL RAiLWAy exHiBiTioN Two First World War locomotives including the Baldwin 2-6-2T No. 778 from Leighton Buzzard are to join the chassis of new-build LMS Patriot No. 45551 The Unknown Warrior on display at the country’s premier model railway show at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham.

8: LoNDoN UNDeRgRoUND 150, HARRoW-UxBRiDge STeAM There will be five return trips from Harrow-on-the-Hill to Uxbridge marking the 100th anniversary of the town’s station next year. It is likely be the last time that steam trains ever run into Uxbridge. Metropolitan E class 0-4-4T No.1 will pull the trains on the outward run, with a Class 20 diesel hauling the return leg. 26: BoDMiN & WeNfoRD RAiLWAy: WiNTeR STeAM Up 29, 30: gLoUCeSTeRSHiRe WARWiCkSHiRe RAiLWAy: STeAM CHRiSTMAS CRACkeR

ISSUe 184 IS oUT oN December 19, 2013

HERITAGE RAILWAY IS PUbLISHeD 13 TImeS a year

catch up with the latest news, views and great features every four weeks.

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