Heritage Railway

CORNISHMAN RichardTrevithick’s invention of an effective self-propelled vehicle in the form of railway locomotives sowed the seeds that changed the globe, but long after he died penniless. His invention was widely taken seriously only with the outbre

EDITORIAL Editor Robin Jones rjones@mortons.co.uk Staff writer Owen Hayward ohayward@mortons.co.uk Senior Contributors Geoff Courtney, John Titlow Contributors Don Benn, Sally Clifford, Hugh Dougherty, Tim Hobman Designer Tim Pipes Production editor

PEPPERCORN A2 Pacific No. 60532 Blue Peter pulled its first main line train in almost 23 years after a formal rededication at King’s Cross station on July 13. Following the ceremony, the A2 undertook a demonstration run between King’s Cross and York,

A3 Pacific No. 60163 Flying Scotsman the star attraction in the first four weeks of the Summer at Locomotion festival at owner the National Railway Museum’s Shildon outpost. On July 18, the world’s most famous steam locomotive was hauled by a Class 3

THE Nene Valley Railway has received a £20,000 grant towards its emergency £300,000 public appeal to rebuild its financial reserves in the face of soaring running costs. The Garfield Weston Foundation has awarded the grant towards the railway’s core

NORTH Norfolk Railway managing director Hugh Harkett has retired after 17 years, it was announced at the annual general meeting on March 20. During his time in charge he oversaw the development of the line into one of the UK’s leading heritage railwa

THE debut of new-build Brighton H2 Atlantic No. 32424 Beachy Head draws near and following its first movements within Sheffield Park station limits on the Bluebell Railway, as reported last issue, another key moment in the locomotive’s timeline was s

NOT only a new and unique locomotive, but also the first of a new class, battery-electric Bo-Bo No. 60 Electra has been launched in Essex. It was unveiled at the Audley End Miniature Railway on Saturday, July 20 to mark the popular 10¼ in gauge line’

NEW-build BR Class 6 Clan Pacific No. 72010 Hengist is to have two castiron rear cylinder covers sponsored by Worshipful Company of Ironmongers for £6300. The organisation is one of the Great XII Livery Companies of the City of London, with links to

THE A1 Steam Locomotive Trust’s tours booked for September have been cancelled after problems with installing the brakes for No. 60163 Tornado at the conclusion of its two-year £1 million overhaul. Tornado is still on track to visit the Nene Valley R

LARGE England 0-4-0STT No. 4 Palmerston successfully passed its final boiler examination on July 23 at the Vale of Rheidol workshops after a rapid overhaul that lasted only two months. Having arrived in Aberystwyth during March for contract overhaul

THE Isle of Wight Steam Railway has announced the appointment of Marc Morgan-Huws as its chief executive. The newly-created role follows the trustees’ recognition that the successful, award-winning railway has reached another chapter in its 53-year d

Northern Ireland’s Infrastructure Minister, John O’Dowd, visited the Downpatrick & County Down Railway on July 17 in his first official visit to the town since it was hit by devastating flooding in November and saw first-hand the reconstruction effor

A 46ft-long solid steel work of art depicting the Severn Valley Railway’s flagship GWR 4-6-0 No. 4930 is now in place at Kidderminster main line station – the result of years of planning and determination by local woman Sue Langley. Sue, who lives in

A NEW exhibition devoted to the life and work of the late David Shepherd, the East Somerset Railway founder and international wildlife artist, has opened at the heritage line. The exhibition, which showcases David’s great passions – steam locomotives

THE campaign to save the world’s oldest station in County Durham has received a major £90,000 boost from the Railway Heritage Trust. The trust has backed the campaign of the Friends of the Stockton & Darlington Railway to buy and restore Heighington

The Great Central Railway has submitted its planning application to Charnwood Borough Council for the reunification scheme to link it to its northern counterpart the GCR (Nottingham) – and supporters of both are being urged to show their support. The

THE North Yorkshire Moors Railway has announced a series of free events and opportunities as part of the national Heritage Open Days on September 6-15. Many of the activities planned for the festival celebrating England’s history of invention, indust

TWO of Britain’s top heritage railways have given their interim managers their jobs on a permanent basis. Laura Strangeway is now permanently leading the North Yorkshire Moors Railway. Having been acting chief executive office since the resignation o

FORMER Barry scrapyard Scottish Region ‘Black Five’ No. 45163 could return to its former home ground, with a main line restoration plan in partnership with Ian Riley. Owning group 45163 Ltd, which has been restoring the Stanier 4-6-0 from Barry scrap

ITS April 2022 visit to the Spa Valley Railway saw that line have its most successful enthusiast-based event ever. Now, the Scottish Railway Preservation Society’s-Caledonian Railway 439 class 0-4-4T No. 55189 is heading back south for a return visit

IN honour of the late railway author, historian and archivist Maurice Dart, the Bodmin & Wenford Railway laid on a special train in his memory. The July 13 late-afternoon beer and pasties Maurice Dart Memorial special was packed, and among the passen

THIS autumn, the gala spotlight will shine on the Keighley and Worth Valley Railway’s Ivatt 2MT 2-6-2T No. 41241, which will be visiting two different events just a week apart. Built by BR in 1949 at Crewe Works, No. 41241 was preserved in 1967 at th

IT has not run in passenger service for five years, but plans are now afoot to bring the Class 205 DEMU that ran over the Mid-Hants line on its final day before closure by BR back into traffic on that same route. Built as a three-car unit between Dec

The private standard gauge East Wressle & Brind Railway, near Howden, in the East Riding of Yorkshire, held a rare open day on July 14 as part of the National Garden Scheme Open Day. Inspired by the light railways of Col Holman F Stephens, the line w

THE Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway is to run a special train to celebrate the famous Pershore plum, which are grown on its doorstep, August’s Pershore Plum Festival celebrates the most famous plum varieties grown in the Vale of Evesham – the Pe

AN exhibition of Peterborough’s Railways is being held in the city until September 21, combined with a series of talks. A focal point of the exhibition, which opened in Peterborough Museum and Art Gallery on July 21, is a model of Peterborough East s

WHEN Dave Mosley, former head of education at the National Railway Museum, first saw Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railways operations director Matt Ellis at the York Museum as a young boy, he never thought that this very same youngster would one day b

CUMBRIA’S Threlkeld Quarry and Mining Museum has just been boosted by £170,000 in grant aid. Cumberland Council have awarded £120,000 as part of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, and the venue, which has a 2ft gauge line, has also been successful in app

THE North Yorkshire Moors Railway has announced two visiting locomotives for its Annual Steam Gala on September 26-29. GWR 4-6-0 No. 4079 Pendennis Castle will visit from Didcot Railway Centre for the first time and returning to the NYMR as a guest i

THE Bahamas Locomotive Society had a double reason to celebrate on July 6 – at events 50 miles apart. At Crewe Heritage Centre, the society officially took possession of LNWR Webb 0-6-2T Coal Tank No. 1054 from the National Trust. Meanwhile, Jubilee

THE founders of tour operator Steam Dreams 25 years ago have launched a new company to run holidays by steam overseas and have announced the firm’s first trip. It was in 1999 that Steam Dreams was established by enthusiast Marcus Robertson with the a

A RURAL parish in East Sussex is seeking a new priest-in-charge who, apart from all the usual qualifications, ideally has a passion that would be a real bonus – an interest in heritage railways. The parish of Ewhurst Green, 10 miles north of Hastings

THE Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway was a nominated finalist at the July 18 New Civil Engineer awards in recognition of its works carried out on the15-arch Stanway Viaduct. The G/WR entered the Historic Bridges part of the Bridge Awards section

FOREVER proud of its connections to Thomas the Tank Engine stories, the fourth annual Awdry Extravaganza once again broke records at the Talyllyn Railway on July 20/21. While appearances of the titular blue tank engine and his companions at heritage

THE Severn Valley Railway is aiming high as the peak 2024 season gets underway. At the line’s annual general meeting in late June, there was talk of optimism, caution, and an acknowledgement that the top-flight heritage line still has a long struggle

IF you’ve been impressed with the ways in which the Severn Valley is working to secure its future, you can give the railway your vote of confidence by taking out membership. Not only will you benefit from generous travel discounts (up to 33% off tick

THE SevernValley Railway’s Step Back to the 1940s events on June 29-30 and July 6-7 have proved to be another great success, with visitors enjoying many attractions along the line. As well as the decorated stations, intensive services and costumed re

MIDLAND Railway – Butterly flagship LMS 3F ‘Jinty’ No. 16440 took a trip back in time much further than its 98 years when it was officially relaunched into traffic on June 29/30. The 0-6-0T was withdrawn for a major overhaul 16 years ago; it began fi

THE Midland Railway – Butterley has launched an appeal to raise £40,000 to undertake essential repair work to the Matthew Kirtley Building, which houses some of its historic collection. If the repairs are not addressed now, it will result in ‘costly

THE UK’s heritage railway sector has received a timely and much-needed boost following the unveiling of the 2024 Travellers’ Choice awards by Tripadvisor. The awards, which have gone to more than 40 heritage lines, museums and tour operators, place t

THE North Yorkshire Moors Railway has permanently scrapped its Through the Decades event, which attracted thousands of visitors and re-enactors, as it refocuses its budget. The event was due to be held on October 12/13. Replacing the line’s wartime w

➜ THE Telford Steam Railway has been commended for its Polar Express Christmas event at an awards ceremony in the US. At the annual Polar Express Enhancement Camp held in Durango, Colorado, on May 16, the heritage line won the Best Community Event aw

AN array of traction engines, steamrollers, vintage cars, motorcycles and camper vans will descend on the Severn Valley Railway on August 10/11 for its Vintage Transport Extravaganza. The popular event will be held across six stations, with Kiddermin

BRITISH railway historian, TV presenter and travel editor Tim Dunn visited the South Devon Railway to help raise awareness of its £3 million share issue campaign aimed at safeguarding the heritage line’s long-term future. Tim was guest speaker at an

FORMER Dinorwic Slate Quarries WG Bagnall 0-4-0ST No. 1760 of 1906 Sybil made its debut in West Lancashire Light Railway service on July 7. Sybil worked for half a century at the North Wales quarry system. It was purchased for preservation in 1965 by

CONTRACTORS have begun essential repair work on a small bridge on the Great Central Railway (Nottingham) as one of the last remaining hurdles to the return of services between the Nottingham Transport Heritage Centre in Ruddington and Rushcliffe Halt

ONE of many benefits offered by narrow gauge is the relative ease of transporting locomotives by road compared to their larger standard gauge counterparts, and the Talyllyn Railway made full use of this on July 15 by opting to send out one of its loc

THE Chinnor & Princes Risborough Railway received a very welcome birthday present from Network Rail in the shape of 400 yards of track panels for the heritage line’s extension towards Princes Risborough. This year marks the railway’s 30th anniversary

A SECTION of the Weston, Clevedon & Portishead Light Railway was officially reopened as a greenway by North Somerset Council on July 12. The Pier to Pier Way is a 13-mile coastal cycle route linking Clevedon with Weston-super-Mare, including Clevedon

THE Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway-based Toddington Standard Locomotive Limited has passed another milestone towards the completion of the restoration of BR Standard 4MT 2-6-0 No. 76077. More than a third of the £150,000 estimated to be require

THE Wensleydale Railway has launched a £30,000 appeal to restore passenger train services to Redmire. The section of line between Leyburn and Redmire village has been closed to the public since 2020 due to the deteriorating condition of the track and

A SPECIAL GB Railfreight gala weekend is to be held at the Nene Valley Railway on September 7/8. The freight operator will provide a range of visiting locomotives to haul trains on both days, giving visitors the opportunity to sample traction types f

A HIGHLY controversial scheme to build a 2000-acre solar farm – to be named after LNER A4 Pacific No. 4468 Mallard which set the 126mph world steam speed record nearby on July 3, 1938 – has been given the green light by new Labour Secretary of State

THE Brunel Museum in Southwark is to close in September for a £1.85 million refurbishment project in time to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the Thames Tunnel in 2025. The 1300ft-long tunnel running from Rotherhithe to Wapping 75 feet below the Th

THE Tanfield Railway’s June 21-23 annual Legends of Industry gala brought many of its steam and diesel locomotives hailing from several industrial sectors to the forefront. Industrial locomotives were at the dawn of the world’s steam railways revolut

THE public can now book a short stay in a Grade I-listed building on the site of the world’s oldest-surviving passenger railway station. A project led by the Landmark Trust, in partnership with the Science and Industry Museum, has seen the restoratio

A CLASS 144 Pacer DMU which has been converted into a learning facility at a Northumberland specialist primary school has won a top award. No. 144002 has become the focal point of the Dales School Learning Train project and recently won first place i

HAVING experienced a resurgence itself in recent years, the Llangollen Railway is lending its aid to help another railway revival slightly further afield. At the end of June, the LR welcomed a delegation from the Hejaz Railway, in Jordan, who were ke

THE revived Llangollen Railway’s steam locomotive fleet is to receive a notable addition to its roster in the coming years following the arrival of currently unrestored GWR 4-6-0 No. 5967 Bickmarsh Hall for its rebuild to continue. Built in 1937, No.

IT was no secret that Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway Class 5 'Lanky Tank' 2-4-2T No. 1008 had been earmarked to move to the Bury Transport Museum on loan, having first been mooted more than a year ago, but the question on everyone's lips was 'when'?

GLASGOW'S Riverside Museum became home to Metro-Cammell 4ft gauge Glasgow Subway motor car No. 128 on June 14, when it left Broomloan Depot for the last time. It was taken by Reid's heavy haulage tractor and trailer to the museum for public display.

THE Swindon Railway Festival will be returning to the STEAM museum on September 14/15. This year’s festival will include more than 20 model railway layouts and demonstrators that will be displayed alongside Swindon-built GWR locomotives. New for 2024

SEVERN Valley Railway managing director Jonathan ‘Gus’ Dunster has praised the team which has been restoring LNER Gresley teak carriage No. 43612 to showpiece condition. A total of 25 volunteers have dedicated more than 6000 hours to the restoration

BARRY Railway carriage No. 163 returned to Wales on June 14 after languishing in an unconnected siding at Hampton Loade on the Severn Valley Railway for 32 years. Built by Ashbury Carriage and Wagon Company in Manchester in 1895, it was a first and s

THE Dartmouth Steam Railway carried the flag for the life-saving National Coastwatch Institution during the organisation's 2000-mile station-to-station relay to mark its 30th anniversary. On July 10, the 5ft by 3ft flag was carried on a special train

CAMPAIGNERS for the restoration of the Midland & Great Northern Joint Railway's Congham Bridge on the former King's Lynn to Fakenham railway line have failed in their bid. Dating from 1926, the bridge carrying the unclassified St Andrew's Lane in Con

GRADIENT signs that were thrown down embankments more than half a century ago during track-lifting following the closure of the Ashbourne to Buxton line have been restored by volunteers and are providing unique information to hikers now walking the a

ONE of the youngest volunteers on the Lincolnshire Coast Light Railway, 20-year-old Matthew Forman-Clark, has just qualified as a driver of diesel locomotives in time for the main summer season. Matthew, from Skegness, qualified as a train guard two

On September 27, 1825, the Stockton & Darlington Railway - the world's first steam-hauled passenger railway - opened, providing rapid transit linking many places, people and communities for the first time. The world would never be the same again. On

Hopetown's charity partner organisation, the Darlington Railway Preservation Society, which was founded in 1981, boasts the town's biggest collection of locomotives. Until 2023, it was based in the 1833 Goods Shed, which was redeveloped as the entran

INTERCITY Tours is offering the chance to ride in its push-pull set with two Class 37/4s operating in top-and-tail formation on Saturday, September 7. Under the title of ‘Sugar Loaf and Stormy Push-Pull,’ the tour is expected to start out from Crewe

ON Friday, September 27, Vintage Trains will run a special double-header with Castle 4-6-0s Nos 7029 Clun Castle and 5043 Earl of Mount Edgcumbe. Starting from Birmingham New Street diesel-hauled, the tour, under the title of ‘The Mayflower,’ is set

VINTAGE Trains has announced dates for the UK’s only main line Polar Express outings for the coming festive season. Hauled by one of Tyseley’s steam locomotives, four trains a day will use on-board character actors recreate the atmosphere of the Warn

UK Railtours has announced a tour that will give passengers the choice of five different destinations around the Kent coastline on Saturday, September 7. ‘The Kent Coaster’ is planned to start from East Midlands Parkway, with further pick-ups at Leic

THE Railway Preservation Society of Ireland’s flagship GNR(I) S class 4-4-0 No.171 Slieve Gullion is approaching the end of its long-running overhaul. On July 6, No. 171, which was built by Beyer Peacock at Gorton Foundry in Manchester in 1913, was c

Steam Dreams is to run a tour behind BR 7P Pacific No. 70000 Britannia to the Goodwood Revival and Chichester on Sunday, September 8. The tour is planned to start steam-hauled from Paddington and head west along the Great Western Main Line for a furt

MERCHANT Navy Pacific No. 35028 Clan Line is booked to haul the Railway Touring Company’s ‘The Cotswold Venturer’ on Saturday, August 24. Starting from London Victoria, Clan Line is scheduled to head through the London suburbs via Hounslow to Staines

NETWORK Rail’s project to build a new accessible footbridge at Cornwall’s Grade II-listed St Erth station has seen two lift shafts successfully installed in the structure. The shafts, weighing 12 and 10 tonnes each, were lifted into place by a 350-to

PROTOTYPE electric Class 89 No. 89001 Avocet moved for the first time in a quarter of a century after taking power on all six traction motors on July 3. The unique locomotive was completing its 25kV commissioning tests at UK Rail Leasing in Loughboro

NETWORK Rail has completed the rebuild of the fire-damaged Grade B-listed Troon station in a £5 million investment The South Ayrshire station’s Platform 1 building, including the ticket office, a hairdressing salon and a café and canopies, were destr

BETWEEN Friday, August 16 and Sunday, August 18, Midland Pullman is offering travel to the Highlands of Scotland with the three-day ‘West Highland Pullman.’ Starting from Romford, the luxury High Speed Train set in the familiar blue and white livery

NETWORK Rail’s £3.4 million project to futureproof the world-famous Glenfinnan Viaduct has started a key phase. Rope access technicians have been ascending and navigating the 1901-built structure, which sits 100 feet above the River Finnan 17 miles f

THE Branch Line Society has announced plans to commemorate 50 years of Drax Power Station with three tours over the weekend of August 17/18. The first tour, under the title of ‘The Cooling Tower Choppers,’ is set to feature a pair of Class 20 locomot

THE modern-day Great Western Railway is inviting passengers in Somerset, Wiltshire and Dorset to travel back in time as part of an archive film project. Inspired by the 1936 film Great Western Approaches, Dorset-based charity the Windrose Rural Media

3 ‘The Cumbrian Mountain Express’ Euston, Carlisle and return. Steam-hauled between Carnforth (outward) and Preston (return). Locos: Steam: TBC. Electric: 86259 Les Ross. RTC 3 ‘English Riviera Express’ High Wycombe, Kingswear and return. Steam-haule

Anything Goes has become a fixture of the events calendar for the Talyllyn Railway. Starting off in 2018 when there was rare but brief window that saw all six of the line’s steam locomotives in operation at the same time, it is gradually developing i

HISTORICAL German live steam model train constructors Carette, Schőenner and Bing were in the spotlight in a sale of O-gauge and larger models held by Special Auction Services of Newbury on June 25/26, with first place going to Great Northern Railway

EARLY declared runners in Great Central’s quarterly flagship auction on September 7 include a GWR pre-Grouping‘combine,’ and nameplates from a GWR-designed, BR-built Hall, a SR King Arthur, and a Standard Britannia Pacific.There is also an LNER A3 cl

HOME and overseas steam, heritage modern traction and a Woodhead route signalbox train register will be among the highlights of a 600-lot JustaClickAgo auction of railway photographs, negatives and slides on August 19-25. UK steam will include BR in

PUBLICITY material issued by a number of Victorian era pre-Grouping railway companies and subsequently the ‘Big Four’was the major theme of a Transport Auctions of London sale held on June 29. Representing an enthusiast’s lifetime collection of broch

A 13in-tall North Eastern Railway handbell was the top seller in a Great Central‘Bloxham-style’auction of more than 1000 lots on June 13/14 with a realisation of £920, closely followed at £880 by a BR locomotive experimental headlamp that carried a b

IN what proved to be a one-horse race atThirsk Railwayana on June 15, a wooden nameboard from Gilling signalbox sold for £2550.The station at which the 1906-built ’box was located was on theThirsk-Malton line, opened in June 1853, and was closed to p

■ August 19-25 JustaClickAgo (photographs, negatives and slides) ■ August 22 Vectis (model trains) ■ August 23 Lacy Scott & Knight (railwayana and model trains) ■ August 29 Special Auction Services (‘Glorious Trains’ Part 2) ■ September 7 Great Centr

THE Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway followed up its hugely successful Cotswold Festival of Steam in May with a notable notable Summer Diesel Gala on July 12-14. About 1400 tickets were sold, a marginal increase on the same event the previous yea

THREE models in a variety of gauges were the joint winners at £800 each in the model trains section of a toys, railwayana and collectors’auction held by Lacy Scott & Knight of Bury St Edmunds on June 21. The oldest of the two locomotives in the trio

AMERICAN narrow gauge topped the charts in a Vectis model trains sale on June 27, when Denver & Rio Grande Western K-36 class No. 486 constructed in G scale by the model company Berlyn Locomotive Works sold for £1700. The full-sized Baldwin-built 2-8

The Diesel and Electric Preservation Group’s Class 52 D1010 Western Campaigner took to the air at its Williton depot on July 8 when it was lifted from its bogies by two 130-ton cranes and slewed over to the ex-BR Swindon Works stands that were ready