News

By Hugh Dougherty STEAM returned to the normally diesel-operated Leadhills & Wanlockhead Railway over the weekend of July 29-30. Nick Williams and his support crew brought Andrew Barclay 0-4-0T Jack from the locomotive’s base at the Leighton Buzzard Railway to tackle the climb to Hillend summit. The summit, at Glengonnar Halt, stands at 1498ft above…

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By Maurice Burns ALBERT Hawman, hailed as Britain’s oldest BR steam driver, died in Darlington on July 15 at the age of 104. Born in 1912 he saw as a 12-year-old boy the 100th anniversary celebrations of the Stockton & Darlington Railway in 1925, and later became an engine cleaner then fireman at Shildon, Ferryhill,…

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NORTH Norfolk Railway-based WD 2-10-0 No. 90775 is to be named after the county regiment with full military honours. At noon on Saturday, September 9, at Sheringham station, recently overhauled No. 90775 will be named The Royal Norfolk Regiment, It will be the first main line steam, diesel or electric locomotive to bear this name.…

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Volunteers at the Leighton Buzzard Railway received their prestigious Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service from the Lord-Lieutenant of Bedfordshire, Helen Nellis on Friday, July 28. The award, given in the 50th anniversary year of heritage operations, was accepted by one of the railway’s longest serving members, Peter Hodges, and one of its youngest, Jamie Randall.…

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THE Llangollen Railway’s Project to build a new station in the centre of Corwen has been given an unexpected boost by the donation of a school building. The redundant demountable classroom will provide the passenger facilities when Corwen Central station opens. In mid-July, railway officials heard that the classroom was available for recovery at short…

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By Geoff Courtney Stunning live steam models of two GWR locomotives are set to star at a Dreweatts’ transport sale on September 20, with a combined estimate of up to £200,000. Both in 7¼in gauge, they are No. 4708, one of only nine in a class of mixed traffic 2-8-0s, and No. 6860 Aberporth Grange.…

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By Geoff Courtney THE end of August may be a reminder that summer is on its way out to make way for the mellow hues of autumn, but for railway enthusiasts it is the harbinger of the visual feast of the annual Railart exhibition. Run by the prestigious Guild of Railway Artists, which has within…

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By Geoff Courtney ENTHUSIASTS who do not mind mixing hard graft with the joys of their hobby are being invited to join a UK-led working party that has set its sights on completing a restoration project that will return steam trains to a station in central Romania that closed two decades ago. The station at…

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A RADICAL plan to carry West Somerset Railway passengers to a new station at Norton Fitzwarren by canal barge has been mooted. The Friends of the Grand Western Canal group wants to carry out a feasibility study into restoring a long-lost section of the waterway to link up with Britain’s longest standard-gauge heritage line. The…

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THE project to build a new LNER B17 4-6-0 No. 61673 Spirit of Sandringham is continuing to make steady progress, both at the project’s Llangollen Railway base and elsewhere – and now sponsors are being sought to take it to the rolling chassis stage. The steel castings for the frame stays are being manufactured by…

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