News

As HAS been usual practice, Scottish Railway Preservation Society officials have taken advantage of RTC’s ‘Great Britain’ railtours to ‘borrow’ a steam locomotive enabling them to promote and run what amounts to its annual ‘Forth Circle’ trips. This year, two such trips have been flagged up to take place Sunday, May 7. Utilising the availability…

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By Cedric Johns In WHAT may turn out to be a surprise ‘cop’ for Southern enthusiasts, the Railway Touring Company has announced A4 4-6-2 No. 60009 Union of South Africa will head its ‘Swanage Belle’ on June 8. As previously reported, the ‘Belle’ was originally down for B1 4-6-0 No. 61306 Mayflower haulage but with…

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I felt deeply honoured to have been invited to join a small group of guests aboard the train that was to prove to the world whether A1 Peppercorn Pacific No. 60163 Tornado is capable at regular running at 90mph. And it was with great trepidation that I drove to Doncaster station on the late evening…

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TREADING in the footsteps of royalty, TV historian Dan Snow opened the new quarter-mile extension to Hampshire’s Exbury Gardens Railway on April 11. The 12¼in gauge line, opened in 2001 as an added attraction alongside the award-winning gardens, has welcomed many famous guests including the Queen, the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall…

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THE Welshpool & Llanfair Light Railway has received a £22,800 grant towards a project to create an African train. During its heritage era, the railway has regularly looked beyond our shores for locomotives and rolling stock, because it is built to the comparatively rare gauge of 2ft 6in. One source of rolling stock was Sierra…

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STEAM returned with a vengeance to the sunny south to mark the 50th anniversary of its passing on the region’s main line – as the Swanage Railway held its most successful gala ever. The March 31-April 2 Strictly Bulleid event not only starred the largest number of working Bulleid Pacific locomotives since the summer of…

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A UNIQUE LSWR 4-4-0 has returned to its home territory – after the National Railway Museum gifted it to the Swanage Railway. The ownership of Adams T3 No. 563 has been transferred to the Purbeck Line, after it was decided that Victorian and Edwardian 4-4-0s are otherwise well represented in Britain’s National Collection. Never having…

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A SET of four restored suburban coaches is now running on the North Norfolk Railway following the completion of a joint £250,000 project between the Poppy Line and the Heritage Lottery Fund. The set was officially launched at Sheringham station at 11.30am on Saturday, April 15. followed by the coaches being hauled for the first…

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By Geoff Courtney FORMER Swanage Railway-based Standard 4MT 2-6-4T No. 80078 moved under its own power on April 8 for the first time in seven years following its purchase from Southern Locomotives Ltd by former BR trainee civil engineer Stewart Robinson. The 2-6-4T was a stalwart of the London Tilbury & Southend Line in its…

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