News

THURSDAY, July 28 was not a good day for Locomotives Services’ Bulleid light Pacific No. 34052 Lord Dowding when on arrival at Gloucester, its trip fell flat. Working a ‘Cathedrals Express’ from Paddington to Cardiff via Reading, Swindon and Kemble, the 4-6-2 aka No. 34046 Braunton was braked hard – the driving wheels locking up –…

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A section of what may be the world’s oldest standard gauge railway will be protected and studied with the aid of a £75,000 award. As highlighted in Heritage Railway issue 180, the wooden railway was discovered in 2013 during a dig prior to Shepherd Offshore beginning redevelopment work at the former Neptune shipyard site in…

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MORE than 44,000 visitors flocked to the Locomotion museum for the nine-day Shildon Shed Bash free festival, which marked the end of the National Railway Museum’s ‘Scotsman’ season. The concept of the shed bash dates from the 1950s and 60s, a grand tour of an area to visit as many engine sheds as possible in…

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Following the completion of the overhaul of Union Pacific 4-8-4 Northern No. 844, the railroad is now starting work on the restoration of four-cylinder articulated 4-8-8-4 ‘Big Boy’ No. 4014. In late 2012, Union Pacific announced that it was interested in obtaining a ‘Big Boy’ and restoring it to operating condition, and on July 23…

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A worksplate from a humble Victorian 0-4-2ST that due to increasing workloads became unsuitable for its original task but nevertheless defiantly survived in LMS stock and almost into BR ownership, is set to take on heavyweight opposition as one of the stars in a railwayana auction in October. The plate is from Caledonian Railway No.…

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THE Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railway is to start work on a £2.2 million showpiece terminus for Caernarfon this winter. When completed, it will be the most sophisticated and luxurious station on any British narrow gauge line. The plans for the new station in Caernarfon follow the £1.3m redevelopment of Porthmadog Harbour station in May…

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By Martin Creese The annual gala at Threlkeld Quarry was held over the weekend of July 30 / 31. Following last year’s Penrhyn Quarry-themed event the 2016 gala was going to be a challenge, but an impressive cast of visiting locomotives was assembled. Phil Mason took his Kerr, Stuart Sirdar class 0-4-0T Diana No. 1158/1917,…

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FORMER Barry scrapyard WR 4-6-0 No. 7027 Thornbury Castle is set to be restored to steam after years of unfulfilled expectations. Pop mogul Pete Waterman has sold the unrestored 1949-built Peak Rail-based locomotive to JJP Holdings South West Ltd, and it will be moving to covered accommodation in Weston-super-Mare before restoration to main line condition…

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By Paul Appleton The Severn Valley Railway’s oldest operational steam locomotive is once again Port Talbot Railway/GWR No. 26/813, which ran under its own power for the first time on August 9 at Bridgnorth following a lengthy overhaul. Two days later, the 116-year-old Hudswell, Clarke-built 0-6-0ST completed its first round trip to Kidderminster and back,…

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IT was a reunion that heritage diesel enthusiast Neil Carter thought would never happen. But now it has, and Neil, who within months will celebrate 40 years’ railway service, couldn’t be more delighted. In 1994 Neil, a fan of the Western Region Class 52 diesel hydraulics, bought from a friend the nameplate Western Invader that…

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