News

By Geoff Courtney RAILWAY preservationists are well rehearsed in celebrating anniversaries, which provide an ideal opportunity to remember the past, celebrate the present and look forward to the future, while at the same time putting on a good show for visitors. The Derwent Valley Light Railway, whose stretch of standard gauge track at Murton Park…

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By Hugh Dougherty Northern Ireland Railways chose to celebrate its 50th anniversary in style with steam. The award-winning Railway Preservation Society of Ireland’s recently-restored Great Northern Railway of Ireland 4-4-0 Q class No. 131 pulled a special train, packed with members of the public and former and long-service NIR employees, from Belfast Great Victoria Street…

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THE boiler of one-time Severn Valley Railway flagship GWR 4-6-0 No. 4930 Hagley Hall has left the line for overhaul. The SVR finalised a contract with Northern Steam Engineering Ltd of Stockton-on-Tees for the overhaul which has begun immediately with, an expected completion date of summer 2019. Paul Hobson of The Friends of Locomotive 4930…

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In just two months Weardale Railway supporters raised £54,000 to buy a DMU from the Bodmin & Wenford Railway. The Derby, 1960-built Class 108 unit will allow the heritage line to carry twice as many passengers, as it extends back into Bishop Auckland after an absence of several years. The DMU can accommodate 120 people,…

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By Geoff Courtney One of Russia’s leading narrow gauge railway specialists has urged even closer cooperation between enthusiasts in his country and Britain after a fact-finding visit to the UK which he described as “exciting and helpful.” During his visit in early April, Sergei Dorozhkov visited Bressingham Steam Museum, Southwold Railway Trust and the London…

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THE Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railways has scooped £454,500 from the Heritage Lottery Fund to keep traditional skills alive for future generations. Part of the Lottery’s Skills for the Future scheme, the money will fund an ambitious programme which is now seeking to recruit 20 trainees over a two-year period. Under the scheme, the railway…

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By Phil Marsh THE controversial demolition of Wolverton Works is to be challenged in the High Court. On April 4, Historic England announced that its application for a Judicial Review challenging Milton Keynes Council’s decision to grant planning permission to property developer and owner St Modwen had been granted. The hearing is set for May…

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VANDALS who attack historic sites like heritage railways could face prison sentences of up to four year under tough new sentencing guidelines for judges and magistrates. For the first time the Sentencing Council for England and Wales has specifically said “arson or criminal damage to national heritage assets” should be seen as an aggravating factor…

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By Geoff Courtney When the fire of Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway Class 27 No. 1300 was lit for the very first time 122 years ago, Queen Victoria still had five years of her long reign remaining, the Prime Minister was the Marquess of Salisbury and the world’s first mass production car, the Ford Model T,…

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By Phil Marsh Friday the 13th proved to be a lucky day for Chinnor & Princes Risborough Railway when it ran its first train into the new platform at Princes Risborough in April. Following the major track lift and relocation overnight on March 10/11, as highlighted last month, the CPRR infrastructure team bolted together the…

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