The Churnet Valley Railway is among more than 2,700 recipients to benefit from the latest round of awards from the £1.57 billion Culture Recovery Fund. This award will secure the future of the railway following the global pandemic that has thwarted many heritage sites and operations around the country. The Churnet Valley Railway ‘CVR’ in […]
Steam locomotive County of Montgomery at the GWSR
New-build Churchward ‘County’ class 4-4-0 No. 3840 County of Montgomery steam locomotive could be based on the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Steam Railway (GWSR), following the signing of a new agreement between the Churchward County Trust which is building the new engine, and the railway. The agreement, which supersedes an earlier ‘agreement in principle’ between the GWSR […]
Great Western Railway History: Then and Now
Great Western Railway (GWR) is proudly showcasing the history of their network and celebrating the rich heritage of Britain’s railways with brand new animated images By delving into the historical railway image archives and commissioning a photographer to capture the stations in their present-day glory, GWR has successfully showcased the gradual development of Britain’s railways over […]
Lulled By The Sound Of Steam
When I was a child I remember seeing Peter Hanford’s LP’s of steam railway sounds in record shops. Peter was a
Are you afraid to be a Heritage Railway volunteer?
Have you ever thought about being a heritage railway volunteer? Do you have a deep down desire to do more than just read about or observe locomotives and trains?
‘I Would Have Done The Job For Nothing’ – Book Review
Over 40 years ago when I was Engineering Apprentice in Crewe Works, I had the opportunity to travel on a brand new High Speed Train (HST) set on a test run from Derby Litchurch Lane to York and Darlington. The engineer in charge who I met on arrival at Litchurch Lane Works was John Forrest.
Steam Locomotive Dating Rewrites History
A recent archaeological survey carried out on Stephenson Railway Museum’s star exhibit, Billy, reveals that the locomotive is even older than previously thought. In March 2018, railway experts Michael Bailey and Peter Davidson wrote a very interesting report. It concludes that Billy was built in 1816, not 1826 as previously thought. This establishes the locomotive as […]
The locomotive BR preferred to forget
For some reason the Metropolitan Vickers Co-Bo Class 28 locomotives have always held a fascination for me. Perhaps because it is one of the few BR 1955 modernization plan locomotive types which I have never seen operating. Maybe it is the unique look of both the front end. It could be the different bogies – one has three […]
Teenage Whistle Stop Railway Adventure
I grew up travelling on 1970s trains. They were my ticket to freedom and I loved travelling over the British Rail network. however, things did not always go to plan!
Behind the scenes at Herston Works
Some time ago, Nick Thompson one of the directors from Southern Locomotives Ltd (SLL) invited me to Herston Works at Swanage to assist with the restoration of their locomotives. SLL own five Bulleid Pacifics and a BR Standard Tank. Restoration is primarily undertaken at Herston Works adjacent to, but not rail connected, to the Swanage Railway. The Swanage Railway also use the facility to carry out overhauls on locomotives. Herston Works […]
Starting Out At Crewe Works
I had been interested railways since I was frightened by an A4 Pacific as it stormed through the old Stevenage station from the North. I was a small child sitting in my pushchair on the Up platform. We were probably travelling to London to visit relatives. I also had an interest in engineering although, as […]
Can You Help Preserve Railway History?
Historically, railway accidents were common and many of the health and safety rules that we have today did not exist. Volunteers are now being sought to help tell the sad and costly story behind Britain’s railway age – the deaths and injuries suffered by many thousands of mainly men who operated the railways. Historian Mike […]
Why flexible rolling stock would be great for passengers
My previous post about ‘adding’ carriages has fuelled some debate so I would like to discuss flexible rolling stock. Train companies lease far more rolling stock than is required trying to satisfy demand for peak commuting. Indeed during peak periods some Train Operating Companies (TOC) plan to operate around 90% of their fleet. TOC’s can’t plan using 100% […]
The Railway to Merhead
Recently, I contacted Pete Briddon, an industrial railway engineering specialist, regarding a quotation for fitting a vacuum train brake system to an English Electric diesel hydraulic locomotive. The locomotive is kept on the old Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway at Midsomer Norton. During this process I became aware that Pete had written a book titled […]
North Norfolk Railway Review
I recently visited the North Norfolk Railway with some railway friends. I hadn’t been to this heritage railway since the early 1970s although I always follow its progress in the media.