The Railway Magazine

  • Double-headed ‘Manors’ help WSR mark 40 years of steaming to Bishops Lydeard

    Double-headed ‘Manors’ help WSR mark 40 years of steaming to Bishops Lydeard

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    A FOURTEEN-coach train hauled by a pair of Collett ‘Manor’ 4-6-0s was the undoubted highlight of the West Somerset Railway’s 40th Anniversary gala on June 8-9. The event celebrated four decades since the ‘Wizzer’ returned steam to Bishops Lydeard on June 9, 1979, and was a strong illustration that the worst of the railway’s problems…

  • ‘Crab & Winkle’ Invicta re-homed in Whitstable

    ‘Crab & Winkle’ Invicta re-homed in Whitstable

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    Canterbury & Whitstable Railway (C&WR) 0-4-0 Invicta left its long-term home in the city of Canterbury on June 16 to become the star exhibit in the Whitstable Community Museum and Gallery. The veteran locomotive was constructed in 1829 at Robert Stephenson & Co’s Forth Street works in Newcastle immediately after the world-famous Rocket. On arrival…

  • Didcot’s ‘Saint’ unveiled  in full Georgian finery

    Didcot’s ‘Saint’ unveiled in full Georgian finery

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    THE Great Western Society’s re-creation of a Churchward ‘Saint’ 4-6-0 – No. 2999 Lady of Legend – is officially complete. The milestone has been achieved 45 years after donor locomotive No. 4942 Maindy Hall was acquired from Barry Scrapyard in 1974. The ‘Saint’ made its public debut at Didcot, albeit cold and in unlined black, in November…

  • Heritage profile: The Wensleydale Railway

    Heritage profile: The Wensleydale Railway

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    Running through some of the best scenery North Yorkshire offers, the Wensleydale Railway is a relative newcomer to the heritage and tourist railway sector. Graeme Pickering finds out more about its growth and expansion plans. A train ride is undoubtedly the main highlight of a trip to a heritage line, but with railways increasingly trying…

  • New cylinders for ‘flagship’ Hagley Hall reach Bridgnorth

    New cylinders for ‘flagship’ Hagley Hall reach Bridgnorth

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    THE highly anticipated return of Severn Valley Railway (SVR) flagship No. 4930 Hagley Hall has moved a step closer following the delivery of the ‘Hall’s newly machined cylinder blocks to Bridgnorth on June 14.    The new cylinders were one of the last machining jobs carried out by Harco Engineering in Brierley Hill, which worked on…

  • Return of the Brighton Belle

    Return of the Brighton Belle

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    Restoring a 1930s all-electric Pullman train for use on the mainline is a project where the 5BEL Trust has faced and overcome numerous challenges. With the luxury train now being prepared for testing, Andy Coward brings us up-to-date with this ambitious restoration. Work on the restoration of four ‘Brighton Belle’ coaches is nearing completion, as…

  • Network Rail launch £70m task force to improve track worker safety

    Network Rail launch £70m task force to improve track worker safety

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    The Government-owned company said the £70 million scheme would boost the development of systems which supported the well-being of workers.

  • Humphrey Platts, the railway photographer

    Humphrey Platts, the railway photographer

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    Nick Pigott meets Humphrey Platts, who began photographing trains just after the Second World War, capturing a fascinating transitional period on the railways.

  • ‘P2’ construction makes progress behind the scenes

    ‘P2’ construction makes progress behind the scenes

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    Things may appear to have gone quiet in Darlington, but the A1 Steam Locomotive Trust continues to make what it described as “a lot of essential but relatively unspectacular” progress.

  • ‘King’ and ‘A4’ to head 15-engine North Yorkshire Autumn Steam Gala

    ‘King’ and ‘A4’ to head 15-engine North Yorkshire Autumn Steam Gala

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    Didcot’s GWR ‘King’ No. 6023 King Edward II will break new ground for the class this autumn when it takes a starring role in the North Yorkshire Moors Railway’s (NYMR) September 27-29 Autumn Steam Gala alongside ‘A4’ Union of South Africa. The visit will mark the BR blue Collett 4-6-0’s first foray north of the Midlands…

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