Following Simon’s blog post earlier in the week, here is a selection of photographs taken of the National Collection’s Ex-LSWR T9 class 30120. I hope you like them! These pictures were all taken at the Watercress Line’s Autumn Steam Gala 2015.
There’s no doubt that steam locomotives originating from different nations have big differences in style and design. British locomotives are relatively compact, especially compared with American steam engines. There were differences in style and engineering practice between nations, plus differences of loading gauge (the UK’s being very narrow) that also no doubt made a big difference to the…
Today, the Watercress Line’s Bulleid brake coach 4211 reached a significant milestone by being sent to Alresford for vehicle acceptance. All being well it should enter service within the next few weeks. The restoration of this beautiful wooden bodied carriage was all the more incredible when you consider that much of it was newly built…
Without doubt one of the nicest things about our hobby in this day and age is how easy it is to find like-minded people, or (as in this case) for them to find you. Mike, Director/Owner of Mike’s Movies contacted me last week asking permission to use a photograph of SECR class D for one…
So tonight is the night before the big day – my first day as a Project Supervisor for the Watercress Line! I have the usual combination of being excited and a few nerves to prove that I’m human. The prospect of working for one of my favourite organisations is definitely an incredible feeling, plus there’s prospect of getting my…
Seeing as we are developing a Merchant Navy class theme on this blog at the moment, I thought it a good time add a picture of what is arguably the closest we have at the moment of seeing an original, unrebuilt Merchant Navy class locomotive. This miniature replica of prototype 21C1 Channel Packet can be…
Seven years ago, after a break away from heritage railways of several years I made a trip to Ropley loco yard, on the Mid Hants Railway. Locomotive yards had always been places that I’ve loved, places where you can find a number of steam engines in one place. On this particular day two locomotives really…
Following yesterday’s blog post that shared the exciting news that the LMS-Patriot Company that they will be recreating the long lost Fowler 2-6-4T 4P class, today we look at a class that can be regarded as the granddaughter of Fowler’s machine – Charles Fairburn’s 4MT 2-6-4T. My interest in the class was sparked by purchasing…
Today marks 50 years since the funeral of Sir Winston Churchill. On 30th January 1965, Bulleid Battle of Britain class 34051 had the honour of hauling the deceased Sir Winston Churchill on his last journey from London Waterloo to the famous statesman’s final resting place in Long Hanborough, Oxfordshire. The locomotive wore disc codes in…
Being a fan of the old Southern Railway, the Lynton and Barnstaple Railway has always been a line that has caught my attention in books and in the media. The Southern Railway’s history is largely a progressive one – a tale of early electrification and suburbanisation. The thought of this company owning and running a…
Loco Yard 