Something Different – News of Steam on the main line

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When you get to know the driver, who has the joy of driving and firing on historic engines around the UK – both Steam and Diesel, and is a local living in Gwynedd, I thought it might be of interest to readers of IM?
Wikapedia is a source of wonderful information: Britannia was built at Crewe, completed on 2 January 1951. She was the first British Railways standard locomotive to be built and the first of 55 locomotives of the Britannia class. Did you know, this locomotive pulled the funeral train of King George VI from King’s Lynn, Norfolk to London following his death in February 1952 at Sandringham House, Norfolk? For this task, Britannia had her cab roof painted white, as was the custom with royal locomotives.  On 24 January 2012, the loco hauled the Royal Train with Prince Charles on board to Wakefield Kirkgate, where he rededicated the locomotive. For the trip the loco again had a painted white cab roof, removed after the engine’s appearance at the West Somerset Railway’s Spring Gala

There are a few utube videos showing Britannia in action – I was told it reached 75 mph during one of the test runs.  Here it is captured passing through Stafford Station.

[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gGH49FQNyE[/embedyt]

Gary actually volunteers with the Llangollen Railway as both fireman and driver and last weekend had the pleasure of taking The Statesman round Scotland.

This is something new – so you need to let me know if you would like to see more like this.