East Lancs | Small Engines Gala | 21st-22nd February 2026

Well Tanks 3063 "Willy" and 48 "The King" announced as visitors
Small Engines Gala - The East Lancashire Railway

 

Working Timetable now available.

2026 Small Engines Gala Public Timetable

Guest Locomotives

We are very pleased to announce that we will be hosting a pair of Borrows Well Tanks for our Small Engines Gala, both locos are making their ELR debut!

• No. 3036 ‘Willy the Well Tank’ is fe4aturing courtesy of Bill & Dick Parker and the Flour Mill.
• No. 48 ‘The King’ is featuring courtesy of Phil Steer and the Ribble Steam Railway.

Steam

• 0-4-0 1969 ‘J N Derbyshire’
• 0-4-0 L&Y Pug 19 – No. 11243
• 0-6-0 L&Y 752 – No. 51456
• 0-6-0 Hudswell Clarke No. 32 “Gothenburg”
• 0-6-0 LMS ‘Jinty’ 47298

Diesel

• MSC Hudswell Clarke D4002 “Arundel Castle”
• Class 01 – D2956
• Class 03 – D2062
• Class 08 – 08164 “Prudence”
• Class 08 – 08479
• Class 09 – 09024
• Class 14 – D9531 “Ernest”

 

I hadn't put this on my list at all mainly because I'm working most of that weekend but also because diesel-wise I'm not a red-pen person and find shunter haulage less than exciting - but that's actually a brilliant looking timetable! Loads of different stuff going on, some really quirky workings and some proper-length running for the steam tanks. So if I wasn't already committed for work shifts, I'd definitely be heading to the ELR for this now I've seen what the timetable actually involves. Instead I'll definitely have Railcam on in the background while working so I can see what I'm missing.

 

Ignore, looking forward to the weekend.

 

Preview day with Willy the Well Tank on FXP and Fish & Chip Special duties, with Gothenburg on service trains.

 

Currently sat at Ramsbottom with the gronks, 20 late not sure what’s occuring.

 

The 9.30am service left Bury at about 10.10am. There was a bit of a 'disagreement' between staff on the platform about whether that should have been let out first or the 10.05am one, the former being a slower train. Looking at the timetable that would have made sense as that slower train would have had the benefit of an hour window on that section and could then have reversed almost immediately at Ramsbottom.

A few upset passengers on the 10.05am service who would have liked to have been told the other train was going first...

 

10:30 to Bury from Ramsbottom, 43 late currently with vacuum issues… Keep hearing whistles then nothing happens, everyone standing round the engines…