Steam Railway SR509 – on sale now

In this edition of Steam Railway, we turn the clock back to 1966 as our cover star – new-build ‘A1’ No.60163 Tornado – takes up the guise of the last surviving original ‘A1’: No. 60145 Saint Mungo.



The temporary change of identity forms part of the A1 Steam Locomotive Trust’s anniversary celebrations, marking 30 years since the project to resurrect the lost Peppercorn ‘Pacific’ was launched in 1990. As part of those celebrations, Tony Streeter sits down with project founder and former chairman David Champion to talk about how the pioneering scheme came to be and the challenges of those early years.

Continuing the pioneering theme, we all know Captain Bill Smith was the first person to preserve a locomotive privately from BR – ex-GNR ‘J52’ No. 1247 – but who was the second? It was Tony Cox, who rescued L&Y ‘25’ 0-6-0 No. 957, better known to many as the ‘Green Dragon’ from 1970’s The Railway Children. We tell the hitherto untold story of how this unique survivor was saved from scrap.

That’s not the only previously untold story in this packed edition, for Thomas Bright delves into the history and true origins of the Hetton Lyon – a locomotive that, until recently, has been shrouded in mystery and misinformation.

Elsewhere, we get under the skin of one of Britain’s greatest narrow gauge designs – the ‘Quarry Hunslet’ – in a massive 12-page feature, take a closer look at one of the National Railway Museum’s most ‘murderous’ exhibits, and explore the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway’s bridge renewal project.

As always, we bring you the latest news, comment and analysis from the world of preservation, including:

· £6.5 million raised for Britain’s steam railways

· Lottery boost for Gwili’s Welsh train project

· Future undecided for withdrawn ‘T9’ No. 30120

· ‘O4’ overhaul begins

· Prototype Garratt K1 makes Statfold debut

There’s all this and more – including our regular Down Main, industrial and narrow gauge news columns – in the latest edition of Steam Railway. On sale now.

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