STEAM RAILTOUR - THE MIDLAND BRISTOLIAN [Saturday 30th October 2021]

The Midland Bristolian
  6233 Duchess of Sutherland

Saturday 30th October

​This impressive full day excursion covers Midland main lines including the 1 in 37 Lickey Bank, hauled by Britain’s most powerful steam locomotive! We begin our journey at Derby with diesel haulage by 47 773 from Tyseley Locomotive Works. picking up at Coleshill Parkway, Tamworth (High Level), Burton on Trent and Derby where 6233 Duchess of Sutherland charge at the front of our train to Bristol Temple Meads for three and a half hours of sightseeing in the city.

We return via the outward route to Derby via Cheltenham Spa and the famous 1 in 37.7, two-mile gradient of ‘The Lickey’, (left) the steepest sustained main line railway incline in Great Britain. On arrival at Derby our train will reverse and our  class 47 returns us to Tyseley stopping to set down as on the outward journey. Due to the requirement to take a banker over the Lickey Incline and not wishing to stop at the foot of the incline to gain such assistance, a diesel will accompany the rear of the train throughout the journey from Tyseley – although we will ensure that the Duchess is doing the lion’s share of the work throughout!

Background - No. 6233 Duchess of Sutherland
LMS Princess Coronation Class 46233 Duchess of Sutherland is a steam locomotive built in 1938 for the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) at Crewe Works to a design by William Stanier. It is a 4-6-2 Pacific locomotive built as part of the LMS Coronation Class for its express passenger services, including the Royal Scot service from London to Glasgow.

Withdrawn by British Railways in 1964, the locomotive was originally sold to Butlins holiday camp in Scotland. In 1996, the locomotive was acquired by The Princess Royal Class Locomotive Trust with the intention of restoration to mainline condition. In 2001, 46233 was restored to operating condition and since then has been a regular performer on the national network.

In Preservation
Following withdrawal from service, 46233 was acquired by Butlins Heads-of-Ayr holiday camp, Scotland, in October 1964. It was later purchased by Bressingham Steam Museum. In 1996, 6233 was acquired by the Princess Royal Class Locomotive Trust (PRCLT) arriving at the PRCLT's West Shed, at Swanwick Junction on the Midland Railway - Butterley, on 3 February 1996. In 2001, No. 6233 returned to the national network after an overhaul assisted by the heritage lottery fund and match funded by the PRCLT.

To allow it to run on the main line in preservation, 6233 was fitted with Train Protection & Warning System (TPWS) and on-train monitoring recorder (OTMR) equipment, alongside the BR fitted Automatic Warning System (AWS). On 6 March 2010, 6233 was rolled out in LMS lined black livery, which was retained during 2010, before a major overhaul, taking 6233 out of service for the 2011 season. On 3 March 2012, now renumbered 46233 was rolled out in "authentic (Brunswick) green" livery, as used by British Railways during the early 1950s.

On 9 September 2018, the engine regained its original number "6233" and LMS "Crimson Lake" livery to mark its 80th birthday.

LEEDS MODEL RAILWAY SOCIETY - 70th Model Railway Exhibition [23rd - 24th OCTOBER 2021]

Leeds Model Railway Society
  - 70th Model Railway Exhibition

Saturday 23rd - Sunday 24th October 2021

LOCATION:
The Grammar School at Leeds, Alwoodley Gates,
Harrogate Road, Leeds, West Yorkshire   LS17 8GS
Directions;
Off the A61, on the northern side of the city. Easy access from A1, A61, and Leeds ring road. Number 36 bus Leeds to Ripon stops at the end of the drive up to the school.

OPENING TIMES: 
Saturday 10am-5pm, Sunday 10am - 4:30pm

ADMISSION:
All Adults £8 + up to three children free admission with each paying adult.

A variety of layouts and gauges from N through to O covering various locations and themes including Grantham (OO) and our new layout Plymouth Friary Shed (O gauge). Trade support and excellent refreshments too, also with free car parking within the school. Entry is subject to Government Covid Regulations at the time of the show. Plenty of room with wide gangways in the main hall, children go free with every paying adult.

List of layouts attending;
7mm
Plymouth Friary Engine Shed - BR engine shed, Plymouth Friary is the Southern Railways engine shed in Plymouth. The Leeds MRS started construction of an O Gauge model in 2017

Maristow - GWR early 1900s (pictured above)
Belbroughton - BR branch line West Midlands, set in the late 1950’s, Belbroughton in North Worcestershire is village in an area bounded by Kidderminster, Bromsgrove, Longbridge and Stourbridge. In real life the village never had a railway but this is what could have been if the LMS and GWR had built a line into the town. The line in from Kidderminster fights the contours of the region causing it to enter the station via a rather circuitous route, whereas the line from the LMS at Longbridge takes a shorter route to Belbroughton coming off the Halesowen branch at Rubery.

4mm
Herculaneum Dock - BR Liverpool in the 1950s, Mike Edge's excellent Herculaneum Dock was featured as the 'Railway of the Month' in the November Railway Modeller.
Grantham - the streamline years LNER east coast
Wardwood - Diesel era West Riding
Rosedale(EM), Low baring, The Depots - North Yorkshire Moors ironstone

Reevy Road West - Blue diesel main line (pictured above) The Bradford Model Railway Club's Reevy Road West reflects BR passenger and freight operations in the West Riding of Yorkshire. Set in the period 1974-1984, the layout features digital command control (DCC) operation.
Kirkby Stephen West - Settle and Carlisle line, this layout depicts the above location in the period 1955 to 1964, which covers the early part of the transition period from Steam to Diesel traction.
Tan Pit Lane (EM) - Wagon repair Peak District 2000s
Fiddlers Wharf (EM) - shunting challenge
Longramps Station - Modern image
Dunsfold Road - Network South East micro layout 

2mm
Headingley - Leeds Suburban steam.
Heworth Sidings - Modern image main line, a modular exhibition layout constructed by members of the Yorkshire Area Group of the N Gauge Society. (pictured left)

Nearest Railway Stations:
Burley Park [4.32 miles]
Headingley [4.42 miles]
Horsforth [4.7 miles]
Weeton [4.85 miles]

MAP

DARLINGTON MODEL RAILWAY CLUB - EXHIBITION 2021 [16th - 17th October 2021]

Darlington Model Railway Club
  - Exhibition October 2021

Saturday 16th & Sunday 17th October 2021

LOCATION:
Darlington Railway Museum, North Road Station,
Darlington, Durham DL3 6ST

OPENING TIMES:  10am to 4pm both days

ADMISSION:  Adults £6.50  Concessions £6.00 
Children £3.00  Family £13.00 

A weekend not to miss 18 layouts from narrow gauge to O Gauge. Continental, American and for certain UK outline both Diesel and Steam. All displayed in the Darlington Railway Museum. The museum has a large car park. Disabled parking is available and the museum is wheel chair friendly. The museums exhibits are housed in the original Darlington Station on the Stockton to Darlington Railway and form part of the exhibition. With several historic locomotives on display.

You can find their facebook page via this link here
This year there are a plethora of layouts across all major scales will be on show which cover most area of railway modelling. The show is held in the Darlington Railway Museum which is housed in the original Darlington Station.

List of Layouts Attending:
Woodside [OO Gauge BR].
Sets out to capture the distinctive ‘sense of place’ that defined the Forest of Dean in the 1950s and 1960s. Also captures the seasonal atmosphere where some of the materials and colours used to represent autumnal vegetation rarely feature on layouts. 'Woodside' is a split-level layout combining visual interest with operating potential, the passenger services operate on the higher level; freight below.
Thorncliffe OO Gauge. Based in north Sheffield, a variable period between 1988 and 1992.

Neuburg 1913 (Electric Traction) Swiss HO. (pictured left) This is a Swiss metre gauge layout of the Rhätische Bahn, Neuburg station in 1913, a section of the line prior to electrification. Layout features a passing station with engine facilities in a scenic setting. The layout is featured in the Peco Modellers Library, modelling Swiss Railways and Continental Modeller November 2020.

Brandon Walls OO Gauge Industrial
Easby MPD O Gauge Industrial
Teescastle OO Gauge Depicts Barnard Castle station County Durham BR

St George's Quay O Gauge LNER, by Alan Gray of Gateshead. LNER 1930s (pictured right).
Byway MPD OO Gauge BR urban loco shed. 4' 6" x 1' - A fictional small BR urban motive power depot set in the late steam era. The layout is used at shows to demonstrate sound equipped locos.

Chester's Yard EM Gauge Period Late 1970's, by Robin Coulthard. Chesters Yard is a completely fictitious location loosely based around the late 1970s Blue Diesel era and is a first attempt at finescale modelling in ‘EM’ by the owner. Motive power is supplied by a mixture of Class 24, 25, 26, 35 and 128 DPU from Bachmann and Heljan and all but two at present are sound fitted.

Kyle of Mac Callen EM Locomotive Shed BR by Adrian Walby. Circa September 1966, at the locomotive shed at Kyle of Macallan, somewhere in the north-west Highlands of Scotland (pictured right). Steam has long gone from the area, last seen here in June 1962 and, where the steam locomotives were once serviced, diesels now rest between duties, though not for much longer as the writing is on the wall for this somewhat derelict shed. The layout is based on, but not an exact copy of, the shed at Kyle-of-Localsh and coincidentally, the shed lost its roof in a fire shortly after the end of steam, remarkably similar to events at Kyle-of-Localsh.
Turners Yard OO Gauge Mini Layout Industrial
47th Street Yard American HO
Veldervoot Belgium HO
Walberswold OO9 Harbour Brach on South Wold Railway
Fiddlers Wharf EM BR
Outwell Village 16.5 Narrow Gauge.
Penna Lane TMD OO Gauge

Nearest Railway Stations:
North Road [0 miles]
Darlington [1.18 miles]
Teesside Airport [3.6 miles]
Dinsdale [3.77 miles]

UK RAIL TOUR - THE COTSWOLD LION - Saturday 16th October 2021 [Peterborough - Worcester]

THE COTSWOLD LION
 - Saturday 16th October 2021

This tour to the Cotswolds and the medieval City of Worcester, featuring off train options to visit the Gloucester Warwickshire Railway or the Elgar Birthplace Museum is now scheduled to run on Saturday 16 October 2021.

The rolling Cotswold hills, thatched medieval villages and churches built of distinctive local yellow limestone make for an unforgettable scenic backdrop from the train window. This tour includes both lines that pass through this delightful part of the country, travelling outward via Oxford and the bucolic Cotswold Line and returning home by way of the ‘Golden Valley’, the name for the line through Stroud and Kemble, coined by Queen Alexandra, wife of King Edward VII, while on a train along this picturesque route in 1909. One option is to travel along the third Cotswold rail route also, the preserved Gloucester Warwickshire Railway, now running from Cheltenham to Broadway.

At our destination, Worcester, the River Severn flanks the city centre. The fine cathedral dates from the 12th century; much of it is Norman, and the foundations are older still. King John, of evil repute, lies buried in the crypt. Worcester is famed for its porcelain. The Museum of Royal Worcester, standing on the former factory site, contains the finest collection of Worcester Porcelain in the world and has recently undergone a £1.7 million refurbishment.

The city boasts a notable collection of medieval and Tudor buildings centred upon Cornmarket, Friar Street and New Street. Here you will also find a great range of shops, cafes and historic inns, and Saturday is market day too. The walk from Worcester Shrub Hill Station to the city takes about twelve minutes and you have over four hours in which to explore.

There is a wide range of joining stations, stretching all the way from Peterborough into the capital. Our train runs via the North London Line, then via the Great Western main line. We pass by the ‘dreaming spires’ of Oxford before continuing through the peaceful Cotswolds, through Charlbury and Evesham to reach Worcester Shrub Hill late morning.

After our sightseeing break our return route is via Cheltenham. We glimpse Gloucester Cathedral then divert south-east through the idyllic Golden Valley, rejoining our outward route at Didcot.

THE GLOUCESTER WARWICKSHIRE RAILWAY: On this option you leave our train at Evesham for the nine-mile transfer to Toddington, headquarters of the Gloucester Warwickshire Railway. This is a fourteen mile standard gauge preserved steam railway running from Broadway through the Cotswold Hills via Toddington to Cheltenham Racecourse. A ‘rover’ ticket is included in this option and with three trains in the operating circuit there will be lots of scope for designing your afternoon itinerary. Broadway station is just a ten minute level walk from the picture-postcard village of Broadway. At the end of the afternoon, the bus transfer is from Cheltenham Racecourse station to the main line station at Cheltenham Spa. This option includes bus transfer from Evesham to Toddington and from Cheltenham Racecourse to Cheltenham Spa, plus freedom of all Gloucester Warwickshire Railway train services during the afternoon.

ELGAR BIRTHPLACE MUSEUM: We are offering an optional visit to Elgar’s birthplace museum, just three miles from Worcester. The collections include manuscripts, scores, programmes and other items connected with Elgar’s music; family photographs; items from his travels and with his hobbies including golf and cycling; personal possessions; awards and honours, and film of his later years. It is a touching testimony to England’s finest composer. The supplement includes coach transfer from Worcester Shrub Hill. A reduced price is available for National Trust members.

Approximate trains times

HILLINGDON RAILWAY MODELLERS OPEN DAYS 2021 RETURNS

Welcome back, it's been a long time hasn't it but I am really pleased to hear that the Hillingdon Railway Modellers will hold two Open Days in 2021 having not had one for over eighteen months due to the Coronavirus Pandemic. These events run by the Hillingdon Railway Modellers used to be a regular feature and are sure as they return will once again prove to be extremely popular.

The first of these for 2021 will be held on Saturday 2nd October 2021. All being well there is another planned for 11th December but naturally everything is dependant on any changes to government rules and guidance, but we keep our fingers crossed. 

While I have not been able to attend here for a little while this is a good opportunity to get myself over there and give a few of my Dads O Gauge models a bit of a run out since I've no room for a layout at home and I don't want them to live in boxes forever. I aim to hopefully get there for the afternoon with a few items in my bag to try out and also update a few pictures too. It's always a popular day and doors open to the public at 10:00am, it's been a long time and I look forward to getting along and having a little run with a few of my old items.

Address: 

Yiewsley Baptist Church, 74 Colham Avenue

West Drayton  UB7 8HF

* Please note that the entrance is at the side of the church down a path and the doors at the end should be open, please do not try and enter the main doors of the church itself. 

                       

Due to the rental costs of the hall there is a cover charge of £5 for these Open Days, there will be two extensive O Gauge and OO Gauge Test Tracks available and have recently added a three track N Gauge circuit too (Pic Below) all up and running so if you have anything you wish to see get a good run do please come along.

N GAUGE TEST TRACK 

HOW TO GET THERE:

If you are Travelling by Car

Check here for Parking Options.

Nearest Railway Stations :

West Drayton [0.34 miles]