GWS: No ‘Star’ plans
FOLLOWING a board meeting over the weekend of September 24/25, the Great Western Society issued a statement regarding the purchase of No. 7027 Thornbury Castle by its 4709 group. The statement, signed by GWS chief executive Clive Hetherington, said: “The Great Western Society continues to be committed to buying the remaining components of No. 7027. “The board of GWS agrees to hold those parts in good condition for six months. During this time, GWS will consider offers from properly funded groups for all or parts of No. 7027 to enable a rebuild of Thornbury Castle if viable. “The GWS has no plans to build a ‘Star’. In the interim, work on [new-build 47XX Class] No. 4709 progresses well and a significant progress report is due shortly.”
More ‘Friday Charters’
THE operational dates of the experimental ‘Friday Charter’ from Crewe to Euston, returning to Manchester Piccadilly via Birmingham, have been extended to cover all Fridays until December 9. The trips, which use Locomotive Services’ heritage electric locomotives, were originally intended to run for just four weeks. The London-bound paths have produced some excellent performances, such as that of No. 87002 on the second week (August 26, see Practice & Performance Extra on page 42). Week 3 saw No. 90002 narrowly fail to beat the Railway Performance Society’s fastest known Crewe-Euston time for an electric loco, but the chances of that happening have now been enhanced with an improved path leaving Crewe at 14.16. The ‘Friday Charter’ did not run on week 4 (September 16) as the resources were used for two extra round trips between Manchester and Euston in connection with Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral (see also page 31).