TO TAKE control of the East Coast Main Line’s premier motive power depot at the age of 30 requires an exceptional level of ability. To play a vital role in the development of Gresley Pacifics too confirms Peter Townend as one of the most influential steam figures in postwar Britain.
Born on August 13, 1925 and raised in Doncaster, Peter had been taken as a 10-year-old to witness the inaugural run of ‘A4’No. 2509 Silver Link on the ‘Silver Jubilee’ in September 1935 and quickly became an enthusiast, devouring the pages of The Railway Magazine in his local library every month.
“It was the only way we could find out what was happening on the LNER and other railways in those days, ”he said.