■ LAST month’s front cover featured an image of ’Scotsman’ from 1928, colourised by Ian MacCabe of The Gresley Society, but the original black & white image should have been credited to Brian Stephenson and the excellent Rail Archive Stephenson collection. We apologise for this omission - Ed
Leicester shed days
I LIVED just half a mile from Guide Bridge from 1943 to 1966, and no mention was made in the February issue of No. 60103’s period on the former Great Central route, when allocated to Leicester 38C from June 1950 to November 1953.
During this time it was almost a daily sight through Guide Bridge on Marylebone to Manchester (London Road) services, when nobody took a great deal of notice of it.
David Slack By email
My early train spotting days were at the Great Central Railway in Leicester. Quite a few ‘A3’ locomotives were stationed in Leicester shed number 38C. Leicester shed did not have a good reputation in turning out locos in tip top condition.
Probably the worst impression I had of Flying Scotsman stationed there was the locomotive being used for 3 carriage duties on suburban trains to Rugby Central.
Don Cazzini Dublin
Darlington overhaul
I enjoyed reading all about Flying Scotsman and what it has achieved over the years, but I couldn’t find any mention of the time the locomotive spent in the North Road Works, in my home town of Darlington, being overhauled from late 1964 to April 1965. When the work was completed, North Road held an open day on April 3, 1965 with No. 4472 in exhibition finish, plus classmate No. 60052 Prince Palatine, and ‘A2s’Nos. 60528 Tudor Minstrel and 60532 Blue Peter.
As a thank you to the 120 staff that worked on the overhaul, Alan Pegler organised a special train from Darlington to Peterborough using the ‘Tees-Tyne Pullman’ coaches and an observation car.
Sam Hewitt By email
Memories from Down Under
I MOVED to Australia in January 1969 and was there without a break until 2001. I took a keen interest in steam locomotives and, of course, greatly appreciated Flying Scotsman being based in Melbourne from November 1988 until August 1989. I was able to see the locomotive regularly, but the one occasion that stands out in my mind most powerfully is its final trip from Melbourne to Sydney on August 6, 1989.
LAID UP AT CARNFORTH: I noticed there was a gap in your story in 1992. That September, I was on holiday in the Lake District and visited Carnforth Steamtown, where I was very surprised to see Scotsman in the shed looking in a sorry state.
Mike O’Connor, Yate, Bristol
The first 60km of rail from Melbourne to New South Wales has two lines of 5ft 3in gauge and one of 4ft 8½in. On this particular Sunday three trains ran in parallel: two Victorian Railways R Class (North British) 4-6-4 locomotives Nos. 707 and 761, with Flying Scotsman on the standard gauge.
I learned that Sir William (Bill) McAlpine was travelling in the front carriage of the locomotive on the middle track (R 761). Because my brother, Richard Horne, who was an architect on British Rail for many years, knew Bill well, and I had the privilege of visiting him at his home near Henley-on-Thames, I went up to the front carriage and introduced myself. I was welcomed enthusiastically and invited to join him and his party to have a few drinks and chats to celebrate the travels of Flying Scotsman.
That was a day that will stay with me for the rest of my life.
Dr David J de L Horne Melbourne, Australia
Global view
IN 1961 I moved to Knebworth and saw No. 60103 as it then was a frequent sight, and I saw it the day Alan Pegler purchased it in 1963 amidst great fanfare.
In 1970 I went to sea, and sailing into San Francisco in 1972 encountered a pretty sad looking No. 4472 on the wharf. Subsequently Alan Pegler was a lecturer on my ship Arcadia.
In 1974 I emigrated to Australia, and was delighted to see No. 4472 several times running to and from Sydney.
I don’t know if it is some sort of obscure record, but I feel very privileged to have seen Scotsman on all three continents it has graced.
Michael Allen Blue Mountains, Australia
A sobering thought
MY own recollection of Flying Scotsman is from a Saturday evening at King’s Cross in 1968. The loco had returned from a railtour and a large crowd gathered. Two drunks managed to get into the cab and disappeared into the corridor tender. The police were reluctant to follow them into the confined space and persuade them to come out.
A wise railwayman then said: “I know exactly what to do”. He climbed onto the back of the tender, lifted the lid over the water tank filler and slammed it down as hard as he could. The drunks soon emerged with their hands over their ears, suffering from early onset of hangover!
Frank Dumbleton By email
Going full circle
WORKING at Pyewipe Junction early shift on a Saturday in the 1960s, we’d had notice of No. 60103 coming on a special from the Tuxford direction, possibly going to Cleethorpes. Someone let a coal train proceed the special and it derailed between Clifton-on-Trent and Skellingthorpe, blocking the line in both directions.
My shift came to an end and I went to Clifton to investigate what was to happen. I knew the signalman and he allowed me into the ’box. No. 60103 had just arrived and it was soon ascertained it would go no further. Alan Pegler came in to the ’box to be given the news and I remember his response to this day – “bloody charming, short of water and short of coal, bloody charming” – then he left the ’box!
Fast forward about 55 years and I am now a volunteer on the Great Central Railway working at Quorn and Woodhouse. At the recent winter gala, I spoke to a gentleman of a similar age. He explained he had been a signalman in the ‘60s and worked near Tuxford. When I told him I was at Pyewipe, he asked if I was there when No. 60103 was stopped by the derailed coal train. Obviously my answer was yes, and I explained the visit to Clifton-on-Trent. He replied: “Well I was the one who was told to let the coal train go in front of the special and I have regretted it ever since!”
Roger Bryant By email
The most famous loco?
I OFTEN start a slide show with the question, “What is the world’s most famous steam locomotive?”. The answers always include Flying Scotsman, Mallard, and Stephenson’s Rocket. Then I tell them the correct answer is Hogwarts Castle!
Rob Pritchard Malvern,
It’s all in code
I REFER to the article in the December 2022 issue under the above heading. I worked on the railway from 1957 to 1961 and used a code not mentioned. The code was never written down or sent by telegraph or any other means, but was only verbally spoken. The code was OCS and could be used by railway staff when using a station’s public refreshment rooms. It was used when paying for your purchases and meant ‘On company service’, entitling the person to a discount. I used it many times.
Clive Washbourne By email
EMUs in the cold
FURTHER to Mr Sangwine’s letter (February), from 1960-90 I worked for a company supplying equipment for the Class 320s and other units. I queried the -25C requirement with the engineers at Derby and was told that one of the coldest areas in England was Kent, where once in eight years – on average, temperatures as low as -20C could be experienced.
David P Obrey By email
The ‘Kenny Belle’
IN the February issue, the RTCS item was about the ‘Kenny Belle’and wondered why it existed and wasn’t in the (public) timetable. Very simply, it existed to serve the staff of a Royal Mail sorting office near Kensington Olympia, and trains ran to fit with shift patterns – two northbound trains in the morning peak, and two southbound trains in the evening peak. I was service planning manager for Network SouthEast’s South West sector from 1986 to 1990, and thought it was absurd that the service wasn’t advertised to the public. I made best use of the resources by running as many trips as I could, resulting in nine pairs of trains during the peaks each day.
I had cause to go to Kensington Olympia one evening soon after, and used this service. I was delighted to travel on a 4TC unit that was nearly full, justifying my decision.
Michael Donovan By email
MY understanding of the reason for running the ‘Kenny Belle’ is that, although not a private train as such, it was intended only for staff working at the headquarters of the Post Office Savings Bank in Blythe Road, London W14. Presumably they all lived in South London?
The imposing former headquarters building is still standing, but no longer used by the National Savings Bank and is, I believe, an archive or something of the sort. It is immediately to the rear of the Olympia Exhibition Centre.
Edward Spearey Chippenham
Scrap rail has value
YOUR correspondent Mike Critchley (letters, January issue) raised a matter of concern for over a decade – an exponential growth of scrap or usable steel rail abandoned in lengths and piles, or littering tracks and recesses. Representations to Network Rail have at least secured an acknowledgement of the facts, but despite a sustainability policy, no promise of any phased recovery.
The global iron and steel industry accounts for 5% of total CO2 emissions, and on average 1.9 tonnes of CO2 are emitted for every tonne of steel. An authoritative correspondent from Tata UK reports that in approximate terms, 1 tonne of scrap steel used in production instead of primary iron ore processing avoids the emission of 1.5 tonnes of CO2; and it reduces the amount of new raw materials that have to be extracted and transported, with associated carbon and other impacts.
The Rev Paul Anthony Newman Winchester
No ticket checks
I RECENTLY travelled by train from York to Hull to Leeds, taking advantage of Northern’s discounted ticket offer.
Outbound from York, the guard checked tickets once on the two-carriage unit before the first stop. No further checks were made after any of the seven stops. The barriers were open at Hull. The same procedure on the journey to Leeds – one ticket check, but there are barriers at Leeds. Passing through the unstaffed intermediate stations, signs were on the billboards warning of the impending £100 penalty fares.
Sadly, my experience of travelling to Hull is far from unusual. There is nothing to prevent passengers travelling large distances on the railway without a valid ticket. The £100 fine, if actually collected, is unlikely to deter fare evaders.
As The Railway Magazine keeps pointing out, passenger revenue lost on the railways runs into millions of pounds. Whoever is running the trains needs this money, or is nobody really bothered?
John Watmough By email