features

36 BO’NESS: THE NEXT 25 YEARS
In 2006, the Bo’ness & Kinneil Railway will be celebrating its 25th anniversary of running public services with a week-long festival in June. In that time, the line’s operator, the Scottish Railway Preservation Society, not only found time to run its own main line railtours and maintain its small but impressive collection of ex-British Railways steam locomotives, but also provided the country with a national museum. Robin Jones looks at the history of the SRPS and asks: where does it go from here?

42 BOSTON LODGE: BOX OF DELIGHTS!
The Ffestiniog Railway’s Boston Lodge Works may be the oldest in the world still in operation, but are hauling the famous slate-carrying line into the 21st century. New-build locomotives, new rakes of coaches, outside contracts for other lines and the reconversion of oil-fired engines back to coal ensure that the workshops remain at the cutting edge of the steam scene, reports John Stretton in words and pictures.

60 A TOUCH OF CLASS
We have all heard of A3s, 14XXs, ‘Black Fives’ and S15s, but what are they and how did these descriptions of locomotives come about? What is the difference between a locomotive class, its type, its load classification and its statistical classification? Brian Sharpe tries to make order out of the chaos of British locomotive classes.

66 KINGS OF THE WEST!
Once upon a time, prairie tanks were the staple diet of just about every GWR branch line in the West Country, working all types of traffic from local passenger, pick-up goods, milk and, in Cornwall, china clay trains. Today, they are still to be seen hard at work - in the south-west peninsula, a century after they were designed by Churchward, and 50 years after the BR Modernisation Plan called for them to be replaced by diesels! Don Bishop reports in words and pictures.

74 THE CHANGEOVER YEARS: BLUE FOR YOU!
January 12 will see the return of a once-sensational and revolutionary livery to the national network - that of the legendary Blue Pullman pioneer luxury DMU. Somewhat disgracefully, not a single power car or carriage of this fabled artefact of the 60s, an evolutionary ‘link’ between the DMU and the hugely successful High Speed Train, was preserved, but FM Rail are to introduce a new rake of Mk2 coaches painted in the Blue Pullman colours - and the first trips have already sold out until the spring! Kevin Robertson, author of the recent Kestrel Railway Books Blue Pullman, gives a personal view of the history of these magnificent trains which comprise a lost bridge between the steam age and modern traction.

82 AUTHENTICITY - OR ORIGINALITY?
Should total authenticity be the primary goal of railway preservation, right down the fine details of every last nut and bolt, or should compromises be made to deliver the ambience of a bygone age while conforming to modern operational and market demands, asks Geoff Courtney.

regulars

5 HEADLINE NEWS
A4 Union of South Africa passes signal at danger - and more than 400 passengers are left stranded; North Norfolk Railway takes top spot in 2005 Railway Heritage Awards, with honours for Swanage, Churnet Valley and West Somerset lines; newly-sold Kirklees Light Railway becomes Britain’s biggest Christmas present and a Somerset & Dorset 7F moves to the North Yorkshire Moors Railway.

10 NEWS: THE WIDEST COVERAGE OF THE UK PRESERVATION SCENE
Dean Forest Railway runs first services to Parkend; Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway benefactor Andrew Goodman buys last tender engine out of Barry scrapyard as another 2-8-0 pair return to steam; farewell to last Class 37s on Rhymney Valleys services; Lottery £1m gives National Railway Museum Search Engine project the green light; last Eastleigh 73s bought by preservationists; Isle of Man Railway boss suddenly resigns; Willington Hall already stripped to chassis for Didcot’s new County project; Keighley & Worth Valley ‘Dub-Dee’ conversion set for summer debut; Welsh Highland Railway (Caernarfon) in bid to buy fifth Garratt; North Woolwich Station Museum up for grabs; Scottish maroon coach rake in Somerset & Dorset main line tour plan; Government’s Cambridge guided busway green light scuppers rail revival; complete London Underground 1959 set reforms in Dorset; Lynton & Barnstaple Railway orders boiler for ‘own’ engine; Beaulieu motor museum bids to build own steam line; West Somerset scraps its diesel gala, saying it is cheaper to run steam; streamlined Bulleid Wadebridge moves out of shed; Churnet Valley’s Alton Towers ‘pipe dream’ hit by new sewer, EWS now supports Gwendraeth Valley heritage rail revival, top action from Embsay & Bolton Abbey J15 charters, and why David Ward thinks the NRM ‘misunderstands’ Flying Scotsman.

50 CENTRE SPREAD
Geoff Silcock takes centre stage with his view of Southern Railway unrebuilt West Country Pacific No 21C123 Blackmoor Vale topping Freshfield Bank with a Kent Coast Pullman boat train.

52 MAIN LINE NEWS compiled by Cedric Johns
Farmer and tractor rescue Lincoln ‘Cathedrals Express’ on ‘worst weekend of the year’; Pitchford Hall in 11 December comeback; ‘black box’ deadline moved to September; West Coast obtains freight licence; ‘Giants of Steam’ Scarborough programme replaces National Railway Museum’s ‘Legend’ trips, and the final tour of the slam-door EMUs.

58 MAIN LINE TOUR ITINERARY
Brian Sharpe’s guide to steam and heritage modern traction tours.

70 PLATFORM
Four pages of letters.

80 RAILWAYANA
Has the steam nameplate bubble burst - as several class items failed to sell at auction, asks Geoff Courtney.

84 CARRIAGE & WAGON NEWS
Army’s LSWR saloon at Bicester designated for National Collection and another GWR Super Saloon moves to the South Devon Railway.

85 VIDEO VIEW
Enjoy the top steam action from 2005 at home with the latest DVDs from Heritage Media Digital Productions.

86 DAVID MORGAN MBE - the man you can’t ignore
A tribute to a West Somerset saviour - and a plea for the rest of us.

90 UP AND RUNNING
Brian Sharpe’s Christmas and New Year listing of operational standard, narrow and minimum gauge lines with running dates, along with details of locomotives in operation.