THE nation’s favourite locomotive passed through Westbury last month as part of its special tour across the UK.
Crowds gathered to see the world famous Flying Scotsman steam train pass through the Westbury countryside.
The Scotsman was built in Doncaster and designed by Sir Nigel Gresley. It was given the name, ‘Flying Scotsman’ after the London to Edinburgh rail service which started in 1862. In 1934, the Scotsman was clocked at 100mph – the first locomotive in the UK to have reach 100mph.
The locomotive continued in service until 1963, when it was retired by British Rail. By this time, it had undergone several alterations to improve its performance – but it had been pulling trains for 40 years, and steam engines were becoming old-fashioned.
In January 1963 Alan Pegler bought Flying Scotsman, and after a complete overhaul, it once again ran on the London Kings Cross to Edinburgh line. In 1969 Flying Scotsman headed for America. The first year tour broke even, but the second lost money and when sponsorship didn’t materialise, Alan Pegler was forced into bankruptcy with Scotsman left stranded in the USA. However, in 1973 Flying Scotsman was brought back to the UK after William McAlpine heard about the situation in the USA and promptly put together a rescue plan.
Following a successful tour of Australia, Scotsman ran special trains around Britain. In 1993 it received an interim overhaul and pop impresario Pete Waterman bought a 50% stake in it. In February 1996 businessman Tony Marchington bought Scotsman outright for £1.25 million.
In 2004, Flying Scotsman hit the headlines again with yet another crisis over its ownership. A campaign spearheaded by National Railway Museum to save the locomotive for the nation amassed the support of thousands, confirming its status as a national treasure.
Since 2006, Flying Scotsman has been undergoing an extensive restoration in the workshop of Riley & Son (E) Ltd. It has now completed last phases of the painstaking £4.2m project to bring the legend back to life, resplendent in its BR green livery.
As the restoration process comes to an end, all eyes are – once again – trained on the world’s most famous locomotive. The next chapter in the Flying Scotsman story will be its triumphant return as a working museum exhibit, conquering yet another record as the oldest mainline working locomotive on Britain’s tracks.
Undoubtedly one of the jewels in the crown of the museum’s world-class collection, it will now be presented to a new generation of Scotsman fans captivating the public for generations to come.
The appeal to keep the steam icon in Britain was supported by a £1.8 million grant from the National Heritage Memorial Fund and the generosity of the public. The restoration has also been undertaken with the help of a Heritage Lottery Fund grant of £275,000.
