Providing Rail news since 1897 -

'Mallard' and 'Green Arrow' to join ‘Scotsman’ in Barrow Hill’s ‘Fab Four’ line-up

The three additional locos are world speed record holder No. 4468 Mallard, V2 2-6-2 No. 60800 Green Arrow and GNR C1 Atlantic No. 251, which will be appearing in addition to A3 No. 4472 Flying Scotsman. The NRM has given cast-iron assurances that Flying Scotsman will be at the event.

When The Railway Magazine, which is media partner for the event spoke to Mervyn Allcock, the Barrow Hill roundhouse project manager, he was clearly delighted at the coup to have secured the fastest steam locomotive in the world to display alongside what is probably the most famous in Flying Scotsman.

It means the line-up will now include the following locos: A1 No. 60163 Tornado, A2 No. 60532 Blue Peter, A3 No. 4472 Flying Scotsman in wartime black, and A4 No. 60019 Bittern in its current guise of No. 4492 Dominion of New Zealand, Mallard, Green Arrow, No. 251 plus B1 4-6-0 No. 61264, former GCR 4-4-0 No. 506 Butler-Henderson, N2 No. 0-6-2T No. 1744, J72 0-6-0T No. 69023 Joem, J17 No. 8217, Midland Railway half-cab No. 1708, Y7 0-4-0T No. 1310, ‘Black Five’ No. 45110, Peckett No. 2000 and Hawthorn Leslie 0-4-0ST Henry.

Gathering together such a wide and prestigious collection of locomotives from the LNER and it’s pre-grouping will surpass that which appeared at the 2003 Doncaster Works open day, and it’s questionable whether such a gathering will ever come together in our lifetime.

The movement of Mallard, Green Arrow and 251 from York to Barrow Hill and back will be undertaken by former Royal Class 47 No. 47798 Prince William.

Advance tickets for the event went on sale on January 16, and these are only available from The Ticket Factory online at www.theticketfactory.com or by calling them on 0844 581 4939. Barrow Hill are not selling any advance tickets. (A £1 admin fee applies to all advance bookings via The Ticket Factory).

Adult advance tickets cost £17 (Fri/Sun) or £19 (Saturday) depending on the day chosen, OAP £14 (£16 Sat), child £7 (all days), 2+2 family tickets at £41 (£45) and Barrow Hill members £12.

Tickets at the gate will cost £19 adult (Fri/Sun) or £21 for Saturday. Other on-the-day admission prices are OAP £16 (£18 Sat), child £8, 2+2 family £45 (£49 Sat) and members £14.

Should advance tickets reach pre-determined levels, then on the day gate admission may be restricted or even withdrawn, so Barrow Hill is recommending to book in advance via the Ticket Factory.

To download a leaflet of the event in PDF format, click here.

In addition to the amazing array of locos, the original ‘Old Gentleman’s saloon’ from 1970 film ‘The Railway Children’ (a North Eastern Railway Director's Saloon) will also be on display, and some of Barrow Hill’s diesel sheds will be open for visitors.

The event will see a number of locos working on shuttle trains, lined up in the shed yard to recreate that ‘Top Shed’ feel or turned on the depot’s working turntable inside the Victorian roundhouse – the only working roundhouse in the country.

There will be many trade stands selling books, models, railwayana and railway-related gifts, as well as a range of food and drink stalls.

The ‘Fab Four’ gala is being supported by The Railway Magazine, and members of the editorial team will be present at various times during the weekend, so come and say ‘Hello’. While you are there, why not grab one of the many subscription bargains that will be on offer for the event or enter the free competitions.

We look forward to seeing you at what will be a great event.