Sam Hewitt

No. 10000 and the ‘Royal Wessex’

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Sam Hewitt

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6th March 2019

The recent photos in The RM of No. 10000 working the ‘Royal Wessex’ (and the Up express at Bournemouth Central) reminded me of the problems associated with the running of this train when it was introduced in 1951. The Up and Down ‘Wessex’ was covered by two separate Bournemouth diagrams; originally light Pacifics were rostered. …
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My BR involvement in early GCR operations

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Sam Hewitt

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6th March 2019

Graham Oliver’s article (Saving a Main Line Railway) about the early years of today’s Great Central Railway brought back memories, as I was one of those from British Rail charged with supervising operations. At the time I was a divisional inspector at Nottingham, and my involvement started with preparation for the 75th anniversary in March…
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Industrial memories, enjoy the nostalgia

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Sam Hewitt

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6th March 2019

When BR steam was in decline – and for some years afterwards – many enthusiasts turned their attention to industrial railways, where a number of collieries, steelworks and other complexes were worked by steam or diesel locomotives, including those sold by British Railway. Enjoy some nostalgia… View more images in the March 2019 issue of…
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Lazarus Lines: Maam Cross – Ireland’s ‘quiet’ railway revival

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Sam Hewitt

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6th March 2019

Gary Boyd-Hope talks to Jim Deegan, the man behind the Connemara Railway Project, to find out more about his ambitious plans to return 5ft 3in-gauge steam to the wilds of County Galway by 2020. THE sight of a Midland Great Western Railway (MGWR)-designed ‘K’ class 2-4-0 hauling a rake of restored MGWR six-wheelers through the…
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All change on the Great Northern

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Sam Hewitt

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6th March 2019

eter Brown takes a ride on the new Class 717 EMUs, which over the next few months will transform Great Northern services.
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A Phoenix from the Ashes

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Sam Hewitt

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6th March 2019

If ever a place deserved to rise from the ashes, then it is Sierra Leone’s National Railway Museum (SLNRM). Nicola Fox tells the fascinating history of a museum, whose locomotives were less than a week from being scrapped, plus its on-going British connections. On the western coast of Africa lies a small country with a…
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Practice & Performance: Thames-Valley transformation

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Sam Hewitt

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6th March 2019

In the third and final instalment, Keith Farr concludes his analysis of the steam-to-electric transformation the Great Western Main Line has undergone in the Thames Valley. Part two of this series ended with a brief eulogy of Class 387s, the electric trains that have transformed stopping services between Paddington and Didcot. The new EMUs are…
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March 2019 out now!

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Sam Hewitt

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6th March 2019

This month’s issue of The RM is packed with some great features, the latest news and some fantastic photographs of both heritage and the main line railway.
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Vivarail unveils hydrogen D-train as DfT backs green rail schemes

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Sam Hewitt

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4th March 2019

VIVARAIL is offering a hydrogen-powered variant of its ‘D-Train’ upcycled multiple unit, having developed diesel, battery and hybrid versions. The hydrogen train will follow the design of the Transport for Wales Class 230 fleet, with two driving motor cars powered by Hoppecke batteries. The only difference being instead of a diesel genset beneath the intermediate…
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GCR to become ‘Cromwell’s’ new custodian?

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Sam Hewitt

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4th March 2019

THE 14-year relationship between ‘Britannia’ No. 70013 Oliver Cromwell and the 5305 Locomotive Association (5305LA) has come to an end. The BR Pacific’s owner, the National Railway Museum, has decreed the custodial agreement between the two organisations would not be extended. Instead responsibility for the locomotive could be passed directly to the Great Central Railway…
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Sam Hewitt

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