Railway Magazine archive

From the archive: graffiti, ‘jumbo’ steam trains and £25 fares – railway concerns in 1989

by

Mark Lancaster

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29th September 2026

From the September 1989 issue of The Railway Magazine, Peter Kelly considered the growing graffiti problem on the railway and the economics of main line steam excursions. The piece also looked at a proposed 488-seat train over the Settle & Carlisle line and the costs involved in operating steam-hauled services. Signs of the times PERHAPS…
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From the archive: Inside Crewe’s railway power control centre in 1962

by

Mark Lancaster

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23rd September 2026

In September 1962, The Railway Magazine examined the power control centre at Crewe as work advanced on the Crewe to Stafford section of the London Midland Region electrification scheme. The centre already supervised power feed to the Manchester-Crewe and Liverpool-Crewe sections and was the first of four centres intended eventually to cover the entire electrification…
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From the archive: Inside Healey Mills marshalling yard in 1963

by

Mark Lancaster

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22nd September 2026

In September 1963, The Railway Magazine took a detailed look at Healey Mills, the new marshalling yard four miles west of Wakefield on the Calder Valley route to Manchester. The article described a yard capable of handling 4,000 wagons a day, with 120 sidings totalling 57 miles of track. HEALEY MILLS, four miles west of…
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From the archive: Forty years of rail-air at Gatwick in 1975

by

Mark Lancaster

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16th September 2026

In September 1975, The Railway Magazine looked back at forty years of rail-air links at Gatwick. The article traced the story from the opening of Tinsley Green station in 1935 through to the rail connection serving the airport in 1975. FORTY YEARS OF RAIL-AIR AT GATWICK WHEN Airports Limited planned its new “air station” at…
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From the archive: ‘Snowdon’ rebuilt on the Snowdon Mountain Railway in 1963

by

Mark Lancaster

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12th September 2026

In the September 1963 issue of The Railway Magazine, major repairs to Snowdon Mountain Railway locomotive No. 4, Snowdon, were reported following work at the Hunslet Engine Co. Ltd., of Leeds. The article detailed the locomotive’s unusual Abt system features, its rebuilt components and its return to Snowdonia. “Snowdon” rebuilt THE recent major repairs effected…
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From the archive: School or ‘Silver Jubilee’? A 1982 look back at a forerunner of the High Speed Train

by

Mark Lancaster

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10th September 2026

In the September 1982 issue of The Railway Magazine, D. L. A. Smith recalled playing truant in September 1935 to see the LNER’s new “Silver Jubilee” train on its Press Run. His account records the appearance of Silver Link, the passing of the train at Oakleigh Park and the later history of the “Silver Jubilee”.…
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From the 1973 archive: The secret operation that brought Flying Scotsman home

by

Mark Lancaster

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29th July 2026

A year after hopes for an American future began to fade, No. 4472 Flying Scotsman faced the possibility of sale to satisfy creditors. This first-person account from the August 1973 issue of The Railway Magazine describes the rescue operation, its concealed movement to Oakland and the locomotive’s return to Britain. Hopes begin to fade ABOUT…
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Archive: The Maldon Branch in 1959

by

Mark Lancaster

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9th July 2026

From the December 1959 issue of The Railway Magazine, P. J. Norris looks at The Maldon Branch, including Maldon East & Heybridge, Wickham Bishops Station, Langford & Ulting Station and Maldon Station. The article records the branch’s passenger services, goods traffic, station buildings and operating details as they stood at the time. ONE of the…
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