The Duke appeals for £105,000 to complete overhaul by 2020
THE BR Class 8 Steam Locomotive Trust, custodian of No. 71000 Duke of Gloucester, is appealing for £105,000 in order to finish the overhaul of the unique Riddles-designed Pacific at Tyseley Locomotive Works.
Trust chairman Trevor Tuckley said: “When the previous trust relinquished control of the in September 2013, as financially it was unable to meet its responsibilities, and the BR Class 8 Steam Locomotive Trust was set up, no information as to the condition of the was made available. It had been known for some time that the 8P had gained a reputation for unreliability. Bearing this in mind, we stated from the outset that once the returned to the main line, our key objective would be for it to gain a reputation for being a reliable performer. Without this, few train operating companies would be interested in hiring it as the effect on their reputations, not to mention additional costs, would be unacceptable to them.
