In between public services on the Dartmouth Steam Railway on Friday, May 19, a special train with many very special guests on board ran from Paignton Queen’s Park.
The three-coach train, headed by GWR 2-6-2T No. 4555 Warrior, back from a lengthy loan spell at the East Somerset Railway, included the line’s luxury Devon Belle observation saloon. It was run not only to celebrate the railway’s 50th birthday, but to also say a massive thank-you to the many people who worked to turn it into a major feature of the local tourist economy – and one of Europe’s market-leading heritage lines.
As highlighted in our feature in issue 305, a milestone of monumental proportions was passed in 1973 when the magnificently scenic yet closureearmarked Paignton to Kingswear
‘branch’ was bought in service from BR – making it a candidate for the title of the country’s first rail privatisation. Many questioned the financial viability of the takeover of the line by the already established Dart Valley Railway at Buckfastleigh (now the independent
