To celebrate 60 years since Castle Class No. 7029 Clun Castle achieved the then-fastest-ever non-stop run from Plymouth to Bristol in 133 minutes 9 seconds, with a top speed of 96 mph, next May the same locomotive will once again stretch its legs over the line.
This time the tour will take place over two days, starting on Friday, 10th May from Birmingham and travelling via Oxford and the Great Western Main Line via Bristol to Plymouth. The return trip on Saturday, 11th May is from Plymouth via Bristol to London Paddington where a diesel locomotive will take over for the final leg to Birmingham.
The tour will provide a chance to be part of history as Clun Castle will be unassisted both ways over the Devon Banks and between Bristol and London Paddington., whilst the Restaurant Car will have a recreation of a menu from the 1964 tour.
The performance of Clun Castle on that epic run secured its place in history, and preservation at Tyseley where it is now operated by Vintage Trains
Clun Castle was the last member of the Castle Class to remain in service and on 27th November 1965 it hauled the final advertised steam-hauled train from London Paddington. Next 11th May will be the first time since then that it has run to Paddington.
On that famous run in 1964, the crew of Clun Castle had not been notified that a speed restriction at the foot of Wellington Bank had been relaxed. Had they been notified, the driver, Harry Roach, was convinced that he would have achieved the magic 100 mph.
Next May s tour starts at Birmingham Snow Hill, and picks up at Birmingham Moor Street, Widney Manor, Warwick Parkway, Banbury, Oxford, and Bristol. Tickets can be booked online through Vintage Trains website at www.vintagetrains.co.uk, with Pullman dining at 450, First Class 325, and Tourist Class 250 and cover the rail travel only. Passengers will responsible for making their own hotel arrangement in Plymouth.
A memory of the 1964 tour is that “as the train nears the summit at Whiteball the sensation is almost overpowering. The dining car attendants are serving tea but even the gourmands are finding it difficult to continue eating. Every seat is occupied with stopwatches, calculators, and speed tables on every hand as the scenery flashes by. Just before entering the portal the shadow of the engine cast by the western sun shows two plumes of steam still maintained after twenty-three long miles of climbing culminating in two miles at 1 in 115. The drop in speed is no more than 75 to 67 mph and they go over the summit with the lever at 25 per cent. As Clun Castle roars into the tunnel the light dims and the thunderous pandemonium of sounds makes it seem that this simply cannot last.”
As a 16-year-old, I had the great privilege of being on that run in 1964. My mum kindly paid for me to go on that trip. It was intended as a late Christmas present, although I think it was to make up for an unfortunate and very unpleasant misunderstanding during the previous year.
As with the event to mark the 50th anniversary in 2014, Vintage Trains Ltd. has arranged next year’s 60th anniversary event in such a way as to show contempt for those of us from the London area (in my case, Sevenoaks) who were on that 1964 trip and would love to do something special to celebrate the anniversary. I had a letter published last year in “The Railway Magazine” about this.
Are any other events being held next year in honour of this anniversary? If so, will there be any such event accessible to people from the London end of the rouute?