Between the 18th and 21st September, the Severn Valley Railway held its Autumn Steam Gala, which once again proved to be a roaring success.

The event, which is the first major gala since the full stretch of the railway reopened in July, saw 5,700 visitors attend across four days.

The action-packed days celebrated the railway’s 60th anniversary and even saw the return of overnight running for the first time in many years, with a 60-hour continuous running schedule.

The gala saw GWR Port Talbot Tank No 813, renumbered for the event as NCB No 11, paired with NCB No 49, for a rare double header.

Merchant Navy 35006 ‘Peninsular and Oriental S. N. Co’ also made its SVR debut, drawing in quite the crowd.

BR Standard Class 5 73082 ‘Camelot’ and Jinty, 47383, also dazzled visitors as they made their trips along the line for the first time.

The visiting locomotives joined an impressive home fleet, including 7802 ‘Bradley Manor’, 4930 ‘Hagley Hall’, 75069, 7714, 13268, and 1450 operating as an Autotrain.

The railway is already gearing up for its next event, taking place between the 2nd and 5th October, which will be celebrating 65 years of Class 37s.

Further information on the upcoming SVR event and timetables can be found here.

“We delivered another showpiece event,”

“The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. It was heartening to see the level of support and enthusiasm, particularly given the challenges of some adverse weather and a few late-running services. We’ll certainly look at the learning points for the future, but overall, this was a standout Gala.”

“The return of 813 in its Backworth guise at No 11, alongside the visiting No 49, was a very special moment for our Autumn Gala,”

“It was a rare opportunity to see two NCB locomotives from the same depot working together again.”

“This was a strongly supported and very well-received event,”.

“Well done to everyone across the whole railway – your efforts are very greatly appreciated. Events like this don’t come together without a huge team effort from staff, volunteers, and our many supporters.”

Jonathan ‘Gus’ Dunster, the SVR’s managing director