GWR 42xx 2-8-0T 4247
ABOVE: GWR 42xx 2-8-0T 4247 climbs past Charlie's Gate working the 1600 Bodmin Parkway - Bodmin General on 11th March 2012. Photograph: Copyright Steve Andrews / CLASSIC TRACTION. Ref: DSC106407.
ABOVE: GWR 42xx 2-8-0T 4247 leaves Westheath Cutting working the 1440 Boscarne Junction - Bodmin General on 11th March 2012. Photograph: Copyright Steve Andrews / CLASSIC TRACTION. Ref: 106371.
ABOVE: GWR 42xx 2-8-0T 4247 passes Westheath working the 1440 Boscarne Junction - Bodmin General on 11th March 2012. Photograph: Copyright Steve Andrews / CLASSIC TRACTION. Ref: DSC106372.
Classic Traction DVDs:
Cornish Branch Line Memories
Cornish Branch Line Memories is a tribute DVD to the diverse and fascinating variety of branches that can be seen throughout the Royal Duchy. From the steam worked Bodmin General and Boscarne Junction lines, to the holiday branches of St Ives and Newquay, to the freight only Parkandillack branch, this programme carefully examines the variety still to be seen today on Cornwall's branch lines. We primarily investigate the Bodmin & Wenford Railway, seeing steam in action during their GWR175 Winter Steam-Up and Cornish Branch Line galas, which featured such locomotives as former LSWR Beattie well tanks 30585 & 30587, GWR 64xx 0-6-0PT 6435 and GWR Prairies 5521, 5526 and 5552, and in addition, also included is footage of GWR 42xx 2-8-0T 4247, now almost 100 years old. By contrast, we review the 'East Lancs Champion' charter of May 2010, worked by Class 52 'Western' D1015 Western Champion (running as D1009 Western Invader & D1012 Western Firebrand) and Class 40 40145, as we see them working along the Cornish Main Line and by making history by becoming the first ever Class 40 ever to visit the St Ives and Newquay branches. Next, we include extremely rare diesel footage as 37401 and 37670 (a former St Blazey machine) visits the Parkandillack branch with the 'Cornish Parker' charter from Crewe during May 2009. Finally, Great Western steam on the main line is not forgotten, as we reflect on how generations of holidaymakers would have made their way to the Cornish branches, as we see 5029 Nunney Castle and 6024 King Edward I as they head the 'Cornish Riviera Express' over Forder Viaduct and through the Glynn Valley. If you want to recapture the spirit of a bygone age of steam and the local branch lines they served, then this is the programme for you - all brought to you courtesy of Classic Traction! RUNNING TIME: 86 mins. PRICE: £19.99 + £3 P&P.
Great Western Dawn
Great Western Dawn is a tribute DVD that celebrates the the 175th anniversary of the Great Western Railway. This programme focuses on events that launched this very special anniversary year, which started with the GWR175: The Prelude gala on the West Somerset, which included such iconic GWR locomotives as 4953 Pitchford Hall, 5029 Nunney Castle and 6024 King Edward I, to GWR 66xx 0-6-2T 6695 and 52xx 2-8-0T 5224. Also included is a review on autumn steam on the South Devon, featuring GWR Prairie 5526, to the Cornish Branch Line gala that was held on the Bodmin & Wenford Railway in 2010. See the 175th anniversary started in fine style as GWR Prairie 5552, together with GWR 2-8-0T 4247, GWR 64xx Pannier 6435 and LSWR Beattie 'well tank' 30587, climb the testing gradients of the Bodmin line in sub-zero conditions! We also see steam hard at work on the main line, as King Edward I and Earl Bathurst tackle the severe gradients of Hemerdon, Rattery and Dainton. We also examine BR 'Britannia' Pacific 70013 Oliver Cromwell, as she works the 'Devonian' charter to Plymouth, and as the 'Brit' double-heads with class 52 diesel-hydraulic D1015 Western Champion on the 'Royal Duchy,' the first diesel-hydraulic and steam pairing over the South Devon banks since the 1960s! Finally, we also include a review of the 'Great Britain' in the west, as 34067 Tangmere and 70013 Oliver Cromwell tackle the 1 in 42 gradient of Hemerdon Bank! This DVD is destined to become a classic, so if you want to celebrate the 175th anniversary of God's Wonderful Railway in style, then this is the DVD for you! RUNNING TIME: 74 mins. PRICE: £19-99 + £3 P&P.
The Southern returns to North Cornwall
The Southern returns to North Cornwall is a tribute DVD to the ground breaking gala that was held on the Bodmin & Wenford Railway during September 2010, which witnessed the greatest gathering of former Southern locomotives in Cornwall for nearly half a century! Included in this programme are former LSWR Beattie 2-4-0WT well tanks 30585 & 30587, LSWR M7 0-4-4T No. 53 in Southern wartime black (visiting from the Swanage Railway) and the debut into passenger traffic of the iconic LSWR T9 Greyhound 4-4-0 30120, working for the first time in Cornwall in almost 50 years! In addition to this, this programme also reviews two photographic charters which recreated such trains as the 3.13pm Padstow - Exeter Central perishables of the late 1950s. We conclude by briefly reviewing the repainting into BR black of resident GWR pannier tank 4612 as former Wadebridge allocated pannier 4666. This DVD also includes on-train footage of the T9, as she tackles the severe 1 in 37 gradients of the Bodmin & Wenford! So, if you want to remember a Padstow working from the 1950s, when T9s worked to the Far West, then this is the ideal programme for you! RUNNING TIME: 65 mins PRICE: £19-99 + £3 P&P.
Bodmin & Wadebridge Railway: 175 glorious years
Bodmin & Wadebridge Railway: 175 glorious years is a tribute DVD to the 175th anniversary celebrations that were held on the Bodmin & Wenford Railway during September 2009, and investigates the fascinating history and development of the former Bodmin & Wadebridge line, as well as examining the former GWR branch from Bodmin Parkway to Boscarne Junction. The programme focuses on the Autumn Steam Gala of 4th - 6th September 2009, which witnessed the first ever visit of a GWR Collett South Wales coal tank to the line, in the form of 5619, as well as resident GWR Panniers 4612 & 6435, GWR Prairie 5552, GWR 42xx 2-8-0T 4247 and LSWR Beattie 'well tank' 30587. We also take a look at operations throughout the rest of the year, including the annual Winter 'steam-ups' which result in some of the most dramatic steam conditions that the Royal Duchy can offer - so watch as Bodmin's GWR Pannier and Prairie tanks tackle the line's incredible 1 in 37 gradients in close to sub-zero conditions! Finally, we conclude with a brief review of the 2007 Autumn Steam Gala and the return to traffic of Southern Railway Bulleid 'Light Pacific' 34007 Wadebridge in 2006. This DVD is surely destined to become a classic, and one that all GWR & Southern devotees will savour for the years to come! RUNNING TIME: 75 mins. PRICE: £19-99 + £3 p&p.