GWR 40xx, 50xx & 70xx Castle 4-6-0s
5029 Nunney Castle
In a curious combination, we see GWR 'Castle' 4-6-0 5029 Nunney Castle + LNER A4 Pacific 60019 Bittern double-head as they climb Hemerdon Bank working the 1Z30 1615 Plymouth - Paddington 'Mayflower' charter on 11th September 2010. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDIcto3Q8gM
In glorious evening light and with Devonport Dockyard as a backdrop, 6024 King Edward I + 5029 Nunney Castle cross Forder Viaduct with the 0907 Paddington - Penzance 'Cornish Riviera' charter on 26th June 2010. A rare opportunity to photograph GWR steam in the Far West in the evening at this classic location! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2SBSA3-Be4
GWR preserved steam does not get much better than this! Shortly after mass de-forestation of Largin Forest, 5029 Nunney Castle + 6024 King Edward I cross Largin Viaduct in the Glynn Valley with the 0907 Penzance - Paddington 'Cornish Riviera' on 28th June 2010. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvTevNSK7Lo
Filmed when the banks were alot clearer than they are today, we see a traditional GWR 'King' and 'Castle' pairing as 5029 Nunney Castle & 6024 King Edward I climb the 1 in 42 gradient of Hemerdon Bank as they work the 0907 Penzance - Paddington 'Cornish Riviera' charter on 28th June 2010. A classic GWR pairing, it is hard to believe that this was filmed almost 7 years ago! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ydV3Aoj1u1U
5043 Earl of Mount Edgcumbe
A GWR 'Castle' in full flight on the main line - is there a finer sight? Recreating the Indian summer of steam on the Western Region in the 1950s, GWR 'Castle' 4-6-0 5043 Earl of Mount Edgcumbe passes Cogload Junction working the 1Z34 0805 Tyseley Warwick Road - Minehead 'Whistling Ghost II' charter on 14th June 2014. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FsGDTDFOK2o
A rare occasion of a GWR 'Castle' conquering the South Devon banks single-handed as 5043 Earl of Mount Edgcumbe climbs the 1 in 42 gradient of Hemerdon Bank with the 1Z48 1510 Plymouth - Oxford 'Zulu 48' railtour on 10th May 2014. This tour commemorated the 50th anniversary of the original '1Z48' railtour of 9th May 1964, which commemorated the withdrawal of the 'Castle' class in 1964. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mOhtHXdcd6U
Two of Tyseley's finest! GWR 50xx 'Castle' 4-6-0 5043 Earl of Mount Edgcumbe + GWR 49xx 'Hall' 4-6-0 4965 Rood Ashton Hall leave Didcot Parkway with the 1Z59 1642 Didcot Parkway - Solihull 'Great Western Echoes' railtour on 8th November 2008. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCvaxG58W3o
5051 Earl Bathurst
One from the Classic Traction archives! Filmed during a Steam Recreations / Don Bishop Photo Charter on 16th March 2007, holiday trains in the west are rekindled as BR (WR) 41xx 2-6-2T Large Prairie 4160 pilots GWR 50xx 'Castle' 4-6-0 5051 Earl Bathurst on the West Somerset Railway at a variety of locations including Watersmeet, Eastcombe Bank, Churchlands, Nethercott and Woolston. The wonderful BR Maroon rake of Mk 1s was on loan from the SRPS, which the WSR had hired in especially for the 'Summer Saturdays in the West' Spring Gala event. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aYW7bAqury4