About The Author

The first former main-line engine to be based at the erstwhile Stour Valley Railway Preservation Society's site at Chappel and Wakes Colne was Southern Railway 4-6-0 No. 841. It was invited to take part in the Shildon celebrations in 1975, and to release it from the site it was necessary to make a temporary connection with the adjacent BR Sudbury branch during the night. After the BR line had been restored, it bursts out from under Spring Gardens Road bridge about 04:00 in the morning of Sunday 6 June 1975. It would then wait in Chappel station before running to Colchester at dawn.
The first former main-line engine to be based at the erstwhile Stour Valley Railway Preservation Society's site at Chappel and Wakes Colne was Southern Railway 4-6-0 No. 841. It was invited to take part in the Shildon celebrations in 1975, and to release it from the site it was necessary to make a temporary connection with the adjacent BR Sudbury branch during the night. After the BR line had been restored, it bursts out from under Spring Gardens Road bridge about 04:00 in the morning of Sunday 6 June 1975. It would then wait in Chappel station before running to Colchester at dawn.
There was great excitement when the Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway Society's ex-Great Eastern Railway J15 0-6-0 was first turned out as No. 564 in grey livery. It leaves Sheringham bound for Weybourne in September 1978.
There was great excitement when the Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway Society's ex-Great Eastern Railway J15 0-6-0 was first turned out as No. 564 in grey livery. It leaves Sheringham bound for Weybourne in September 1978.

When I began photography in the mid-1950s nobody had seriously considered the idea of a group of enthusiasts running a preserved standard gauge railway. But all that was about to change when in August 1960, following the example of the narrow gauge Talyllyn Railway in Wales nine years earlier, the Bluebell Railway in Sussex became the first preserved standard gauge passenger railway in the world. I was fortunate in living about 15 miles from the Bluebell Railway for several years from 1961, so I had several opportunities to visit this pioneer among what are now termed Heritage Railways.

After moving to North East Essex in 1965 I found there was nothing of this kind within easy reach until the Stour Valley Railway Preservation Society (SVRPS), which later metamorphosed into the East Anglian Railway Museum (EARM), began operations at Chappel & Wakes Colne in 1972. Of course since 1960 many similar schemes have arisen and prospered at different rates. But even now one has to travel almost 100 miles from Colchester to find a Heritage Railway operating regular passenger trains over a distance of 5 miles or more.

In recent years circumstances have allowed me to visit the North Norfolk Railway several times each year, while excursions to other lines have become less frequent. Nevertheless I hope that visitors to this site will find something of interest.

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  1. NNR Summer visitors on 13th August 2008
    For the peak season the North Norfolk Railway is hosting the G.W.R.-designed 0-6-0PT No. 1638 from the K.& E.S.R. Although it arrived near the end of July, personal restraints and poor weather have so far prevented me from getting to see it. Also from mid-August there will be a repeat visit of the Furness Railway Trust's G.W.R. 0-6-2T No. 5643. Let's hope it faces uphill this time!
  2. Website Restored on 29th June 2008
    Apologies if you have been trying to access the site over the last few days. We have experienced some problems with our web server, which are now fixed.

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