Four
days, 2,000 miles, 18 locos, and numerous ground-breaking ‘firsts’
by several locomotive classes in locations many thought impossible.
If anybody could do it, GB Railfreight could - this was quite simply
the railtour of the year. This DVD is the inside story of the GBRf
2018 ‘Out of the Ordinary’ charity train and how it all happened.
As
well as featuring lineside footage of the train as it made its way
around England, Scotland and South Wales, there are scenes from the
driving cabs on the fourth and final day of the tour.
Introduced by GBRf Managing Director John Smith, the programme also
includes interviews with the key people that planned the ambitious
itinerary that raised a staggering £145,000 for charity.
The
tour set off from London Victoria to Bristol on Thursday September
20th behind 66782 before heading into South Wales with a pair of
Class 73/9s. That produced the first Class 73-hauled passenger train
into Bridgend and the day ended with the first ever Class 87-hauled
passenger train on the Great Western Main Line from Didcot into
Paddington.
Day 2
started with Class 20s heading out of London Euston for a spin
around Bedfordshire and Kent, while the evening’s entertainment
featured the first ever Class 92 to work out of Waterloo
International…which later arrived at Blackpool North!
Day 3
saw the unlikely combination of Colas Rail’s 56113 and 73107 & 73141
head over the low level section of the North Clyde Line before
heading onto West Highland Line to Fort William. In keeping with the
name of the tour, 73141 actually led the train into the West
Highland terminus. The 56 then hauled the tour back to Glasgow after
which the two 73s hauled the train over the Forth Bridge!
The
fourth and final day saw the Class 73s working out of Glasgow
Central for a trip to Paisley St James…and then back into Glasgow
Central. This cab ride footage must rank as the most bizarre we have
ever filmed! The charity train then headed back south with 47749 as
far as Carlisle, where a pair Freightliner Class 86s hauled the
train over Shap to Crewe. Another traction change saw 50007 & 50049
take charge of the penultimate leg of the tour which travelled via
Shrewsbury, Wolverhampton, Coventry and High Wycombe before reaching
Hanwell. The final leg was most definitely ‘out of the ordinary’ as
73107 & 73141 hauled the tour the final eight miles into London
Paddington – producing an extraordinary end to an extraordinary
tour.
