There will be a Feast of Diesel Action with visiting locomotives and, of course, Real Ale. Subject to availability, we hope that there will be up to eight visiting locomotives. The Real Ale Tent at Harmans Cross Station will be open from 11.00 am to 11.00 pm on Friday and Saturday and from 11.00 am to 3.00 pm on Sunday and there will be over 50 ales and ciders! Also live music in the Tent on Friday and Saturday evenings. You can travel to the Festival by train from Swanage, Herston, Corfe Castle or Norden Park & Ride, by bus from Poole or Wareham to one of our stations or by car from anywhere to Norden Park &Ride. There will be a train every 20 minutes between Norden and the Festival at Harmans Cross and real ale will be available on most trains.

What a long hectic weekend this is going to be!

Swanage Market Day Specials restart.

Our ‘Market Day Specials’ will run every Tuesday morning from 27 May to 9 September, leaving Swanage at 9:00, Norden 9:25, Corfe Castle 9:27 and Harmans Cross 9:34, offering ‘Early Bird’ return fares of £4.00, £3.00 concessions.

Bank Holiday Weekend 24-26 May.

We shall be running our Peak Service with a steam train every 40 minutes from Norden Park & Ride, Corfe Castle and Harmans Cross, with an evening diesel service. Come to town in style by rail! On Saturday evening 24 May, our Wessex Belle Dining Train will run. For train times and essential Wessex Belle bookings, call at the Station, phone 01929 425800 or visit our website: www.swanagerailway.co.uk.

£1000 Grand Draw

Draw tickets are now on sale at Swanage station.  Proceeds this year go towards station improvements at Norden.

Major Engineering Works at Swanage.

In our January issue we said that these works, to bring two platforms into use again after a break of 40 years, were about to commence. This involves laying in new points and new signals. Well, after superhuman efforts in all weathers, we got all the rails put back and the new Down Inner Home Signal into place ready for trains to run into Swanage from 9 February. It will be some time yet before we can actually run trains into the bay platform as there is a considerable amount of signalling installation work to complete before final works are tested and approved for use. Our photo this month shows the track gang hard at work laying in the new points.

Swanage Railway Track Gang Hard at it. Photo F.M. White.

Purbeck Railway Circle

On Friday 16 May Tony Ward will give a slide show on ‘The Railways of the Colonel Stephens’ Empire’. Read Tony’s article below. We meet in the Catholic Church Hall, Rempstone Road, Swanage, at 7.00 for 7.30 pm. All welcome. Michael Walshaw, Secretary PRC, Station House, Swanage, BH19 1HB, phone 01929 421913.

Colonel Stephens

Many railway enthusiasts will know of ‘The Colonel’, as he was called. Born in 1868, he was a widely read and educated railway engineer of the late Victorian era. Holman Fred Stephens had a forte for designing and building rural railways very cheaply, but without compromising safety. The major railway companies had more or less completed their networks by the end of the 19th century and were not really interested in expanding further, which gave The Colonel an opportunity to engineer lines to serve small rural communities, spurred on by The Light Railways Act of 1896, which enabled lines to be constructed to less exacting standards than the main line railways.

He ran his railway businesses from Tonbridge in Kent, employing up to 17 staff to administer some 17 independent railways around England and Wales; each a highly individualistic line, from light standard-gauge lines to the mountain lines of North Wales. The Kent & East Sussex Railway and the Festiniog Railway in North Wales are examples of lines that The Colonel controlled that are still running for the pleasure of tourists, although sadly most of the lines fell prey to the motor bus and the private car.

Holman Stephens also had a lifelong interest in the military, having been a member of his college Cadet Corps, and rose through the ranks of the Territorial Army in East Kent to become the Commander of the Dover Fortress unit of the Royal Engineers. He was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in 1916, having given valuable service in raising and training troops during World War I. Colonel Stephens died in October 1931, a lifelong bachelor, but his empire continued under his Chief Assistant until 1950, when the last of his little railways closed or were swallowed up in the mighty British Railways. Come and learn more about ‘The Railways of the Colonel Stephens’ Empire’ on 16 May.

Tony Ward

If you are interested in helping us in any way, contact our Volunteer Liaison Officer, Mike Whitwam, SRT, Station House, Swanage, BH19 1HB or leave a note for him at Swanage Station Booking Office, phone him on 01929 422555 or email him on volunteer@swanagerailwaytrust.org.uk.

See behind the scenes and talk to the people who make our Railway work. At Swanage, visit the footplate of a loco and tour other parts of the Railway, including the Signal Box and the Carriage & Wagon Workshops. Events also at Corfe Castle, Norden and Herston Loco Works. Learn about the opportunities for volunteers. Open from 10.00 am on both days.

Branch Line Weekend

Make a date for 12-13 April, when we re-create the aura of a typical Southern seaside branch line of the 1960s, with a variety of steam and diesel-hauled passenger trains. A goods train will run and there will be vintage motorcycles and cars at Corfe Castle and Norden Stations. On Saturday only there will be evening trains with bar & dining facilities.

Evening Trains.

Our evening diesel service between Swanage and Corfe Castle now operates every Friday and Saturday until the end of September. Enjoy unlimited travel after 5.00 pm for £4 (concessions £3). The 18.10 diesel from Swanage works through to Norden Park & Ride.

For train times call at the Station, phone 01929 425800 or visit www.swanagerailway.co.uk.

Purbeck Railway Circle

We next meet on Friday 18 April when Colin Boocock will give us a slide show about ‘Eastleigh Locomotive Works’. Colin worked there in the 50’s and 60’s and he will cover its history, some detail of his times there, and a brief summary of the Works' later years and the reasons for its demise. He is co-author of a book on the Works, which is on sale in Swanage Railway Bookshop. We meet in the Catholic Church Hall, Rempstone Road, Swanage, at 7.00 for 7.30 pm. and all are welcome.

Michael Walshaw, Secretary PRC, Station House, Swanage, BH19 1HB, phone 01929 421913.

Back in Harness!

If anyone had told me back in 1967 that 40 years later I would still be involved with steam locomotives, I would have thought them ‘off their heads’. Likewise, when BR pulled up the track from Furzebrook to Swanage, I thought the Swanage Railway people were ‘off their heads’, thinking that they would never get it running again. Thankfully for me they succeeded against all odds and have created a major player in the Purbeck tourist industry. And I am now able to do the very thing that I set out to do when joining BR in 1964, that is become a steam engine driver!

It began for me at Swanage when a volunteer on the Railway invited me for a footplate ride in 1991. It only took a trip to Harmans Cross to fire up that passion again, and I promptly signed up to become a member of the Southern Steam Trust and joined the roster as an engine cleaner - back to where I began when I left school in 1964.

It was special for me too because I was the fireman on the last steam loco in BR days to work down the branch on the Furzebrook clay train. The loco was West Country Class 34021 Dartmoor on 7 July 1967 and I was on the job all the week with Bournemouth driver Percy Stone.

Anyway, back to my second coming as a steam engineman – it was a bit different this time round, because I was doing the work as a volunteer. I noticed straight away that we came from all walks of life but shared this common interest. It struck me, as a professional railwayman, that most of these people were going about their work as if they’d been doing it all their working lives, and in a very professional manner.

Mel Cox back on the footplate. Photo A.P.M. Wright

After 18 months as a cleaner, I was passed as a fireman, and surprisingly I was as nervous this time as I was the first time as a young lad passing out in front of the Locomotive Inspector. In 1994 I was passed as a driver. One of my first jobs was to drive Flying Scotsman. The thing about working on the Swanage Railway is you get to work on locos you would never have worked on in BR days! The engineer of Flying Scotsman, Roland Kennington, said “Once you step on this locomotive, you are in show business”. It was true, I couldn’t believe the number of times I signed my autograph that week!

The years have flown by and the Railway has moved on in leaps and bounds. I took early retirement from Virgin Trains in September 2007 and am now a member of the paid staff on the Swanage Railway, thoroughly enjoying working alongside a great bunch of people. I still very much enjoy volunteering for footplate duties - it’s a grand life and I can recommend it to anybody - no matter what your talent is, the railway can use it!

Mel Cox

If you are interested in helping us in any way, contact our Volunteer Liaison Officer, Mike Whitwam, SRT, Station House, Swanage, BH19 1HB or leave a note for him at Swanage Station Booking Office, phone him on 01929 422555 or email him on volunteer@swanagerailwaytrust.org.uk.

The ‘Dorsetman’ Sunday Luncheon Train restarts on 2 March and the ‘Wessex Belle’ Saturday evening dining train restarts on 8 March. Advanced booking essential on 01929 475207.

Easter Specials.

On Good Friday and Easter Saturday, 21/22 March, there will be a Hot Cross Bun for every passenger on our trains and on Easter Day and Easter Monday, 23/24 March, there will be a Swanage Railway Easter Egg for every child passenger. Trains leave Swanage and Norden at 9.50 and then every 40 minutes. Until Easter, trains run every weekend. After Easter, trains run daily to the end of October.

‘Railway at Work’ Weekend, 5-6 April.

Come and see behind the scenes on our busy working railway and talk to the people who make it work. At Swanage, visit the footplate of a loco in steam and have guided tours of other parts of the Railway, including the Signal Box and the Carriage & Wagon Workshops. Events also at Corfe Castle, Norden and Herston Loco Works. Displays by various Departments explaining the opportunities for volunteers. Pick up a leaflet detailing what’s going on. Open to the General Public (as well as to Swanage Railway Trust Members) from 10.00 am on both days.

Drive a Steam Engine!

The Taster Steam Experience and Full Day Railway Experience are now available between March and June. An ‘Extra Special’ present for your loved one? For further info on all the above, call at the Station, phone 01929 425800 or visit our website at www.swanagerailway.co.uk.

Purbeck Railway Circle

On Friday 14 March Neil Kearns of the Eastleigh Railway Preservation Society will tells us about ‘The Restoration of SR 850 Lord Nelson’. Read Neil’s article below. We meet in the Catholic Church Hall, Rempstone Road, Swanage, at 7.00 for 7.30 pm. All welcome. Michael Walshaw, Secretary PRC, Station House, Swanage, BH19 1HB, phone 01929 421913.

‘Lord Nelson’ in preservation

The locomotive ‘Lord Nelson’, Southern Railway No.850, built at Eastleigh Loco Works in 1926, was selected for preservation by the British Transport Commission when withdrawn in 1962. ‘Lord Nelson’ was stored at Fratton, Stratford and the Pullman Car works at Brighton. In 1975 she (all steam locos are feminine – I wonder why! Michael Walshaw) was moved to York for display at the newly established National Railway Museum. Soon afterwards, ‘Lord Nelson’ was loaned to ‘Steamtown’ at Carnforth for restoration for mainline operation.

'Lord Nelson' at Eastleigh Works, April 2006. Photo: ERPS/Janet Kearns

‘Lord Nelson’ returned to steam in 1979, working excursion trains in the north of England and appeared at the ‘Rainhill 150’ celebrations. Steam locos were banned from the Southern Region between 1974 and 1988. Problems were experienced with the firebox during 1985 and ‘Lord Nelson’ was placed on static display until 1997. In that period ‘Steamtown’ changed from a preservation centre to an engineering works serving privatised railway operators. In 1997 it was agreed that ‘Lord Nelson’ would be loaned to Eastleigh Railway Preservation Society (ERPS) for restoration to mainline operating condition again.

Work started in 1998. The loco was in good mechanical condition, but the boiler and firebox had considerable problems. Much of the initial Heritage Lottery Fund grant was used with boiler repairer Roger Pridham in Tavistock for dismantling the boiler and identifying the defects. There was serious wastage of both tube-plates and cracking of the outer firebox. The extent of the repairs was agreed in 2002 with the National Railway Museum, ERPS and Heritage Lottery Fund. A major fundraising exercise accompanied the application for the second HLF grant. Work on the boiler accelerated once the grant was confirmed, with tube-plates, the throat plate, the back-head and half of the copper inner firebox being replaced.

The boiler returned to Eastleigh in October 2005. This movement, together with many aspects of the restoration, was sponsored by many local companies. The loco was reassembled and painted before being unveiled by The Princess Royal in April 2006. ‘Lord Nelson’ was diesel-hauled to the West Somerset Railway in August 2006 for running-in and appeared at their Autumn Gala. Additional safety equipment required for mainline operation was completed at the East Lancs Railway in February 2007. ‘Lord Nelson’ was finally approved for mainline operation after a test run from Carnforth in March 2007.

On 31 March 2007, ‘Lord Nelson’ worked her first mainline train in 22 years, from Minehead to Eastleigh. Until August 2007 she worked nine further rail tours and gained a reputation as a powerful and free-running loco. Unfortunately, a fault was then discovered with the firebox and the loco was taken out of use. ‘Lord Nelson’ is now at the National Railway Museum at York, where the fault has been investigated. Happily no major structural damage has been found and it will be repaired and the loco returned to service soon.

Do come and hear my talk about the trials and tribulations of steam loco restoration on 14 March. Neil Kearns

Thomas the Tank Engine is NOT coming!

Due to circumstances entirely beyond our control the “ Day Out with Thomas” event that should have taken place from 16 to 24 February has been cancelled. In its place we will be holding a “Family Fun Week”, focussing on children. For further information call at the Station, phone 01929 425800 or visit our website at www.swanagerailway.co.uk</a>.

Train Services

The Norden to Harmans Cross shuttle service will still be running on the weekend of 2-3 February. Our 1-train steam service (Blue Timetable) into Swanage restarts on 9 February and will operate every day of that week, to be followed by the ‘non-Thomas’ event mentioned above for a week. Then from Saturday 1 March our basic 1-train steam service runs every weekend until Easter.

Mothering Day 2 March

Swanage Railway’s Mothering Sunday Luncheon Train - The Dorsetman – will make a special run on Sunday 2 March, departing Swanage at 1.10pm. A 3-course lunch is served on the round trip, costing just £25.00. Booking is essential, so book now on our reservation line 01929 475207.

Purbeck Railway Circle

Our next meeting is on Friday 15 Feb when Neil Lover will give us an illustrated talk relating ‘Tales of the Tiddly Dyke – the MSWJR – the Cheltenham to Andover Line’. This bucolic cross-country line lost its through services in 1961 and it’s now a much longer way round to get from Andover to Cheltenham! We meet in the Catholic Church Hall, Rempstone Road, Swanage, at 7.00 for 7.30 pm and all are welcome.

Michael Walshaw, Secretary PRC, Station House, Swanage, BH19 1HB, phone 01929 421913.

Corfe Castle Footbridge

In our June 2007 issue, we told you about the opening of our new footbridge at Corfe Castle Station in April. The footbridge has proved very popular with our passengers, giving them an exciting new view of our trains, with the Castle as a backdrop. The footbridge has just won the Top Award for Buildings at the National Railway Heritage Awards Ceremony in London. Congratulations to all concerned!

The first freight train to the Swanage Railway since 1965

History was made on 11 December 2007 when a huge diesel loco arrived at Norden with a train of 15 empty wagons from Eastleigh for the Swanage Railway – the first 'freight' train since 1965. We are hiring the wagons to carry spoil in connection with the major track alterations at Swanage mentioned last month. You can read much more of this interesting story on our website.

Welcome Mick

On 2 January, we welcomed our new General Manager – Mick Dean – so we invited him to tell us a little about himself. He says: “I originally came from Aylesbury. My interest in railways started with a clockwork ‘0’ gauge Hornby train set, followed by ‘00’ gauge model railway. My grandfather was a guard on the Great Central Railway; he started as a shunter in 1911 and continued working as a guard until he was 70. I took up train-spotting for 2 or 3 years at the end of steam so I have the ‘Ian Allan’ books with a few USA, S15, N, U, Q, Q1 and 50-odd Pacifics underlined following visits to the Southern. After starting work as a mechanical engineering apprentice in a local company I lost interest in railways after 1967 but the interest was rekindled in 1971 in railway preservation. I involved myself with The Great Western Society at Didcot from 1972 until Christmas 2007. Following various supervisory and management roles, I became the Society’s first General Manager in 1984. My highlight as Restoration Manager in Locomotive Department saw the return from the scrap yard at Barry of No.5051 ‘ Drysllwyn Castle’ to main-line operation. With Didcot having a smaller workforce than Swanage, the General Manager became involved in anything from Royal visits to drain repairs, so I come as multi-skilled! In recent times I ran the Permanent Way Department gang.

My first involvement with the ‘Swanage family’ was when my wife Finella and I were invited to the Enginemen’s Ball in November. We travelled the line the following day to meet more volunteers. There were a few comments about the differences between Great Western and Southern Railway practices but I am thick-skinned, as anybody from an engineering background has to be. I returned to Dorset for a couple of days before Christmas to meet yet more staff and volunteers and started on the paperwork.

Thank you to everybody that I have met for the great welcome I have received. I look forward to working with you all and my hope is that I can have a useful input in the Swanage operation with practical guidance, encouragement and leadership so we can all work together with a common aim.” Mick Dean, General Manager.

Mick Dean - the new Swanage Railway General Manager. Photo: Frank Dumbleton.

From Saturday 5 January we operate a new weekend diesel service between Harmans Cross, Corfe Castle and Norden only. Park your car at Norden Park & Ride and use the train to get to Corfe or carry on to Harmans Cross and enjoy the walk back! Daily running between Norden and Swanage restarts on Saturday 9 February for a couple of weeks.

The coming year will see many Special Events, so call at the Station, the TIC or a local pub and pick up a 2008 Timetable for your Future Attractions Notice Board. Or visit our website at www.swanagerailway.co.uk for details of train times, Special Events, Dining Trains and Driver Experience Trains.

Major Engineering Works at Swanage.

The new diesel service mentioned above fills a gap in our timetable but the train cannot use Swanage Station because we have in hand a major new project to bring two platforms into use again after a break of 40 years. In 1967 Swanage Signal Box was closed and trains used only the main platform face – now called Platform 2 as that was the only platform sign that we had at the time! We are laying in four new sets of points to enable trains arriving at Swanage to run straight into the Bay Platform where the Bird’s Nest Buffet now is. Initially only short trains will be able use this platform, but it will increase our operational flexibility. This also means that several new signals will have to be installed, along with some 20 new electrical cables for the signalling system and an awful lot of point rodding. At the same time the &#8216own Inner Home Signal’, just by the stream bridge, that allows trains into the Station, is being renewed and provided with a special ‘ringed’ arm to direct trains into the Loop Line, used by some of our Driver Experience Trains. This new signal has been manufactured in our very own Signal Works at Corfe Castle and will in some respects resemble the signal that used to be at the same spot in BR days until it was swept away in 1967, as shown in the accompanying photograph. Another horrible job for the current so-called ‘close-down’ period is to deal with the clay that permeates up through the track alongside the signal box. I guess it’s been a problem since 1885!

These engineering works have seen our diesel crane, once used at Southampton Docks, hard at work lifting rails and sleepers, signal posts and signal arms. The crane often forms part of our engineer’s train, along with ballast wagons, rail wagons and stores vans. The project depends heavily on Herculean efforts by our paid and volunteer staff in Permanent Way and Signal & Telegraph Departments of the Railway. I hope to be able to tell you in the April issue that they got it all put together again ready for trains to run into Swanage from 9 February!

Drummond M7 class 0-4-4 tank engine No.30107 leaves Swanage passing the Down Inner Home Signal in August 1960. Photo: T. Wright, Mike Stollery collection.

Purbeck Railway Circle

On Friday 11 January Nick Lera of Locomotion Pictures will show his latest DVDs and some unpublished British slides from the ‘50s and ‘60s – ‘The Age of Steam at Home and Abroad’, featuring the Old Patagonia Express. For more than 30 years Nick has filmed steam locomotives at work on railways around the world. Long after the Iron Horse had breathed its last in the Western World, Nick specialised in tracking down the survivors across five continents. He has captured the unique atmosphere of steam in regular service carrying people and their goods through bustling city centres, up high mountain passes, across remote deserts and through tropical jungles, often in areas of outstanding natural beauty. The results are considered by many to be the finest motion-picture records of steam trains.

We meet in the Catholic Church Hall, Rempstone Road, Swanage, 7.00 for 7.30 pm. All welcome; come along and beat the winter blues with a dose of sunny steam!

Michael Walshaw, Secretary PRC, Station House, Swanage, BH19 1HB, phone 01929 421913.

2007 Super Draw Prize Winners:

Drawn at Swanage Station on 25 November by the Mayor of Swanage, Cllr Suttle.

• 1st: £5,000 cash: D. Davis.
• 2nd: Hotel Break at the Purbeck House Hotel, Swanage: M. Norris, Swanage.
• 3rd: £50 voucher (Bath Travel, Swanage): M. Howell, Harmans Cross, Swanage.
• 4th: £50 cash (Swanage News): Miss J. Norman, Christchurch.
• 5th: Bottle of Cognac: Mrs Lodge.
• 6th: Family ticket for the Fleet Air Arm Museum: K. Brownless, Wimborne.
• 7th: Jigsaw puzzle: Mrs Martin.
• 8th: Railway book: Mr Thomas.

Our thanks to everyone who bought tickets and supported the Draw, the major fund-raising initiative of the Trust. This year the Draw has benefited the Trust by £9,000. 

Mike Stollery and Liz Sellen

‘Santa Specials’ start on Sat 1 December and then run on 2, 8, 9, 15, 16 and 22-24 Dec. ‘Christmas Luncheon Trains’ start on 8 December, with a well-earned rest on 24 Dec. Pre-booking is essential, so book now.

‘Non-Santa’ customers will still have an amenity service between Norden and Swanage on Santa Days, mostly in our heritage diesel train, at a special reduced return fare of £4.00 (adults) and £3.00 (concessions).

From Boxing Day until 1 January we offer our basic 1-train steam service, with Mince Pies and Sherry available from the on-train buffet. From 5 January we operate a weekend diesel service between Harmans Cross, Corfe Castle and Norden only, until ‘Thomas the Tank Engine’ returns on 16 February.

For train times and other details, call at the Station, phone 01929 425800 or visit our website at www.swanagerailway.co.uk. For reservations, phone 01929 475207.

Purbeck Railway Circle

On Friday 14 December, Ken Wilson will take us on a slide tour ‘Around Britain's Railways’.

Ken describes a rambling journey, starting in the south west and moving northwards, showing slides of various railway subjects: mostly steam but including other forms of traction; mostly standard gauge but some smaller; looking mostly at the locomotives but including the general scene - and perhaps some surprises. We meet in the Catholic Church Hall, Rempstone Road, Swanage, at 7.00 for 7.30 pm. All welcome.

Michael Walshaw, Secretary PRC, Station House, Swanage, BH19 1HB, phone 01929 421913.

Start 'em young. Phil Eakins getting the Railway's safety message across to a group of Sygnets in Swanage Signal Box. Photo A.P.M. Wright

Staff Training for the Swanage Railway

To run our intensive train service, the Swanage Railway uses the services of many people. Not just the guards, footplate crew and the signalmen who actually run the trains, but also the booking clerks, porters, fitters, carpenters, plumbers, electricians etc, who do the essential ancillary jobs without which the trains would not run. The Railway doesn’t employ these people in the usual sense, but rather relies on the services of a pool of volunteers to staff the trains, restore the coaches and build and man the signal boxes, who usually come from completely different ‘day’ jobs.

The purpose of the article is to outline how someone coming into the Railway gains the necessary skills and knowledge to become part of our team, with particular reference to the Operational grades (drivers, firemen and cleaners) and the Traffic grades (guards, signalmen and porters) with ticket inspectors and booking office staff, who also fall within the Traffic Department.

Our theoretical and practical training has been formalised into a series of NVQ modules appropriate to the job and which have to be assessed and completed before the candidate can be examined and ‘passed out’ into their grade. For all grades this means that candidates are expected to attend the theoretical and practical training sessions held for their benefit by specialist trainers on a monthly basis. For example would-be loco crew must attend training sessions in, amongst many other things, shunting, basic signalling and taking over and disposal of a locomotive. Trainee signalmen must complete a porter’s training and must attend a school comprising nine examined modules, as well as joint sessions with other grades.

In addition to the formal training sessions, all candidates complete a documented series of ‘on-the-job training’ sessions delivered by passed-out members of the grade, so a cleaner (the lowest operational grade and an aspiring fireman) will receive training on the footplate of an operating locomotive from an experienced fireman. Later that day the same fireman (whose next promotion is to driver) might receive training from his driver. This same train might be signalled by a trainee signalman learning a signal box under the watchful eye of an experienced signalman.

The end result of all this is that, by the time the candidate passes out into their grade, they will have received a complete training having followed an appropriate syllabus. The newly passed-out candidate has all of the theoretical and practical knowledge necessary to do the job safely, and can prove it! Of course, that person must now keep up their knowledge and practice by regularly volunteering to do duty turns (at least 15 per annum) and, just so that they don’t feel complacent, all grades are regularly assessed and re-examined on their knowledge.

What is the point of all this? One word, SAFETY. We carry many thousands of members of the public each year. That we do this professionally and safely is due to the very high standard of training which we offer and which must be achieved and maintained by each and every member of staff of the operating arm of the Railway.

Philip Eakins

Re-live the changeover years between steam and diesel/electric traction on the Southern Region of British Railways that took place in the early 1960’s. A mix of steam and diesel traction will operate over the weekend. The £5000 Super Draw takes place at Swanage Station from 2.30 pm on Sunday 25 November. Come and see Gary Suttle, Mayor of Swanage, make the Draw; take your prize home if you are a winner.

Christmas Lights Switch-On Saturday 24 November

On Saturday afternoon 24 November, Father Christmas will arrive by train to switch on Swanage Christmas Lights and a Victorian Christmas Market will be in Town. Bring the kids!

Christmas is a comin’

As from Monday 29 October and through November and December, trains run only at the weekends, but the Santa Specials start on 1 December and the Christmas Lunch Trains start on 8 December.

For train times and essential Santa and Lunch bookings call at the Station or phone 01929 475207.

The approach to Chicago Union Station. Photo Michael. H.C. Baker.

Purbeck Railway Circle

On Friday 16 November Michael Baker will present a slide show entitled ‘Across the USA from New York to San Francisco’.   Michael had always promised himself that he would make that most romantic of journeys - for a fan of 1930/40s Hollywood anyhow - across the USA, which is what he did when he retired - sort of - from teaching. He will relate his journey, starting in New York, on to Philadelphia, a jump to Chicago, and then to California – by diesel, electric, steam plus the odd tram, trolleybus and horse. We meet in the Catholic Church Hall, Rempstone Road, Swanage, at 7.00 for 7.30 pm. All welcome.

Michael Walshaw, Secretary PRC, Station House, Swanage, BH19 1HB, phone 01929 421913.

Ask A Silly Question!

It’s great fun working on the Swanage Railway, but it does help if you have a sense of humour. The vast majority of people are friendly, good fun, interesting and interested. You meet elderly men whose last train journey to Swanage was as a young soldier ready to embark for D Day, parents with young children reliving the childhood experience of travelling on a steam train, or one of the early Diesel Multiple Units. Some people’s memories of the Railway can be faulty, such as the lady who wanted a return ticket to Studland. When told we don't run trains to Studland, she asked indignantly “Why not? I travelled there by train last year”.

If the atmosphere is right, you can have a bit of fun. I know it’s a hackneyed response, but if I am asked on the train approaching Swanage from Norden: &#8220oes the train stop at Swanage”, I might reply “There’ll be an almighty splash if it doesn’t”. English is an easy language to use badly, and questions don’t always come out in the way the questioner thinks. Herston is a Halt, and trains only stop there by request, but the gentleman passenger who asked &#8220o we have to stand in front of the train to get it to stop?” hopefully had something else in mind. Similarly the lady who asked “If I buy a single ticket to Corfe Castle can I come back?” left the Ticket Inspector somewhat baffled. When buying a ticket, a passenger asked if the trains came back from Norden. “No”, said the Booking Office clerk, keeping a straight face, “We send all the trains up to Norden until there are none left, and then we bring them all back again, one by one.”

Good humour, is as I said invaluable - at whatever time of the day you meet the public. The Reservations and Enquiry Office opens officially at 9.00 am. Not infrequently the phone rings earlier than that. On one occasion the phone rang at 8.55. The Clerk instinctively picked it up, saying “Swanage Railway, how can I help you?” A surprised voice replied “Oh! I didn't think you opened until 9 o’clock!”. “We don’t”, said the clerk, “so why did you phone at 8.55?” Enquirer: “I thought you might be there”. Clerk: “Well, I am, so how can I help you?” - and fortunately, laughter all round.

The fact that we can have fun on the Railway is due largely to the thoroughly professional and skilled colleagues we have, the drivers, guards, signalmen, booking office clerks and others. To them I pay tribute on behalf of the 200,000 passengers who travelled on the Swanage Railway last year.

Peter Burtwell.