Railway Herald
The Ribble Steam Railway held its first ever photographer’s freight charter on August 6. The exclusive event featured Barclay 0-4-0ST 1147 John Howe of 1908, together with a six vehicle rake of open wagons, plus an ex-LMS brake van. The ten photographers in attendance had six hours to explore the various photographic locations on the line, which included the unique swing bridge and bank of the Ribble itself. The presence of a tamping machine needing a path back onto Network Rail metals delayed things for an hour, but otherwise the charter went like clockwork and proved very popular with photographers, who were spoiled for locations despite the comparatively short (1 ½ miles) length of the line. One of the star attractions was a lunch-time loco lineup with no less than four Andrew Barclay 0-4-0STs, plus Robert Stephenson & Hawthorn 0-4-0ST 7485 Agecroft No. 2 of 1947. Only John Howe was in steam, but with the help of some rags and a drop of diesel, the scene came to life. This is unlikely to be repeated in the near future, as most of the locomotives included normally reside in the museum.
Other charters are now planned, both steam and diesel, using the line’s unique fleet of ex-industrial locomotives.
Ribblesteam
