Tickets go on sale for Britain's biggest rail celebration

The event will take place on 2-10 June and is set to be one of Yorkshire's biggest events of the year. The nine day celebration of Britain's railways will see an enormous space the size of 11 football pitches bustling with an awe-inspiring line up of locomotives from the Museum's collection and visiting locomotives from across the UK. A wide variety of railway-related activities, attractions, sights, sounds and smells will add to the exciting atmosphere with the opportunity to get up close to the exhibits.

The festival will bring together over 30 record-breaking locomotives that have made their mark on rail history for being the fastest, largest, strongest, first, last and oldest. Among the confirmed record-breaking attendees is holder of the record for the fastest steam locomotive at 126mph, Mallard, the newest mainline steam locomotive in operation, Tornado, and the most powerful industrial steam locomotive built for use in the UK, Mardy Monster.  The first locomotive to reach 100mph, Flying Scotsman, is also set to attend the event following the completion of its restoration.

Gary Verity, chief executive of Welcome to Yorkshire, said;

"This is certainly going to be one of the biggest and most exciting events in Yorkshire in 2012. It looks set to be a record breaker in itself, attracting thousands of visitors from not only Yorkshire but from throughout the UK and overseas."

Tickets can be bought by visiting nrm.org.uk/railfest2012 or by calling 0870 870 4840.* Ticket prices start at £8 for children aged 2-15 years and £13 for an adult. Family tickets and group offers are available. A full price list can be found at nrm.org.uk/railfest2012.

Steve Davies, Director of the National Railway Museum, said:

"Our previous Railfest in 2004 celebrated the bicentenary of Britain’s railways and proved to be a huge success by attracting over 60,000 visitors. This year we hope to top this by providing an even bigger and better event. We’re certain that rail fans young and old will be well catered for and we look forward to making 2012 a year to remember at the National Railway Museum."

With key support from the leading rail magazine titles; RAIL, Steam Railway and Model Rail, the festival is expected to draw railway fans from far and wide.

Joining the impressive locomotive line-up will be a selection of weird and wonderful railway vehicles including a sailing train and demonstrations from unusual railway equipment including snow ploughs and leaf blowers, which passengers rarely see.

The action-packed event will invite visitors to get-up even closer to the exhibits and locomotives by climbing into the driver's cab, taking a ride behind working engines of all sizes and speaking to inspiring railway characters. Hundreds of stalls, refreshment areas and live music will also add to the bustling and exciting atmosphere.

Railfest 2012 will be a paid admission event and tickets are now on sale with a discount for advance bookings. Railfest will be hosted in an outdoor area at the Museum with entry to the rest of the Museum remaining free to visitors during the 9 day event. For all the latest updates and announcements, visit www.nrm.org.uk/railfest2012 or sign-up to receive the Museum’s email newsletter.

* When booking over the phone, a £1.50 booking fee will be added to your total order. Phone sales end at 6pm on 22 May 2012.

ENDS

For more information contact:
Gemma Sneyd, Senior Press Officer, National Railway Museum
01904 686271
gemma.sneyd@nrm.org.uk

Notes to Editors:
Vehicles confirmed so far:
A4 No. 4468 Mallard
A3 No.4472 Flying Scotsman
LNWR Webb No.790 Hardwicke
GWR No.3717  City of Truro
No.6229 Duchess of Hamilton with matching coach
Shropshire & Montgomeryshire 0-4-2WT Gazelle
Schools No.925 Cheltenham
RSH No.1 Castle Donington
A4 No.60007 Sir Nigel Gresley
Peckett No.2150 Mardy Monster
Peckett No.2012 Teddy
Tysley 0-6-0PT No.L94
Webb No.1054 Coal Tank
A1 No. 60163 Tornado
No. 55002 King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry
Prototype HST
LMS Jubilee Class No.5596 Bahamas
LB&SCR Brighton Belle brake car No.88
Hunslet No.1786 Courage / Sweet Pea
Spooner’s Boat
Furness Railway A5 No. 20
George England Palmerston with FR carriage No. 15 and curly roof van
Weston Park Railway, Peggy
B&W Engineering observation coach No. BW1000 Sylvia
Class 37 D6700

The National Railway Museum (NRM) in York covers over 200 years of railway history and its collections include over 100 locomotives, some 250 items of rolling stock and thousands of other objects - from posters and tickets to uniforms and silverware. Visitors can enjoy a fun family day out with the kids including an action-packed annual programme of special events and exhibitions. Admission to the museum is free. For more information visit www.nrm.org.uk.

The National Railway Museum forms part of the National Museum of Science and Industry (NMSI), along with the Science Museum in London, the National Media Museum in Bradford and Locomotion – the National Railway Museum in Shildon.