Press Office
Museum launches steamy appeal
Forty years after the end of British Railways steam in 1968, the National Railway Museum (NRM) has launched an appeal to find people with a ‘steamy’ past.
As part of the preparation for May’s 9-day gala celebrating the historical importance of steam’s swansong, “1968 and All That”, the NRM is looking for people from all over the UK that were personally involved in the last rites of mainline steam.
The museum is hoping to assemble an “archive” of personal recollections from people across the nation with a story about the end of steam, either those who witnessed the last ever BR steam-hauled run on August 11 1968, or who worked on one of the mighty locomotives that pulled it, including BR’s last express steam locomotive Oliver Cromwell.
Oliver Cromwell, which is part of the NRM’s collection, is currently reaching the end of a 4 year restoration project at the Great Central Railway at Loughborough. Volunteers and full time staff are now working around the clock to make sure the historic locomotive is ready for her star appearance at the museum’s event.
Matt Thompson, event organiser at the NRM said:
“We are hoping to hear from the enthusiasts who scrambled up steep hillsides, binoculars and cameras in hand to watch the last ever BR steam train, the “15 Guinea Special” go by. Even better would be to listen first hand to the fascinating story of the crews who manned Oliver Cromwell on that emotional day, although many of them will be very elderly now. We would also like to hear from those who witnessed the end of steam in Scotland.”
The Museum is hoping to use the 3 best stories as part of the interpretation for its May bank holiday extravaganza (24 May – 1 June). Those happy to talk to the media about their unique and special tale about steam’s past should email pressoffice@nrm.org.uk or write to Steam Memories, Press Office, National Railway Museum, Leeman Road York YO26 4XJ.
25 February 2008
Notes to Editors
The National Railway Museum’s “1968 and all that” event, (24 May to 1 June 2008), is a 9 day extravaganza celebrating the 40th anniversary of the official end of British Rail mainline steam in the UK.
Tickets bought on the day will cost £11 for adults and £7 for concessions. Discounts are available for advance bookings via TicketWeb. Please telephone 0844 4771 000 or visit http://www.ticketweb.co.uk.
The restoration and return to steam of Oliver Cromwell is a partnership between the National Railway Museum, 5305 Locomotive Association and Loughborough Standard Locomotive Group, Steam Railway Magazine, the Great Central Railway and the Friends of the National Railway Museum.
Oliver Cromwell became the very last steam locomotive to be overhauled at Crewe and by the end of the year she became the very last Pacific in service. The mighty locomotive took her place in the history books when she was chosen to haul The Fifteen Guinea Special between Liverpool Lime Street and Carlisle.
She was retired immediately to the Bressingham Steam Museum in Norfolk to be preserved as part of the National Collection
1968 was a year of massive social change. In 1968 Soviet forces invaded Czechoslovakia and student protests, especially in Paris, also made the headlines. On 17 March 1968 violence erupted in Grosvenor Square, London as a protest gathered outside the US embassy to rally against the Vietnam War. The April assassination of civil rights leader Martin Luther King led to riots in more than 100 US cities.