Wartime Weekend returns to the GCR

Stepping back in time to the Forties

THE 1940s will be brought back to life this June with an evocative commemoration of life in wartime Britain at the Great Central Railway in Loughborough.

From Friday, June 1, to Sunday, June 3, the 1940s Wartime Weekend will take place at the historic railway in town.

There will be flypasts on Saturday and Sunday, and a Spitfire aerial display on the Sunday. Visitors can enjoy mock battles, live music and theatre, with more activities than ever before.

Dance to the music of times gone by with live acts to entertain you throughout the weekend and there will be a Saturday evening dance with Kalamazoo Dance Band.

The event will also feature period entertainment, displays of military vehicles and visiting dig- nitaries including Winston Churchill, the King and Queen, at stations along the line. At Quorn station there will be singing and dancing across three stages, a real ale tent, shopping village, an air raid scenario and land army and working farmer equipment displays.

As always, remembrance is at the heart of the event. On Sunday morning there will be a church service and on Sunday afternoon there will be a drumhead service and a ‘poppy shower’ tribute as people remember the fallen.

Hundreds of re-enactors will bring the stations and trains to life wearing period clothes. Cameo scenes will be staged throughout the weekend invoking the warring Forties. Each of the four stations are themed.

For more details about the event and ticket information, visit http://www. gcrailway.co.uk/

Pictured are three women in glamorous outfits as part of last year’s 1940s Wartime Weekend at Great Central Railway. Picture courtesy of Colin Barsby.