Queen Of Steam!
From guard to bramble clearer and event organiser, Chrissie has done a stint at every job on the North Norfolk Railway
The dream job for any steam train enthusiast must be working hands-on with your local heritage railway.
Going out in all weathers to help with trackside clearance. Getting up at the crack of dawn ready for a hectic day’s driving. Picking up the oh-so-familiar flag and whistle of a guard. Donning the instantly-recognisable uniform of the station master. Or, in the case of 61-year-old Chrissie Rayment from Sheringham, Norfolk, that would be station mistress!
Incredibly, during her 25 years volunteering and working for the North Norfolk Railway, Chrissie has taken on all of these usually www.myweekly.co.uk male-dominated jobs. She even joined their elite ranks by qualifying as a diesel locomotive driver.
“My first memory of the railway was riding on the crossing gates in town as they closed,” says Chrissie. “The signalman used to let us into his box to wind the wheel to shut the gates if we promised not to climb on them any more.”
Later, as a mum, she would take her children on the early days of the Santa Specials. “My son Tony had the job of handing out mince pies at Christmas and I seem to remember getting roped in to making some.”
However, her first real involvement with the NNR came when she was running a busy guest house and decided that she needed to get out in the afternoons. A friend mentioned that they could do with some help at the railway and soon Chrissie was cleaning coaches, gardening to keep the station spick and span and cooking meals for train crews.
“I quickly became hooked on the atmosphere and the camaraderie of the people and enjoyed becoming part of a busy team,” she says.
It was by chance, however, that she came to take on some less traditional roles. The railway was quite a small affair at that time; everyone had two or three responsibilities from signal man to running the shop.
“I have some very fond recollections of taking a lunch along the line and tucking in after clearing sixfoot brambles from the bank,” she says.
The problem with the lack of volunteers continued and she was soon persuaded to train as a guard. “Part of the guard’s job,” says Chrissie, “is that if the train stops unexpectedly, you have to climb down from the guard’s hut and go and see the driver to find out what is wrong. It seemed to happen to me a lot more than the other guards, especially if I was wearing a skirt!”
The real challenge was to present itself when a fellow
“The signalman let us into his box to wind the wheel to shut the gates”
female guard, who also drove a diesel rail bus, suggested she have a go and she took it naturally. There was only one task that Chrissie admits she didn’t quite master.
“As a driver,” she says, “we had to prepare our own engines with oil and diesel where required. But when it came to steam locomotives, I did spend one day on the footplate, but it was too hot and heavy for me.”
As the railway grew, so did the timetable and Chrissie could no longer juggle the demands of running her guest house with arriving at the station an hour before the first train. So she started getting involved in other areas such as running the platform, tickets and buffet at Weybourne Station, halfway along the route. Today, in her role as Business Development Manager, she takes on the huge task of helping organise all the special events on the railway. One is the Dad’s Army event and another the popular 40s Weekend.
As for the future with the railway which has given her such pleasure and so many amazing opportunities, Chrissie seems to be as passionate, hardworking and dedicated as ever. “Our aim is to give the thousands of passengers a year who travel the five-mile route from Sheringham to Holt the best possible experience of “The Poppy Line” we can.”
The North Norfolk Railway runs trips all year round except January. For events, timetables and special trains go to WWW.NNRAILWAY.CO.UK/ phone 01263 820800 or email ENQUIRIES@NNRAILWAY.CO.UK