Mid-Hants plans for 45th anniversary gala in 2022

A MAJOR gala is planned at the Mid-Hants Railway next spring to celebrate 45 years since the line reopened in preservation.

The event will be held over the weekend of April 29/30, marking the anniversary of the first passenger trains over the 2½-mile section from Alresford to Ropley on April 30, 1977.

The reopening train was hauled by Maunsell N class 2-6-0 No. 31874, which is now under overhaul at the Swanage Railway's Herston Works, but the Watercress Line intends to gather as many locomotives as possible to represent classes that were previously resident at or have visited the line in the preservation era.

“We can't say very much more at the moment because it'll be a lot of work to pull together,” said MHR general manager Simon Baggott, “but we could have anything from a ‘Terrier' or an Austerity tank to a Merchant Navy.”

The MHR's other working steam locomotive on reopening was former Longmoor Military Railway Hunslet Austerity 0-6-0ST No. 196 Errol Lonsdale (Works No. 3796 of 1953), which is now at Stoomcentrum Maldegem in Belgium.

LBSCR A1X 0-6-0Ts Nos. 55 Stepney, 662 Martello and 32678 have run on the MHR in preservation, while Merchant Navy No. 35005 Canadian Pacific remains a resident but is currently under overhaul.

The MHR's Autumn Steam Gala next year will mark the last appearances of National Collection SR Schools No. 30925 Cheltenham and resident SDJR 7F No. 53808 before overhaul.

For our report on the Watercress Line's Somerset & Dorset-themed Autumn Steam Gala this year, see pages 80-83.