CLAN LINE : 50 YEARS IN PRESERVATION

Varied and entertaining look behind the scenes. Nothing of note.

To prove that he doesn’t just do driver’s eye views, David Oldham has produced this celebration of Clan Line’s five decades in preservation. Time-lapse videos seem to be all the rage these days, and here an entertaining one condenses the Bulleid ‘Pacific’s’ latest two-year overhaul into a matter of minutes, while volunteers of the Merchant Navy Locomotive Preservation Society tell us what it’s like to own and maintain 150 tons of ‘Packet’. After No. 35028’s triumphant return to steam, we go behind the scenes as it is prepared for its debut on the ‘Bournemouth Belle’ of July 5 2017, followed by driver’s eye, footplate and lineside views of that train – interspersed with some inspirational 1960s footage. It conveys all the excitement and emotion of a tour that will surely be remembered as one of main line steam’s best. Bonus footage follows Clan Line through three more classic Southern Region re-creations of 2017: the ‘Waterloo Sunset’ (July 9), ‘Golden Arrow’ (September 13) and ‘Atlantic Coast Express’ (September 23), as well as a ‘Torbay Express’ on August 20. A fine tribute to one of preservation’s star performers, and a must for all Southern fans.