…and apple Green ‘B1’ imminent too

October could perhaps be a bumper month for main line comebacks, as ‘B1’ owner David Buck expects his engine out imminently too. In late September, No. 61306 was in Carnforth’s paint shop for a new lick of the early British Railways Apple green livery, as applied when it was new and as it has carried before.

“It’s all signed off ready for its test runs,” David said of ‘Mayflower’ on September 27. “It should be out of the paint shops in a week or so.”

Since the Thompson 4‑6‑0 last ran in late 2015 (SR449), its owner has become the man at the helm of promoter Steam Dreams, for which the ‘B1’ had previously been doing work; a potentially busy period ahead for the engine includes that organisation’s ‘Highlands and Islands Explorer’, together with Flying Scotsman next May. That raises a poser – when, if ever, has the North British engine been back ‘north o’ the border’ since it was delivered in 1948?

There’s also a teaser for enthusiasts – although David has decided to stick with Apple green this time round, it is his intention to paint it BR lined black, at some future point…

●● Steam Dreams’ new brochure is now out – and a careful read shows signs of a shift in emphasis. A train starts on the Chinnor & Princes Risborough Railway (April 4) and others take in, for example, the Severn Valley (March 30), Mid‑Norfolk (April 11), West Somerset (April 16)… showing a definite focus on preserved lines as well as the promoter’s traditional cathedral cities.

Expect more innovation later: “The main changes will be seen in the second half of the year,” David says, because “it takes time to plan, organise and so on.”