Leander for Lakeside and Epping Ongar
‘JUBILEE’ NO. 45690 Leander will visit two heritage lines before the expiry of its boiler ‘ticket’ later this year.
Following its appearance at the East Lancashire Railway’s ‘Legends of Steam’ gala on March 15‑17, the Stanier 4‑6‑0 will move to the Lakeside & Haverthwaite Railway, where it will be united with owner Chris Beet’s other operational ex‑BR locomotive, recently overhauled Ivatt ‘2MT’ 2‑6‑0 No. 46441.
Leander is set to arrive on the Cumbrian line on March 19, with both it and No. 46441 expected to run together on March 21, although this will not be a public running day. The BR black ‘5XP’ will then take part in a Peter van Campenhout photo charter on March 22, and then haul public trains over the March 23/24 weekend.
Leander will be the first ‘Jubilee’ to visit Lakeside since the 1960s, and the first Stanier tender locomotive to work over the line since ‘Black Five’ No. 44806 departed in 1974. Leander had originally been expected to visit the LHR last spring for a series of photo charters (SR539).
No. 45690 will then headline the Epping Ongar Railway’s Festival of Steam gala on May 4‑6, running alongside visiting ‘Saint’ No. 2999 Lady of Legend and EOR resident ‘Hall’ No. 4953 Pitchford Hall, ‘Small Prairie’ No. 5521 (as No. L.150) and Hawthorn Leslie 0‑6‑0ST Works No. 3437 Isabel. This is a change from the original planned April 26‑28 dates for the gala (SR553), with April 27/28 now being a dedicated ‘Hall’ and ‘Saint’ weekend instead. Leander will then haul its final passenger trains at the EOR on May 11/12, after which it will bow out for overhaul.