Leander to see out current boiler certificate in style

LMS ‘Jubilee’ booked to visit heritage lines in last few weeks of operation.

THE boiler certificate for LMS ‘Jubilee’ No. 45690 Leander

expires in May – and the 4-6-0 is set to enjoy something of a farewell tour at four heritage lines in its last few weeks in action.

First up, the loco is due to perform in the East Lancashire Railway’s March 15-17 Legends of Steam gala alongside LNER ‘A4’ No. 60007 Sir Nigel Gresley

and BR Standard Class 7

No. 70000 Britannia.

After the event, Leander

will head north to Cumbria to the Lakeside & Haverthwaite Railway (LHR) where it will provide the rare chance to see both Beet family-owned locos together – the other engine being BR ‘2MT’ No. 46441.

Fresh from overhaul, final commissioning of the Ivatt for service is expected to be completed before Leander’s visit. Daily running on the LHR is scheduled to start from March 23 and Leander is scheduled to haul the service trains over that weekend.

At the time of writing, details of public steamings with the Ivatt and Leander remained to be finalised.

Hampshire and Essex

Leander is then booked to operate during the Watercress Line’s April 26-28 Spring Steam Gala – after which the ‘Jubilee’ is due to head to Essex.

In a change to its previously advertised steam gala, the Epping Ongar Railway (EOR) is now offering three consecutive weekends featuring visiting and resident locomotives between April 27 and May 12, billed as the Festival of Steam.

Previously advertised guest GWR ‘Saint’ No. 2999 Lady of Legend is booked to operate with resident No. 4953 Pitchford Hall during the April 27/28 Saint and Hall Weekend. As well as the locomotives operating on their own, visitors can expect to see top and tailed workings, plus some double-headed trains.

The May 4-6 Bank Holiday weekend will feature a threeday feast of steam activity, when Lady of Legend and Pitchford Hall are joined by Leander. They are due to be joined by other members of the EOR’s homefleet – namely GWR Prairie No. 5521 (operating in London Transport livery as No. L150) and Hawthorn Leslie 0-6-0ST Isabel. An intensive service is expected to feature additional brake van rides and a non-stop express train.

The festival concludes with a Farewell to Leander event on May 11/12, with the loco operating alongside either Pitchford Hall or No. L150.

Last trip

While the Saturday is expected to mainly feature the opportunity for members of the public to take to the controls of the powerful locomotive, with a series of popular driver experience trains, Leander will bow out of traffic on the Sunday, working its final passenger trains before expiry of its current boiler certificate.

A fleet of vintage London buses will also be running throughout the three weekends of the event, providing connections with all the EOR’s train services to Epping Underground station. Some buses will also provide connections with Shenfield station.