Hundreds of steam enthusiasts will be heading from Norfolk for a day out in York next month behind one of the most famous locomotives in the country.
Duchess of Sutherland – which spent 25 years at the Bressingham Steam Museum – is due to be at the head of the York Yuletide Express which is heading from Norwich on December 10.
She is one of the most powerful steam locomotives ever built in Britain, and is now one of the most reliable performers on the main line.
Built for the London, Midland and Scottish Railway in 1938, she was withdrawn in 1964 and sold to Sir Billy Butlin for display at his Ayr holiday camp in Scotland.
In 1971 she moved to Bressingham, and after restoration spent three years giving visitors rides on a short stretch of track at the museum.
In 1996 she was sold to the Princess Royal Class Steam Trust which operates steam trains to main-line standards and in 2001 returned to the main line where she has become a regular, and very popular, engine pulling special excursions.
In 2002 she became the first steam locomotive to haul the Royal Train since the early 1960s when she pulled the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh to North Wales during their Golden Jubilee tour.
She is one of very few steam locomotives allowed to travel at up to 75mph – which means she is able to pull the special on the East Coast Main Line with a high-speed run between Peterborough, Doncaster and York.
The train is run by the Railway Touring Company – which has been told it will go ahead despite special checks being needed on some steam locomotives because of a safety issue earlier this year.
The Duchess of Sutherland has also made other visits to the region – she has made special appearances at the Mid Norfolk Railway in 2013 and again this year.
But those who remember her at Bressingham will notice one big difference. During her 25 years in Norfolk, she carried the LMS Crimson livery. She is now painted in British Railways' green.
On December 10 she is scheduled to leave Norwich at 8am and travel via Wymondham, Attleborough, Thetford, and Brandon before heading to March, Peterborough and the main line to York.
Do you have a story about a steam locomotive? Email paul.geater@archant.co.uk
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