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Favourite Thomas the Tank Engine character hoped to appear at 150th anniversary of South Devon Railway

2nd September 2021

Categories: Visitor News

South Devon Railway is hoping that Oliver, a family favourite character from Thomas the Tank Engine, may return to steam again at the SDR for the line’s 150^th anniversary year in 2022. This fits nicely with the recent Family theme in the Love Your Railway campaign, which is running until 6^th September.

The South Devon Railway is the oldest heritage railway in the West Country, it reopened in 1969 and usually welcomes up to 100,000 visitors every year.

Oliver, one of the classic steam loco characters from the late Rev Wilbert Awdry’s now world famous Thomas the Tank Engine series of children’s book is hopefully getting closer to completion of a 15 year overhaul this year at the South Devon Railway.

It is hoped that the overhaul can be completed quicker thanks to a recent grant of £5,000 from the Veronica Awdry Charitable Trust. Veronica Awdry is the daughter of the late Rev Awdry and her charitable trust distributes royalty funds regularly for appropriate heritage railway projects. Something that has been vital during Covid-19 with limited income and big losses suffered on all heritage railways. This grant will go towards new boiler stays for the final restoration of former GWR Collett designed auto-tank 0-4-2 no.1420, aka Oliver in the books.

Veronica Awdry commented: “Steam Loco no.1420 is a truly iconic engine for the South Devon Railway because members of the class were seen in use on the quintessential GWR branch line from the 1930s right up until its closure as a freight railway in 1962 and then under the Dart Valley and South Devon Railway’s 52 year operation of the scenic seven mile line from 1969 to date. Featuring as Oliver in the Thomas series of books, I know he was one of my late father’s favourite characters.

“And with the SDR celebrating its 150^th anniversary year in 2022 having first opened in 1872, there is a concerted effort underway to compete the overhaul. SDR supporters are hoping to see Oliver finished in time for service next year, although quite a lot of work is still needed. The popular engine is owned by the SDR Association and it last ran on the SDR in 2006 when it was stopped for a protracted overhaul mainly due to a leaking boiler foundation ring and other faults.”

Last year, a further £22,180 grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund was made towards moving the overhaul of no.1420 forward to cover the manufacture of the remaining boiler plates and a new foundation ring. These are critical to enable the SDR to rebuild the new boiler using its own skilled staff and to keep the restoration on track to maintain future operations. The earlier grant was made possible by money raised by players of the National Lottery and was a considerable boost to the SDR, which was unable to run any trains during the pandemic.

Although Oliver is nearing completion in the workshops at the SDR base at Buckfastleigh, with the wheels and frames having been already restored, plus considerable boiler work, there is a long list of work to be completed and funds raised to pay for it so further donations would be warmly welcomed by the SDR.

Outstanding work includes fitting a new boiler barrel, foundation ring, tube plate and completion of a roughly assembled firebox, which is being drilled for assembly with new stays. Though the chassis is now back on its wheels, none of the valves, pistons and motion are fitted and nothing has been done yet to overhaul these parts. Boiler fittings now in use on other SDR locos will need to be found.

South Devon Railway has a number of family friendly elements around the railway including a large play area, a miniature railway around a 12 acre site and a riverside walk at Buckfastleigh, along with the Dartmoor Otters and Buckfast Butterfly Centre. The Totnes Rare Breeds Farm and Pixie Falls are also nearby. It is truly a family friendly attraction wherever you look.