The Severn Valley Railway will round off its celebration of fifty years of diesel preservation at its Autumn Diesel Bash from Thursday 28 September until Sunday 1 October.

The theme will be ‘The Magnificent Seven’, as seven former Western Region diesel-hydraulics will be the highlight of the event, which the SVR hopes will be the largest gathering of operational preserved Westerns, Warships and Hymeks seen in preservation.

The Railway is working with other preservation groups in organising this event, and has extended it to four days.

SWR resident loco D821 Greyhound, D1015 Western Champion and D1062 Western Courier will haul trains, and will be joined by a selection of visiting locomotives.

Locos on display will include D1013 ‘Western Ranger’ and Hymek D7029, which is undergoing restoration.

The SVR will announce further activities around the event in due course, including photo shoots and excursion days.

The Autumn diesel Bash follows the SVR’s successful Spring Diesel Festival, at which over seven thousand visitors admire the line-up of twenty-two locomotives in service of all classes and form all eras.

The SVR has also announced that the LNER Thompson-designed Class B1 61306 ‘Mayflower’ will join its Autumn Steam Gala as a guest.

Enthusiasts can get more information and buy tickets for SVR events from its website.

Gus Dunster, managing director of the Severn Valley Railway, said; “After a huge Spring Diesel Festival, we knew we had to deliver an autumn event that wrapped up our ‘five decades of diesel preservation’ celebrations in style.

“We know that demand is there for our Gala events and we’ve extended the event to four days to meet that demand.

“Again, we are planning to deliver an event in the true style of the Severn Valley Railway; we hope passengers will flock to join us to see out the diesel calendar for this historic occasion.”

Gus also highlighted the £1.5 million Survival Fund appeal that SVR launched earlier this year: “The success of both this event and our Spring Steam Gala in April show the prominence of the SVR within the heritage rail sector, and how important it is that we can continue to put on events like these.

“Our Survival Fund appeal is going to be crucial in ensuring that happens. We’ve received thousands of donations, and we’re hugely grateful for every one of them. But we need thousands more in order to reach our target of £1.5 million.

“This fundraising, along with further successful events and meticulous management of costs, will be what makes the difference to the SVR’s survival.”