Just in time for this weekend’s Spring Steam Gala, the Severn Valley Railway has revealed Stanier Mogul No. 13268 in a gleaming new livery.

No. 13268 was overhauled last year. Since then it has been repainted into the livery it had when it was built in 1934.

To make the new livery authentic and provide an impressive and authentic finish included applying the lettering and lining by hand and using many sheets of gold leaf.

To complete the authentic look, LMS 13268, as the sole survivor of its class, will again carry the same number as when it first entered service.

The gleaming new livery for 13268 will be on show at the Spring Steam Gala, which runs from tomorrow, Thursday, 18 to Sunday, 21 April.

Joining 13268 at the Gala will be Great Western Railway Hall Class No. 4930 Hagley Hall, Bulleid West Country Pacific No. 21C127 Taw Valley from the Severn Valley Railway’s home fleet and visiting locomotives Great Western Railway 0-6-0 tank No. 1369, Lambton Tank No 29, and the 150-year-old London Brighton & South Coast Railway Class A1 Stroudley Terrier 0-6-0 tank No. 72 Fenchurch.

Next year, the Severn Valley Railway celebrates its 60th Anniversary. Welcoming up to 250,000 visitors each year and run largely by 1,600 dedicated volunteers, it is one of the UK’s most attractions.

Steam and diesel locomotives haul regular passenger trains along a scenic 16-mile route from Kidderminster in Worcestershire to Bridgnorth in Shropshire, with six attractive and beautifully maintained stations along the way.

At Highley is the Engine House Visitor Centre, the railway’s exhibition centre where visitors can enjoy interactive exhibits with up to eight steam locomotives, a superb royal carriage, and a ‘how the SVR works’ exhibition. There is also a shop and a café.

Tickets for the gala cost £36 for adults and £24 for children aged 4 to 17 and can be booked online at svr.co.uk.

We’re delighted to see 13268 back in service, it is perhaps the perfect engine for our line, with the capability of hauling full passenger trains of up to nine carriages with ease.

Having celebrated its 90th birthday earlier this year, we can’t think of a better time for it to re-join the SVR home fleet, and we know there’ll be a real buzz around it at the Gala

Jonathan ‘Gus’ Dunster, Severn Valley Railway Managing Director