Last weekend, the Great Central Railway welcomed thousands of visitors to its line for its annual ‘Railways At Work’ event.

Events over the weekend relived the days when railways were the backbone of Britain long before lorries took over moving Britain’s freight, and railways moved goods of every size, shape, and weight.

The gala was set in the year 1963, and dozens of re-enactors in appropriate uniforms recreated porters loading and unloading wagons. Other actors played the part of protestors who were demanding that the Government’s controversial Beeching Report should be reversed, with its proposals that a of lines and stations across the country should be closed.

During the weekend there was a mixture of passenger and freight trains hauled by both steam and diesel locomotives.

This year marks 50 years since trains returned to the railway, and today more than 100,000 visitors every year travelling on its trains. The railway also runs dining car trains and offers potential engine drivers the to drive a locomotive. The railway is a favourite with film crews, whilst the national rail industry uses it for testing vehicles and training staff.

With the summer holidays coming to an end, over the August Bank Holiday weekend, next weekend all children can travel for just £1 when they are with an adult paying the full fare. Full details about the offer and terms and conditions are online at www.gcrailway.co.uk

Originally opened in 1899 as the Great Central Railway, the company was later absorbed into the London and North Eastern Railway at The Grouping in 1923, and eventually became part of the nationalised British Railways in 1948. It was closed in stages until the last trains ran in 1969, after which volunteers stepped in and immediately began moves to preserve the line.

The Great Central Railway is currently raising funds to connect its line in Leicestershire with the Great Central Railway – Nottingham part of the line. This is a multimillion-pound project called ‘Reunification’, which is one of the biggest railway preservation schemes in the UK, with several parts of it having been completed already.

Malcolm Holmes, General Manager of the Great Central Railway said, “Railways at Work Gala, now in its third year, is a truly fantastic event, and this year’s certainly didn’t disappoint. Adding re-enactors, period vehicles to some of the best we can do with our double-track railway was certainly a stunning spectacle for our visitors as we recreated the sixties. It was wonderful to hear so many positive comments from visitors about the show.”