Tornado to haul PAD to PNZ sleeper on 6 April ?

Not long before privatisation, the NYMR hosted an Inter City Land Cruise, with sleepers. The passengers spent the night at Levisham Station, probably doubling the population!

I suspect other land cruises visited other heritage railways in that era. One aspect of the old BR Charter Train Unit business that was just chucked out with privatisation. Mind you, I suspect the economics were always difficult - the trip to us was a 3 dayer for something like £125, which was we were told somewhat of a loss leader to establish the idea and operation. Privatisation meant it was a one off.

Steven

 

FGW responds to press:

http://railpicturelibrary.zenfolio....d-to-celebrate-the-reopening-of-dawlish-route

 

Yes, you've hit the nail on the head there. If it did happen, it'd be all about Tornado and FGW. Tornado is a crowd puller and a trail blazer. It's also got a marketing team behind it that know, and have proven experience of how to communicate mass appeal to a wider public.

 

True, though the NR has a number of lengthy layovers en route IIRC, over an hour at Plymouth for example, and quite a while at Taunton and Exeter St. Davids, so that need not be a problem I guess, provided they can access supplies at those times. Of course, if it runs as some kind of special, the normal schedule may not apply.

 

Oh I am sure a Castle or a King would attract just as many over that route. Now where did I put that phone number for FGW? Is it saved in my book under Bristolian, Cheltenham Flyer or Zulu-48?

 

Your castle been recently air braked then Ben ?

 

I refer you to my earlier post!

"What is needed is an "Ethel" equipped with the Metcalf Baking System."

 

Unless of course, he has a rake of GWR sleeping cars hidden away he hasn't told us about, and is just about to be announced as the first preserved rake of coaches permitted on Network Rail ?

 

A baking system? Interesting concept.

 

Are you admitting to having an "alter ego" then ? Or just an ego ?

 

A conventional steam-hauled charter along the sea wall, carrying the great and good along with the media, would surely be both easier to organise and a lot more photogenic - as was done for the Probus-Burngullow redoubling if I remember correctly?

Chris

 

Tend to agree, yes that was City of Truro I think. I suppose the sleeper thing is that it'd be a first, and as such, attract a lot of extra media attention, which seems to be a speciality of the A1 people. They must have a good contacts book, rather like the late Sir David Frost and Alan Whicker.

 

Interesting to see if they would consider selling tickets on this.

 

As we constantly strive to improve our dining offerings to passengers, we plan to utilize the latest award-winning on-train culinary cookbook called “Baking with Ethel” and is published by Metcalf Publishing LTD of Paddington & Dawlish.

Some of the more popular recipes owe their roots to American dishes: Thames Mud-Pie, Rocky-Railway Ice Cream and Old England clam chowder.

 

Seems it will be SNG........

 

112 down Whiteball with the sleeper would knock CoT into a cocked hat.

 

"Seems it will be SNG........"

Do you mean 60007 on the sleeper train or 60007 on the CE Kingswear trip?

 

Not sure, Steam Dreams seem to have taken it down off the site...