BBC article - History of 5972 Olton Hall

This has appeared on the BBC website overnight: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-45303331

Quite a good article actually, with some informed comments from J Shuttleworth.

 

I thought that the 'Hogwarts Castle' in the first film was a rebuilt Bulleid West Country not 5972 - or was that just the book? I see the Beeb have used a photo of a real Castle in the old top yard in Barry.
Ray.

 

Not even the book - was only used for advertising purposes and the odd excursion, I recall. Olton Hall was always the Hogwarts Express in the films, from start to finish.

 

Taw Valley was used for some of book promotion hence it ran in red livery for a while named Hogwarts Express ( and also Santa's Express at christmas)

 

"The harder task turned out to be appeasing trainspotters over the choice of colour..."

And there's our hobby in a nutshell...

 

I remember being told Taw Valley looked too modern for being used in filming.

 

Pleased to see my image of the Hall at Barry at the top of the article - the article author asked for my permission .
A few weeks prior, one of the South Wales Newspapers ran an article very similar to the Beeb's, again asking to use that image!.

 

The original was some sort of semi-Americanised thing in the books illustrated and appears on the front of the first book up to the third else fourth edition.



Taw Valley was rejected from the films for being "too modern" looking and trying to follow the history as Rowling wrote it is a mess in its own right as normally happens when trains are portrayed.

Hints it would've been an LNWR loco though as it would've supposedly been built at Crewe 5 years before the works opened.

 

Although in one of the films you do see the smokebox of 62005 as I believe 5972 was unavailable.... see here at 21 seconds in:

 

That’s a Thompson B1.



Am I going mad? Maybe I need a lie down and need to get away from the Thompson books. But that’s a B1 right?

Right?

 

I thought something was slightly off with the loco in that scene, now I know why.

As has been mentioned 34027 was rejected by the director of the first 2 movies as being too modern looking. Though didn't it run a another few years in red before it was painted green again?

 

Think it ran in red until it became due for overhaul.

 

I think it was repainted green around 2002. I remember it failing at a Giants of Steam at the Bluebell around that time and it was around that time it was running as 34045 Ottery St Mary.

I also remember seeing (and I think riding behind) 5972 in unlined green and crest less at the NYMR in 1998 just after its restoration.

Wasn't the loco put on display at Leavesden initially for the 2 years? I think it's been there nearly that now although I guess it could be extended.

 

34027 in Hogwarts livery hauled a book promotional tour around the country in 2000 with J.K.Rowling travelling in a observation coach which was part of the Queen of Scots rake. Video at Kings Cross here:

I saw part of this tour along the GWML. 34027 stopped at Didcot for servicing. From Didcot 34027 was piloted by a Class 66. She worked a number of ML trips in her Hogwarts livery and she also paid a long visit to the WSR where I travelled behind her during the summer of 2000. As mentioned on this thread she was said to look too modern for the films so lost out on this lucrative work.
Around this time IIRC Bert Hitchen sold her and she was moved to the SVR by her new owner Phil Swallow where a layer of grey dirt was applied to cover up the maroon livery? She also became 34036 I think? and 34045 for an S&D Gala before being repainted in Green.

Note also that the whistle sounds for 5972 in the films are recordings of 73082 at the Bluebell!
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I do remember seeing video footage of 34027 really grimed up to cover the red on the SVR. I think your right,
it was around the time she changed hands.

Were there any other locos in the frame for the movie originally apart from 34027 and 5972?

 

What about the corridor tender though??

Hermione talked about going through to talk to the driver in one of the films

 

Its a childrens book featuring wizards & witches for goodness sake, not a historical narrative!

If you can have a magic portal at Kings Cross which only lets magical folk through, self cleaning crockery and a Ford Anglia that expands to fit in the entire Wesley clan with room to spare yet can flit through London traffic like a moped the fact 5972 doesn't visually appear to have a corridor tender is hardly worth making a fuss about!

 

But But!!

 

I don't recall any other locomotives being considered for the films. 5972 worked out well anyway. It is a shame she is now stuck in the exhibition. I wonder if she will ever run again.

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The exhibition was only meant to be temporary for a couple of years I believe. However due to its popularity that got extended. I’d imagine one day people will start losing interest and it will close.

It must be a nice little earner for the loco owner though. No overhauls or storage issues to worry about, just a steady stream of income from the hire fees.