No 3 ‘Sir Haydn’ Appeal Reaches Milestone

Press Release


The Talyllyn Railway’s appeal for the overhaul of their locomotive No.3 ‘Sir Haydn’ has passed a significant milestone with the total raised now exceeding £20,000. This in turn has led to plans being moved forward for the locomotive’s restoration.

‘Sir Haydn’ has been out of service since 2012 when its boiler certificate expired. Since then it has taken part in a tour of UK heritage steam railways and museums. These have included a visit to the site of the former Falcon works in Loughborough where ‘Sir Haydn’ was built in 1878. This followed a visit to the Great Central Railway. It has also been displayed in Nottingham, at Tyseley Steam Works, the Midland Railway – Butterley, the Severn Valley Railway and West Somerset Railway. Currently the locomotive is on show at the Engine House, Highley on the Severn Valley Railway.

During the UK Tour the Sir Haydn Appeal, started to raise funds to support its overhaul, has been building momentum. Donations have come in via text, online and cheques from all around the World. The locomotive has a strong following on its Facebook and Twitter sites.

Support for The Sir Haydn Appeal has also come in from railway authors donating proceeds from their books, and a new painting of ‘Sir Haydn’, with proceeds also being donated to the Appeal. As a result last month the Appeal passed the key £20,000 mark, and this has prompted the Talyllyn Railway to push on with plans to begin the overhaul process.

Chris Price, Talyllyn Railway General Manager, comments:

‘The response to the Appeal has been testament to the goodwill loco No.3 has generated after many years of reliable work on the Talyllyn Railway. We envisage that we will need £30,000 to remove the boiler from the locomotive and send it for assessment and repair to specialist boiler engineers. The continued support for ‘The Sir Haydn Appeal’ means we may reach that target by the end of the year which would be fantastic, and would enable the boiler to be sent away over the winter months.’

Donations for the Appeal can be sent direct to the Railway, or consult the web-site at www.talyllyn.co.uk/loco-3-appeal for other means to contribute.

Many thanks to everyone who has donated so far!

For further information about this press release please e-mail: enquiries [at] talyllyn [dot] co [dot] uk or phone 01654 710472.

Photo by Karen Willans