Schools Class visits the Severn Valley Railway Autumn Gala

Beautiful Cheltenham

Anyone who knows me knows of my passion for all things railway. I always loved the LMS as a child because I had the 'City of London' as my centrepiece on my Hornby Railway from the age of 9 or 10. But living in Staffordshire and holidaying in mid Wales I became enamoured with the GWR with its halls, castles, prairies and wonderful panniers. The highlight of my youth was a visit to Wolverhampton Low Level in its last days and there sitting snorting on the middle line was the 'County of Berkshire'. As most will know the counties did not survive into preservation and I am following the 'County of Glamorgan' new build with interest. That's how things stood for many years, 30 at least, until a new type of engine came into my sphere. These were Bullieds spam cans and there rebuilds into the beautiful Bulleid Pacifics that  have survived in such numbers as to be quite common on most preserved lines. These are wonderful machines that so evoke the landscape on which they worked. The south of England.

Cheltenham

Of all the places in England the home counties are the counties I know the least. My eastward travels came to a halt at Southampton and my southern travels at London. This is not to say that I and never been to Kent, Sussex or Surrey. Dover for the ferry, Gatwick for the airport were familiar place names but Ashford, Tunbridge Wells, East Grinstead, I knew little. Until I started to see pictures of engines that came before the Bullied's pacifics, the engines that ran these places before the second world war. The contemporaries of Royal Scots, B1's and castles. Names like King Arthur, Lord Nelson, M7, D1, Terrier, Maunsell, Urie and Stroudley. But above it was the praise heaped on the almost magical 'Schools Class'. They even had an exciting classification letter, V.

Cheltenham

Anyone unfamiliar with the Schools class, all they really need to know is that Maunsell's 4-6-0 King Arthurs and Lord Nelsons were too heavy and too big for certain routes so a lighter engine was commissioned. The schools were the result but while they were lighter and only a 4-4-0 they ended up being almost as powerful as the engines they replaced. This was unprecedented and they have earned the title of the most powerful 4-4-0's ever built. So they have become a bit of a holy grail for me. I had gone to the Watercress line last year and saw many southern region locos but sadly no schools. I have made plans to go to the Bluebell Line this year but it costs a lot of money so far from my home in mid Wales. So I nearly fell off my chair when I read the rosta for the SVR autumn gala. A schools was coming to the gala. For those who again don't know, 3 schools survived, Repton on the North Yorkshire, Stowe on the Bluebell and Cheltenham on the Watercress lines. Cheltenham is the promised jewel. Let me tell you people I will be glued. N.B. Originally I was going to supplement this article but I felt it stood well on it's own. The next one describes the day.

Four days in Dorset

I made a brief visit to Dorset in August 1986, literally drove down in the morning and returned home in the evening. But it was enough to always make me want to return at a later date. Twenty seven years later I did it. We had friends that had moved to Dorchester and we combined a visit with a re-acquaintance of this fascinating county so steeped in history.

My mantra for this trip was a parody on a well known weather saying: if you don't like the historic place of interest, don't worry there is another one up the road. Dorset is literally steeped in historic sites both in the countryside and in the towns. Not to mention famous cathedrals and abbeys and castles and the monuments date from Victorian back to pre Roman times. The Fosse way bisects the county from east to west representing a travel route that has existed for millennia.

1 Our first day was an exploration of Weymouth and Portland. The town of Weymouth is a famous seaside resort where shopping streets run parallel with the seashore. At the centre is a famous statue of George III recently cleaned and spruced up. The promenade is very long and travels the whole length of the bay. Portland is south of Weymouth and consists of four settlements over the island of Portland. The southernmost point of interest is the lighthouse of Portland Bill and the restaurant next door called the Lobster Pot. This family run establishment combines the fare of a tea room with that of a sea food restaurant. It is wonderful and bright and has a small souvenir shop attached.

Old Portland is a hillside town with a typical mixture of architectural designs that grew up over the centuries and protected on the west by the fantastically huge Chesil Beach. The sun baked Portland stone is the only allowed building material and the town has a European feel especially in the sunshine that we experienced. There has been a prison since 1848 and now caters to Young Offenders if I can use such a verb in this context.

2 Our second day was spent in and around Dorchester, a historic market town built around, in and on prehistoric, Roman, medieval and Victorian foundations. Dorchester was known as Durnovaria to the Romans but the history of this town goes far deeper with the local  Durotriges tribe still echoing in the town's name. It claims Thomas Hardy as its most famous local son with statues, his birthplace, his heart and his final home all within Dorchester's reach. Every hill and vale seems to have some ancient connection as seen in the Maumbury Rings, Poundbury Hill and Maiden Castle. To look at a map of the roads passing through the town is to see a place etched with tumuli, forts and mounds at every turn.

Dorchester also boasts modern ideas as those suggested by HRH Prince Charles. The nearby development of Poundbury is modern houses built in a neo-Georgian style with village greens and an interpretation of a gentler way of life in a modern age. The whole place at the moment, seems a little sterile but maybe it just needs to settle in.

We visited all three locations associated with Thomas Hardy, his birthplace in High Bockhampton, his heart in Stinsford and his home at Max Gate. There is also a major statue at the top of the high street and I am sure many more references are probably dotted around the town. Dorchester (Casterbridge to Hardy) certainly embraces its famous son. Hardy wrote many books that covered risky subjects for Victorians. Jude the Obscure was the last straw and Hardy spent the rest of his life writing poetry! I wonder what books we are missing as a result of these events.

3 Close to my heart is any reference to Steam locomotion and 25 miles to the east lies Swanage. The day started bright and sunny and so we made a beeline for the Swanage Railway. I took the trip to Corfe Castle in green southern region coaches pulled by West Country Class Pacific 34028 Eddystone. It was very exciting and I spent a very happy hour. Later we drove to Corfe with its castle high on a hill between two streams that cut a gap into the Purbeck Hills. Corfe is a beautifully preserved medieval town with the rich Portland stone playing a big part in its construction. Even on a cool mid February day it was packed with tourists discovering the delights of a historic place.

4 Our journey home was delayed by a side trip to Cerne Abbas. This is home to Cerne Abbey where Queen Margaret (Henry VI's wife) and her son stayed upon their return from France. But it is most famous for the Cerne Abbas Chalk Giant carved on the hillside just north of the village. The image has much degraded recently due to visitors erosion and the hillside is now fenced off but you can still see him (and his crown jewels) from a viewing layby on the main road. 

We merely scratched the surface of this amazing county in the time we had. There is so much more to see and I recommend a visit to anyone. We will certainly be returning as soon as we can.