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EXCESS BAGGAGE
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23ÌýFebruaryÌý2008
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RAIL TRAVEL
John McCarthy travels to the National Railway Museum in York to meet its director Andrew Scott and Ian Macbeth, former Managing Director of Great Railway Journeys.ÌýÌýThey take a look back at the past of rail travel in the form of some of the great steam trains that once broke speed records which rival those of today.Ìý John also discusses the current expansion of Europe’s high speed rail network, looks at the viability of magnetic levitation, and hears about the first new steam engine to be built in Britain for nearly fifty years.
John stands on the footplate of a locomotive to learn the tricks of the trade from Tracey Parkinson, a fireman and driver and settles himself into the comfort of a 1930s Pullman car to hear from Geoff and Sheelagh Cooke about the railway equivalent of the luxury cruise.
Presented by John McCarthy
Photo:Ìý
(London and North Eastern Railway Class A4 4-6-2 Pacific steam locomotive built at Doncaster, England in 1938)
This week’s guests:
Andrew Scott is the director of theÌý in York. His passion for transport collections developed during his childhood when he spent time ‘helping’ the staff of Coventry Museums. With the exception of the Japanese bullet train, and one Chinese, most of the trains in the National Railway Museum are from the UK. They have a range of historic engines such as the Flying Scotsman (currently being restored), the Mallard and the Duchess of Hamilton on display, as well as some Victorian paintings which encapsulate attitudes to travel in the 19th Century.
This summer the Museum will stage a photography exhibition highlighting the impact of these modern railways on workers and passengers.
is the former Managing Director of .Ìý Ian has loved the railways since he was a child in the fifties when most small boys were train spotters. A common hobby at the time, it was not unusual to find 100 boys standing at the end of the platform. Later Ian worked on the railways and then ran a rail travel company which offers journeys to Europe and South Africa.Ìý
is the first woman in England to fire a steam locomotive on a mainline. In August 2006, Tracey made her rail network debut on board the National Railway Museum's Scarborough Spa Express and is a qualified steam line driver. She worked for the National Rail Museum for five years and now promotes rail tours on steam locomotives.Ìý
are a husband and wife team who organise off the beaten track train journeys for rail enthusiasts, including heritage steam experiences.Ìý They spent many years living in Zimbabwe where they designed, built and operated one of Africa’s finest safari trains, the first to make scheduled steam operated heritage train tours to Victoria Falls.
Geoff had the idea of starting a business to take tourists on a steam train to the Victoria Falls when he was working on a TV documentary about tourism.Ìý The track lines were already there, so Geoff and his wife built the train, starting with three coaches and ending with eleven.
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| PRESENTER BIOGRAPHIES |
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John McCarthy is a widely travelled journalist and presenter with a particular interest in the Middle East.
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