Didcot Railway Centre - Autumn Steam Gala | 07/09/25

The final day of the Autumn Steam Gala at the Didcot Railway Centre was on Sunday 7th September 2025. This year, two visiting locomotives, GWR 1400 Class 1450 owned by Push Pull Ltd at the Severn Valley Railway (SVR), was running up and down on the main demonstration line on autotrain operations, and SECR O1 Class 65 owned by the Bluebell Railway Trust, was running up and down on the main demonstration line, hauling freight and passenger trains, along with being turned round on the turntable. Unfortunately, resident steam locomotive GWR 1400 Class 1466 owned by the Great Western Society (GWS), was not in steam due to technical issues coming to light between the insurance company and the subcontractors employed in the overhaul of the engine’s boiler. The replacement of 1466 was the oldest GWR 4073 Castle Class currently in operation; GWR 4073 Castle Class 4079 ‘Pendennis Castle’ was running up and down on the main demonstration line with two Victorian carriages; this is a last-minute opportunity to see and ride behind Pendennis Castle with a 3500-gallon tender. The oldest GWR steam locomotive currently in operation, the GWR 0-4-0ST No. 1340 'Trojan' built by Avonside in 1897 was running up and down on the branch line from Burlescombe to Didcot Halt and shunting around the engine shed.

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