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Trespassers force Flying Scotsman to make unscheduled stop on inaugural run Flying Scotsman grinds to halt on inaugural run due to 'mindless' trespassers
(about 2 hours later)
Flying Scotsman’s inaugural run from London to York after a decade-long refit was briefly brought to a halt by trespassers on the tracks. After a 10-year refit costing £4.2m and meticulous preparation, Flying Scotsman’s much-anticipated return to the track was briefly halted by an unforeseen obstacle – overexcited fans.
Thousands of steam enthusiasts lined up on Thursday morning to get a glimpse of the world-famous locomotive. Network Rail said that as a result of people on the tracks all trains on the east coast mainline had come to a standstill. As the world-famous locomotive travelled from London to York on Thursday for the inaugural journey since its hiatus, its progress was rudely interrupted by dozens of hardy steam enthusiasts standing on the line to try to photograph the national treasure.
Rail magazine editor Nigel Harris, who was on the train, described a “big brake” before Flying Scotsman came to a “shuddering stop” near St Neots, Cambridgeshire.
Footage filmed from the stationary train showed people walking down the line holding cameras. Other trains were also affected with Virgin reporting delays of 15 minutes on the east coast mainline.
We've had to stop all trains on the East Coast Main Line incl. #FlyingScotsman because of huge number of trespassers. Please, don't.We've had to stop all trains on the East Coast Main Line incl. #FlyingScotsman because of huge number of trespassers. Please, don't.
Passengers said the train came to a “shuddering stop” near St Neots, Cambridgeshire. Virgin Trains East Coast warned that other services were being delayed by up to 15 minutes due to photographers on the track. British Transport police, who were called shortly after 9am to reports of around 60 people on the line, were forced to issue a warning of the potential consequences of trespass on the line, while acknowledging “people are excited about the Flying Scotsman’s return”. There was a similar plea from Network Rail but Harris did not mince his words, describing the incident as “rampant trespass by mindless hordes”. No arrests were made.
Footage filmed from the stationary train showed people walking down the line holding cameras. Locomotive 60103 was held up for 10 minutes before resuming at a reduced speed and it eventually chugged into York station to a rapturous reception at 1.20pm, about 40 minutes behind schedule.
British Transport police received reports of about 60 trespassers on the track near St Neots shortly after 9am. No arrests were made. The crowds at York mirrored those seen for the train’s 7.40am departure from London’s King’s Cross, which covered platform one in steam, and where hundreds of people arrived from 6am to secure a vantage point.
The trains were soon on the move again according to the press office, which advised people to enjoy the view “safely and stay off the railway”. Some 297 VIPs, fundraisers, competition winners and members of the public who paid up to £450 were on board for the trip, many struggling to contain their excitement.
Flying Scotsman eventually arrived in York shortly before 1.30pm, later than expected and close to six hours after it departed London King’s Cross. The journey had been scheduled to take five hours. There were 297 VIPs, fundraisers, competition winners and ticket-buying members of the public on board. Among them was Ron Kennedy, who drove Flying Scotsman from 1956 until it was retired in 1963. The 83-year-old, from Leigh-on-Sea in Essex, beamed with delight as the locomotive pulled into the station he first worked at as a cleaner almost 70 years ago. “It’s unbelievable. I never dreamt about being on it again. To be out with it is just fantastic,” he said. “It was a good engine.”
Flying Scotsman was painted in the traditional early 1960s British Rail green for its first official outing bearing its nameplates after the restoration project. Fellow passenger Tony Hey, 70, said: “This is a totally different experience. Electric trains are all the same!”
Built in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, in 1923, it soon became the star locomotive of the British railway system, pulling the first train to break the 100mph barrier in 1934. Sitting on plush burgundy-red velvet seats behind white tablecloths, passengers ate porridge, sipped tea and drunk champagne.
One of the passengers on Flying Scotsman when it left King’s Cross just after 7.45am was the broadcaster and former MP Michael Portillo. He said he was very excited to be travelling on the train as part of filming for BBC documentary series Great British Railway Journeys. “This is certainly the most famous journey and most famous locomotive in Britain,” he said. The train was painted in the traditional early 1960s British Rail green for its first official outing bearing its nameplates after the restoration project and staff wore matching uniforms.
Portillo described Flying Scotsman as an engineering triumph and praised its designer, Sir Nigel Gresley, for having “an eye for engineering, for design, for style and for marketing”. Built in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, in 1923, Flying Scotsman soon became the star locomotive of the British railway system, pulling the first train to break the 100mph barrier in 1934. It was also the first to link London to Edinburgh – the route which gave it its name - in a single journey, then the longest non-stop rail journey ever achieved.
The National Railway Museum in York bought the locomotive for £2.3m in 2004 before work got under way on its restoration in 2006. Michael Portillo, who was travelling on the train as part of filming for BBC documentary series Great British Railway Journeys, said:
The museum’s director, Paul Kirkman, said Flying Scotsman was a reminder that “railways have been making this country run properly for nearly 200 years”. He said the restoration project was a long old journey but that it was incredibly satisfying to see the locomotive returned to service. “This is certainly the most famous journey and most famous locomotive in Britain.”
Also among the passengers was Ron Kennedy, a Flying Scotsman driver from 1956 until it was retired in 1963. The 83-year-old, from Leigh-on-Sea in Essex, smiled as the locomotive pulled into the station he first worked at as a cleaner almost 70 years ago. “It’s unbelievable. I never dreamt about being on it again. To be out with it is just fantastic,” he said. “It was a good engine.” He described Flying Scotsman as “an engineering triumph” and praised its designer, Nigel Gresley, for having “an eye for engineering, for design, for style and for marketing”.
Kennedy said he was impressed with how Flying Scotsman has been restored. “When the railway museum took it over they didn’t know what to do with it but public donations meant they could put it back together again,” he said. “I think they’ve done a wonderful job. It belongs to the public really so let’s keep it so it’s always there for our children and grandchildren.” The National Railway Museum in York bought the locomotive for £2.3 million in 2004, with the help of funds donated by the public, before work got under way on its restoration in 2006.
• Flying Scotsman will be kept at the National Railway Museum until 6 March before embarking on a tour around the country. Flying Scotsman enjoyed 40 years of service before it was bought by the industrialist Alan Pegler, who transported it across the Atlantic in 1969 to pull tourist trains on the west coast of the United States.
The Press Association contributed to this report But the venture was not a success. Pegler was forced into bankruptcy and the train was stranded in the US. William McAlpine heard about its plight and his rescue plan enabled it to be brought back to Britain in 1973, where it passed through the hands of several owners before it was eventually saved for the nation.
The National Railway Museum’s director, Paul Kirkman, said Flying Scotsman was a reminder that “railways have been making this country run properly for nearly 200 years”. He described the restoration project as a “long old journey” but said it was incredibly satisfying to see the locomotive returned to service.
• Flying Scotsman will be kept at the National Railway Museum in York until 6 March before embarking on a tour around the country.