Didcot Railway Centre - May Steam Gala - 05/05/13

The May bank holiday weekend saw Didcot Railway Centre hold it's annual May steam gala, this event was of some significance as it saw the return of two Didcot residents from their travels elsewhere. The first was Steam Railmotor no.93, now re-united with her Autotrailer no.92 she has become a Steam Multiple Unit, or "Smoo" for short. The second was 6023 'King Edward II' who after major repairs completed at Loughborough Works, undertook several months of running in on the Great Central Railway where despite a couple of minor failures she performed very well.
Locomotives running on the 5th were as follows:
- GWR 4300 Class 2-6-0 no.5322
- GWR 6000 'King' Class 4-6-0 no.6023 'King Edward II'
- GWR Steam Multiple Unit nos.93 & 92
This video features a variety of shots from the day including 6023 and 5322 running on the main demonstration line, with some explosive runs by 6023! 6023 is also seen displaying various headboards and reporting numbers such as 'The Red Dragon', 'The Intercity' and 'The Cornish Riviera'. 93 & 92 are also seen running on the branch line, with some enthusiastic driving to boot! This video also features a full sequence of 6023 being turned on the turntable in glorious sunshine, perfectly displaying her in all her magnificence. Towards the end of the day we also get to see 6023 & 5322 double heading on the main demonstration line. The last 10 minutes of the video feature some after hours shunting with 6023 as she positions locomotives for the following day, this gave me an opportunity to grab some shots of 5051 'Earl Bathurst' outside. She is currently undergoing cosmetic restoration into her late 1930's condition which also sees her coupled up to a Collett 4000 gallon tender for the first time in several years. 5051 also now displays one of her old 'Drysllwyn Castle' nameplates on her right-hand side, this was her original name before being renamed to 'Earl Bathurst' in August 1937.
It was nice to meet up with James, Tom and Dan and I'd like to thank them for their company during the day, I've included links to their channels below so you can watch their videos from the day.
- James' Channel: / nwsnoaachaser
- Tom's Channel: / bristolcastle
- Dan's Channel: / satnavdan
Filmed on a Panasonic HDC-HS900 with a Panasonic VW-VMS2E microphone.
Enjoy.