This is a short film about the ‘Westerns South Western’ railtour that ran on 30th October 1976, chartered by John Vaughan of RPPR.
The locomotives used throughout were Class 52 D1023 ‘Western Fusilier’ and Class 52 D1009 ‘Western Invader’
The route was London Paddington to Exeter St Davids via Reading and then the Berks & Hants route (via Castle Cary & Taunton). After running round at Exeter, we set off for Meldon Quarry via Crediton & Okehampton. The locomotives ran round again at Meldon for the return journey to Paddington, stopping at Exeter St Davids and then returning to London via Salisbury, Basingstoke & Reading.
I was able to take some Super8 silent cine film and 35mm colour slides on the day. The quality of the movie film is way below modern day standards. However, I’ve done my best to improve the stability, brightness, contrast and colour saturation. Also, I feel that the addition of sound has done much to improve the experience.
I really hope you enjoy fourteen minutes of nostalgia - if you were there. If you weren’t there, I hope it gives you a taste of what the day was like for those of us who were fortunate enough to experience it first hand.
Let me know below…
Andy
PS... If you enjoyed watching this video, perhaps you would consider making a donation to the Western Locomotive Association, a charity that owns and cares for three Class 52s - D1062 'Western Courier', D1013 'Western Ranger' and D1048 'Western Lady'. Follow this link: https://westernlocomotives.com/ and click on the ‘Donate’ button at the bottom of the page.