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Many preserved railways put on special events, these take an increasing variety of forms. Besides adding a shot in the arm to the usual running season and boosting visitor figures they are a way of celebrating achievements for the volunteers, giving visitors a day out of the ordinary, etc.. Recently there has been a spate of such special events at the Embsay Steam Railway but few people knew of them.

We had the first freight train through to Bolton Abbey and then the top and tailed trains to Holywell whilst Stoneacre Loop was altered. These trains were started on the weekend two steam rollers were used to roll the hard-core for the car park at Bolton Abbey and No. 22 went through to BA with the steam crane in tow.

On 5th October '97 while No. 22 and Annie worked the top and tailed trains to Holywell, 68005 worked a gauging and timetable trial train to Bolton Abbey with five coaches. Non of this constitutes a gala but I suspect a lot of people would have been tempted out if they knew of these goings on. So how can the railway publicise these events at short notice? It is not easy but I do think at least a message on the Talking Timetable that something out of the ordinary is going on would be worthwhile. Just one railway enthusiast tempted out who then buys refreshments or books in the shop would be money towards the cost of the extension.

The cab and tank of Illingworth are being loaded at the site of the long closed Fransham station near Swaffham in Norfolk. The engine had been dismantled for restoration but only some cosmetic work was done. (c) Steve Middleton

In August, Illingworth was moved from Fransham in Norfolk to Ian Riley's Bury works and soon after the tyres were removed and wheels turned. By early next year new tyres will have been fitted, horns ground, axleboxes remetalled and pistons accurately fitted giving a rolling chassis. The dome cover and top two rows of tubes are being removed to see what challenges face us when replacing the front tubeplate. Similarly the firebox foundation ring will have to be removed to facilitate inspection. Hopefully there will be no nasty surprises as externally it all looks quite good.

Update: A nasty surprise has been found. The internal boiler stays are not bolted into the firebox but are held in by pins. The only way to replace these is to remove the whole of the firebox assembly This will add another c.£2,000 to the restoration costs. Mark Tweedy of the Foxfield Railway is a freelance steam engine restorer and he will do the work as a sub-contractor.)

Charles Adams is kindly overseeing the whole restoration which is a great relief as I know little about steam engines except that all the bits are heavy and make you very poor. Already Charles's advice has saved me money and kept me out of trouble and I really appreciate his committment to the job.

Illingworth's wheels being turned on the lathe at Ian Riley's works at Bury. Tyre turning is a common job on locomotives, but turning the wheels themselves is less common. (C) Steve Middleton

G.E.R. Officer's Saloon No. 14 of 1889 has had a handbrake and vacuum brake fitted by Mangapps Farm Railway Museum and it looks right at home, running between ex-Mid-Suffolk Railway buildings. It will come to Embsay in 1998. I have just acquired a similar Great Eastern Railway coach which I am restoring on a farm near Harrogate. The saloon is believed to have been used on occasion by Princess Alice, Queen Victoria's grand daughter. My grandfather, during his tenure as Ipswich station master welcomed her from service trains on several occasions and found her very agreeable. Princess Alice enjoyed her transport and was an active patron of the Women's Transport Service. Her sense of adventure and thrift led her to travel round London by bus. I hope to find more concrete evidence of this royal connection with my latest coach as it must be a real marketing bonus.

To date I have recanvassed the roof and replaced the centre wheelset, removed over 50 years ago. This straightened out the chassis and body. Re-panneling will not take too long but restoring the interior to a quality authentic Victorian standard may take up to 18 months and cost several thousand pounds.

G.E.R. Officer's Saloon No. 14 at Mangapps Farm Railway Museum in Essex. (c) Steve Middleton

Two well restored 6-wheeled coaches gives the railway a viable picnic set but I would like to expand this fleet once I approach the completion of the two current projects. Reproducing the Nidd Valley Railway officer's saloon, custom building it for disabled use on the picnic train should be a worthwhile job. In addition any compartment six wheelers that are available could be converted for dual use, camping coaches in season and a twin coupe, one saloon to join the picnic train out of season. If anyone shares my ambition and is willing to offer practical help, I would be pleased to hear from them.