Late Queen Elizabeth’s favourite locomotive undergoes £400k repair at Carnforth railway workshop
The late Queen Elizabeth’s favourite steam locomotive, which used to be based at Carlisle during its final years with British Rail, is undergoing a £400,000 overhaul and repair at Carnforth.
A giant crane had to be brought in to carefully lift the massive 29-tons boiler from her chassis at West Coast Railway’s workshop at Carnforth.
The future monarch was still a seven-year-old schoolgirl when the crimson-painted locomotive, number 6201, was named Princess Elizabeth after her in 1933.
Built at Crewe for just £11,675, Lizzie went on to become one of the most celebrated engines on the old London, Midland and Scottish Railway.
And in 1936, the loco set the world speed record between London and Glasgow, covering the non-stop 401-mile journey at an average speed of 70mph.
During 1960 and 1961, Lizzie worked out of Carlisle’s Kingmoor and Upperby depots before being withdrawn from service with British Rail in 1961.
Enthusiasts saved Lizzie from being sent to the scrapyard and restored to her previous glory, the engine blew its whistle from Battersea Railway Bridge to start the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee pageant in June 2012.
The smiling Queen, who was aboard a barge below on the River Thames, waved at the driver and fireman on the footplate.
And a few days later, Princess Elizabeth hauled the Royal Train from Newport to Hereford and then from Worcester to Oxford as part of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Tour.
In recent years, before needing her boiler replaced, the locomotive regularly hauled the 1930s Pullman-style Northern Belle over the spectacular Settle-Carlisle line.
A spokesman for the Belle said: “Lizzie was a great favourite with all our passengers and we were very disappointed when she had to go in for repairs.
“We look forward to welcoming back once she is finally back on track. But in the meantime, another fine engine called Tangmere, which used to haul crack expresses from London to the South Coast, has proved a very popular replacement.”
For more details about Princess Elizabeth Society and their charity appeal to help restore the loco, visit https://6201.co.uk/
For more details of the Northern Belle, see https://northernbelle.co.uk/