photos  by

MAINLINE STEAM TOUR PROGRAMME 2020  February to July – local services

Welcome to the Railway Herald- Railtour pages, which replace our previous reference source for this material from UK Steam Info web-site.    Date of extract: 2^nd February 2020

This ‘local’ extract includes any trains which pass through ‘our area’ and those to Basingstoke, Salisbury, Oxford or Westbury at its extremities without travelling through our area as such, and any near misses which may be of particular interest. Such entries are in blue. Trains including Newbury in their itinerary may be assumed to travel through Hungerford – some others may do so when the planned itineraries are published. The Railway Herald source also includes diesel hauled excursions which may be included as they often involve heritage locomotives.

For full schedule please refer to the Railway Herald – Railtours page at http://www.railwayherald.com/railtours. 

Saturday 15th February 2020
St. Valentine’s Pullman (UK Railtours)
35028 London Victoria (pu) – Ruislip – Princes Risborough – Bicester Chord – Oxford Parkway – Oxford – Reading – Wokingham – Guildford – Shalford – Redhill – London Victoria
Additional Tour Information
Train will consist of the Belmont British Pullman set.

Saturday 22nd February 2020
The Cotswold Venturer (Railway Touring Company)
60009 London Paddington (pu) – Slough (pu) – Reading (pu) – Didcot Parkway (pu) – Swindon – Kemble – Stroud – Cheltenham – Worcester Shrub Hill

60009 Worcester Shrub Hill – Evesham – Moreton-in-Marsh – Oxford – Didcot Parkway (sd) – Reading (sd) – Slough (sd) – London Paddington

Saturday 7th March 2020

The Hacienda (Pathfinder Tours)

DBS Class 66 Swindon (pu) – Kemble (pu) – Stroud (pu) – Cheltenham Spa (pu) – Bromsgrove (pu) – Birmingham New Street (pu) – Stafford (pu) – Crewe
DB Cargo Class 66 and Freightliner Class 66 tnt Crewe – Stockport – Salford – Crewe
DBS Class 66 Crewe – stafford (sd) – Birmingham New Street (sd) – Bromsgrove (sd) – Cheltenham Spa (sd) – Stroud (sd) – Kemble (sd) – Swindon

Sunday 8th March 2020
The Devon Crompton (Branch Line Society)

33012 and WCRC Class 33 London Victoria Platform 2 (pu) – Clapham Junction – Balham – Wimbledon – Weybridge – Woking Platform 4 (pu) – Basingstoke Platform 2 (pu) – Andover – Salisbury Platform 3 (pu) – Tisbury Loop – Gillingham – Yeovil Junction Platform 3 (photo stop) (rev) – Yeovil Pen Mill (rev) – Yeovil Junction – Chard loop – Axminster – Honiton (photo stop) – Exeter St. Davids (sd) – Crediton – Coleford Junction (rev) – Exeter St. Davids Platform 3 (pu) (rev) – Exeter Riverside Yard – Taunton – Weston-super-Mare – Bristol Temple Meads Platform 5 (sd) – Bath Spa – Westbury – Salisbury Platform 2 (sd) – Andover – Basingstoke Platform 3 (sd) – Woking Platform 1 (sd) – Weybridge – Wimbledon – Clapham Junction – London Waterloo Platform 19

Friday 13th March 2020
The Northern Belle: Cheltenham Gold Cup (Northern Belle)
WCRC Class 47/57 London (tba) (pu) – Evesham (break) & return

Saturday 21st March 2020
The Blue Boys Merrymaker (Pathfinder Tours)

DRS Class 68 Eastleigh (pu) – Basingstoke (pu) – Reading West (pu) – Didcot Parkway (pu) – Banbury (pu) – Leamington Spa (pu) – Coventry (pu) – Birmingham International (pu) – Birmingham New Street (pu) – tba
DRS Class 37 x 2 tba – Lichfield City – Coalville – Nuneaton – Stoke on Trent
DRS Class 66 Stoke on Trent – Crewe
DRS Class 57 x 2 Crewe – Shrewsbury – Wolverhampton – Walsall – Nuneaton
DRS Class 88 Nuneaton – Birmingham New Street (sd) –
DRS Class 57 x 2 Birmingham New Street – Birmingham International (sd) – Coventry (sd) – Leamington Spa (sd) – Banbury (sd) – Didcot Parkway (sd) – Reading West (sd) – Basingstoke (sd) – Eastleigh

Portsmouth Harbour Statesman (Statesman Rail)

LSL Class 47s Crewe (pu) – Stafford (pu) – Rugeley Town (pu) – Cannock (pu) – Walsall (pu) – Birmingham International (pu) – Coventry (pu) – Leamington Spa (pu) – Banbury (pu) – Portsmouth Harbour (break/rev) & return

Sunday 22nd March 2020
Steam Dreams Excursion (Steam Dreams)

Steam TBA London Victoria (pu) – Slough (pu) – Winchester & return

Thursday 23rd April 2020
Steam Dreams Excursion (Steam Dreams)

Steam TBA London Paddington (pu) – Slough (pu) – Reading (pu) – Oxford (pu) – Warwick (sd) – Stratford-upon-Avon (break/rev) & return

Saturday 25th April 2020
Great Britain 2020: Day 9 (Railway Touring Company)

6233 Penzance – Plymouth – Exeter St. Davids – Taunton – Westbury – Reading – Ascot – London Victoria

Sunday 3rd May 2020
London & the Surrey Hills to Bath (Steam Dreams)

61306 London Clapham Jcn (pu) – Newbury (water stop) – Bath & return

STOP PRESS 04.03.2020

We have heard from Steam Dreams that they are offering to pick up passengers for Bath on the 3^rd May excursion train – return fare for shortish direct journey via Westbury and the Avon Valley is £89. This has been made possible by a number of passengers leaving the train at Newbury for a tour of Highclere Castle (can’t imagine why!)

This information was not available when preparing the Chain Mail article and quarterly local schedule of steam trains. 
Virus warning…given the uncertainty surrounding anything planned in the near future in respect of the virus outbreak.
Booking info on the Steam Dreams web-site here

Thursday 7th May 2020
The Moors & Mountains Explorer: Day 1 (Steam Dreams)

To be confirmed London Victoria (pu) – Salisbury (break) – Kingswear

Saturday 23rd May 2020
Bath, Bristol & The Welsh Capital (NENTA Traintours)

DRS Class 68 x 2 tnt Norwich (pu) – Diss (pu) – Ipswich (pu) – Stowmarket (pu) – Bury St. Edmunds (pu) – Ely (pu) – Cambridge (pu) – Royston (pu) – Hitchin (pu) – Bath Spa (sd) – Bristol Temple Meads (sd) – Cardiff Central (break) (rev) & return

Sunday 31st May 2020

Flying Scotsman from Oxford (Steam Dreams)

60103 Oxford Parkway (pu) – circular tour – Newbury Racecourse (water stop) – Didcot Parkway – Oxford Parkway(sd)

Saturday 6th June 2020
The South Devon Explorer (Railway Touring Company)

WCRC Class 47/57 Woking (pu) – Guildford (pu) – Reading (pu) – Newbury (pu) – Westbury (pu) – Bristol tba
6233 Bristol tba – Taunton – Exeter St. Davids – Dawlish – Newton Abbot – Totnes – Plymouth
6233 Plymouth (pu) – Totnes – Newton Abbot – Exeter St. Davids – Taunton – Bristol Temple Meads
WCRC Class 47/57 Bristol Temple Meads – Westbury (sd) – Newbury (sd) – Reading (sd) – Guildford (sd) – Woking

Saturday 13th June 2020
The Cotswold Venturer (Railway Touring Company)

60103 London Paddington (pu) – Slough (pu) – Reading (pu) – Didcot Parkway (pu) – Swindon – Kemble – Sapperton – Stroud – Cheltenham – Worcester Shrub Hill (break) (rev) & return

Saturday 27th June 2020
Great Western Envoy (Saphos Trains)

LSL Steam Pool Crewe (pu) – Stafford (pu) – Tame Bridge Parkway (pu) – Birmingham International (pu) – Coventry (pu) – Leamington Spa (pu) – Oxford – Swindon – Bath Spa (sd) – Bristol Temple Meads (break/rev) & return

Saturday 4th July 2020
The Bournemouth Express (Railway Touring Company)

35018 London Waterloo (pu) – Weybridge – Woking – Basingstoke – Southampton Central – Bournemouth (break/rev) & return

Thursday 9th July 2020
The End Of Southern Steam (Railway Touring Company)

35018 London waterloo (pu) – Weybridge – Woking (pu) – Basingstoke – Salisbury (sd) – Sherborne (sd) – Yeovil Railway Centre
WCRC Class 47/57 Yeovil railway Centre – Maiden Newton Weymouth
35018 Weymouth (pu) – Poole – Bournemouth – Southampton Central – Basingstoke (sd) – Woking (sd) – Weybridge – London Waterloo

Sunday 26th July 2020

English Riviera Express (Saphos Trains)

LSL Steam Pool Bristol Temple Meads (pu) – Bath Spa (pu) – Bradford on Avon (pu) – Westbury (pu) – Frome (pu) – Taunton (pu) – Paignton (sd) – Kingswear (break/rev) & return

Railway Herald Limited

Railway Herald Limited produces the weekly digital magazine Railway Herald, which is available through the RH website, covering the operational and enthusiast aspects of the UK, European and Worldwide railway scenes.

The magazine is published 47 weeks a year, on a Wednesday, and is readable on any Windows or Mac computer, or on mobile devices such as an iPad or smartphone.

© Copyright Railway Herald Limited 2005-2020 . All rights reserved. Railway Herald Ltd, PO Box 252, Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire. DN17 2WY. Registered in England & Wales as company 05837609 Registered Office (not Editorial) : Hobarn House, 12 Brompton Road, Northallerton. North Yorkshire. DL6 1DY.

************************************************************

Tour promoters.

This list is not being maintained and may get out of date. To anyone who spots an out of date listing please contact me, thank you. Webmaster