The Flying Scotsman: A legend of the railways that continues to power on

It was jacked broadside over a space of 30ft from the railway siding to a standard track in the Palace of Housing and Transport where it was to remain during the summer.

The locomotive, weighing 97 tons, and its tender, 42 tons, had to be handled separately.

It was declared the locomotive was a striking example of the progress of a century of British Railway Engineering.

King George V and Queen Mary visited the Exhibition on Wednesday August 12, 1925, arriving by motorcar. It was their fifth visit together and the Queen had also inspected the Exhibition alone on three other occasions.

After examining various exhibits in the Palace of Housing and Transport, the Royal party approached the ‘Flying Scotsman’, and the King expressed a desire to mount the foot-plate.

This he did and sat for a while in the driver’s cabin with Sir Travers Clarke, the chief Administrator of the Exhibition. A moment later the Queen ascended and the Royal couple spent some time in examining the levers and controls.

They then walked through a sleeping car which was attached to the ‘Flying Scotsman’ engine.

Doncaster Works was established by the Great Northern Railway Company (GNR) during 1853 and the ‘Flying Scotsman’ appeared from there 70 years later.

It was built to the designs of Sir Nigel Gresley (Knighted in 1936). In 1905 he had left the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway for the GNR, to become Carriage & Wagon Superintendent at Doncaster Works.

Six years later, at the early age of 35 he became the Company’s chief locomotive engineer. He lived at Doncaster for 18 years, until, at the time of the formation of the London & North Eastern Railway in 1923, he became its chief mechanical engineer

By the early 1920s, the GNR decided that an express passenger locomotive with greater power than the Ivatt Atlantic was needed.

In an attempt to find a solution to this problem, Gresley reappraised the designs made in 1915 for a ‘Pacific’ or 4-6-2 wheel arrangement engine.

This was in the light of the success of his three cylinder 2-6-0 and 2-8-0 locomotives. He also studied the information published on the renowned, well-proportioned Pennsylvanian Railroad K4 ‘Pacific’ of 1911. As a result, Gresley designed the Class A1 three-cylinder 4-6-2 locomotive.

The first to appear was no. 1470 ‘Great Northern’ which was completed at Doncaster during 1922.

The third A1 to appear from Doncaster Works, now under the London & North Eastern Railway (LNER), was No. 1472 ‘Flying Scotsman’ in Apple Green livery on February 24, 1923. It was renumbered to the more familiar 4472 on March 2, 1924.

Before its first appearance at the Wembley British Empire Exhibition, ‘Flying Scotsman’ was prepared at Doncaster Works over 67 days from December 27, 1923 to March 2, 1924.

One report said: ‘It has probably received more lavish treatment in preparation for the great exhibition than any railway engine previously.’ On Saturday February 23, 1924, it was on view in the town to a large crowd.

The engine was slightly raised from the ground, and by means of an electric motor fixed below the wheels made about ten revolutions per minute.

The original Wembley Stadium opened its doors in April 1923 and was built for the British Empire Exhibition of 1924. It was due to be demolished afterwards but businessman and civil servant Sir James Stevenson suggested it stay open.

The 1924 Exhibition was intended to strengthen the bonds with the Empire, stimulate trade, and demonstrate British greatness both abroad and at home.

After the Wembley exhibition, ‘Flying Scotsman’ was displayed again on November, 29 and 30, 1924, this time at York, and the proceeds were for the York Cottage Hospital.

During 1928 a corridor tender was attached to ‘Flying Scotsman’, enabling a new crew to take over without it stopping. The engine hauled the first ever non-stop London to Edinburgh service and this reduced the travelling time to eight hours.

On Wednesday December 5, 1934, the LNER made an announcement.

In connection with the high-speed experimental train run from London to Leeds and back on the previous Friday, examination of the dynamometer car records revealed that the ‘Flying Scotsman’ locomotive reached a speed of 100 miles an hour and maintained it for a distance of 600 yards.

This was in the neighbourhood of Little Bytham Station, between Grantham and Peterborough. It was claimed no special tuning up of the engine was performed prior to the record run, and it was in normal main line service on the previous day.

Sir Nigel Gresley died in April 1941. His locomotive, the ‘Flying Scotsman’ had an unlined black livery from April, 3, 1943; LNER Apple Green with black and white lining from April 1, 1947; BR Blue with black and white lining from December 16, 1949; and BR Green with orange and black lining from March 14, 1952. The locomotive was rebuilt to Class A3 specifications in 1947. Its BR number from December 30, 1948 was 60103.

‘The Modernisation and Re-Equipment of British Railways’ was published during January 1955 and called for £1.2 billion to be loaned by the Government. This included a budget for the replacement of the steam fleet with new diesel-electric and electric locomotives.

The brdatabase website states no. 60103 was withdrawn on January 15, 1963 off Kings Cross after a service life of 39 years, 10 months and 22 days. It had made its final BR service journey the previous day and was destined for the scrapheap. That was until rail enthusiast Alan Pegler stepped in.

Born in April 1920, Pegler was the son of a Nottinghamshire businessman, and he remembered seeing the ‘Flying Scotsman’ at the British Empire Exhibition at Wembley in 1924.

He joined his father’s firm, the Northern Rubber Company during 1946 and by 1954 he had obtained control of the Ffestiniog Railway.

Then, upset in the early 1960s, that no Class A3 steam locomotive was to be preserved he was prompted to buy ‘Flying Scotsman’ for £3,000.

He told one of many newspapers that covered the sale: ‘I intend to preserve the engine as a monument.’

Pegler ensured that restoring the locomotive and repainting it to the original LNER Apple Green livery along with reapplying the 4472 number, was part of the deal with BR. Afterwards thousands turned out to see it running during much of the remainder of the decade.

To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the 1928 non-stop London to Edinburgh run this was undertaken again in May 1968.

Pegler transported ‘Flying Scotsman’ to the States in 1969 with the intention of promoting British exports. This was the first of a number of problems to befall the locomotive.

In time, Pegler became bankrupt and his prize possession became stranded in the US.

A rescue operation was put in place by William McAlpine and the locomotive returned to the UK. A restoration programme was carried out at Derby Works, with McAlpine’s ownership lasting 23 years.

During this period, he kept ‘Flying Scotsman’ well maintained and even ran it in Australia. Whilst there, the engine completed the longest ever non-stop run by a steam locomotive, a distance of 422 miles.

There was another change of ownership in February 1996 when ‘Flying Scotsman’ was acquired by Tony Marchington for £1.25 million.

This lasted until acquired by the National Railway Museum. A grant of £1.8 million from the National Heritage Memorial Fund helped fund the acquisition.

Further help to the tune of £275,000 from the Heritage Lottery fund aided the restoration. The locomotive returned to the tracks as a working museum exhibit in a blaze of glory during 2016.