Sixty-five years of diesel celebrated as West Somerset Railway marks 50th anniversary

FIFTY years since the West Somerset Railway (WSR) reopened the line from Minehead to Williton was marked on Friday (August 28).

A special Saturday afternoon train ran on the heritage line from Minehead via Washford and Watchet to Williton to help celebrate the occasion.

The celebration came in the middle of the WSR’s weekend Diesels at 65 festival to commemorate 65 years since the railway’s iconic Class 35 Hymek diesel engines first entered British Railways service.

Diesels at 65 drew hundreds of visitors to the area who braved a series of cloudbursts on Saturday which temporarily flooded roads.

Five home fleet diesel locomotives were in action, Class 09 D4107, Class 33 ‘Cromptons’ D6566 and D6575, and Class 35 ‘Hymeks’ D7017 and D7018, while the Diesel and Electric Preservation Group’s (DEPG) Williton yard was open for visitors to have an up close look at the heritage fleet with cab visits and shed tours.

There was an intensive timetable with high-mileage running featuring single locomotive workings, top and tail trains, and double-heading, while the return of Hymek D7018 was welcomed after a period away from the WSR, and a rare opportunity was on offer to travel behind Class 09 D4107 to and from Williton.

There were model railways sales stands at both Williton and Minehead stations, and diesel-era exhibits, model railway displays, and themed demonstrations in the Gauge Museum, on Bishops Lydeard Station.

Storyboards were on display in the museum to provide detailed information about the locomotives featured across the special weekend.

A supporting steam service was also operated to help to recreate the atmosphere of the railway 65 years ago when the classic diesel engines were first entering service.

The WSR’s next golden jubilee year event will be a 1940s weekend on September 12 and 13, followed by an autumn steam weekend from September 25 to 27.