A steam locomotive named after Queen Elizabeth undergoes £400,000 repairs at Carnforth after its boiler was removed.
Princess Elizabeth, a purple locomotive number 6201, was named after the future monarch in 1933 when she was a seven-year-old schoolgirl.
A crane was brought to the West Coast Railway workshop to lift the 29-ton boiler from the chassis.
The locomotive’s 29-ton boiler is moved by a crane in the West Coast Railway workshop in Carnforth. (Image: Jim Connor)
Built in Crewe for £11,675, the locomotive became one of the most famous locomotives of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway.
In 1936, it set a world speed record between London and Glasgow, covering the 401-mile route at an average speed of 70 miles per hour.
After the locomotive was withdrawn from British Rail service in 1961, enthusiasts rescued it from the scrapyard and restored it to its original glory.
To mark the start of the celebrations for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in June 2012, the locomotive whistled at Battersea Railway Bridge.
The Queen, who was on board a barge down on the Thames, waved to the driver and stoker in the cab.
The locomotive’s 29-ton boiler is moved by a crane in the West Coast Railway workshop in Carnforth. (Image: Jim Connor)
A few days later, Princess Elizabeth pulled 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 its boiler had to be replaced, the locomotive regularly hauled the 1930s Pullman-style Northern Belle on the Settle-Carlisle route.
A spokesman for Belle said: “Lizzie was very popular with all our passengers and we were very disappointed when she had to go in for repairs.”
“We look forward to welcoming her back as soon as she is finally feeling better.
“But now another great locomotive called Tangmere, which used to pull express trains from London to the south coast, has proved a very popular replacement.”
