Starting Over Again

by J.T. Shee

A year and a half BEFORE the infamous Black Prom takes place in Ewen High School, Carrie runs away from home in Chamberlain and ends up on the Island of Sodor. There, she meets the engines and people of Sodor and sets to get her life back on track (No pun intended). While there, she also meets someone she never expected to see in her life. Reviews are much appreciated.

21. 20: An Early Start A Busy Morning

Chapter 20: An Early Start / Busy Morning

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(Wednesday, April 11th 2012 – 9:00pm; Vicarstown Depot)

Carrie and Simon were sitting together in the crew recreation room in the main crew building in the motive power depot in Vicarstown on the eastern tip of Sodor. They had mugs of hot cocoa in their hands, and were really looking forward to getting a good night's rest in the bedrooms assigned to them in the building, before they had to get up in the morning for another long day of hard work.

They had arrived there a little earlier on in the evening, after they worked on a long, and very heavy fitted freight train from Knapford Station aboard Murdoch, the big orange 9F 2-10-0. It was the first time that either of them had ever worked with Murdoch before, and they were very pleased to work with him. In particular, although Carrie had worked on helping to prepare various 9F's for work, or disposing them after a day of work earlier on in the year, it was the first time that she had ever worked on the footplate of any of the 9F's on Sodor, including Murdoch, for the purposes of hauling trains across the land.

When Carrie set foot onto Murdoch's footplate with Simon earlier on in the day, in fact it was in the mid-afternoon at about 2:30pm, she was a little bit concerned about being away from her father's home, as she and Simon were scheduled to stay the night over at the main crew building in the depot at Vicarstown before coming back to Knapford in the morning. However, Ralph knew that something like this would have to happen at some point, and so he fully understood Carrie's concerns, and reassured her that he had gone through the same thing when he had first started off.

Both Carrie and Simon had brought along with them a bag each with things they would need, including toiletries, such as toothpaste and their toothbrushes, a change of fresh clothes, pyjamas, and footwear, and a few other things as well. After getting on Murdoch's footplate, they placed their bags in a very secure place at the back of the cab where they would be safely out of the way while they were working on the footplate.

They had a very good run on Murdoch's footplate on the trip from Knapford to Vicarstown, and Carrie was very impressed at how smoothly a locomotive as big as a 9F could go, even when hauling a heavy freight train behind them. She also took the chance to do some firing on the trip, and was very impressed at how easy it was to fire a 9F, particularly helped by how large the firehole doors were, which meant getting coal into the back corners was a much easier task. Carrie did wear gloves when she was firing, so as to protect her hands from the intense white heat of the fire when she was placing coal into the firebox. When she sat in the fireman's seat in between taking turns at the shovel, Carrie simply allowed the wind generated by Murdoch's forward movement to blow over her and cool her down, and the wind blowing through her hair really felt good.

After they arrived safely at the depot in Vicarstown, it was getting very late into the afternoon – actually on the very start of the evening, especially as they had been delayed about five minutes or so before they could leave the yards at Knapford with their long freight train. They left the train at the depot, and brought Murdoch over to the main motive power depot nearby, where the big 9F would be left for the night, and where he would be serviced and cleaned ready for work the following day.

In the meantime, Murdoch's crew, along with Simon and Carrie, signed off for the day and made their way over to the main crew building close by. Once there, they went up to the rooms where they would stay in for the night. The rooms were very comfortable, and also had their own fully equipped bathrooms where those staying in them could have a much-needed wash after their day of work and be able to sleep in a soft and comfortable bed for the night.

After taking off her overalls that she'd worn for much of the day for railway working, Carrie made her way upstairs to her assigned room. Once there, she stripped out of her clothes, hung them up to dry off and be ready for more work the next day, and then had a long, hot shower to wash off all the sweat. Once she finished, she wrapped herself up in the soft white towels provided and went off to dry herself before getting dressed.

As she dried herself off, Carrie glanced out the window at the open expanse of the depot she could see; there were a number of different engines going by with different trains behind them, ranging from empty coaching stock either on the way in or out of Vicarstown Station, freight trains of varying lengths and types of freight rolling stock going by out on the main line in the distance, and the passenger trains on their way in or out of the station. At one point, she saw an engine go by in the distance, and behind it was a long line of long red vehicles; what Carrie saw was none other than the post train on its way over from Vicarstown over to Knapford on the western side of the island.

Down in the depot itself, various engines, from freight engines to the larger glamorous express engines, were being disposed of in various sheds or on different sidings over the inspection pits after their long day of work, or were being readied to go out for the different nocturnal duties out on the main line.

After a few moments of watching what was going on, Carrie turned her head away from the window and continued getting herself ready for the evening.

After getting dressed, Carrie and Simon met up and went downstairs to the crew dining area where they enjoyed a good hot dinner as a reward for a long day of hard work out on the big railway. Carrie enjoyed a roast chicken with mashed potatoes with carrot, peas, and a rich gravy, while Simon enjoyed a steak with chips, fried onions, and peas. Both of them enjoyed their food immensely, and it helped them to really relax after their long day.

When they finished eating, they left the dining are and went up to one of the recreation areas upstairs where they could relax for a while before they went to bed. There were a few other engine crews there as well, most of whom were quietly chatting with each other about how their day had gone, as well as what they expected to take place the next morning when they went out to work.

The crew recreation space was being kept warm from a good fire that was burning merrily in an old fireplace at one end of the room, and there was plenty of leather covered furniture to sit on, including armchairs and some sofas. Lining two of the walls of the space were various bookshelves, upon most of which sat a lot of books about railways, locomotive classes, railway history and various aspects of railway engineering. But on some of other shelves, there sat other things like packs of playing cards, board games, and other things like that for the engine-men to enjoy.

In another part of the room, the T.V. was turned on, and some of the crews were gathered round it and watching the evening news. Some of the men had mugs of steaming hot tea in their hands, and they were slowly sipping from them as they watched the news.

"So, how are you feeling after today, Carrie?" Simon asked, as he turned to Carrie.

"I'm feeling grand actually, Simon. A little bit sore from having done so much shovelling today…but apart from that, I'm feeling fine." Carrie said, as she smiled a tired smile.

"Well…just remember that we've to be up early tomorrow morning. After all, there's more work to be done tomorrow." Simon said, with a heavy sigh as he settled back into the couch.

"I know…but I'm looking forward to it. I'm also looking forward to seeing which engine we'll be working on for tomorrow." Carrie said.

"Yeah, me too." Simon said, as he took a sip from his mug of hot cocoa. Feeling a little tired now, Carrie herself took another sip from her own mug of hot cocoa.

They remained in the recreation room for another three-quarters of an hour or so, during which time they spoke with some of the other engine-men about the experiences of railway working that the older crews had experienced on the railways of Sodor over the years. They also looked over one of the maps of the island at some of the different railways lines and debated with each other on which one they might travel on the next day.

But eventually though, tiredness overtook them and, at exactly 9:50pm according to the clock mounted over the main door, both Carrie and Simon decided it was time to head upstairs and turn in for the night. Getting up from the sofa, they went out the door and upstairs to the level where their rooms were at.

"I'm looking forward to a good night's rest." Carrie said, as she yawned while they went along the corridor to their rooms.

"Me too, particularly after all the work we did out there today." Simon said, as they approached the doors to their rooms, which were on opposite sides of the corridor from each other.

"Yeah, and I think that, despite the noise that'll be outside for the next few hours, I'll sleep very well tonight." Carrie said, thinking of the soft bed that awaited her.

"Yes, but be sure to set your alarm to go off early. After all, we're due to be up at about 6:00am in the morning." Simon said, as he unlocked the door to the room that he would be sleeping in.

"Okay, sounds good to me." Carrie said, as she also unlocked the door to her room.

"Anyway, goodnight then, Carrie." Simon said, just as he stepped over to Carrie and gave her a warm hug, which Carrie gratefully returned. The hug felt really nice to her, and helped her to relax a little bit further.

"Goodnight, Simon." Carrie said, with a smile as she released herself from the hug, and then turned and went into her room, and then closed the door behind her. Feeling himself smile a little, Simon then turned and went into his own room.

(In Carrie's room)

Carrie soon changed into her pyjamas and went over to the window, and took a look outside; there was less activity taking place in the depot outside now, but there was still some taking place, as one of the tank engines went by in the distance, pushing a ling of empty coaches towards Vicarstown Station. Feeling herself smile a little, Carrie closed the window and went over to the bed.

Picking up her mobile phone, Carrie went in and checked the alarm app; the alarm had been set to 06:00am the following morning. Satisfied that the time had been set, Carrie put her phone down on the bedside table, and climbed into the bed, pulled the duvet over herself, and then she switched off the bedside lamp and went to sleep. Exhausted from a long day of work, she fell into a deep sleep at once.

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(Next morning)

Carrie slept quietly in her warm and comfortable bed, without a care or a worry at all to disturb her sleep. Suddenly, that sound and peaceful sleep was rudely disturbed by a loud buzzing noise and then the sound of bells chiming very close to her. She opened her eyes quickly, and they fell upon the sight of her phone sitting on the bedside table about a foot away from her sleeping face.

Sitting up in the bed and reaching over, she turned picked up her phone and switched the alarm off, while at the same time checking the time; it was 06:00am on the dot, and time for her to get up. Pulling the duvet aside and swinging her feet out onto the floor, she turned on the bedside light and then stretched her arms out and yawned for a long moment before she stood up. It was only then that she noticed the sounds of the railway from outside the window.

Going over to the window and pulling the curtains aside, she looked out and saw that the sun was already rising slowly into the early morning sky. Looking below into the main motive power depot near Vicarstown, she saw that there were already locomotives being readied in their sidings for a long day of hard work ahead, while a few others looked as though they were being disposed of after having been working hard during the night. From the various chimneys, smoke was rising slowly into the air. As there was no wind this morning, the smoke was slowly rising vertically into the air without being blown away.

After a moment of watching what was going on outside, Carrie turned away from the window and set about getting herself ready for another day of hard work ahead.

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(A short while later)

After using the bathroom, including brushing her teeth, and then getting herself dressed, Carrie was just about ready to leave the room and head below for breakfast, when there was a quiet knock on the door.

"Carrie…are you up yet?" came a familiar male voice.

"Sure, Simon. I'm actually almost finished getting dressed." Carrie said, as she put on the clothes that she'd worn for work the day before.

"All right, I'll wait for a few moments." Simon replied back from the other side of the door.

Carrie soon finished and, before she went outside the door, she checked to see if her phone was on charge – which it was. She reached for her room key, and then opened the door, to see Simon standing a few feet away from where she was.

"Good morning, Simon." Carrie said, as she turned and locked her door.

"And good morning back, Carrie. Did you sleep well?" Simon asked.

"I did indeed. And whatever sounds there were outside during the night…they didn't disturb me at all, as I must have been that tired." Carrie said, with a smile.

"Yeah…anyway, come on. Let's go and get some breakfast. After all, we've got a long day of hard work ahead." Simon said, as they went down the corridor and then downstairs to the crew dining area to get some breakfast.

A few minutes later, both Carrie and Simon were sitting at one of the vacant tables and tucking into their breakfast; Carrie was having a bowl of corn flakes in milk, a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice, a batter waffle with chocolate chips and maples syrup, as well as a plate with fried bacon and scrambled eggs, and Simon was having a bowl of hot porridge with milk and a little sugar, a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice, a plate of sausages, bacon, hash browns and a fried egg, as well as some toast.

At the buffet line close by to them, other engine crews were lining up for breakfast; either they were crews who had slept in the crew building for the night ready to start work in the morning, or else they were crews who'd been out working for much of the night out on the main line, and who had just returned after a long night of hard work before they went to sleep for a few hours. As Carrie ate, she carefully listened to what the other crewmen were saying to each other, with some of them wondering what locomotives they'd be working on today, and the crews who'd been out for much of the night exchanging stories about what they'd done and where they'd gone while on their shifts.

"It's a little bit strange to be getting up at this time. I would usually get up a little later on in the morning." Carrie said, just after she swallowed the last of her corn flakes, before she then went and started on her battle waffle.

"I do agree, it is at first…but if you keep getting up for work at that time, day after day after day…you do get used to it. And it'll become second nature to you…just as it was for your father when he first started, and of course for my own father, as well as my grandfather and his father before him." Simon said.

"Thanks, Simon." Carrie said with a smile, and they continued on with enjoying their breakfasts.

Once they finished a few minutes later, they placed their trays with the used dishes over to one of the metal trolleys for holding trays on one side of the cafeteria, and then went upstairs to their rooms to collect their things, as they were due to leave very shortly for work. Both of them were wondering what engine they'd be assigned to today, and which route they'd be going onto this morning.

After collecting all their things from their rooms and putting on a fresh set of overalls, as well as their bright orange Hi-Vis vests, and their railway caps, they went back downstairs, handed in the keys to the front office, and then went off to meet up with the inspector, who was due to assign them to the engine and crew they would be working with today.

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(Out in the yard)

They found the inspector standing by the building with a clipboard in his hands a few moments after they stepped outside. He looked up when she noticed them approach.

"Ah, good morning there, you two." he said.

"Morning, sir." Carrie and Simon said, as they approached him and stopped.

"Did you both sleep well?" the inspector asked.

"Yes, sir. I'd a good sleep." Carrie said.

"And I did as well." Simon added.

"And it's a goo thing you both did, as you're both assigned to working the 07:30am express from Vicarstown over to Knapford, and along the high-speed line that skirts much of the southern part of the island." the inspector said.

"Good, and which engine are we going to be on?" asked Simon.

"Just follow me this way you two, and I'll show you." the inspector said, as they set off towards the main part of the yards.

As they walked along, Carrie took a few moments to see what it was like at this time of the morning; the air was still fairly cool, and the sky was clear, with only the odd small patch of cloud to be seen. The sun was shining brightly to the east, as it slowly rose into the sky, promising another fine spring day for Sodor.

A few moments later, just after they crossed over the tracks to another part of the depot, the inspector stopped walking and turned to the two teens behind him.

"And here we are, you two. This is the engine that you'll be working on for the first part of the day…Great Western "King" Class 4-6-0 No.6002 King William IV." said the inspector, as he proudly showed them to the large locomotive standing on the siding before them. Looking up at the large engine, which was painted in traditional Great Western Railway passenger green livery. She could see that the paintwork and all the brass fittings on the outside, including the brass safety-valve cover and top-feed on top of the boiler, as well as the copper band around the top of the chimney, and the curved Swindon-style nameplates over the centre splashers, had already been cleaned to a very high shine some time before. (32)

"Wow, a G.W.R King…I've always wanted to travel on the footplate of one of those!" Simon said, in a calm but undeniable excitement, as a smile crossed his face.

"Well, it looks like it's your lucky morning then, Simon." the inspector said, as a smile crossed his face.

"Shall we get started then?" Carrie asked, as she turned to the inspector.

"Absolutely, this way please. Let me introduce you to the crew." said the inspector, and they stepped over to meet the driver and fireman.

(32): The G.W.R. 6000 Class, also widely known as the "King" Class – as they were named after the kings of England and the United Kingdom – named in descending order, starting with the then monarch King George V – was the ultimate development of the G.W.R. 4-6-0 concept, and also became the most powerful 4-6-0 of any railway company to work on the British Railway system, taking the wheel arrangement right up to its design limits.

They were also the largest and most powerful passenger engines ever to work on the Great Western Railway system, and worked the heaviest passenger trains on the Great Western system and later the Western Region of British Railways. However, the class had to use many non-standard parts, as well as a very large boiler to achieve the high tractive effort.

Designed by Charles Collett and built at Swindon Works between June 1927 and August 1930, thirty examples were completed and numbered from No.6000 to No.6029. They were built as a way for the G.W.R. to reclaim the title of having the most powerful locomotives in Britain, with the title having been taken from the G.W.R. by the Southern Railway's Lord Nelson Class in 1926.

In addition, many key bridges on the Great Western system had been heavily strengthened or rebuilt in advance, which allowed Collett to design the King Class to have a maximum axle-loading of 22.5 tons while still being able to deliver a tractive effort of around 40,000 Ibf.

The class were somewhat different than the preceding Castle Class; they had much larger and wider boilers fitted with superheating elements and with a higher boiler pressure of 250psi, slightly smaller driving wheels – 6ft 6in in diameter as opposed to the Castle's 6ft 8.5in – to allow for a much higher tractive effort, and the cylinders were also bored out slightly, all of which combined to allow the King Class to have a maximum tractive effort of 40,300 Ibf. That higher tractive effort easily allowed the King Class to snatch the coveted title of Britain's most powerful express locomotive back from the Southern Railway's Lord Nelson Class, which was a major achievement for the G.W.R.

The numbers and names of the King Class were:

No.6000 King George V, No.6001 King Edward VII, No.6002 King William IV, No.6003 King George IV, No.6004 King George III, No.6005 King George II,

No.6006 King George I, No.6007 King William III, No.6008 King James II, No.6009 King Charles II, No.6010 King Charles I, No.6011 King James I,

No.6012 King Edward VI, No.6013 King Henry VIII, No.6014 King Henry VII, No.6015 King Richard III, No.6016 King Edward V, No.6017 King Edward IV,

No.6018 King Henry VI, No.6019 King Henry V, No.6020 King Henry IV, No.6021 King Richard II, No.6022 King Edward III, No.6023 King Edward II,

No.6024 King Edward I, No.6025 King Henry III, No.6026 King John, No.6027 King Richard I,

No.6028 King Henry II (later King George IV), and No.6029 King Stephen (originally King Edward VIII).

In order to accommodate the pair of inside cylinders, a rather unique and distinctive design of leading bogie truck was used on the King Class, with outside bearings on the forward wheelset and inside bearings on the rear wheelset.

However, due to their weight and high axle-load, the King Class was restricted to working on the main line routes from London Paddington to Taunton and Plymouth, via Bristol and Westbury, as well as on the routes from London to Birmingham and Wolverhampton via Bicester, with access to Cardiff only being granted in the post-war years.

They were used on many of the top expresses that ran on the G.W.R. network, including on the Cornish Riviera Limited, though they did need assistance on the heaviest of services when going up the South Devon Banks between Newton Abbot and Plymouth.

However, due to weight restrictions on the line going over the Royal Albert Bridge, the King Class locomotives were unable to work on the main lines in Cornwall, and so when hauling the Cornish Riviera, they often had to detach from the train at Devonport and allow the train to be taken into Cornwall over the bridge either behind a Great Western Castle 4073 Class 4-6-0 or Hall 4900 Class 4-6-0.

It had originally been intended to name the class after British cathedrals, but after an invitation to feature a G.W.R. locomotive at the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad centenary celebrations, the G.W.R. decided to name the new class after British Kings instead.

In August 1927, the doyen of the King Class, No.6000 King George V, was shipped over to the United States on the ship SS Chicago City to join the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Centenary celebrations. While she was over there, No.6000 really impressed all who witnessed her, particularly with her sleek appearance and smooth performances. As a result, she was presented with a brass bell – which was fitted over the front buffer-beam, and two cab-side medallions to mark the occasion. Among the visitors who travelled on the footplate of No.6000 during its American trip was none other than Henry Ford.

In March 1935, No.6014 King Henry VII was partially streamlined with a hemispherical smokebox door, continuous splashers, a straight nameplate, and a swept-back cab front. But the streamlining didn't prove effective, and it was eventually removed, with the exception of the swept-back cab front, which remained in place until the early 50's.

In the years after World War II, due to the declining quality of the high-calorific South Wales steam coal that was being experienced in the time after the war, No.6022 King Edward III was fitted with a four-row high degree superheater to try and improve the engine's performance. Although the improvement turned out to be fairly small, the experiment proved a success, and all the other members of the class were similarly fitted with the new superheater arrangement when they had to be reboilered.

Modifications were also made to the draughting arrangements, using No.6001 King Edward VII as a test bed. During a test in July 1953, No.6001 hauled a 25-coach test train, weighing around 800 tons between Stoke Gifford, Bristol, and Reading at an average speed of 60mph. As a result, from September 1955 all the members of the King Class, starting with No.6015 King Richard III, were fitted with double chimneys and blast-pipes, and their performances improved massively, particularly when going along with heavy trains along the South Devon Banks.

The class were also known for reaching high speeds at times during their careers on the main line, with No.6018 King Henry VI being the first example of the class to reach a speed of 100mph. One example of the class managed to reach a high speed of 108.5mph – the fastest authenticated speed ever achieved by any locomotive on the G.W.R., though No.6001 King Edward VII is thought to have reached a speed of about 109mph sometime during 1951. In 1956, No.6015 King Richard III is also though to have attained a speed of about 109mph while at the head of the Cornish Riviera Express.

In January 1936, No.6007 King William III suffered serious damage in an accident when, while hauling an express train from Penzance to Paddington, it collided with a portion of a freight train that derailed after it came loose from another train. One passenger and the driver were killed in the accident. No.6007 ended up sprawled on her right side afterwards, and was so seriously damaged in the accident that it was written off, but a replacement No.6007 was built using the frames, boiler and tender of the original locomotive.

The 30 class members were assigned to five motive power depots for working their heavy main line trains, including Old Oak Common in London, Laira in Plymouth, Cardiff Canton, Bristol Bath Road, and Stafford Road in Wolverhampton. Some brief visits were made by two class members to Newton Abbot in 1948 and 1949. They could haul 550-ton trains from London to Westbury on mile-a-minute schedules, and could take 375 tons on the South Devon Banks unassisted. At one point during a test run in the 1950's, one member of the class hauled an 800-ton train at over 70mph, showing just how powerful the G.W.R. Kings were. In fact the very first generation new diesel locomotives that came onto Western Region of B.R. weren't as powerful or up to the job, and couldn't generate the kind of power that a King, or even a hard-driven Castle, could produce.

The entire class was withdrawn from service on the B.R. Western Region during 1962,starting with No.6006 King George I in February of that year, and the last four to be withdrawn being No.6000 King George V, No.6011 King James I, No.6018 King Henry VI, and No.6025 King Henry III, which took place in December 1962. However, one example of the class, No.6018 King Henry VI, was reinstated in April 1963 to work a Stephenson Locomotive Society special train from Birmingham Snowhill to Swindon Southall via Oxford. During the trip, No.6018 showed just what a King could do, often reaching speeds well over 90mph. Sadly, not long after the end of the run, and despite an attempt at preservation, No.6018 was cut up for scrap at Swindon Works.

By the end of their working lives, all the class had covered well over 1,000,000 miles during their time in service, with 10 examples of the class having come within 100,000 miles of reaching 2,000,000 miles. No.6013 King Henry VIII came the closest to that mark, having covered 1,950,462 miles by the time she was withdrawn from service.

Thankfully, three examples of the G.W.R.'s King Class have survived into preservation, including the doyen of the class No.6000 King George V, as well as No.6023 King Edward II, and No.6024 King Edward I.

No.6000 King George V is part of the National Collection, and is currently on display within STEAM, the museum of the Great Western Railway at Swindon, having already been on static display in York's National Railway Museum for some years. Originally preserved by Bulmer's Railway Centre in Hereford – where it ran on the centre's half mile of track, No.6000 became the very first steam locomotive to break the British Railways main line 1968 steam ban when it returned to the main line in October 1971 for a special rail tour, consisting of coaches owned by Bulmer's Cider, where it ran from Hereford to Tyseley via the Severn Tunnel and Swindon. She also ran a special train with L.N.E.R. A3 Class No.4472 Flying Scotsman.

The engine ran for many years during the 1970's and 1980's on the main line with various rail tours being hauled behind it until 1987, when Bulmer's lease and the engine's boiler certificate expired. Ever since then, No.6000 has been a static exhibit, with no plans for it to return to steam again for the foreseeable future. The main reason for that is that modifications would need to be made to reduce the engine's height, as it's just a little too tall for the British steam locomotive loading gauge.

No.6024 King Edward I was the second member of the King Class to go back on the main line since it was restored to working order in 1989. After spending a number of years sitting in Woodham's Yard at Barry, No.6024 became the 36th engine to leave the yard when it was bought in March 1973. She was in a sorry state, not only due to spending a few years exposed to the salty sea air at Barry, but also due to the fact that many components she was originally fitted with had "gone missing" in the yard.

But the group who bought her persevered, and No.6024 King Edward I rolled under its own power for the first time in early February 1989. Ever since then, No.6024 has run extensively on the main line – including into Cornwall over the Royal Albert Bridge – and on heritage railways as well, though for main line running the height of the engine's safety valve, cab roof and chimney needed to be reduced in height a little to avoid it coming into contact with overhead bridges.

No.6023 King Edward II was rescued from Woodham's Yard in Barry in 1985, however her restoration took much longer to complete than that for No.6024. It was initially deemed by many to be a "no hoper" as the engine's rear driving wheels were cut through after a derailment accident at Barry. For a long time, this resulted in the engine being deemed beyond repair by many railway enthusiasts. However, during the restoration process – much of which was carried out at the Didcot Railway Center, a brand-new set of 6ft 6in driving wheels were cast for No.6023 before being fitted in July 1995. It was a preservation first, as it was the first time a wheelset like that had been made for such a large engine.

Many new parts had to be made for No.6023, including new motion for the wheels, new cab-sides, new running plate, and even a new tender tank as well, as the tender had been badly dismantled during the initial restoration and the original tank had gone missing in the process. But the restoration work proceeded, and in the spring of 2011 No.6023 rolled under her own power for the first time in preservation, where she was painted in B.R. blue livery. As of early 2023, having seen extensive service on many heritage railways around the U.K., No.6023 is currently out of use and awaiting a major overhaul at Didcot.

In this fanfic, four members of the class will be appearing, No.6002 King William IV, No.6009 King Charles II, No.6015 King Richard III, and No.6026 King John.

In moments, Carrie and Simon were introduced to the driver and fireman of No.6002 King William IV, who were standing on the ground below the cab on the left side of the engine, by the inspector.

"Well then, welcome and good morning, you two. Are you both ready to start work?" the fireman asked.

"Yes, sir. And I can't wait to get out on the high-speed line with the train behind us." Simon said, as he rubbed his hands, which already had his gloves on over them, in anticipation.

"I understand, Simon. But there's a little bit of work we have to do before then." said the driver.

"The fire was lit some time ago and it's already built up very nicely. And the steam pressure had built up quite nicely too, but there's a few things we need to do here first." said the fireman.

"And what do we need to do?" Carrie asked.

"We need to oil up all the moving parts, and fill up the mechanical lubricators before we go. And we also need to top up the tender with coal and water, and we need to place the headlamps on the lamp-irons on the front buffer-beam too." the driver said.

"Okay, and you'd best get yourselves sorted out as soon as you can. Your train is scheduled to depart from Vicarstown at 07:30am exactly, and you've only got a limited time to get ready for it. Anyway, I'd best be off…I've got other things to do around here this morning. I'll see you later." said the inspector, as he turned and went off to another part of the depot.

"Okay, sir." Simon said, as the inspector went on his way.

"Is there somewhere that we can put our bags before we can start work?" Carrie asked.

"Sure…we're actually coupled to a coach that we'll be taking along with the train, and there's a compartment in the front of it that's usually used for the storage of crew items, like the bags you have. Come along, and I'll show it to you." the fireman said, and they headed to the coach, which was painted in a chocolate and cream livery, typical of the Great Western Railway.

Inside the coach at the front end, the fireman showed Simon and Carrie a compartment where they could place their bags, out of sight and out of mind. After placing their bags in the compartment, and closing the door behind them, they left the coach and set to work on helping to get No.6002 King William IV ready for the morning train.

As Carrie and Simon set about starting the oiling up process, with Carrie on the left-hand side of the locomotive and Simon on the right-hand side, a man driving a JCB digger, with its outside heavily weathered from hard work, was busy filling up the coal space in the tender with fresh supplies of coal. This was necessary, as there were already other engines lining up under the two tall coaling towers in the depot, and it looked unlikely that King William IV would get the chance to top up with coal the usual way. And so, topping up the coal space with the help of a driver with a JCB was the way to get this important task done before they could leave the depot.

With help from the driver and fireman, who pointed out where certain oiling points were, both Carrie and Simon were able to get the motion, the mechanical lubricators, and any other oiling points topped up with oil before they stepped up onto the footplate to place their oil-cans out of the way before they went to do any other tasks. Going over to the main boiler pressure gauge on the fireman's side, Simon could see the pressure was at 200psi, and slowly rising as the fire burned hot in the firebox.

Carrie meanwhile opened the firehole doors and looked into the firebox to check on the state of the fire; it was burning very hot inside, and the coals already inside were glowing white hot. Feeling the fire should be topped up with some fresh fuel, Carrie turned and reached for the shovel in the coal space. She placed a few lumps under the firehole door, and then turned, put some more lumps on the shovel, before she then turned back and, thrusting as hard as she could, managed to get the coal very close to the front of the firebox.

With that done, Carrie placed the shovel back where it had been, and then went with Simon to help round with the last tasks.

After getting the two headlamps, they made their way to the front of King William IV and, after clambering up some steps, they placed the lamps where they were to be placed, on the right and left lamp-irons, where they would form the head-code for an express passenger train.

"And there we are." Simon said, as he placed his lamp onto the right-hand lamp iron.

"Thanks, you two. Now I think we're nearly ready to head off." King William IV said, as he smiled at Carrie and Simon.

"Don't you think we should fill up with water first?" Carrie asked.

"Of course, and we need to get ourselves to the water tower before we can leave the depot." King William IV.

"Okay, and would it be all right if we just called you William? After all King William IV is a bit of a handful to say." Simon asked.

"That's perfectly all right. After all, most of the other engines call me William." William said, with a smile.

"Okay, we're about ready to get going! Come on, you two, get aboard! We need to get to the water tower to fill up the tank before we can go." the driver called from the footplate.

"Coming!" Simon and Carrie called, and they quickly headed over to the footplate and climbed aboard. Once aboard, the driver blew the whistle and opened the regulator a little; slowly, with a loud sound of whooshing steam, William rolled forwards, heading towards the water tower about a hundred or so yards away from them.

As they rolled along slowly, Carrie took the chance to look over the controls, and see where everything was. All the controls were quite standard for Great Western steam locomotives, with the regulator, brake controls, injectors, water gauge glass, speedometer, and other controls being exactly where they were expected to be. It meant that the crews of the former Great Western Railway would be easily able to work on all the different classes of steam locomotives, as all the controls were exactly the same.

The only difference with some locomotives was with the reversing gear, as some classes on the G.W.R. – mainly tank engine classes – had lever reverse, while other larger engines had a mechanical screw for operating the reversing gear, and Carrie had seen that difference on different G.W.R. classes ever since she had started working on Sodor.

Closing the regulator and putting the brakes on gently, the driver brought them to a stop right beside the water tower, and in the right place where they could top up the water tank. Getting off the footplate, Carrie and Simon went back to the tender and, as Simon climbed the ladder to the back of the tender – not that easy when there was a coach coupled behind it – as Carrie stood by the water tower, ready to swing the arm over to Simon once he'd opened the lid at the back.

After Simon gave the word, Carrie pulled on the chain and swung the arm over the back of the tender, and Simon placed the length of hose into the tender tank. After he called out "Water on!", Carrie turned on the valve and water began flowing into the tender. The tenders of the G.W.R. King Class could hold about 4,000 gallons of water, so it would take a few minutes to completely fill up the water space in the tank, so Simon kept a close eye on the water level inside as it slowly rose higher and higher. On the ground, Carrie kept alert and waited for Simon to give her the word to shut the water off when he shouted.

Soon enough, Simon looked towards Carrie and called out "Okay, water off!" and, turning the water valve, Carrie shut the water off and then, taking the chain, pulled the arm back to it's position beside the track. Then, after Simon took a few moments to the trim the coal level in the tender with a shovel, he got off the tender, and he and Carrie clambered back into the footplate. Not long after, they were on their way out of the depot and on towards Vicarstown Station to pick up the train.

(At Vicarstown Station)

After leaving the depot, King William IV slowly reversed with his coach over the long bridge and into the station, where they were sent onto the line going to Platform 8, where they slowly back onto a train of 14 more coaches painted in a very smart chocolate and cream livery. This express passenger train, known on Sodor as the "Dawn Western", always left Vicarstown at 07:30am and would arrive in Knapford at 08:25am. It was well known for its smooth riding, and on-time service.

As the shunter coupled the first coach to the coach behind William, Carrie looked out from the footplate along the fireman's side of the cab (the left-hand side), and saw the large number of passengers getting aboard this train. There were businessmen and women in their smart suits and wearing overcoats and carrying briefcases, other people dressed more casually and who looked more like people out for a trip, groups of people going out for the day, families with children, and many others too.

"Looks like we're gonna have a full train this morning." Carrie said, as she turned to Simon and the crew.

"Yeah, I know. But that's what we want to see at this time of day…a full train." said the driver, as he came over and looked behind too.

"Hey Carrie…do you want to have any tea before we go?" Simon asked, as he went over to where the tea-cans were being kept warm on the flat plate over the firehole doors.

"Sure, I could use some right now." Carrie said, as she took an empty mug and then Simon poured some tea, which was still hot due to the heat on the flat plate, into her mug, and then into his own. After adding some milk, Carrie sipped her tea, while keeping her eye on the clock over the platform; it was 07:24, and they were due to leave the station in six minutes. She hoped that all the passengers could get aboard in the remaining time they had.

Time ticked by, and slowly the train filled up with the passengers, as William sat at the platform, and anticipating the long trip to Knapford that awaited them. But soon, as the clock struck 07:30am, the last of the doors on the coaches were closed, and the guard stood by the door to his compartment on the front coach, and blew his whistle and waved his green flag. Then he stepped into the coach, and closed the door behind him.

"Okay, right away, driver!" Simon called. Acknowledging the call, and with the points set and the signal light showing green, the driver blew the whistle and opened the regulator a little.

Slowly, William took up the strain of the long and heavy train as he rolled forward out of the station, and onto the open main line. From the footplate, as Simon took a go with the shovel, Carrie leaned out from the fireman's side of the cab and looked forwards. They were slowly moving forwards along the long bridge that went through Vicarstown, and towards the junction that would allow them to go onto the high-speed that went along much of the southern coast of the Island of Sodor. It was the highly engineered line where they would they would be able to go at good speeds on their journey to Knapford Station.

Looking below from the cab, Carrie saw plenty of activity on the streets of Vicarstown, with people out and about on their way to work, or opening their businesses along the streets. There were buses and other vehicles moving about on the roads, with people on their way to where they needed to be this morning.

The driver blew the whistle in greeting to those on the roads below, and then he opened the regulator a little more as they approached the junction to the high-speed line and went over the points and to the left onto the line. Looking ahead, Carrie could see they were now on a modern set of lines, with three lines alongside each other, and each line was sitting on sleepers that were made of steel-reinforced concrete. Not only that, the rails on each side of the sleepers were welded together to form one very long rail with no joints in it, which promised a very smooth ride all the way to the junction just to the east of Maron where the high-speed line reconnected itself to the southern main line.

"Now from here on, we'll be able to go at good speeds on our way west!" the driver called, over the different noises.

"Okay!" Carrie called. She felt herself smile a little; now they were gonna be able to go at a speed where she could see what a G.W.R. King could do.

"Now, we're ready for a long and fast sprint!" William called from the front, as he was really eager to dig in and go faster with his train.

"We're all ready to pick up more speed when you are, William!" Simon called, as he leaned out from the fireman's side of the cab a little. A big smile was on his face, as he was about to experience for himself just what a King could do.

"What's the maximum speed of a Great Western King?" Carrie asked, as loudly as she could over the noises of the locomotive and train.

"Well Carrie, we could go well over 100mph, just like the Kings used to do every now and then between Paddington and Plymouth back in the old days, but on this line we're on, the maximum we're allowed to go is 95mph." the fireman replied back.

"That's still pretty fast though." Carrie said.

"Indeed, it is…and hopefully, we're touch that speed today." the driver said, as he opened the regulator further, and then wound the reversing wheel back towards mid-gear. And after several seconds, Carrie felt the familiar surge of the locomotive moving ahead faster, and the familiar sounds of the exhaust speeding up at the chimney as the four cylinders pumped at a faster rate reached her ears, showing that they were now really going at a pace that was suitable for an express passenger train. Looking out from the driver's side of the cab, Carrie, while holding firmly onto her hat with one hand and keeping her other hand on the tender side, looked on ahead along the line as they powered on ahead.

The fireman opened the firehole doors, and Simon swung the shovel round and placed some fresh fuel through into the firebox. Then as Simon swung round to refill the shovel, the fireman closed the firehole doors, so as to restrict the admission of cooler air to the fire in between shovelfuls. Carrie watched as this procedure was repeated, until Simon had placed six shovelfuls of fresh coal into the fire.

"Okay, Simon. I think that'll be enough for the moment." said the fireman, as he went and checked the boiler pressure gauge; the needle on the gauge showed a pressure just a little below the maximum working pressure of 250psi.

"Perfect, Simon. That should keep us going for another few miles." the fireman said, as he patted Simon on the back.

"Thank you, sir." Simon said, as he smiled. He then leaned forward and checked the single water-gauge glass; the water level was a little over three quarters of the way up the glass, which meant there was no need to top up the water level in the boiler just yet.

Carrie went over to the fireman's side of the cab and leaned out; they were rolling along at a very good speed, at least somewhere over 60mph, and the feeling of the cool morning air blowing into her face felt quite good, though she quickly pulled herself back in after a few seconds. Looking off to the east, she could clearly see the narrow strait of water separating England from the Island of Sodor in the distance, which was getting a little wider the further they went along the line. She could also see too bridges that crossed over the strait going to the mainland, and they were each carrying two railway lines on them; those lines were spurs of the high-speed line they were on right now, with one going over the nearer bridge to Barrow on the other side of the strait, while the bridge furthest away carried the spur that went over to the main land and on towards the Lake District.

It wasn't too long before they reached the junction where they joined up with the other lines, and once they were on the long stretch of three high-speed railway lines, they were able to pick up more speed and charge down the line, with the coaches of the express rolling along smoothly behind them. They were getting closer to the coast, as the edge of the coastline was getting closer and closer towards them as they rolled along at speed. The driver reached up and pulled on the whistle chain above him, sounding the whistle long and very shrilly as they approached the beaches that would be to their left as they approached Norramby.

"Green light ahead!" William called, as they closed in on Norramby.

"Okay, old boy!" the driver called, as he looked out the forward window on his side of the cab.

Carrie in the meantime was having a go at stoking the boiler; by now, whenever Simon pulled open the firehole doors to allow Carrie to place fresh coal into the firebox, the draught going through into the firebox was now so fierce that every time Carrie brought a shovelful of coal up to the firehole opening to place the coal inside, the strong draught would literally suck the lumps of coal off the shovel.

"I guess that makes the stoking a little easier, with the wind sucking the coal into the firebox like that." Carrie said, as she looked up at Simon.

"Yeah, I guess it is." Simon said, with a chuckle.

"Hold on, you two. We're about to go by Norramby station now." said the fireman. Looking out from the driver's side of the cab, Carrie saw the station appear in the distance; it consisted on two platforms with three tracks going between them, and a covered footbridge connecting the two platforms. There was a tall signal box with green steps going up to it on the northern side of the station along the up-line, and close by was a shack made of corrugated metal a little way by the up-line.

As they got closer and closer to the station, the driver pulled on the whistle chain and blew the whistle loudly to let people know they were coming through the station. Standing on the platform were a number of passengers waiting for the next train, as well as some members of the station staff undertaking the usual morning routines. From where she was standing on the footplate, Carrie watched as they ran through the station at over 60mph, with many of the passengers on the platforms waving to them as they went on by.

A few moments later, they went onto a raised embankment and from there, Carrie could oversee much of the town of Norramby. She could see many different buildings, and people and vehicles moving about down on the streets below. Then, she saw another two railway lines going along one side of a wide estuary that ran past the town along its south-western side. Quickly going over to the fireman's side of the cab, Carrie saw that the two lines went under the embankment and onto a long and wide quayside at a dock facility that had cranes lined up close to the edge, as well as having some fishing boats moored alongside. On the other side of the dock were a number of buildings, including a number of storage sheds, an ice making plant, and what appeared to be a number of different pubs.

As they went by, they went over a long steel girder bridge that crossed over the estuary. Looking below them, Carrie could see that the tide was all the way in, and a boat was passing by on the water under the bridge.

"That's the Norramby fishing port, Carrie." Simon said, as they went by and on down the line. "It's connected with the Norramby Branch line, and allows fish caught to be transported from Norramby to Vicarstown. The town is also very popular with tourists in the summer season, as it's very much like a typical seaside village."

"It sounds like quite a nice place. I'd sure like to go and visit it at some point." Carrie said.

"Well, Carrie…you never know, it may happen sometime soon, either for a job that needs to be done or whenever you get the chance to take some time off." Simon said, and Carrie smiled at Simon.

They continued on down the high-speed line at quite a good pace, with No.6002 King William IV going along nicely and without any problems to show themselves. Back in the train, the passengers were really enjoying the morning run, and some of them were enjoying the hot English-style breakfast being served in the dining car in the middle of the train, or else the variety of different refreshments, hot drinks, and pastries that were being served out from the attendants with their service trolleys in the other coaches. Other passengers were just sitting back, and watching the world pass by outside as other passengers talked with each other, read books, or worked on their laptops.

As they carried on down the line, they turned away from the coast somewhat and went further inland, where they were surrounded by gentle rolling terrain and hills that very much reminded William of the south of England, especially Devon, back in G.W.R. and B.R. days, when he and his brothers went through identical country with the Cornish Riviera Express behind them. At one point, as they reached a point about halfway between Norramby and the southern-most part of the high-speed spur, they came upon the first train to go past them in the opposite direction along the up-line heading towards Norramby; it was G.W.R. County Class No.1013 County of Dorset, who was heading in the opposite direction with a train of eight coaches in red and cream livery. Each coach had been polished to a very smart finish, and each was filled with passengers on their way to Vicarstown with a stop at Norramby.

Greeting each other with a short and sharp whistle as they went on by, the two trains continued on their routes to their respective destinations.

Eventually, they soon reached the southern point of the high-speed line, and from here the line curved to the north west to a junction that connected it with the Southern Main Line at a point just to the east of Maron Station, and once on the Southern Main Line, it wouldn't be too long before they arrived at Knapford.

At this point, the countryside still consisted of gently rolling countryside with low rolling hills and wide open farmland, though the sea could still be seen between the hills at certain times off to the south. Leaning out from the driver's side of the cab, Carrie could see that a little to the north of the line was a canal, with steep banks in places, that ran parallel to the railway lines. As they went by at close to 90mph, Carrie could see a typical looking British style old-fashioned canal boat – a narrow boat – going along the canal. The boat's hull was painted in a dark green, while the long cabin was painted in bright red with white lining around the windows. At the stern, the owner stood and steered the boat with one hand while waving to them with the other as they went by. From the footplate, both Carrie and Simon waved to the narrowboat driver until the boat was out of sight.

They soon came upon another steel girder bridge; another two railway lines passed beneath it, heading south-west towards another town, the skyline of which could just be seen a few miles away. That was the spur leading towards Kirk Ronan, one of the coastal towns of the southern part of Sodor, and which had a ferry service going to Liverpool, over to Dublin, and to Belfast, as well as a more local ferry service going across Brendam Bay to Brendam Docks. Carrie just had the briefest glance of the two lines leading to Kirk Ronan before they vanished from view, as William powered ahead at 90mph.

A little while later, and further up the line, after Carrie soon had another go at stoking the boiler, helped by the draught sucking the coal off the shovel into the firebox, they soon came upon Sodor Airport, which was off to the right of them and some distance away. It was at this point that the driver closed the regulator somewhat, thus shutting off the steam, and gently put on the brakes to slow the train down, as they were now getting closer to the junction that would take them onto the Southern Main Line.

Looking over the airport as they went on by as they slowed down, Carrie could see plenty of activity taking place before her; it was reasonably easy as the three high-speed lines were sitting on top of an embankment that was a little higher than the surrounding land, and so she was able to see over much of the land the airport was on. She could see some large airliners that were lined up at the terminal building with the jet-bridges going to their forward doors; there were also various aircraft support vehicles moving about, including fuel tankers, catering trucks, mobile airstairs, and other such vehicles. At one end of the runway, an airliner had turned off the taxiway onto the northern end of the runway, and looked like it was about to take-off. But Carrie didn't get to see it leave the airport, as they soon left the airport far behind them, and soon the only things she could see were the top of the control tower, as well as the air-traffic control radar system far behind them.

They soon came upon the junction that connected the high-speed lines to the Southern Main Line, at which point the high-speed lines reduced from three to two. By now they had slowed down quite a bit, to about 25mph, and went over the junction and onto the line. The signal arm was down and the light was bright green, showing the way was clear for them, and the points had been set for them to proceed smoothly. Carefully, they went over the points onto the down line, and Carrie and the fireman looked out from the left-hand side of the cab, and watched as the coaches followed along with them.

Once the last coach was seen to be safely on the line, the fireman signalled the driver, and the driver opened the regulator again and brought the reverser back to mid-gear, allowing William to pick up more speed again. After giving a sharp blast on the whistle, the driver opened the regulator a little more and they headed on down the line towards Maron.

At Maron Station, Henry was standing at the platform on the up-line with half a dozen express coaches, painted in white on top with dark green beneath. He was on a stopping service from Knapford to Vicarstown this morning, and would stop at every station along the Southern Main Line between the two towns. His passengers were just boarding the train when he heard the sound of a whistle in the distance, and the sounds of chuffing getting closer and closer to him. Then he saw No.6002 King William IV coming along the down line towards him, with his train following along behind him.

"Morning William!" Henry called, as the G.W.R. King approached him.

"Morning Henry! Can't stop to chat I'm afraid!" William called, as he whistled in greeting before he went on through the station, with the 15 coaches following along behind him in a cloud of smoke and steam. After a few moments, with the train ready, the guard for Henry's train blew his whistle and waved his green flag, and a few moments later, after a short blast on his whistle, Henry set off on his way with his own train.

After going over and down Gordon's Hill, William approached Wellsworth Station and went over the points and onto the middle line, meaning there was another train sitting at the platform on the down-line.

After going by the junction to Brendam Docks and approaching Wellsworth Station, Carrie looked out from the fireman's side of the cab and saw there was another train sitting at the platform on the down-line. It turned out it was Edward, who was sitting and taking on passengers to his train, which was bound to Knapford from Brendam Docks. As William passed by on the middle line, he whistled in greeting, and Edward whistled back in greeting. As Edward watched the train disappear into the distance, he was surrounded by a dense cloud of smoke and steam swirl around him that faded as the last coach of the train went by him.

It wasn't too long before they were on their final destination of Knapford Station, after passing through Henry's Tunnel without a problem and going on the final stretch of line leading to the station. Leaning out from the driver's side of the cab, Carrie felt herself smile somewhat when she saw the stone road bridge over the double track in the distance, as she knew that on the other side of it was the start of the complex of lines and points that led to Knapford Station. She saw that off to the right that there was a very long red brick wall, that blocked out her view of the yard on the other side of it.

With the driver having shut off the steam and put on the brakes to slow them down, they went under the bridge at about 25mph as they made their final approach to the complex of lines before Knapford. As they approached, Carrie saw another engine approaching them on another line with a long train of different wagons following along behind; then as they approached, she saw that it was No.91075 Michael, the B.R. 9MT 2-8-2 that she and Simon had travelled on for the Valentine's Special nearly two months earlier.

"Hello William!" Michael called, as he went by with his freight train rattling along behind him.

"Morning, Michael!" William called with a short blast on his whistle, as he slowed down and approached the line that led them to Platform 2.

Going alongside the long platform, the driver slowed them down by completely shutting the regulator and then turning the brake handle to the "on" position, allowing the train to slow down completely as they entered the station. Leaning out from the fireman's side of the cab, Carrie noticed someone standing at the very end of the platform and watching them approach. The closer they got to the end of the platform, the more Carrie realised who it was; it was none other than the Fat Controller himself, clearly looking like he was expecting the arrival of No.6002 King William IV. From the front, William had also seen the Fat Controller standing by the end of the platform and started feeling a little anxious, wondering why the boss was standing at the platform he was arriving at.

As William slowly approached the end of the platform, the driver put the brakes fully on and, with a loud hiss of steam and squealing of brakes on wheels, the train came to a very gentle stop, with the front part of William sticking out beyond the platform a little with his cab stopping very close to where the Fat Controller was standing. Above the platform was a clock, and it showed the arrival time as 8:20am; they had arrived 5 minutes ahead of schedule.

Along the coaches behind, the doors opened and the passengers disembarked from the train, and soon the station was filled with noise as the passengers made their way up the footbridge, crossed it over to Platform 1 and, from there, left the station building.

As people left the station, the Fat Controller stepped up to the side of the cab.

"Good morning, everyone." he said importantly, as he looked into the cab.

"Good morning, sir." said William's driver and fireman, as well as Simon and Carrie.

"Well done on getting the train here a little bit early. I'm very pleased with you all." said the Fat Controller.

"Thank you very much, sir." the driver said.

"And did Carrie and Simon do a good job on the trip?" asked the Fat Controller.

"Yes, sir. A very good job indeed, may I say. I think they'll make good railwaymen yet." the fireman said.

"Well done, you two. Well done, indeed!" smiled the Fat Controller.

"Thank you, sir." Simon said, with a firm nod of his head.

"Thanks, sir." Carrie said, with a slightly tired smile.

"Now, you two…you'd better go and take some rest at the depot by Tidmouth before we assign you to another engine, or engines. And there's a lot more work to be done for today." said the Fat Controller.

"Yes, sir." Simon and Carrie said together. They both knew that they had a long day ahead of them when they got up earlier that morning. But they didn't mind that one bit, as they knew they were being really useful, just like the engines and crews, and recruits they were working with.

Then the Fat Controller turned, and went down the platform and stepped off it, until he was standing in front of William.

"Sir." William said, a little anxiously.

"Well done, William. I'm very pleased with you for getting the train here safely." said the Fat Controller.

"Thank you very much, sir." smiled William, somewhat relieved.

"Now, get yourself over to Tidmouth Sheds, have yourself wiped down, and stand by for your next job." said the Fat Controller.

"Yes, sir." smiled William. Behind the first coach, the shunter had uncoupled the coach behind the tender from the second coach in the train, as well as having disconnected the air brake pipes from the coaches. A few moments later, having been given the "all-clear" by the guard and the signal man, William slowly pulled out from the station with the first coach behind him, bound for the depot at Tidmouth Sheds.

---

(A short while later)

It wasn't too long before No.6002 King William IV was in the depot at Tidmouth Sheds, and stabled over one of the inspection pits where the ashpan would be emptied out, and the fire cleaned out of any clinker before William could go out again to pull his next train. In the meantime, Carrie and Simon had removed their bags from the coach and went into the crew building, where they could drop their bags off into the lockers in the changing rooms for safekeeping.

After making sure their bags were safely stowed away, as well as washing their faces and hands, they went back downstairs to the cafeteria to have a quick drink and a pastry before they started on their next jobs.

"I wonder what our next jobs will be." Carrie wondered, as she sipped her tea.

"I'm not sure yet, but whatever they are, let's just do the best we can on the engines we're assigned to." Simon said, as he bit into a pastry.

"Well…let's enjoy this break in between jobs while we can. After all, we don't know when the next one will be." Carrie said, and they continued on sipping their tea or munching their pastries.

---

(A few minutes later; 09:00am)

Once Carrie and Simon had finished their break, they left the cafeteria and, after placing their Hi-Viz vests and gloves on, they went outside to the depot close to Tidmouth Sheds to be assigned to their next tasks for the morning. They arrived with the other recruits in the group, including Alice, Sophie, Olivia and Saoirse. Some of them were making small talk with each other as they waited to be assigned to their engines, but Simon and Carrie talked with a few of the others about what they both had done on the footplate of King William IV after they got up earlier that morning.

The others were impressed by the fact both Carrie and Simon had been up earlier than they had, and had already started their shift earlier, and having travelled on the footplate of a G.W.R. King 4-6-0 to start off their day.

Soon though, the inspector announced it was time for them to be assigned to the engines of their choice, and then they and the locomotive crews would be assigned their tasks for the day wherever they would be working. From a little off to the side, both Carrie and Simon watched as the other recruits chose what engines they wanted to work on; Sophie went to work on Emily, Saoirse chose to go on James, Olivia went onto the footplate of Percy, and Alice went onto Toby.

Finally, it was Carrie's turn to choose the engine she wanted to work on for the rest of the day.

"I'll go on…this engine over here." Carrie said, as she pointed to a 4-6-0 standing close to her; the engine was definitely a Great Western Railway locomotive, and was painted in G.W.R. express passenger lined green, just like No.6002 King William IV was, except it was smaller in size and had smaller driving wheels. The tender, however, looked to be the same size as the one coupled behind the larger G.W.R. King that Carrie had worked on earlier in the morning. She could also see on the brass number-plate on the cab-side was the number 4933, and on the curved brass nameplate over the centre wheel-splasher was the locomotive's name, Himley Hall.

"Are you sure, Carrie?" the inspector asked.

"Yes, sir. I'm sure of it." Carrie said.

"Very well, Carrie. You'll be on No.4933 Himley Hall for the rest of today." the inspector said, as he looked down on his clipboard. (33)

"And I'll go on James today, sir." Simon said, as he looked towards James.

"Very well then, Simon." said the inspector.

(33): The Great Western Railway 49XX Hall Class 4-6-0 mixed traffic locomotive, designed by Charles Collett, was one of the most versatile classes of locomotive ever to be used by the G.W.R. A total of 259 examples were built at Swindon Works between 1928 and 1943, and were numbered from No.4900 to No.4999, No.5900 to 5999, and No.6900 to No.6958. They were also one of the largest classes of tender locomotives to work on the Great Western Railway.

The prototype of the class was a re-built example of the G.W.R. Saint Class 29XX 4-6-0, No.2925 Saint Martin, which was re-built in December 1924 with smaller driving wheels that were exactly 6ft in diameter. The cylinders were also re-aligned in relation to the driving axle, and a more modern side-window cab was fitted on the footplate. The intention with the rebuild was to meet the needs of a mixed-traffic locomotive with higher boiler power and higher speed than the G.W.R. Churchward 43XX 2-6-0 Class, which was the G.W.R.'s standard mixed-traffic design at that time. The locomotives of the G.W.R.'s 43XX 2-6-0 Class were all very good and capable locomotives, but the class was finding it increasingly difficult to move the increasingly heavy traffic on offer.

After conversion, the rebuilt and renumbered Saint, No.4900 Saint Martin, underwent three years of main line trails to prove the design's worth, which it did to the immense satisfaction of Collect. In late 1927, after the successful conclusion of the trails of No.4900 on the main line, Collect placed an order with Swindon Works for 80 more Halls, with the first examples of the new Hall Class entering service in 1928. They were named after famous English and Welsh country houses that had the word "Hall" in their titles.

The new Halls differed somewhat from the prototype, No.4900, in that the wheels on their front bogies were slightly smaller in diameter, and the valve settings amended to give a slightly increased travel. The tractive effort of the class was 27,275lbf, far better than the 25,670lbf of the 43XX Class 2-6-0, and the 24,935lbf of the 29XX Saint Class, and allowed them to haul heavier trains than many of their predecessors. The original engines were paired with tenders that carried 3,500 gallons of water, but later examples of the class were paired with much larger tenders that could carry 4,000 gallons of water.

The names of the G.W.R. Hall Class were originally done in alphabetical order, but as the class spread far and wide throughout the G.W.R. network, it was soon found that naming the Halls in alphabetical order was becoming a nearly impossible task, and so each new locomotive that was built was given the name of any British Hall that was left available.

The numbers and names of the G.W.R. Hall Class within the 49XX Series were as follows;

No.4900 Saint Martin, No.4901 Adderley Hall, No.4902 Aldenham Hall, No.4903 Astley Hall, No.4904 Binnegar Hall, No.4905 Barton Hall, No.4906 Bradfield Hall,

No.4907 Broughton Hall, No.4908 Broome Hall, No.4909 Blakesley Hall, No.4910 Blaisdon Hall, No.4911 Bowden Hall, No.4912 Berrington Hall, No.4913 Baglan Hall,

No.4914 Cranmore Hall, No.4915 Condover Hall, No.4916 Crumlin Hall, No.4917 Crosswood Hall, No.4918 Dartington Hall, No.4919 Donnington Hall, No.4920 Dumbleton Hall,

No.4921 Eaton Hall, No.4922 Enville Hall, No.4923 Evenley Hall, No.4924 Eydon Hall, No.4925 Eynsham Hall, No.4926 Fairleigh Hall, No.4927 Farnborough Hall,

No.4928 Gatacre Hall, No.4929 Goytrey Hall, No.4930 Hagley Hall, No.4931 Hanbury Hall, No.4932 Hatherton Hall, No.4933 Himley Hall, No.4934 Hindlip Hall,

No.4935 Ketley Hall, No.4936 Kinlet Hall, No.4937 Lanelay Hall, No.4938 Liddington Hall, No.4939 Littleton Hall, No.4940 Ludford Hall, No.4941 Llangedwyn Hall,

No.4942 Maindy Hall, No.4943 Marrington Hall, No.4944 Middleton Hall, No.4945 Milligan Hall, No.4946 Moseley Hall, No.4947 Nanhoran Hall, No.4948 Northwick Hall,

No.4949 Packwood Hall, No.4950 Patshull Hall, No.4951 Pendeford Hall, No.4952 Peplow Hall, No.4953 Pitchford Hall, No.4954 Plaish Hall, No.4955 Plaspower Hall,

No.4956 Plowden Hall, No.4957 Postlip Hall, No.4958 Priory Hall, No.4959 Purley Hall, No.4960 Pyle Hall, No.4961 Pyrland Hall, No.4962 Ragley Hall, No.4963 Rignall Hall,

No.4964 Rodwell Hall, No.4965 Rood Ashton Hall, No.4966 Shakenhurst Hall, No.4967 Shirenewton Hall, No.4968 Shotton Hall, No.4969 Shrugborough Hall, No.4970 Sketty Hall,

No.4971 Stanway Hall, No.4972 Saint Brides Hall, No.4973 Sweeney Hall, No.4974 Talgarth Hall, No.4975 Umberslade Hall, No.4976 Warfield Hall, No.4977 Watcombe Hall,

No.4978 Westwood Hall, No.4979 Wootton Hall, No.4980 Wrottesley Hall, No.4981 Abberley Hall, No.4982 Acton Hall, No.4983 Albert Hall, No.4984 Albrighton Hall,

No.4985 Allesley Hall, No.4986 Aston Hall, No.4987 Brockley Hall, No.4988 Bulwell Hall, No.4989 Cherwell Hall, No.4990 Clifton Hall, No.4991 Cobham Hall,

No.4992 Crosby Hall, No.4993 Dalton Hall, No.4994 Downton Hall, No.4995 Easton Hall, No.4996 Eden Hall, No.4997 Elton Hall, No.4998 Eyton Hall, and No.4999 Gopsal Hall,

Those members of the Hall Class in the 59XX Series were numbered and named as follows;

No.5900 Hinderton Hall, No.5901 Hazel Hall, No.5902 Howick Hall, No.5903 Keele Hall, No.5904 Kelham Hall, No.5905 Knowsley Hall, No.5906 Lawton Hall,

No.5907 Marble Hall, No.5908 Moreton Hall, No.5909 Newton Hall, No.5910 Park Hall, No.5911 Preston Hall, No.5912 Queen's Hall, No.5913 Rushton Hall,

No.5914 Ripon Hall, No.5915 Trentham Hall, No.5916 Trinity Hall, No.5917 Westminster Hall, No.5918 Walton Hall, No.5919 Worsley Hall, No.5920 Wycliffe Hall,

No.5921 Bingley Hall, No.5922 Caxton Hall, No.5923 Colston Hall, No.5924 Dinton Hall, No.5925 Eastcote Hall, No.5926 Grotrian Hall, No.5927 Guild Hall,

No.5928 Haddon Hall, No.5929 Hanham Hall, No.5930 Hannington Hall, No.5931 Hatherley Hall, No.5932 Haydon Hall, No.5933 Kingsway Hall, No.5934 Kneller Hall,

No.5935 Norton Hall, No.5936 Oakley Hall, No.5937 Stanford Hall, No.5938 Stanley Hall, No.5939 Tangley Hall, No.5940 Whitbourne Hall, No.5941 Campion Hall,

No.5942 Doldowlod Hall, No.5943 Elmdon Hall, No.5944 Ickenham Hall, No.5945 Leckhampton Hall, No.5946 Marwell Hall, No.5947 Saint Benet's Hall, No.5948 Siddington Hall,

No.5949 Tematon Hall, No.5950 Wardley Hall, No.5951 Clyffe Hall, No.5952 Cogan Hall, No.5953 Dunley Hall, No.5954 Faendre Hall, No.5955 Garth Hall,

No.5956 Horsley Hall, No.5957 Hutton Hall, No.5958 Knolton Hall, No.5959 Mawley Hall, No.5960 Saint Edmund Hall, No.5961 Toynbee Hall, No.5962 Wantage Hall,

No.5963 Wimpole Hall, No.5964 Wolseley Hall, No.5965 Woollas Hall, No.5966 Ashford Hall, No.5967 Bickmarsh Hall, No.5968 Cory Hall, No.5969 Honington Hall,

No.5970 Hengrave Hall, No.5971 Merevale Hall, No.5972 Olton Hall, No.5973 Rolleston Hall, No.5974 Wallsworth Hall, No.5975 Winslow Hall, No.5976 Ashwicke Hall,

No.5977 Beckford Hall, No.5978 Bodinnick Hall, No.5979 Cruckton Hall, No.5980 Dingley Hall, No.5981 Frensham Hall, No.5982 Harrington Hall, No.5983 Henley Hall,

No.5984 Linden Hall, No.5985 Mostyn Hall, No.5986 Arbury Hall, No.5987 Brocket Hall, No.5988 Bostock Hall, No.5989 Cransley Hall, No.5990 Dorford Hall,

No.5991 Gresham Hall, No.5992 Horton Hall, No.5993 Kirby Hall, No.5994 Roydon Hall, No.5995 Wick Hall, No.5996 Mytton Hall, No.5997 Sparkford Hall, No.5998 Trevor Hall, and No.5999 Wollaton Hall.

Those members of the Hall Class in the 69XX Series were numbered and named as follows;

No.6900 Abney Hall, No.6901 Arley Hall, No.6902 Butlers Hall, No.6903 Belmont Hall, No.6904 Charfield Hall, No.6905 Claughton Hall, No.6906 Chicheley Hall,

No.6907 Davenham Hall, No.6908 Downham Hall, No.6909 Frewin Hall, No.6910 Gossington Hall, No.6911 Holker Hall, No.6912 Helmster Hall, No.6913 Levens Hall,

No.6914 Langton Hall, No.6915 Mursley Hall, No.6916 Misterton Hall, No.6917 Oldlands Hall, No.6918 Sandon Hall, No.6919 Tylney Hall, No.6920 Barningham Hall,

No.6921 Borwick Hall, No.6922 Burton Hall, No.6923 Croxteth Hall, No.6924 Grantley Hall, No.6925 Hackness Hall, No.6926 Holkham Hall, No.6927 Lilford Hall,

No.6928 Underley Hall, No.6929 Whorlton Hall, No.6930 Aldersey Hall, No.6931 Aldborough Hall, No.6932 Burwarton Hall, No.6933 Birtles Hall, No.6934 Beachamwell Hall,

No.6935 Browsholme Hall, No.6936 Breccles Hall, No.6937 Conyngham Hall, No.6938 Corndean Hall, No.6939 Calveley Hall, No.6940 Didlington Hall, No.6941 Fillongley Hall,

No.6942 Eshton Hall, No.6943 Farnley Hall, No.6944 Fledborough Hall, No.6945 Glasfryn Hall, No.6946 Heatherden Hall, No.6947 Helmingham Hall, No.6948 Holbrooke Hall,

No.6949 Haberfield Hall, No.6950 Kingsthorpe Hall, No.6951 Impney Hall, No.6952 Kimberley Hall, No.6953 Leighton Hall, No.6954 Lotherton Hall, No.6955 Lydcott Hall,

No.6956 Mottram Hall, No.6957 Norcliffe Hall, and No.6958 Oxburgh Hall.

In a trial run, 14 examples of the new class were sent to the arduous proving grounds of the Cornish Main Mine, and they proved to be so successful during these runs, and elsewhere on the G.W.R. system that by the time the first production batch of 80 had been completed at Swindon, another 20 examples had already been ordered. Further orders followed throughout the 1930's and 40's. By 1935, 150 Halls were in service, with the final and 259th example of the class, No.6958 Oxburgh Hall, being delivered from Swindon Works in 1943.

From 1946 to 1950, 11 members of the class were converted to oil-firing, due to coal shortages that were being experienced after the end of World War II. The 11 converted locomotives were renumbered into the 39XX range, but they reverted back to their old numbers when the oil-firing equipment was removed and they were converted back to coal firing in 1950.

While they were in service with the G.W.R., the Halls proved to be very successful and capable locomotives, able to work on any type of train they were tasked with, ranging from express passenger trains, to vacuum fitted freights, to slower loose-coupled freight work. Due to their weight and high axle-load of over 18-tons, the class were barred from working on certain routes, including some cross-country routes and branch lines.

Because the Halls were such a massive success as mixed-traffic locomotives on the G.W.R., they were the precursors of other highly successful two-cylinder mixed traffic locomotive designs, including the L.M.S. Stanier Class 5 4-6-0, or "Black Five", the L.N.E.R. Thompson B1 Class 4-6-0, and the B.R. Standard Class 5MT 4-6-0. Indeed, when F.W. Hawksworth took over at the G.W.R.'s C.M.E. after Collett retired in 1941, he introduced his own version of the Hall Class, which was modified and were thus became known as the Modified Halls, which eventually totalled 71 locomotives - but I'll be covering this class in a future chapter.

On April 30th 1941, during an air raid on Plymouth, No.4911 Bowden Hall took a direct hit from a German bomb after having stopped by a signal box due to the air raid alert, though the crew survived by taking shelter under the signal box steps. No.4911 was later broken up for scrap shortly afterwards.

With the exception of No.4911, the entire class made it to nationalisation in 1948, and the class continued to give sterling service on the Western Region of British Railways until withdrawals started in 1959, when the first example was taken out of service, which was the class prototype No.4900 Saint Martin. The locomotive managed to accumulate, in both its original form as a 29XX Saint Class and in its re-built form a remarkable mileage of 2,092,500 miles. Further withdrawals of the class took place during the 1960's, and by the end of 1965, the final examples of the class were taken out of service.

On October 7th 1965, No.6947 Helmingham Hall had the distinct honour of being the very last steam locomotive to bank trains on the Lickey Incline under B.R., when it was sent to Bromsgrove in order to replace a derailed B.R. Class 37 Diesel.

Thankfully though, 11 members of the class have survived into preservation, all of which were rescued from Woodham's Yard in Barry, South Wales. Seven examples of the class have run under their own steam, both on heritage railways and on the main line. The other four locomotives are awaiting restoration.

The surviving examples of the class are:

No.4920 Dumbleton Hall: the oldest surviving example. Ran under its own steam from 1992 to 1999, but is now currently in Tokyo, Japan, and painted in Hogwarts Railways crimson livery as part of the new Harry Potter attraction in Tokyo.

No.4930 Hagley Hall: a regular main liner performer during the 1970's and 1980's, recently returned to working order after a long overhaul at the Severn Valley Railway.

No.4936 Kinlet Hall: in 1941, she ran into a bomb crater and was badly damaged but repaired. A regular performer on the main line and heritage railways for many years after restoration, and currently undergoing an overhaul at Tyseley Locomotive Works.

No.4942 Maindy Hall: rebuilt at the Didcot Railway Center from 1995 to 2019 to run as an example of the 29XX Saint Class 4-6-0, as none of the original members of the Saint Class survived. Fitted with larger 6ft 8.5in driving wheels, and including parts from some of the original Saint Class, she first ran as No.2999 Lady of Legend in 2019.

No.4953 Pitchford Hall: currently in steam at the Epping Ongar Railway and painted in British Railways lined black livery, it was rescued from Woodham's Yard in Barry in 1984, and ran again in 2004 after a long restoration, including running on the main line and on other heritage railways.

No.4965 Rood Ashton Hall: rescued from Barry Scrapyard in 1970 as the first example of the class to be bought from that famous yard. Originally thought to be No.4983 Albert Hall as some parts of the locomotive were marked with the numbers 4983, but it was later determined to be No.4965. Parts from No.4983 were used in its restoration. Currently awaiting an overhaul at Tyseley.

No.4979 Wootton Hall: rescued from Barry scrapyard in October 1986, currently owned by the Furness Railway Trust and in storage awaiting restoration.

No.5900 Hinderton Hall: currently on static display and awaiting an overhaul at the Didcot Railway Center, but saw considerable main line service, as well as use at Didcot in the 1970's and 1980's.

No.5952 Cogan Hall: left Barry scrapyard in September 1981, and currently at Tyseley Locomotive Works awaiting restoration to working order. Its front bogie and tender are being used for the new G.W.R. 68XX Grange Class 4-6-0 No.6880 Betton Grange at the Llangollen Railway in Wales.

No.5967 Bickmarsh Hall: left Barry scrapyard in August 1987, and currently undergoing a slow restoration to working order at the Northampton & Lamport Railway.

No.5972 Olton Hall: easily the most famous member of the class; rescued from Barry scrapyard in May 1981 and fully restored to working order by 1998. She gained fame internationally for when she appeared in the Harry Potter films pulling the Hogwarts Express and carrying the fictional name of Hogwarts Castle, with its original number still in place. Due to this, it was repainted into a non-standard crimson red livery – which G.W.R. locomotives were never painted in – and had a Hogwarts Railways sigil put in place on its tender and carriages. No.5972 is now currently on static display at the Warner Bros Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter, and will remain there until the Warner Bros lease on the locomotive expires.

As Carrie stepped over towards No.4933 Himley Hall, the inspector followed behind while checking the papers on his clipboard.

"Okay then…" he said, as he and Carrie came to a stop by No.4933, where the driver and fireman were standing and awaiting their assignments for the morning, "…your first task for this fine morning is to deliver a line of empty vans along the Little Western Line all the way up to Arlesburgh, and then you're to take another line of empty vans from Arlesburgh back down to the fishing village. And then when that's done, you're to do whatever other jobs that need to be done along the Little Western." the inspector said, after he looked through his clipboard.

"Very well then, sir." the fireman said, as he turned and climbed onto the footplate. He had to make sure the fire was in order before they left.

"And where is the line of vans we're to collect, sir?" the driver asked.

"It's over in the yards near Knapford Station, and in one of the long sidings by the truck loading depot. And it'll be made up of a number of different types and sizes of vans." said the inspector.

"Very well, sir." the driver said, as he turned and climbed up to the footplate.

"Better climb aboard, Carrie. After all, there's more work to do today." the inspector said, as he looked towards Carrie.

"Okay, sir." Carrie said, as she went over to the footplate and also climbed aboard.

Then the inspector turned and walked over to where James was standing, with his crew and Simon standing beside him.

"Okay then…James, your first task for today is to go over to Knapford Harbour and pick up a special cargo that arrived there last night, and take it over to Maron Station. And then, you're to take a line of empty trucks from Maron Station over to the yards at Kirk Ronan. The yard inspector over at Kirk Ronan will then give you your next job when you get over there." the inspector said.

"Yes, sir." James said.

"And Simon, you don't mind working with James today?" the inspector asked.

"Not at all, sir." Simon said, as James smiled.

"Okay then…I'll let you all be on your way then." and with a wave of his hand, the inspector walked off back to the main offices.

"I'd best be off then. After all, those vans need to be delivered." said Himley Hall.

"And I'd like to be off too. And I want as many people to see my shiny red paint today." James said, in a slightly boastful way. And Himley Hall rolled his eyes to the sky a little; by now he was quite used to James being a bit boastful at times.

"I'll see you later on then, James." Himley Hall said, as his driver blew the whistle for a second or two, and then opened the regulator, causing clouds of white steam to shoot out from the cylinder drain cocks. With the points set, Himley Hall slowly rolled forwards out of the depot, and out to the main line, and headed on towards the Knapford Yards.

As they rolled along the line, Carrie took a few moments to see where everything was; all the controls were exactly the same as they were on No.6002 King William IV, and all painted in the exact same colours, with both the regulator handle and the reversing wheel painted in a bright red. All the various gauges, valves, and other controls were in the exact same positions, as they were on any steam locomotive of the Great Western Railway. Feeling a little bit pleased with working on a new locomotive for the day, Carrie settled back and waited until they approached the freight yards at Knapford.

---

(In the Knapford Yards)

It wasn't too long before they arrived into the extensive yards, and Himley Hall was shown to the siding where he was to collect the long line of empty vans and bring them up the Little Western to Arlesburgh. Going to behind the tender, Carrie watched as the shunter coupled the leading van to the tender and also connected the brake lines together.

"And there we are…" the shunter said, as he clambered out from between the tender and the leading van, "…you're all coupled to the train, and should be ready to go soon." the shunter said, as he went off to his next job.

"Thank you very much." said the driver, as he made his own inspection along the train, to be absolutely sure all the vans were coupled together. In the meantime, Carrie went over and took the opportunity to top up the oil in all the different oiling points on both sides of Himley Hall so there would be no issues when they finally departed the yard. Also, as they had stopped beside a water tower, the fireman took the chance to top up the tender tank, which could take 4,000 gallons of water. The coal space had already been filled up earlier in the morning, and the coal had been trimmed out so the lumps wouldn't come loose on the journey.

As Carrie nearly finished oiling up the motion on the driver's side of Himley Hall, she heard the sounds of another locomotive approaching, quickly followed by the sounds of a whistle sounding for a few seconds. Carrie looked to the left, and saw Arthur come to a stop near her.

"Morning there, Carrie." Arthur smiled, when he saw Carrie.

"Oh, good morning back, Arthur." Carrie said, with a smile.

"How are you feeling this morning?" the red L.M.S. tank engine asked.

"I'm feeling great. In fact, I'm eager to get more work done this morning, even despite the work I did earlier on this morning on the morning train from Vicarstown over to Knapford." Carrie said, with a smile.

"That's a good thing, Carrie. That attitude is what makes an engine and its crew really useful." said Arthur, as he too smiled at Carrie.

"Thank you, Arthur." Carrie said.

"Hey, come on, Carrie! It's nearly time for us to leave!" said Himley Hall, as his driver and fireman climbed back onto his footplate.

"Okay!" Carrie called, as she turned and went back towards the footplate of the G.W.R., but then she briefly turned and called back to Arthur, "I'll see you later, Arthur!"

"See you later too, Carrie!" Arthur said, as he watched Carrie climbed onto the footplate of Himley Hall.

About a minute or two later, with the points set and the signal dropped, they were all clear to go on their way. After the driver blew the whistle and opened the regulator, Himley Hall rolled slowly forwards out of the siding with the long line of vans rolling along behind him. Looking out behind from the driver's side, Carrie watched as the train slowly moved forwards out onto the main line; the different varieties of vans, in slightly different shades of colours and weathering on their wooden bodies, were following along very smoothly behind.

"They're following along with us." Carrie called, as she turned and stepped into the middle of the footplate.

"Very good, Carrie!" called the driver, as he opened the regulator a little more, and then reached for the reversing wheel and turned it round to bring the locomotive back closer towards mid-gear. Carrie knew that by bringing the reverser back towards mid-gear meant it would allow the steam to be used far more expansively in the cylinders, and to be used far more economically by using less steam from the boiler. And it would also allow the train to travel far more quickly along the main line.

"Hey Carrie, do you want a try on stoking the fire with the shovel?" the fireman asked, as he offered Carrie the coal shovel.

"Sure would." Carrie said, as she took hold of the shovel and, as the fireman took up position at the firehole doors – ready to open them, she shoved the shovel into the coal space and removed quite a good number of small coal lumps on the metal blade. Turning round with the loaded shovel, the driver pulled open the firehole doors, and Carrie thrust the shovel forwards as hard as she could and placed the coal into the firebox.

After another four shovels of coal, the fireman felt that would be enough for now, and Carrie placed the coal shovel into the coal space and went over to sit down on the back of the tender. Taking a look out along the driver's side, she could see they were now making their way out of the yards and onto towards the major junction that would lead them to the Little Western, and Carrie was looking forward to seeing which engines they'd see a little later on.

After leaving the yard and crossing the bridge over the river that ran along to the north of Knapford Yards and Stations, and then passing through Tidmouth Station, they were turned onto the line that went along the Little Western, and were able to pick up some more speed.

In between taking turns at the shovel and doing other little odd things on the footplate that needed to be done, Carrie was standing on one side of the cab or the other and watching the world go by them, while listening to the sharp chuffing sounds coming from Himley Hall's chimney and watching clouds of smoke and steam drift by overhead. They had gone by the coastal village and stretch of beach where the barges, and other boats sat high on dry on the sand, and soon they were on the long stretch of line that went parallel to the cliffs with the twin lines going through the short tunnels that had been cut through the stretches of rock that jutted out from the cliff.

"We're going along the beach now." Carrie said, as they went along the long stretch of line that went parallel to the white sandy beach, with the waves breaking gently on the shoreline. At some points as they went along, she could see people, men, and women with children, either walking along the beach and playing with balls, sitting on picnic blankets and enjoying food, building sandcastles on the soft white sand, and generally enjoying the nice morning by the calm Irish Sea.

"I bet you'd enjoy a day at the beach someday, eh Carrie?" said the fireman, as he looked over the beach from where he stood within the footplate.

"I wouldn't mind doing that. I've never been to a beach before, and so I would love to go there one day…in the company of friends, of course." Carrie said.

"Yeah, but leave it for another day, Carrie. After all, we've got a lot of work to do today." the driver said, as he reached up for the whistle chain and gave it a tug. The whistle sounded loudly as they went round a bend to the right and proceeded up the line.

After passing by along the raised section that went by the coastal town of Suddery, where Carrie could look down and see the expanse of the town and estuary far below them, they made their way along the last stretch of line before they finally went by the Fishing Village. Looking out from the cab, Carrie could see the familiar sights of the single long line the ran along the quayside, the fishing boats that were moored by the quay, the ice-making plant close by, and the sights of the various buildings in town where she could see various different activities taking place, including vans making deliveries of food and drink to the different restaurants and pubs lining the main road and overlooking the sea, as well as the mailman making his own deliveries, and other people going about on the streets.

After going by with the train, they made their way along the last few miles to Arlesburgh. As they went along, Carrie took the chance to use the coal shovel to keep the fire burning brightly, and keep the steam pressure in the boiler up to its maximum working pressure of 225psi. Again and again, for about six or seven times, Carrie turned back and forth from the coal space in the tender to the firebox, with the shovel holding a good load of coal, about 15 to 20 pounds in it each time. And the draught going through the firehole would always suck the coal off the shovel, though Carrie did manage to place the coal into the back corners and along the sides of the firebox.

By the time she was done with that, she was sweating on her forehead somewhat, and her arms were feeling quite sore at the same time from having been moving so much coal into the hot firebox.

"And there we are." Carrie said, as she placed the shovel onto the fall plate of the tender, and the fireman closed the two firehole doors.

"You feeling okay after that, Carrie?" asked the fireman.

"Yeah, I am. But my arms are feeling a bit sore though…from moving all that coal into the firebox." Carrie said, as she sat down on the front of the tender to rest.

"Don't worry, Carrie. You've done a good job, and we'll be there very soon." said the driver.

"Good." Carrie said quietly, as she rested her arms and cooled down from the work.

They soon arrived at the yards of Arlesburgh Station, where they were to deliver their empty vans. Himley Hall slowly reversed the long train into the yard, with the guard standing at the back of his brake van, keeping in touch with the crew of Himley Hall with a hand-held radio, carefully guided them into the siding as the driver very gently reversed the train inside.

When the guard called out "All Stop!" over the radio, the driver quickly put on the brakes, and the train stopped, with the brake van's buffers only a few inches from the buffer stops.

"And there we are…safe and sound." the driver said, as he released the brakes and began preparations to move out of the sidings for their next job.

"And ready to move onto the next job." added the fireman, as he opened the firebox doors and set about checking the state of the fire, before then standing up and checking the single water gauge glass to see if the water level in the boiler was okay.

Carrie leaned out from the driver's side of the cab to check at the activity going on around in the yard; she could see the rear end of a train of coaches leaving the yards and heading out onto the main line, and she could also see trains being shunted together by some of the engines that were assigned to shunting today.

---

(A little later)

It wasn't too long before Himley Hall was turned on the turntable, and then coupled to the empty fish vans he was to take down to the Fishing Village, but they had to wait until another train coming into Arlesburgh Station had arrived before they could leave. Looking back from the cab, Carrie could see they had coupled up to about 10 different vans, with some being slightly longer than the others, with the brake van at the back.

Then the sounds of a whistle caused her to turn back to look to the station, as the train they were waiting to arrive was finally pulling in; it was a passenger train of five coaches, and Duck was at the front, bringing it into the station.

"Morning, Himley Hall." Duck called, as he came to a stop.

"Morning, Duck. Everything going fine?" Himley Hall asked.

"Yes, the coaches have been running well, and my passengers seem satisfied with their trip." Duck said, with a smile.

But then, there came the sound of a guard blowing his whistle from the back of Himley Hall's train, and the signal ahead dropped to indicate they were clear to go.

"Oh, that's my signal to go! I'll see you later, Duck!" Himley Hall said, as the driver blew his whistle and opened the regulator. Slowly, he moved forwards through the station, and then down the line. From his footplate, Carrie leaned out as they went through the station.

"Hi, Duck!" she called, as they approached the green G.W.R. No.8 0-6-0 engine.

"Hello, Carrie! Best of luck today!" Duck called to Carrie, as she went by.

"Thank you!" Carrie called back, as she then turned to look ahead at the line she had just come up a little while earlier. She knew there was more work to do today, but she didn't mind, as she knew she was being really useful.