Llangollen Railway - 'Branchline Gala' 2026

In the mid-nineteenth century, North Wales was becoming a popular holiday destination. Having already connected Chester and Shrewsbury by rail in 1846, the growing local mineral trade spurred the construction of a five-mile branch to Llangollen in 1862. The Great Western Railway later tapped into the tourist market by extending the line west to the Cambrian Coast via Corwen, Bala and Dolgellau. Whilst popular with passengers during the summer months, lacklustre earnings at other times as well as competition from the duplicate Cambrian Railways route forced Doctor Beeching’s axe upon the line in 1965, leaving Llangollen Station to lie to closed and forgotten. Ten years later, a band of volunteers promised to return trains to the market town. However, British Railways had removed all track panels, meaning everything would have to be restored from scratch. Undeterred, the group slowly began repairing the dilapidated infrastructure, relaying track and overhauling rolling stock. The Llangollen Railway opened to passengers in 1975, initially running over just sixty feet of track. Gradually, the trust extended back along the original route to Berwyn, Glyndyfrdwy and Carrog, before finally reaching their dream destination of Corwen in 2023. Despite having faced several setbacks in recent years, enthusiasts and the general public delight in the continued stability and success of the Llangollen Railway. Being a former GWR backwater route, it was appropriate that the line should stage a ‘Branchline Gala’ from 10 to 12 April. As a Christmas surprise, Collett ‘Small Prairie’ 4555 was announced to be headlining the event. This would be something of a homecoming for the locomotive, as she double-headed the 1964 Talyllyn Railway AGM Special with 7827 ‘Lydham Manor’ over the line to Barmouth (both engines went on to be preserved on the Dartmouth Steam Railway). The other guest was dockside ‘Pannier’ 1369 from the South Devon Railway, swapping the River Dart for the Dee! Working alongside Collett ‘2884’ 3802, 57XX ‘Pannier’ 7754 and Class 14 D9525, the gala saw five Swindon-built locomotives in action across the line. I visited on the Friday and Saturday of the gala. A wide range of trains were in operation including a MK1 rake, a BR Suburban set, a demonstration goods and even brake van specials. 4555 and 7754 carried ‘The Cambrian Coast Express’ headboard at several points on Friday. 1369 developed a bearing fault on Saturday morning, leaving the ‘Small Prairie’ to take the early freight. Furthermore, Class 26 D5310 deputised for the Class 14’s first turn. Thankfully, both locomotives were soon repaired. The weather was mixed across the weekend, bringing sunny spells admist heavy downpours across the Dee Valley. The full lineup consisted of: Visiting: GWR Churchward 45XX ‘Small Prairie’ 2-6-2T 4555 (from the Dartmouth Steam Railway and the East Somerset Railway) GWR Collett ‘1366’ ‘Pannier’ 0-6-0PT 1369 (from the South Devon Railway) Home Fleet: GWR Collett 57XX ‘Pannier’ 0-6-0PT 7754 GWR Collett ‘2884’ 2-8-0 3802 BR Class 14 0-6-0DH D9525 BR Class 26 Bo-Bo D5310 (ran on Saturday only)* *does not feature. I hope you all enjoy the video. Huge thanks to everybody at the Llangollen Railway for a brilliant event. It is a stunning railway and I highly encourage all of you to visit if you can. My favourite shots are the two ‘Panniers’ at Pentrefelin, the ‘Prairie’ on the curve and the double-header arriving into Llangollen Station. If you like what you see, check us out on Facebook and Instagram at https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?... and   / secondvalvesteam   for photos, updates and bonus material. Don’t forget to subscribe for more and feel free to like and comment.