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00:28Transcribed by ESO, translated by —
00:33They were fast, they were sleek.
00:36They smashed all existing speed records and set the pace for a new railway age.
00:41A unique blend of Victorian steam technology and space-age styling,
00:46the streamlined locomotives that raced from London to Scotland in the late 1930s
00:50captured the hearts and minds of the travelling public.
00:56For a few extraordinary years, the lines to Scotland carried the fastest trains in the world,
01:02as two companies vied for the prestige of holding the speed record.
01:06This is the story of that brief and thrilling episode in railway history,
01:11the golden age of the streamliners.
01:29Britain's railways are changing, and history is repeating itself.
01:34Two companies, Virgin Trains on the west coast and GNER on the east,
01:39are battling it out in the race for passengers on the same tracks
01:42that once saw the epic contest between the streamliners of the steam age.
01:52The 1930s, they had style, didn't they?
01:54And both the LNER and the LMS had styling competitions.
01:57They were going to be the fastest, they were going to set records,
02:01staff did walk taller as a result.
02:03So there's a touch of romance there, there's a touch of heritage,
02:07a touch of history, which I think appeals to everybody,
02:12but particularly the British.
02:13I think the British are very... love their railway system.
02:18The railway age was born out of Britain's Industrial Revolution.
02:23A lot of heavy goods had to be shifted,
02:25and the railway was invented to do just that.
02:31Passenger trains came later and began running to regular timetables.
02:35The railway introduced a new concept to a horse-drawn world, speed.
02:43The impact of speed was quite remarkable.
02:47The railway, through its timetable and through its very nature of operation,
02:51made people aware of minutes for the first time.
02:55The railway produced timetables which said that a train would leave at 10.17
02:59and would arrive at 11.23.
03:04And that imposed expectations and disciplines and requirements
03:08on not only themselves and the way they operated the trains,
03:11but also on their passengers.
03:13They bring a whole new understanding of what time meant,
03:16and of course they help businessmen understand that time is money.
03:28In the 1930s, the railways in the north of Britain were owned by two giant companies.
03:33The LMS, or London Midland and Scottish, ruled on the west coast,
03:37while the east coast was LNER territory, the London Northeastern Railway.
03:44Both ran between London and Scotland,
03:47and both claimed to be the finest railway in the world.
03:50Since they couldn't both be right,
03:52each had to prove the point by upstaging its rival at every possible opportunity.
04:02It's LMS versus LNER,
04:04and certainly in the 1930s, there is absolutely no doubt it was intense rivalry.
04:10Anything the other one could do to pull a fast one
04:13and have one over the other side was done, without any doubt at all.
04:18Your railway system was always better than the other.
04:21So obviously it was a BME bonnet that I was an LMS man.
04:25And of course the only other one that existed as far as we were concerned
04:29was the London Northeastern.
04:30It was their railway was LNER, London Northeastern Railway Company.
04:35To me, you know, you were always proud of the company you worked for.
04:39We used to get Northeastern men coming into Liverpool, York men particularly,
04:43used to come in and they'd be talking about
04:46our A6s are better than yours, and this, that and the other.
04:50But a Northeastern man was taught to think for himself, you see,
04:53and that's what they didn't like.
04:56But, having said that, whenever there was any foreman's vacancies in that,
05:01on LNER, I got in the middle of them and I was putting in for them.
05:05They knew who the best company was to work for.
05:09They ran on separate routes, to different destinations,
05:13and the rivalry was more about prestige than territory,
05:16but it was good for business.
05:19It was in everyone's interest in the individual companies
05:23to fly their flag, to be the best, the fastest, the biggest,
05:28the most powerful, the best service, the most famous train.
05:33It all developed into the rivalry between the two companies.
05:39And this has never gone away.
05:41It's still there today.
05:46The flagship of the LMS on the west coast was the Royal Scott.
05:52The 10 a.m. express from London, Euston, to Glasgow.
06:05It's arch-rival was the Flying Scotsman,
06:07the LNER express, which also left London at 10 a.m. from King's Cross
06:12and ran up the east coast to Edinburgh.
06:20But the Flying Scotsman sounded a lot faster than it actually was.
06:27Since the mid-19th century,
06:29the railways had enjoyed a virtual monopoly on long-distance travel,
06:33and the LMS and LNER had a long-standing, cosy agreement
06:37not to compete for speed on the run to Scotland.
06:40Trains took a leisurely eight and a quarter hours to cover 400 miles,
06:44and the companies saw no need to speed up their services.
06:56But by the 1930s, the world had moved on,
06:59even if the railways hadn't.
07:02Now road travel, lorries, buses,
07:04and increasing use of the private car
07:06began to threaten the railways.
07:12Something needs to be done.
07:14The railways need to sharpen up their act.
07:16They need to be able to say to a public
07:18that's becoming more and more used to the idea
07:20of travelling by other forms of transport,
07:22that the railways have something to offer,
07:25that the railways should still be at the heart
07:27of the country's transport network.
07:31The LMS and the LNER realised
07:34that it was high time they improved their act.
07:37In 1932, their agreement not to go for record speeds was scrapped,
07:41and the stage was set for an epic duel between these two giants.
07:45The race to the north was on.
07:50The LNER set out to project an image of speed
07:53with a series of publicity films.
07:56A bizarre three-way contest between a light aircraft,
08:00a speedboat, and the LNER
08:01appeared to show that rail travel was as fast as flying,
08:05and going by boat wasn't.
08:17I am speaking to you from the flying Scotsman.
08:23Another modern marvel, radio, was demonstrated,
08:27proving that a train could talk to a plane,
08:30even if there was nothing much to say.
08:34Hello, G5ML, ex-Canada calling,
08:37and hearing you perfectly.
08:39We had no difficulty identifying you from above.
08:43Expect to reach Glasgow via Edinburgh, four o'clock.
08:46Over.
08:49But the LNER's greatest asset
08:51was its locomotive designer, Sir Nigel Gresley.
08:55He had created a fleet of powerful and fast express locomotives
08:58to haul the long-distance trains.
09:05Gresley has this eye for the thing looking right,
09:09and wherever you go with Gresley's coaches,
09:13with the locomotives,
09:14you can't get away from the fact that there is a form there,
09:18a form and function in harmony.
09:24Over on the west coast,
09:25the LMS was well behind its LNER rival.
09:28Most of its locomotives were outdated machines
09:31and too small to haul heavy trains.
09:34Even the best of its passenger engines
09:36were no match for Gresley's designs on the east coast.
09:42The London Midland needed a new broom
09:45to sweep away the old regime.
09:47In 1932, they found him.
09:50William Stanier was persuaded to leave the Great Western Railway
09:53and join the LMS.
09:57Stanier's brief,
09:58when he came from the Great Western in the early 30s,
10:02into a railway where they had small engines,
10:06inadequate engines,
10:07was to bring the engineering up to a competent standard.
10:12So he had big, big problems to deal with,
10:16listening to people saying,
10:17we haven't got anything to run our trains with.
10:22Stanier wasted no time
10:23in stamping his authority on the LMS.
10:26Soon, the obsolete locomotives
10:27began heading for the scrapyard
10:29as new and far better Stanier designs replaced them.
10:33The London Midland Scottish
10:34was shaping up for a showdown
10:36with its arch-rival.
11:00In the 1930s,
11:02all Britain's railways relied on the same basic tool,
11:05the steam locomotive.
11:07It was a machine
11:08which had barely changed since 1830.
11:11Locomotives got bigger and heavier,
11:13but the formula stayed the same.
11:21Basic, absolutely basic.
11:23It's warming water to create steam
11:25to move the thing along.
11:27And it's as basic as that.
11:32The same force which lifts the lid of the kettle
11:35can produce almost unlimited power,
11:37which the locomotive designers learned to harness.
11:40It was simple, but it worked.
11:45More modern designs of diesel
11:47and electric locomotives
11:48were not yet able to mount a serious challenge
11:51to steam on heavy, long-distance runs.
11:58But steam supremacy
11:59was beginning to be challenged overseas.
12:05In Germany,
12:07Adolf Hitler's Nazi regime
12:08was determined to promote
12:09German technology to the world.
12:14The cities of Hamburg and Berlin
12:16were linked by a lightweight diesel rail car
12:18known as the Flying Hamburger,
12:20running it up to 100 miles per hour.
12:27The London North Eastern Railway's chief designer,
12:29Nigel Gresley,
12:30visited Germany
12:31and sampled the ride.
12:34And Gresley took the view
12:36that although the diesel multiple unit
12:39might provide useful service
12:41in some circumstances,
12:42he was convinced
12:43that the slightly more conventional steam train,
12:46with more facilities on board
12:48and hauled by a steam locomotive,
12:50could do the job at least as well.
12:56Steam engines might look old-fashioned,
12:58but they were robust and reliable.
13:01They were also just as fast as the diesel.
13:04In 1934,
13:05Gresley's Flying Scotsman locomotive
13:07set a new British speed record
13:09of exactly 100 miles per hour.
13:12He firmly believed
13:14that steam was still the future,
13:15but saw that it had a growing image problem.
13:26Other forms of transport
13:27were discovering a new look,
13:29streamlining.
13:32In the air and on the roads,
13:34rounded, flowing shapes
13:36were replacing sharp angles.
13:38Suddenly,
13:39everything had to be aerodynamic
13:40to look modern.
13:44Streamlining was all the rage
13:46and everything had to be streamlined
13:47and if you weren't streamlined,
13:49you weren't with it.
13:53Gresley decided to create
13:54an entirely new train
13:55for the LNER
13:56in the latest fashion.
13:59What Gresley had to do
14:00was to take the conventional steam locomotive
14:03and to encase it in something
14:06that would really wow people
14:08into thinking,
14:09this is space age travel
14:11and the Silver Jubilee train
14:14with not just the locomotive sleek
14:16and streamlined,
14:17but the whole train
14:18looked like something
14:20out of the space age.
14:26After only six months,
14:28Gresley and his team
14:29had finished the job
14:30and the new train
14:31was launched
14:32on September 27, 1935.
14:36It was called
14:37the Silver Jubilee.
14:39On the 110th anniversary
14:41of the opening
14:42of the First English Railway,
14:43the Silver Jubilee,
14:44drawn by the streamlined
14:45silver link,
14:46left King's Cross.
14:47She is to run regularly
14:49between London and Newcastle.
14:51Speed, comfort
14:52and a wild modern beauty.
14:55It certainly looked the part,
14:58streamlined and stylish,
15:00but under the aerodynamic casing
15:01was a conventional steam locomotive
15:03designed to run at high speed.
15:08On its first run,
15:09the streamliner
15:10soon got into its stride,
15:11breaking the 100 miles per hour barrier
15:14south of Hitchin.
15:17As the mileposts flashed past,
15:20the speed never dropped
15:21and even the most hardened news reporters
15:24on board were open-mouthed.
15:29For over 43 miles,
15:31the train averaged
15:32more than 100 miles per hour
15:34and twice touched 112,
15:36a world record for steam.
15:41The LNER felt that
15:43there was only one way
15:44to launch such a revolutionary train
15:46and that was with a big bang
15:49and with the press on board.
15:54Here was this new locomotive,
15:56barely run in,
15:57securing a new record
15:59of 112 and a half miles an hour
16:00and putting itself
16:02in the record books
16:04as the new way to go.
16:05It was a very courageous thing to do,
16:07but it worked.
16:09The new train captured
16:11the imagination of everyone
16:12who saw it fly past.
16:14It was the concord
16:16of its day.
16:18It caught the imagination.
16:20People would stand
16:21on station platforms
16:23just to watch these trains go past.
16:25The star of the show
16:26is the new Pacific engine
16:27of the type which draws
16:29the Silver Jubilee Expresses.
16:30Schoolchildren are there in force
16:32to pay homage
16:33to sleek speed
16:34and silver streamlining.
16:36A streamlined train
16:37all painted silver,
16:39hauled by
16:40a silver painted locomotive
16:42that in itself
16:43was streamlined.
16:44I mean,
16:45that really was
16:45absolutely breathtaking.
16:49I can remember it
16:50ever so well
16:50seeing it streaking along
16:51this wonderful silver streak.
16:53It was exactly
16:54what it looked like.
16:55Perfectly lovely.
16:55Especially if there was
16:56a bit of evening sunshine.
16:58You'd get a distant view
17:00of the train coming along
17:01and that's when
17:01if it were perhaps
17:03a streamliner
17:04the cry would then
17:05go up,
17:06streak!
17:07Everybody gets
17:07quite very excited.
17:10And then nine times
17:11out of ten of course
17:12the driver would whistle.
17:18It was absolutely
17:20incredible to see.
17:21It was extraordinary.
17:22Very, very impressive.
17:27But the operational problems
17:29of running a high-speed service
17:31were enormous.
17:33In the 1930s
17:34the railway was a crowded
17:36and busy place.
17:38There were slow-stopping trains
17:40that called
17:40at every wayside station.
17:46Most freight
17:47still went by rail
17:48carried by a fleet
17:49of one and a half
17:50million goods wagons.
17:52As they clanked
17:53and rattled along
17:54at 30 miles per hour
17:55they clogged up
17:56the system
17:57in all directions.
18:02But freight
18:03was the railway's
18:03biggest earner
18:04and the wheels of industry
18:05had to be kept turning.
18:09And all these movements
18:10had to be protected
18:12by a forest
18:12of mechanical signals.
18:15To give you an idea
18:16from York to London
18:18and back
18:20there was 800
18:21and odd signals
18:21you had to learn.
18:24You had to know
18:25who controlled
18:25every signal
18:26every signal box
18:28every pair of points
18:30and shunts
18:30where they could
18:31put you inside
18:32where they could
18:33run you around
18:34your train
18:34you had to know
18:35all that.
18:37The Silver Jubilee
18:38needed a lot of track
18:40to stop safely
18:41and clearing a path
18:42for the high-speed service
18:43was a signalman's nightmare.
18:46Nothing
18:46was allowed
18:47to get in the way
18:48of the LNER's
18:49flagship service.
18:51The Silver Jubilee
18:52I did travel on
18:55but I gather
18:55if you were
18:56a North London commuter
18:57you were not at all
18:58amused by the Silver Jubilee.
19:00Invariably
19:00you'd get stuck
19:01in a loop line
19:02waiting for the darn thing
19:03to go roaring past.
19:07Everybody's sitting there
19:08in great comfort
19:08having a drink
19:09or whatever it might be
19:10and I don't think
19:11it went down
19:12at all well
19:12with the locals
19:13in North London
19:14but anybody living
19:15up in the north of England
19:16of course
19:16had absolutely
19:16marvellous service.
19:18They had very good
19:19catering facilities
19:20on them.
19:21This means a kitchen car
19:23and this will mean
19:25a chef
19:26in proper kit.
19:28We're not talking
19:29paper cups here
19:30but a proper chef
19:31with a white hat on.
19:32So when you're
19:34going along
19:34on this superb train
19:36doing your 90 miles an hour
19:37and you're actually
19:38eating a very fine
19:39well cooked roast milk
19:40and the whole thing
19:42is quality
19:43from the streamlining
19:44to the speed
19:45to the food
19:46to the service
19:47the waiter
19:48properly dressed
19:49delivered flunky
19:51properly done
19:53high standards.
19:58The slow goods trains
20:00were often stuck
20:01in loop lines
20:02waiting for the
20:02streamlined express
20:03to pass.
20:05Their crews enjoyed
20:06rather more basic
20:07catering than the
20:07Silver Jubilee's
20:08passengers
20:09but improvisation
20:10was all part
20:11of the job.
20:13And of course
20:14you'd be inside
20:15loops for hours.
20:16They used to
20:17like to make a fry up
20:18which I have done
20:18myself.
20:21It's a very rare
20:22person who
20:23doesn't start sniffing
20:25with anticipation
20:26at the smell
20:27of bacon
20:28or eggs frying.
20:29You've only got
20:30to mention the word
20:31and you can almost
20:32smell it
20:33no matter where you are.
20:35The ability
20:36to utilise
20:37this wonderful fire
20:39and make a frying pan
20:41out of the shovel
20:42which is superbly
20:43shaped to retain
20:44the fat
20:44and be able to
20:45braise the egg yolk
20:46as it were
20:48makes you feel
20:48really good
20:49doesn't it?
20:50and there was
20:51nothing nicer
20:51than a little bit
20:52of bacon bacon
20:53on the shovel.
20:59The Silver Jubilee
21:01was never designed
21:02to run at 100
21:02miles per hour
21:03plus in normal
21:04service
21:05but it regularly
21:06ran at 80
21:07and kept to its
21:08tight schedule.
21:09The press and the
21:10public loved it
21:11and it made a profit.
21:16The Silver Jubilee
21:17was designed
21:18specifically to benefit
21:20the Tyneside
21:21businessmen.
21:22It wasn't a matter
21:23for Londoners
21:24it was for the
21:24businessmen in the
21:25industrial heartland
21:26as it was served
21:28by the LNER
21:28of this country
21:29to get to London
21:30to have a meeting
21:31and then to get home
21:32again all in the same day.
21:34A wonderful example
21:35of concentrating
21:36on what the passenger
21:37wanted.
21:39The LNER
21:40was clearly winning
21:41the race to the north.
21:43The LMS rival
21:44realized that
21:44something had to be done
21:45and done fast.
22:01In the 1930s
22:03the London,
22:04Midland and
22:04Scottish Railway
22:05faced an uphill task
22:06if it was to challenge
22:07the London Northeastern
22:08speed record.
22:10Both their main lines
22:11ran between London
22:12and Scotland
22:12but it was not
22:13a level playing field.
22:15The East Coast mainline
22:17runs through miles
22:18of open country.
22:19Most of the route
22:20is flat and straight
22:21giving the trains
22:22an easy run to Edinburgh.
22:28But the West Coast line
22:30passes through
22:31the industrial midlands
22:32then twists and turns
22:33as it climbs over
22:34the Cumbrian hills
22:35at Chapfell
22:36and Beattach
22:37in the southern uplands
22:38of Scotland
22:38before reaching Glasgow.
22:45They were very different routes.
22:47The East Coast
22:48has always been the racetrack,
22:49very straight railway,
22:51basically level
22:51with limited number of junctions.
22:53The West Coast
22:55is totally different.
22:56It's got almost 50%
22:58more trains on the route
22:59so it's a much more
22:59congested railway,
23:00it's got far more junctions.
23:02It's a very curving railway
23:03unlike the East Coast
23:04so it's an almost
23:05continuous reverse curve
23:06from London to Glasgow.
23:08So it is quite a miracle.
23:09You can achieve
23:10almost the same
23:11journey times
23:11on both routes.
23:13It was achieved
23:15by sheer brute force.
23:17Soon after joining
23:18the LMS
23:19their chief designer
23:20William Stanier
23:21produced a new type
23:22of huge and powerful
23:23express locomotive.
23:39In 1936
23:40number 6201
23:42Princess Elizabeth
23:43set out from Euston
23:45to challenge
23:45the LNER's lead
23:46in the race to the north
23:47with a 400 mile
23:49non-stop run
23:50to Glasgow.
23:56After 250 miles
23:58of hard running
23:58the train reached
24:00the northern hills
24:00and the long haul
24:02up Shapp fell.
24:04They go racing
24:05through the Loon Gorge
24:06and now they're heading
24:07for T-Bay
24:08and Shapp
24:09and they're really
24:10really going for it.
24:11It must have been
24:11fantastic atmosphere
24:13on the footplate
24:14because they know
24:15what's ahead of them.
24:17They said
24:18this is it
24:19this is what
24:19we're going for.
24:20I think it must have
24:21been absolutely
24:22brilliant
24:23and then you come
24:24through T-Bay
24:25on the whistle
24:26you know
24:28shooting through.
24:32It's sobering
24:33to just think
24:34about what's happening
24:35with the steam locomotive
24:36on these
24:37high speed runs.
24:39The amount of coal
24:41that these guys
24:42had to shovel
24:42when the locomotive
24:44is performing
24:44up Shapp
24:46it just goes
24:47on and on
24:49and the shoveling
24:50never stops.
24:53Because of this
24:54awesome furnace
24:55that had to be fed
25:09the amount of
25:10physical effort
25:12required
25:12is phenomenal.
25:14You never saw
25:15a fat fireman.
25:17They were all
25:18wiry men.
25:18They were never
25:19promoted to drivers
25:20until they were
25:21past their physical best.
25:22And for all
25:24the power
25:25of the engine
25:25you're being
25:26worn down
25:27you know
25:27it's wearing you down.
25:30It's only when
25:31you climb them
25:31on the footplate
25:33of a steam locomotive
25:34then you realise
25:35what's going on
25:37on those hills
25:38and they bring
25:39even the most
25:41able steam locomotive
25:42to its knees.
25:45But Princess Elizabeth
25:46was more than
25:47a match for Shapp
25:48reaching Glasgow
25:49in just under
25:50six hours.
25:52She returned
25:52the next day
25:53even faster.
25:56Maintaining
25:56an average speed
25:57of 70 miles per hour
25:58for 400 miles
26:00it was an
26:01astonishing achievement
26:02and a personal
26:03triumph for
26:04William Stanier.
26:05The LNER
26:06now faced
26:07some serious
26:07competition.
26:10The LMS
26:11had shown
26:11what its locomotives
26:12could do
26:13but speed
26:14was not enough.
26:15They had to
26:16look the part
26:16and the LMS
26:18knew that meant
26:18streamlining.
26:23The engineers
26:24on the LMS
26:26really were
26:27very reticent
26:28about putting
26:29streamlining on
26:30but they did it
26:32because the LNER
26:32had done it
26:33and you couldn't
26:34be left behind
26:35in that sphere.
26:39The new train
26:40would be launched
26:41in 1937
26:42linking London
26:43and Glasgow
26:44in six and a half hours.
26:45to maintain
26:47the royal theme
26:48it would be called
26:49the Coronation Scott
26:50in honour of
26:51Britain's new king
26:52George VI.
26:58But amid the
26:59celebrations
26:59there were other
27:00headlines.
27:02Adolf Hitler
27:02was not only
27:03making the trains
27:04run on time
27:04he was rearming.
27:07There was even
27:08talk of a possible
27:09war.
27:11Britain badly
27:12needed some good
27:13news
27:13and the railways
27:14were determined
27:15to mark the
27:15Coronation
27:16in style.
27:20The LMS
27:21began building
27:22its new
27:22streamliner.
27:24The locomotives
27:25designed by
27:25William Stanier
27:26were an even
27:27more powerful
27:28version of his
27:29original design.
27:32It's fairly well
27:33known that the
27:34design team
27:35were given
27:36the brief
27:36put the
27:37biggest set
27:38of wheels
27:38underneath
27:38the biggest
27:39boiler
27:39to the maximum
27:40size loading
27:41gauge you can
27:42and see what
27:43we come up
27:43with.
27:45What they came
27:46up with
27:46was Britain's
27:47most powerful
27:48express locomotive.
27:51Officially
27:51they were the
27:52Princess
27:52Coronation
27:53class
27:54but most
27:54railway men
27:55knew them
27:56as the
27:56Duchesses.
28:01In its
28:01gleaming blue
28:02paintwork
28:03the first
28:03locomotive
28:04was rolled
28:04out of the
28:05crew works
28:05in May
28:061937
28:07for the
28:08benefit
28:08of the
28:08newsreel
28:09cameras.
28:11Before an
28:11admiring
28:12crowd
28:12the
28:12Coronation
28:13Scott
28:13the LMS
28:14contribution
28:15to improved
28:15travel in
28:16coronation
28:16year
28:16takes her
28:17bow.
28:18As a
28:18debutante
28:19she makes
28:19a great
28:19impression
28:20a streamlined
28:20figure
28:21proof of
28:21what can
28:22be done
28:22if a
28:23girl wants
28:23to be
28:23faster than
28:2370 miles
28:24an hour.
28:25And this
28:26is the
28:26Duchess
28:27I mean
28:27this
28:27that's
28:28the
28:28ultimate
28:29locomotive
28:30in my
28:31mind
28:31there's
28:32no doubt
28:32about it
28:33the
28:33ultimate
28:34got to
28:35be a
28:35Duchess
28:35out of
28:36Euston
28:37fantastic
28:38things.
28:39And her
28:40creator
28:40Mr.
28:40Stanier
28:41looks well
28:41pleased.
28:43In fact
28:44Stanier
28:45regarded the
28:46streamlining
28:46as little
28:47more than
28:47a marketing
28:47gimmick
28:48he knew
28:49it made
28:49little
28:49difference
28:50to
28:50performance.
29:09And to
29:10remind the
29:11travelling
29:11public
29:11just how
29:12far the
29:12modern
29:12railway
29:13had
29:13come
29:13the
29:14London
29:14Midlands
29:15staged
29:15another
29:15photo
29:16opportunity
29:16for the
29:17cameras.
29:18Their
29:18oldest
29:18locomotive
29:19built
29:19in
29:191838
29:20running
29:21beside
29:22the
29:22Coronation
29:23built
29:23in
29:231911
29:24and
29:25their
29:25newest
29:25locomotive
29:26the
29:26streamlined
29:27Coronation
29:28Scott
29:28of
29:281937.
29:32It all
29:33got a bit
29:33confusing
29:33but the
29:34message was
29:34clear.
29:35The
29:36LMS
29:36was now
29:36every bit
29:37as modern
29:37and stylish
29:38as the
29:39LNER.
29:43It was
29:43something new
29:44wasn't it
29:44and it
29:45stood out
29:46and on
29:47top of
29:47that
29:47all the
29:48coaches
29:48were there
29:49to match
29:49it looked
29:50lovely.
29:50Once they
29:51get on
29:51one
29:52to fire
29:53it
29:53and eventually
29:54drive it
29:56nothing nicer
29:58nothing nicer
29:59it took
29:59your breath
29:59away.
30:01On the
30:0229th of
30:03June
30:031937
30:04the
30:05Coronation
30:05Scott
30:06Scott
30:06made its
30:06inaugural
30:06press
30:07run.
30:14100
30:15journalists
30:15and railway
30:16officials
30:16took part
30:17in a test
30:18run from
30:18Euston to
30:19Crewe and
30:19back
30:19that provided
30:20such an
30:21orgy of
30:21speed
30:21as has
30:22never
30:22before
30:23been
30:23indulged
30:23in
30:24over
30:24LMS
30:24metals.
30:26It was
30:26an orgy
30:27they would
30:27remember
30:28for the
30:28rest of
30:28their lives.
30:30The LMS
30:30now set
30:31out to
30:31beat the
30:32speed record
30:32on the
30:33downhill run
30:34into Crewe
30:34but they
30:35were taking
30:35a big risk.
30:39from 85
30:40miles an
30:41hour
30:41the speed
30:42rose quickly
30:42to 100
30:43faster yet
30:44and faster
30:45eating up
30:46the miles
30:46102
30:47105
30:48108
30:49and she's
30:50still
30:50accelerating.
30:52Crewe
30:52station
30:53and a
30:5325
30:54miles per
30:54hour
30:54speed limit
30:55were fast
30:56approaching
30:56but the
30:57record was
30:57still not
30:58in the
30:58bag.
31:00The
31:01rhythm of
31:01the exhaust
31:02grows
31:02stronger
31:03faster
31:03112.5
31:05miles an
31:06hour
31:06for two
31:06miles.
31:07smoothly
31:08surging
31:08over the
31:08metals.
31:09A supreme
31:10effort
31:11and
31:11coronation
31:12has done
31:12it.
31:13114
31:14miles an
31:14hour
31:14the highest
31:15speed yet
31:16attained
31:16in the
31:17empire.
31:18With only
31:19two miles
31:19left to
31:20run
31:20the brakes
31:21were slammed
31:21on but
31:22the heavy
31:23train was
31:23going much
31:23too fast
31:24for safety.
31:29As the
31:29train shot
31:30into the
31:30station yard
31:31with sparks
31:32streaming
31:32from its
31:32brakes it
31:33was still
31:34doing almost
31:3460 miles
31:35an hour.
31:35as it
31:37hit the
31:37sharply
31:37curving
31:38track
31:38leading
31:38into the
31:39platform
31:39the
31:40locomotive
31:40lurched
31:41wildly.
31:45It stayed
31:46on the
31:46track
31:46but only
31:48just.
31:57the
31:58accounts
31:59of it
31:59sound
32:00dreadful
32:01when you
32:01read it
32:02and your
32:02toes curl
32:03up because
32:03clearly
32:04their enthusiasm
32:05had run away
32:06with them
32:06and they'd not
32:07appreciated
32:08that going
32:09for the
32:09record means
32:10going for
32:11record stopping
32:11distances
32:12and they
32:13nearly came
32:13to grief
32:14and so
32:15what we
32:16saw at
32:16the time
32:16was
32:17interestingly
32:17not the
32:18near
32:18disaster
32:19you read
32:20that the
32:21LMS
32:21got the
32:22record
32:22the 114
32:25the LMS
32:26had wrested
32:27the crown
32:27if you like
32:28from the
32:29LNER
32:29with its run
32:30of 114
32:31miles an hour
32:32which was a
32:32startling thing
32:33to have done
32:34it was not
32:34a one horse
32:35race
32:35there's no
32:36question of
32:36that
32:36the LNER
32:37did have
32:37competition
32:40in six and a half
32:41hours the
32:41Coronation Express
32:42can reach Glasgow
32:43a steel arrow
32:44whistling its way
32:45across the land
32:49today mankind
32:50thrives on speed
32:54but the near
32:55disaster at Crewe
32:56had demonstrated
32:57the dangers
32:57of record breaking
32:58and the rival
32:59companies declared
33:00an uneasy truce
33:03speed records
33:04grabbed the
33:04headlines
33:05and filled
33:05the trains
33:06but one accident
33:07could ruin
33:08everything
33:11the battle
33:12switched to
33:12providing the
33:13best service
33:14at a safer
33:15speed
33:19the streamlined
33:20trains were a
33:21huge hit
33:22with the
33:22travelling public
33:23and the LNER
33:25added two more
33:26services
33:26to Leeds
33:27and Edinburgh
33:29plus a new
33:30livery of
33:31two-tone blue
33:33as the
33:33streamliners
33:34clocked up
33:34the miles
33:35they transformed
33:36the popular
33:37view of rail
33:37travel
33:38these futuristic
33:39flyers made it
33:40all look so easy
33:42but the reality
33:43was still a world
33:44of grit
33:45and grime
33:46and exhausting
33:47physical labour
33:52for underneath the
33:53glamorous exterior
33:54they were still
33:55coal-fired steam
33:57engines
33:57demanding very special
33:59qualities from the
34:00men who worked
34:00them
34:02they were proud
34:03of their machine
34:05they took a pride
34:06in their job
34:07and it was she
34:08there was no it
34:10drivers would have
34:12their own locomotive
34:13even
34:13and if they'd
34:16have been allowed
34:16I'm sure they'd
34:17have taken her
34:17home to bed
34:18with them
34:19I'm fired for
34:20drivers which are
34:21big men
34:22could be rough
34:23men
34:23but with a locomotive
34:25they were so
34:26genteel
34:27and of course
34:28they'd say
34:28come on Mary
34:29and they'd say
34:30perhaps we've got
34:30there
34:31we've done it
34:31didn't we Mary
34:32and he'd be talking
34:34come on love
34:36these locomotives
34:37have characters
34:38if you handle them
34:39too heavily
34:40they won't do
34:41what you want
34:41so they need
34:42that tender
34:44touch as it were
34:45from the driver
34:46and these chaps
34:47who spent a lifetime
34:48on the footplate
34:49had got that
34:49it's an immense skill
34:55when he had spent
34:56a lifetime
34:56learning the job
34:58memorised every rule
34:59in the book
35:00every signal
35:01and every yard
35:02of the track
35:03the top link driver
35:04was ready to take
35:06the streamliner
35:06to Scotland
35:21running the record
35:22breaking streamlined
35:23trains of the 1930s
35:24was a round-the-clock
35:25operation
35:27the preparations
35:28for a high-speed run
35:29to Scotland
35:29began long before
35:31the driver got
35:31the starting signal
35:33like the finest
35:34thoroughbreds
35:35the streamlined icons
35:36of the steam age
35:37needed a lot of
35:38coaxing into action
35:41fires need coal
35:42and the coal needs
35:43to be shoveled
35:44and the tender
35:44needs to be filled
35:45and the coal stockpile
35:47needs to be topped up
35:48so it's a massive
35:49train of events
35:51to actually
35:52get to the point
35:53where you're ready
35:54to move the locomotive
35:55one yard
35:56never mind
35:57400 miles
36:00it may have been
36:01only a machine
36:02but the express steam
36:04locomotive
36:04wove a powerful spell
36:06on all those
36:07who entered its world
36:12there the locomotive
36:13stands on the shed
36:14in the cold
36:15and the dark
36:17and you've got
36:19to bring it
36:20to life
36:21when you've got
36:23150 tons plus
36:26of cold steel
36:28and cold water
36:30it's a very cold
36:33inert
36:34object
36:41but
36:42you light the first match
36:44the first piece of paper
36:45the first oily rag
36:47get the wood burning
36:49gradually get a bit
36:49of coal burning
36:50and eventually
36:51have two tons
36:52of coal burning
36:53at once
36:54that cold inert
36:56object is transformed
36:57into a living
36:58moving
36:59steaming
37:00hissing
37:01machine
37:06the person
37:08that
37:08lights
37:09the fire
37:10brings it
37:11to life
37:12it's like
37:14waking
37:14giant up
37:30and then
37:32the way
37:32the giant
37:33runs the race
37:34depends on
37:35how it's handled
37:40it's a living thing
37:41it's not just like
37:42a car
37:43where you turn
37:43a key
37:44and away you go
37:46it's a work of art
37:48a work of engineering
37:49art
37:50if you are not
37:51master of the locomotive
37:52the locomotive
37:53will be master of you
37:55and that's an awesome
37:56position to find yourself in
38:10you must never be afraid
38:11of it locomotive
38:12you mustn't be frightened
38:14of them
38:14you must
38:15master that machine
38:16you must
38:18and that's the way
38:19to look at it
38:29it was a thrill
38:30it was a thrill
38:32and at the end of the day
38:33when you'd done it
38:33it was an achievement
38:36I'd been
38:36that little fella
38:38controlling
38:39terrific power
38:40terrific power
38:41and doing a good job
38:42of it
38:43and it was awesome
38:50the steam engine
38:52is fire
38:52in fact
38:54the steam engine
38:55is earth
38:56air
38:56fire and water
38:57it's elemental
39:14the whole thing's
39:15on the move
39:15it's a quite terrifying
39:17thing in a way
39:18because the machine
39:19is flexing
39:21and you can feel it
39:22flexing under your feet
39:25you've got
39:263,000 degrees
39:28fahrenheit
39:29in that firebox
39:30and the only reason
39:32why the firebox
39:32doesn't melt
39:33is because there's water
39:34on the other side
39:35sucking the heat through
39:45there is nothing more
39:47exciting than
39:48being on a steam locomotive
39:50at speed
39:50awesome
39:52absolutely awesome
39:52unlimited power
39:54absolutely unlimited
40:02the thought of doing
40:03a hundred miles an hour
40:04on one of these
40:05just puts the hairs
40:05up on your neck
40:07it's excitement
40:08beyond belief
40:27a driver was somebody
40:29who everybody looked up to
40:30because they knew
40:32it was a lifetime's work
40:33to get on the principal
40:34express of the day
40:38it was equivalent to
40:39being a Concorde pilot
40:40today
40:42they knew
40:43they were good
40:44at what they did
40:46and this is going to make you
40:47feel good inside
40:49isn't it
40:49I'm a skillful man
40:51you know
40:54and of course
40:55if everything's going all right
40:56there's nothing nicer
40:57because on my job
40:59whether it be hail, rain
41:01frost or snow
41:02it's been beautiful
41:03you were there
41:04and even mother nature
41:06was looking on her
41:07saying
41:07well they're not doing so bad
41:09those two lads today
41:09are they
41:10she's going all right
41:28most of the passengers
41:29knew nothing
41:30of the heroic battle
41:31taking place
41:32on the locomotive
41:33they weren't meant to
41:35all they needed to know
41:36was that their journey
41:37was comfortable
41:38and fast
41:38a lot faster
41:39and a lot more comfortable
41:41than going by road
41:47a streamlined express train
41:49was clearly the only way
41:51to travel
41:54it was a triumph of marketing
41:56a long train journey
41:58behind a machine
41:59born out of the Victorian age
42:00of steam, smoke and smuts
42:02had been magically transformed
42:04into a glamorous
42:05and thoroughly modern
42:06experience
42:14experience
42:15but the old rivalry
42:16was still simmering away
42:17on the LNER
42:19Nigel Gresley
42:20was building up
42:20a head of steam
42:21for the next move
42:22in the speed contest
42:26Gresley
42:27Gresley couldn't let the LMS
42:28keep the record
42:29of 114
42:30it was a matter
42:31of corporate pride
42:32and Gresley
42:34asked one of his staff
42:35do you think we could run
42:36faster than the LMS
42:38and that was clearly seen
42:40as an instruction
42:41there's no option
42:42about it at all
42:45on the 3rd of July 1938
42:47the streamliner Mallard
42:49was booked to carry out
42:50a high speed brake test
42:52on the East Coast mainline
42:53engineers were on board
42:55the train
42:55to record her performance
42:59they picked Mallard
43:01because it was
43:01five months old
43:03five years old
43:04and it would have been
43:04slack and worn
43:05five days old
43:07and it would have been
43:07tight
43:08five months old
43:09it's just at its best
43:13as driver Duddington
43:15gave Mallard her head
43:16the speed rose steadily
43:18past the magic
43:19100 miles per hour figure
43:20all on board
43:22realised
43:22that this was going
43:23to be something special
43:27as the train
43:28bucked and swayed
43:29the speed recorder
43:30crept past the record
43:31114 miles an hour mark
43:37now Mallard
43:38was into uncharted territory
43:41but she was not
43:42finished yet
43:43going flat out
43:45she reached
43:45120
43:462 miles a minute
43:48and for one
43:50brief moment
43:51the speed touched
43:52126 miles per hour
43:55a new world record
43:57for steam locomotion
44:02it was steam's finest hour
44:05it was about prestige
44:07it was about
44:08trying to make people
44:10feel good
44:10about the country
44:11about the railway
44:12and it was done
44:15with great panache
44:19the LNER were out in front
44:21once more
44:21it was time for the LMS
44:23to fight back
44:24with yet another
44:25publicity stunt
44:28the Coronation Scott
44:29is the pride
44:30of Britain's railways
44:31so today
44:31100 tons
44:32of the finest work
44:33of British engineers
44:34is en route
44:35for a 3,000 mile tour
44:36of the US
44:36before going on show
44:37at the New York World Fair
44:39so here's good luck
44:41to the Coronation Scott
44:42off to show them
44:43what we can do
44:43in the way
44:44of modern transport
44:48but in America
44:49the Coronation Scott
44:51met the future
44:51and the future
44:53was diesel
44:56the British train
44:57was much admired
44:58but even the most
44:59aerodynamic streamlining
45:00couldn't hide the truth
45:03it was a steam locomotive
45:05and in America
45:06steam was fast
45:08becoming history
45:10but all thoughts
45:11of modernizing
45:12Britain's railway system
45:13came to an abrupt halt
45:15on the 3rd of September 1939
45:16as the railways
45:18went to war
45:26competition and progress
45:27were replaced
45:28by austerity
45:29and unity
45:29as the LMS
45:30and the LNER
45:31joined forces
45:32to help defeat Hitler
45:39one of the first casualties
45:41was luxury travel
45:43the special coaches
45:44were put into store
45:45and the streamliners
45:46now had to haul
45:47whatever was required
45:48to help win the war
45:55streamlined casing
45:56was stripped off
45:57image didn't matter anymore
45:59and removing it
46:00made life easier
46:01for the fitters
46:05when victory finally came
46:07after six long years
46:08everything changed
46:12the run-down railway system
46:14was nationalized
46:15and steam was replaced
46:17by diesel
46:17and electric trains
46:20road traffic increased
46:22while the railways declined
46:30today's basic railway
46:31is a shadow
46:32of the pre-war network
46:33and the luxury streamliners
46:35of the 1930s
46:36are a distant memory
46:40but the routes
46:41they traveled on
46:41still carry some of
46:42Britain's fastest trains
46:44and privatization
46:45has reawoken
46:46old rivalries
46:49on the east coast
46:50GNER evoked the spirit
46:52of the 1930s
46:53keeping alive the name
46:55of the Flying Scotsman
46:59The Flying Scotsman
47:00did evoke the idea
47:02of great speed
47:04we have one service a day
47:07which actually does
47:08Edinburgh, London
47:10in three hours and 59 minutes
47:12and when the old Flying Scotsman
47:15was running
47:16you were talking
47:16more like six and a half hours
47:22On the west coast
47:24Virgin promotes a futuristic image
47:26with the Pendolino
47:27tilting train
47:28Virgin wants to be associated
47:30with being modern
47:31fast, different
47:31I think the Pendolino
47:33captures that beautifully
47:34it does look a sleek
47:36Concorde on the railway
47:37the service on the train
47:39is different
47:40it's younger people
47:41it's a faster service
47:42the style is different
47:43and let's enjoy the difference
47:49Although Mallard's record
47:50was never broken
47:51by a steam locomotive
47:52the modern streamlined trains
47:54do it on a daily basis
47:55but nothing can quite
47:58recapture the romance
47:59of the steam age
48:00when Britain's streamliners
48:01ruled the rails
48:02and led the world
48:04A few people
48:33and the pilots
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