Description

With the last steam engine ever to be built for British Rail amongst their numbers, the class 9F heavy freight 2-10-0s were bound to achieve celebrity status right from the start.

The 9Fs were the last of the new BR Standards designs and first appeared in 1954. After some initial teething problems had been ironed out, the 9Fs quickly won acclaim and went on to become the most successful of all the standard classes in fact, amongst the best of the whole long line of British steam locomotives.

The 9Fs were the most numerous of all the Standard designs, with 251 built.

– Using a careful blend of unique archive film and copntemporary video footage, we take a close look at the history and working life of these handsome machines, including many typical jobs the class became associated with such as the heavy Consett iron ore services and Long Meg to Widnes anhydrite trains that once ran along the Settle to Carlisle line.

– As well as featuring each of the restored 9Fs in action, there’s an interview with David Shepherd the famous painter and owner of Black Prince.

– Produced with the full co-operation of the National Railway Museum and presented by Nigel Harris, Steam Railway’s Managing Editor, this informative programme is a great chance to learn about one of the most popular steam loco classes ever produced.