Today (Friday 24 February), marks 100 years since Flying Scotsman set off on its first journey from the sheds at Doncaster Works. Now a national treasure, Flying Scotsman is a star attraction in the collection of the National Railway Museum (part of the Science Museum Group) in York, where it is a working museum exhibit.
In a new poem released today – The Making of Flying Scotsman – UK Poet Laureate Simon Armitage has paid homage to the celebrity engine, a feat of British design and engineering which has inspired a love of rail in generations of families and become synonymous with the golden-age of rail travel. Commenting on the inspiration behind his new work, Simon Armitage said: “Flying Scotsman is a poem. I just had to write it down.”
The Making of Flying Scotsman is now on display as part of Flying Scotsman: 100 Years, 100 Voices, a new exhibition at the National Railway Museum, which launched on 10 February 2023 and showcases the legacy of the locomotive through the lives it has touched.
In its latest excursion – following a new lick of paint – Flying Scotsman today surprised travellers at Edinburgh Waverley station where it made a fleeting appearance. To mark the occasion, Simon Armitage read The Making of Flying Scotsman whilst dancers from the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society performed ‘The Flying Scotsman’, devised by Hugh Thurston in 1966. The event was rounded off with a performance from Celtic rock band, the Red Hot Chilli Pipers.
Also announced today are a series of new Scottish events, including two main line excursions and a heritage railway visit. Details of these and all centenary events can be found here. The Flying Scotsman centenary programme has been generously supported by Hornby Hobbies and has also been made possible thanks to the National Heritage Memorial Fund.
Those unable to see the locomotive on its centenary tour have the opportunity to experience Flying Scotsman through exhibitions including Flying Scotsman: 100 Years, 100 Voices, Flying Scotsman VR and with collectible memorabilia available from the Science Museum shop.
Judith McNicol, Director of the National Railway Museum, said:
“Edinburgh Waverley is a fitting location to mark the centenary of the world’s most famous express passenger locomotive. It was here that Flying Scotsman completed its record-breaking, non-stop journey between London and Edinburgh in 1928 and Edinburgh is also the birthplace of Sir Nigel Gresley, Flying Scotsman’s designer. Today, Flying Scotsman is an undoubted star of the National Railway Museum’s collection and is recognised around the world as a triumph of British ingenuity and engineering.
“Flying Scotsman will now spend the rest of the year travelling across the country to give people the chance to see the engine for themselves and to take part in this special anniversary, from free static displays to rail tours to the Centenary Festival at Locomotion.”
Image credit:
