We wish all of our members and visitors to our web site a very happy 2026 and thank our members for your continued support throughout 2025.
We have designed a freely downloadable printable calendar reflecting the Vintage Trains tours with both steam and diesel traction throughout the year, although we couldn’t quite get them to match up by month unfortunately. The January 2026 image showing the running shed as Tyseley Locomotive Depot begins the year carrying out a planned winter maintenance programme is shown here. Please have a look and do download and print it as a reminder of the wide range of tours that Vintage Trains offer throughout the year.
Other recent highlights of Friends activities, with a link in each case to more details, include:
- Neil Ewart, the Friends’ Social Events organiser, is suggesting a gentle start to 2026 with a meet up at The London and North Western (Wetherspoons) pub at Grand Central, New Street Station. So if you fancy chewing the cud then Neil plans to be there at 12 noon on Thursday 5 February. Just turn up and chat.
- Our 2026 Annual General Meeting will be held on Sunday 22 March 2026 at the Tyseley Working Mens Club. We have confirmed that there will be no clash with the Vintage Trains Community Benefit Society AGM for this and future AGMs. The AGM will be followed by a complimentary buffet lunch and a talk by Anthony Coulls, Senior Curator of Rail Transport and Technology at the National Railway Museum, York, who will give us his reflections on Rail200.
To help us plan the day, especially for the catering, please complete our Expression of Interest form linked from the AGM page to let us know if you will be joining us. - Our next social will be on Wednesday 25 March at Henley Station. As you may recall we were fortunate to hold film screenings at the Electric Cinema in Birmingham and were sad when that wonderful, historic, building closed its doors for the final time in February 2024. With the help of our friends at Henley Station we are planning a morning showing of the 1955 Ealing Studios film ‘The Lady Killers’ in the brilliantly restored station building at Henley Station on Wednesday, 25 March. Numbers will be limited so, on this occasion, it will be a Members’ only event … another reason to become a Member. Contact Neil Ewart directly on 07805 817711 or email neilewart88@gmail.com for more details and to book your place.
- Our social on 4 September 2025 at the Kidderminster Rail Museum featured John Austen from the Guild of Railway Artists in conversation with Les Ross, well known to many of our members. This turned out to be a most lively and entertaining couple of hours, continued over a complimentary buffet followed by an opportunity to visit the exhibition by the Guild of Railway Artists that was held on the same day.
- Thanks to Geoff Middleton and Peter Jeffs the current Stock List and In The Works List and are always available on our Publications page.
- A low-resolution copy of the Spring 2025 edition (Issue 56) of Steam in Trust is now available from the publications page. Steam in Trust is the Friends’ flagship publication, circulated in printed copy to all members twice a year – the low-resolution on-line copy of Steam in Trust is made available on this site once the printed current issue has been circulated to members, although reading on-line or printing the PDF cannot reflect the quality of the printed publication. If you are not a member of the Friends please have a look at this and consider if receiving a high-quality printed copy, and other benefits, would warrant the modest membership fee.
- Chris Schroeder has contributed a video that he took of a VT run up the Lickey on 14 October 2001 with a pannier banking. The video quality is not the best but the sound is very good.
This video was filmed in 2001 and you will notice that there were many heads and shoulders leaning out of the door droplight windows of the coaches. Back in the early days of the 21st century when this video was shot the ‘Do not lean out of the window or open this door when the train is moving’ notices on every door were often ignored, especially on steam hauled excursions.
You will not see any heads leaning out of windows on today’s excursions. The Office of Rail Regulation has put in place specific rules for mainline excursions using carriages which have doors with opening windows prohibiting passengers leaning out of opening windows or standing in coach end vestibules near to doors. These rules are strictly enforced by Train Operating Companies such as Vintage Trains Ltd;.Vintage Trains have updated all of their carriages to enforce compliance with these regulations. - The volunteer Archivist for Vintage Trains has kindly agreed to provide articles based on items in the Tyseley archives that will, we hope, be of interest to all members of the Friends. These can be found on our publications page.
Please revisit this page for updates on these, and other, events for the Friends.
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This page was last updated on 31 January 2026