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8 September 2006The timetable for the Thomas Weekend is now online. Click here for details of the event. 4 September 2006Due to cancellations of bookings, there are now several spaces on the Murder Mystery trains on 14 and 28 October, which have previously been marked as full. For another chance to book on these very popular trains, click here to buy tickets online or telephone Sheringham office on 01263 820800. 30 August 2006Our Driver Experience Days are now available for booking via our online shop. Only a few slots are still available for 2006 so book now to avoid disappointment. Driver Experience Days are just one of the bookings available online now. Our successful online shop also provides facilities to purchase advanced tickets for standard days or Special Events, as well as souvenirs, books and DVDs. Further products will be available in the coming months, including special offers and price reductions. Click here to access the shop. With the summer season now drawing to a close, our attention is turning towards the Special Events happening in the next few months. See our Special Events pages for details. 24 August 2006The William Marriott Museum was officially opened on 24 August 2006. This new attraction at Holt Station was opened by two of William Marriott's granddaughters, Sheila Malkin and Anne Fenner. In the audience were Gabriel and Willow Fenner, Marriott's great-great-grandchildren. Anne Fenner, who is nearly 80, rode on the footplate of the WD from Holt to Sheringham, fulfilling a lifelong ambition. Anne and Sheila were interviewed for BBC Radio Norfolk. The museum is now open every day that trains are running. Entry is £1 for Adults and 50p for Children. For more information, visit the museum website. Also, our online shop now has advanced tickets available for the October Steam Gala. They are available here. 20 August 2006Further details about the Thomas Weekend are now available here. In addition, it is now possible to purchase tickets for the Thomas Weekend and 1940s Weekend, as well as standard rover tickets, in advance online, via our Online Shop. 18 August 2006The North Norfolk Railway is pleased to announce plans for a visiting locomotive at this year's Steam Gala. British Railways 4MT Standard Tank 2-6-4T No 80135 from the North Yorkshire Moors Railway is due to visit the NNR for the three days of the Steam Gala, 6-8 October. This is one of many features planned to make the 2006 event bigger and better than previous years. Full details of the Steam Gala will be published here, as and when available. 13 August 2006The summer season has seen varying passenger numbers so far, possibly affected by the ever-changing British weather! And here's the proof! These pictures were taken on 2 August at Sheringham Station. The carnival can be seen in background of some shots. The canival procession in the evening was postponed and the flooding in Sheringham made the news...it's not hard to see why...
Next door in the carriage shed, the Gresley Buffet Car is looking good as painting and repairs continue. Tourist Second Open M4843 has been withdrawn from traffic for repairs and a repaint. At Holt, the William Marriott Museum is due to open in the next few weeks, adding a valuable asset to the railway. This is one of several projects that has been partially funded by grants. 6 August 2006
Further details of the 1940s weekend are now available in our new leaflet. This publication is available on the 1940s Weekend page along with other information about the event. Details of the event on the Saturday evening are now available on this page and in the leaflet. The What's Running page is now back online, showing provisional locomotive allocations for the coming week. You can view it here. 1 August 2006The official press release for the 2006 Beer Festival is now available: POPPY LINE BEER FESTIVAL RECORD: OVER 5,000 PINTS SUNK 5045 pints were drunk over the three days of the 5th Poppy Line Beer Festival (July 14th - 17th), breaking last year's record performance by over 68 gallons. 73 different brews were on offer in the special marquee at Sheringham Station, all priced at £2.30 a pint. The Front Street Brewery, based in The Chequers at Binham, brewed a special ale to mark the Poppy Line's award as Independent Railway of the Year: the aptly named Winner proved a firm favourite with the punters. The award was presented on the Saturday morning by David Allan, chairman of National Railway Heritage Awards sponsors Ian Allan Publishing, who toasted the Railway's success with a pint of Winner. Brian Chambers and Nessa Pritchard, Festival organisers, said: "It really was a terrific event, and I'd like to thank all those who made it such a success - particularly Duncan Ward of Wolf Brewery at Attleborough, Steve Chroscicki of Front Street and Norwich CAMRA." The Festival marked the start of the Poppy Line's high-season
programme, which features a steam train from Sheringham to
Holt and back every 45 minutes every day. 23 July 2006A number of events have happened on the railway over the last few weeks. Firstly our Vintage Transport Festival was held on 9 July. Our visitors seemed to enjoy this event and there was a good turn out of vehicles, as seen in these photographs. Next year's event is scheduled for 8 July.
In the evening of 19 July, the Midland & Great Northern Joint Railway Society's newly restored "Pigeon Van" was launched. The teak-bodied, 1929 built vehicle looked resplendent as it carried Her Majesty's "Royal Pigeons", which are based at Sandringham, from Sheringham to Holt. They were then released so that they could fly home! There are more photographs of this event here.
The What's Running page of this website has been temporarily removed. This is because I am away for the next week and unable to update this information and we would prefer not to publish out-of-date loco schedules. The page will be reinstated at the start of August. 16 July 2006
The annual Beer Festival was held at Sheringham Station this weekend. Early indications show it was a successful event. 2 July 2006Further products have been added to the Online Shop. Currently tickets for Santa Specials, Murder Mysteries and the Carol Concert can be purchased online, as well as Books, DVDs and Souvenirs. Please note that we are still expanding our Online Shop and we apologise that not all of our products are available at present.Details of the Carol Concert on 15 December are now available here. We apologise that Weybourne webcam is currently offline. This is due to vandalism of the equipment. We hope to have it repaired as soon as possible. Rail engineering contractor Balfour Beatty Rail Plant has donated a TRAMM (Track Renewal and Maintenance Machine) to the North Norfolk Poppy Line. Recently retired from work on Network Rail's infrastructure, the 10-year-old TRAMM will substantially ease the work of the volunteers who maintain the track from Sheringham to Holt. The TRAMM will retain the blue and white Balfour Beatty Rail livery and will soon become a familiar sight up and down the line.
Jim Nabarro added: "I'm enormously impressed by the enthusiasm and dedication of the Poppy Line volunteers. It's great to see the TRAMM going to a railway where it will be worked and cared for to professional engineering standards." The Poppy Line holds the accolade of Independent Railway of the Year from the National Railway Heritage Awards. Balfour Beatty's TRAMM will help it keep a winning track record. 26 June 2006The North Norfolk Railway is pleased to be launching an Online Shop. Many products such as tickets for Special Events, books, DVDs and souvenirs can now be purchased online. The Shop can be accessed by clicking the link on the top navigation bar. We hope that some of you will find purchasing tickets easier via this method. Comments and feedback are always welcome at webmaster@nnrailway.co.uk. Happy shopping!
21 June 2006Progress has steadily continued on the railway over the last month. Starting with the Locomotive department, N7 69621 has recently been outshopped after repairs in its smart new paint scheme of British Railways Lined Black. This livery was chosen by railway enthusiasts who voted in a Steam Railway magazine poll. Diesel Railbus E79960 has also recently been repaired and has been 'running-in' between some service trains. It visited the Llangollen Railway for their Railcar Gala on 10 - 11 June. The Carriage & Wagon department have been busy with the continuing overhaul of Gresley Buffet Car 51769. They have also recently swapped the wheelsets on the Dining Train's Kitchen Car, Brake Gangway M81033.
4 June 2006Quite a lot of news this time, after the busy Bank Holiday weekend. Firstly, the NNR is pleased to announce the visiting engine for the summer of 2006 will be American built Class S160 2-8-0 number 5197. It was built in Lima, Ohio, for the US Army Transportation
Corps (USATC) in 1944. It wears the black livery of the USATC. The loco weighs 135 tons and has a 5-chime Nathan whistle. Engines of this class were used in the build-up of forces for the D-Day invasion of France. The engine is resident on the Churnet Valley Railway, and will be on the NNR from 1 August for the rest of the season. The engine is currently visiting the Swanage Railway and there are some good photographs of it in its new black livery on their website. Click here to view them. Secondly, the NNR will be operating a special train on the 30 June for a Cheese & Wine Party. The event is being organised by the All Saints Church in Upper Sheringham to raise money for their roof repair fund. The evening will start at 18.30 with the train departing Sheringham Station at 19.15. The steam hauled service will travel to Holt and back, stopping at Weybourne Station for entertainment by Stalham Brass Band. The tickets must be purchased in advance and cost £10.00 per person. They can be booked via Sheringham Office on 01263 820800. Payment must be by cash or cheque (payable to "All Saints Church Upper Sheringham P.C.C."). An additional Driver Experience day has been opened up on 13 October. Click here for current availability. 21 May 2006
Class 37 D6732 is continuing to have its bodywork replaced and repaired, whilst mechanical work goes on inside. Work is also continuing on BoB Class 34081 92 Squadron and N7 69621. The Driving Wheels of B12 61572 have recently been painted and the current estimated return to service date for 92 Squadron and the B12 is the end of July.
Alongside this carriage in the shed is fellow Dining Train
vehicle Gresley Buffet 51769. This is having much needed attention
to its bodywork, with many beams Both of these vehicles are due to be outshopped next month, in time for the first Murder Mystery of the year. One carriage that has recently been outshopped is BR Mark 1 Tourist Second Open E3868. This re-entered service on 20 May and is seen here looking resplendent in its new paintwork.
16 May 2006A new page is online giving details of the Routemaster Bus services. These will operate between Holt Station and Holt Town Centre. Click here for full details. 12 May 2006We are pleased to announce the launch of a new webcam at Weybourne Station! This much-requested piece of equipment makes use of wireless technology to show images of the Station at 30 second intervals. To view the webcams please click here. Enjoy! 9 May 2006
Sheringham Station is undergoing a repaint and general tidy up. A new "hands-on" children's activity area has been opened in the teak carriage in platform 3 by the Education department. This will help teach our younger visitors about the workings of the railway and its locomotives.
The general clear up of the site has been continuing, with the moving of carriage spares to a more suitable location.
2 May 2006The Murder Mystery on 24 June is now also fully booked. 26 April 2006A new page has been uploaded listing all the carriages on the NNR, showing their current status. Click here to view it. 24 April 2006The Murder Mystery page has been updated. The 14 October train is now fully booked. There is also a questionnaire online to allow visitors to provide feedback about this website. Please help us improve the site by taking the time to complete the questionnaire. 21 April 2006As part of the Poppy Line website reorganisation, the Education information has transferred to this website. Click here for the new Education page. 18 April 2006A new page is online giving details of the 2006 Beer Festival. 5 April 2006The Driver Experience page has been updated. Several sessions are now fully booked and as a result there will be an additional Driver Experience Day on 15 May. 29 March 2006A new page has been added to the website giving provisional loco allocations for train services. Click here to view the page. Please note these are provisional only and are subject to change without notice. 27 March 2006After running a number of specials during March, Martello is due to leave the NNR shortly. The last few weekends seem to have attracted a number of enthusiasts who may not have visited if it had been a Diesel only service. 24 March 2006Dates and times have now been added to the Santa Special page, along with a booking form. Book early to avoid disappointment. 23 March 2006The Heritage Lottery Fund has confirmed a grant of £308,000 to the Poppy Line's supporting charity, the Midland & Great Northern Joint Railway Society. The grant is for a new carriage shed to house the Society's priceless collection of historic railway vehicles based on the Poppy Line. The collection
includes a Victorian coach from the Wisbech & Upwell tramway and a racing
pigeon transporter. One of the most important items is a 1920s set of four articulated
carriages designed by Sir Nigel Gresley: these vehicles set the blueprint for
today's high-speed Eurostar trains, and are amongst the most significant preserved
railway vehicles in the UK. They are currently being restored (again with the
help of an HLF grant), and completion is scheduled for later this year. The structure will be built adjacent to the road bridge a short distance down the line from Holt Station. 9 March 2006The Poppy Line had a record-breaking year in 2005. Click
here to
view the full story. 6 March 2006
5 March 2006Two photographs of 662 Martello have been uploaded showing the first Steam Specials, which are operating during March. Click here to view them. 28th February 2006The Fares for the Steam Gala, 1940s Weekend and Days Out With Thomas are now all online. The Driver Experience page has been updated to show fully booked sessions. 20 February 2006Over the winter, a team of volunteers have been clearing some lineside vegetation to open up one of the best views in Norfolk. Click here for the full story and some 'before and after' photographs. A Press Release has been made about the Special Steam Services in March, hauled by Martello. Click here to view it.
Similarly, the Loco. Department have been working hard to ensure our fleet of service engines are operational for the season ahead, taking this opportunity to cure many niggling faults that have been reported over the last few months. The NNR has started services again after the winter, mainly on weekends. Click here for details. The timetable is also available by post. Click here for contact details. 3 February 2006The NNR has announced that a series of Special Steam Services are to operate during March. The trains will be hauled by visiting Terrier - 662 Martello. Click here for full details. Martello will be on the NNR until the end of March. 26 January 2006The new North Norfolk Railway website
has been launched. I hope you find it both interesting and helpful. If you have
any suggestions for improvements or any other information you would like to see,
please feel free to email me here.
Alternatively comments are always welcome in our Guestbook. 2005We
were delighted to win the top award in the National Railway Heritage Awards, as
national Independent Railway of the Year 2005. This crowns a very successful year
for the Railway. The North Norfolk Railway has won three prizes in the Tourism
in Norfolk Awards (winner of the Community Award and runner-up for Best Attraction
and Outstanding Contribution to Tourism) and three prizes in the Heritage Railway
Association Publications Awards (including the top prize of Continued Excellence
awarded to Joint Line). As well as the new Timetable, the Special Events, Murder Mystery and Driver Experience details are all online. Click the relevant link on the left. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weybourne
webcam has now been repaired and is back online. Click 
