LSWR T3 - No. 563

The recently restored LSWR T3 class locomotive No. 563, running at Corfe Castle, Dorset. Built in 1893, the engine hadn't steamed for over 75 years.

Hving dodged the scrapyard in 1948 the engine was donated by the National Railway Museum to the Swanage Railway in 2017, whereupon it underwent 6 years of restoration, at a cost of £650,000.

© 2023

Leave it alone

Created by the design studio Lucid Creates, the 15 metre (49 foot) high illuminated portal that stands on a local beach has, naturally, attracted mixed feelings.

Part of the Arts by the Sea Festival, and only scheduled to remain there for a week, the arch has been mostly welcomed by the locals, as well as visitors to the area. But the inevitable 'criticism/objection/can't see the point of it' by a small minority to the local town council has prompted the latter to announce its early removal. 

However, it looks as if by the time the contractors that erected the work are booked to dismantle it, the arch will have remained in position for as long as intended

© 2023