No. 30777

SOUTHERN RAILWAY KING ARTHUR CLASS 4-6-0 777 “Sir Lamiel”

Designed by Richard Maunsell in 1925 as an express passenger locomotive, 777 “Sir Lamiel” was one of 81 N15 “King Arthur” class engines built — and is the only one preserved today.

“Sir Lamiel,” originally numbered E777, was built in June 1925 at the North British Locomotive Works in Glasgow as part of a batch of 30 engines. These locomotives were fitted with narrower cabs to suit operations on the Eastern Section of the Southern Railway and were paired with 5,000-gallon bogie tenders. Smoke deflectors were added in December 1927. The “E” prefix was dropped in 1932.

E777 was initially allocated to Nine Elms shed in London, working express services from Waterloo to the West Country and Bournemouth. Later postings included Battersea, Bournemouth, Dover, Feltham, and Basingstoke. After the nationalisation of Britain’s railways in 1948, “Sir Lamiel” was renumbered 30777 under British Railways.

Withdrawn from service in October 1961, “Sir Lamiel” had a relatively short working life of 36 years — unusually short for a steam locomotive, which might otherwise have served for 50 years. The early withdrawal was due to the British Railways Modernisation Plan of 1955 and the rapid move to diesel power. Notably, 777 still retains its original tender, making it a rare example of a steam locomotive that never had its tender replaced.

After withdrawal, the engine was stored at Fratton, then Stratford and Ashford. In June 1978, it was adopted by the Humberside Locomotive Preservation Group and moved to Dairycoates Shed in Hull. There, it was restored to main line standards, with its first steaming in preservation taking place on 21st February 1982. On 27th March 1982, it hauled its first main line train in preservation over the famous Settle & Carlisle Railway.

Following a further overhaul in 1989, “Sir Lamiel” enjoyed a successful main line career, including an appearance in the 1994 film “The Cruel Train”.

Now part of the National Collection of the National Railway Museum, “Sir Lamiel” is cared for by the 5305 Locomotive Association at Loughborough, successors to the Humberside group. It arrived at the Great Central Railway on 5th October 1995. After a short operational period, the engine was withdrawn for overhaul in 1996.

In May 2004, the locomotive was cosmetically restored to feature at the National Railway Museum’s Railfest exhibition in York, marking 200 years of steam locomotion.

“Sir Lamiel” returned to traffic on 20th May 2006 and became a regular on both the national network and the GCR, where it hauled passenger trains between Loughborough Central and Leicester North. In Autumn 2012, it underwent heavy maintenance, including work on its main driving wheels and bearings, and was repainted in its original Southern Railway malachite green livery, complete with its historic number 777 — the first time it had carried this livery since the 1940s.

The locomotive came out of ticket on 4th August 2017, following a failure after a night-time shed duty. It is currently under overhaul, with its return to steam expected in 2026 — marking a remarkable milestone, as “Sir Lamiel” will be 101 years old when it re-enters service.