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It's one of the most exciting projects, not only in UK railway preservation but internationally too. We're putting together two surviving halves of the Great Central Railway to create an eighteen mile heritage main line, stretching across the East Midlands. The story so far. The Great Central was the last Victorian Main Line railway to reach London. Opened to passengers in 1899 it boasted of rapid travel in luxury. Crack express trains with restaurant cars ran between Sheffield and London Marylebone over impressive viaducts and calling at large stations. However in the 1960s it was closed, the single biggest casualty of the "Beeching" railway cuts. In the East Midlands two sections remained. Eight miles of the line between Loughborough and Leicester North has become a thriving heritage line, complete with double track and signalling. It's a home to large locomotives both steam and diesel. Meanwhile between Loughborough and Ruddington (on the southern outskirts of Nottingham) almost ten miles of line survived to serve an MOD depot. This was closed and itself became a heritage centre with the line back towards Loughborough also reopened for heritage trains. The Reunification Adventure.
How can you help?
Your donations make all the difference. We can only keep building as we have the funds available. Whatever you give it brings us closer to the day the first train runs. You can take control of how quickly this happens with your support. We're grateful for every contribution which is only spent on this project and not diverted elsewhere. |

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