Locomotion, the National Railway Museum at Shildon, has been short-listed in the North East Tourism Awards 2014 in the category for ‘Tourism Event of the Year’ for Mallard 75 – The Great Goodbye, which was held at the museum in February this year.
The winner will be announced during the award ceremony at The Stadium of Light, Sunderland on 11th November.
Mallard 75 – The Great Goodbye was the finale to a series of UK events marking 75 years since Mallard broke the steam speed record on 3rd July 1938.
This was the last time that the Mallard would meet her five surviving Class A4 sister locomotives as part of the Mallard 75.
Two of the guest locomotives were on loan to the National Railway Museum from North American museums and brought to the UK as part of the project, for the first time since the 1960s.
This was the only Mallard 75 event that saw all six locomotives reunited outside. This meant that the three locomotives that are still operational could be seen in live steam.
New generations and traditional railway enthusiasts came to experience something that they knew was unlikely to ever be staged again and emotions were high for the final reunion.
The Great Goodbye put Shildon under the spotlight and brought visitors from around the world together to witness a never before seen international collaboration.
Nearly 120,000 visitors attended the event, which showcased what the museum, with the support of its dedicated teams of volunteers and trainees, could achieve.
There are still a limited number of DVDs of the event available from the Town Crier for £5. Call 01388 775896 for details.
Shildon & District's local community newspaper.
