If you celebrated your 50th birthday this year, you are in good company for David Shepherd's locomotive, Black Prince, is the same age as you.  This Saturday, 8th August, the engine's owner, David Shepherd will be at Toddington on his locomotive and to celebrate, a lone Spitfire will fly overhead during the afternoon (expected time 15.10; will fly in from the Broadway direction). 

What's more, if you were born in 1959, you can share the celebration too.  Convince GWR booking office staff that 2009 is your 50th year and you can travel for free provided you are accompanied by a fare-paying passenger of any age.  So bring your Dad or your daughter, or your partner or anyone else for that matter: but your ticket will cost precisely nothing.

Black Prince will be in charge of trains departing from Toddington at 10.30, 13.00 and 15.15* and from Cheltenham at 11.15, 14.00 and 16.00*.  If you want to see the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight's Spitfire as this WW2 aircraft 'strafes' Toddington Station at low altitude, weather permitting, the best option will be to catch the 14.00 train from Cheltenham Racecourse. They flypast is scheduled* to take place just before the 15.15 return journey to Cheltenham Racecourse, the train being hauled by Black Prince. There is plenty of free parking at Cheltenham Racecourse station, which is within the Racecourse grounds.

If you go to Toddington by car, parking will be in the field adjacent to the station - and you will be politely invited to make a donation to the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation: a fantastic charity founded by David Shepherd that does a huge amount of work to conserve endangered species, especially in Africa and India.

David Shpherd, artist, wildlife conservationist and steam locomotive enthusiast, bought no. 92203 way back in 1968 after this 9F 2-10-0 heavy freight engine ended its short service with British Railways: if you like, conserving this endangered species!  Turned out of Swindon works in 1959, right at the end of main-line steam locomotive construction in the UK, 92203 and its 250 or so classmates were designed to run for at least 25 years - but the 'modernisation plan' put paid to that.  1968 was the last year of steam on British Railways and were it not for David Shepherd and a successful sale of his paintings in the USA, 92203's fate would have been sealed under the scrap merchant's cutting equipment at the tender age of eight.  As soon as 92203 was whisked away from Crewe into a long life in retirement, David named it 'Black Prince': a name it has carried ever since.

So for David and for Black Prince, 2009 is a rather special year. And volunteer staff at the GWR are proud not just to be associated with David Shpeherd on this special occasion but to be able to provide Black Prince a permanent home.

*Please note: The flypast is subject to weather and wind conditions.  The scheduled time for the flypast is 15.10, but is subject to change at short notice and is outside the control of the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway. If the flypast takes place as scheduled, the departure of the 15.15 from Toddington and the return journey from Cheltenham at 16.00 will be delayed to give passengers a chance to see the passing Spitfire.