Bookings have opened for visits to a unique exhibition train, part of a national celebration of the 200th anniversary of the modern railway called Railway 200.
The train, named Inspiration, launches at Severn Valley Railway in Worcestershire on 27 June and will criss-cross Britain over the following 12 months, visiting 60 locations and showcasing rail’s past, present and future in new, fun and engaging ways.
Curated in partnership with the National Railway Museum, Inspiration will be the only exhibition train on the rail network and will help to attract the next generation of pioneering talent to the railway.
Inspiration will comprise four eye-catching carriages. Rail’s pioneering pedigree will be explored in a ‘Railway Firsts’ coach, highlighting landmark moments in rail’s development. Alongside will be a ‘Wonderlab on Wheels’, inviting visitors to test their engineering skills with hands-on exhibits. Next will be a ‘Your Railway Future’ carriage, showcasing some of the more hidden roles in rail and encouraging people to join the railway to shape the next 200 years. The final coach is a ‘Partner Zone’, offering free, flexible exhibition space.
The carriages are currently being fitted out, supported by a £250k grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund.
More than 200,000 people, including many schoolchildren, are expected to visit by prior booking. Admission to the train will be free, but normal entry charges to heritage railways and private sites where it is located will apply.
The train will visit the North East of England in September – rail’s 200th anniversary month – as part of S&DR200, a nine-month international festival inspired by the opening of the Stockton and Darlington Railway (S&DR) in 1825, a journey that changed the world forever.
Bookings are now open for visits to:
| Date | Location |
|---|---|
| Fri 27 June – Sun 6 July | Severn Valley Railway, Kidderminster, Worcestershire |
| Tue 8 – Thu 10 July | Birmingham Moor Street station |
| Sat 12 – Tue 15 July | London Euston station |
| Fri 18 – Sat 19 July | London Waterloo station |
| Sun 20 – Mon 21 July | Margate station, Kent |
| Wed 23 – Tue 29 July | Bluebell Railway, Sussex |
| Thu 7 – Sun 10 August | Norwich station, Norfolk |
| Mon 11 – Thu 14 August | Lowestoft station, Suffolk |
Bookings for the following destinations will open shortly:
| Date | Location |
|---|---|
| Sat 16 – Sun 17 August | Freightliner Doncaster Railport, South Yorkshire |
| Sat 23 – Sun 31 August | National Railway Museum, York (as part of the NRM’s 50th birthday) |
| Wed 10 – Wed 17 September | Darlington station, County Durham (as part of S&DR200) |
| Sat 20 September – Wed 1 October | Locomotion museum, Shildon, County Durham (as part of S&DR200) |
The remaining itinerary, up to June 2026, will be announced at a later date, after the complex train planning process has been completed.
No passengers will be carried on the train as it travels to its exhibition sites. Booked visits will begin at 10am and the last entry will be at 4pm. The train will close at 5pm. Visits are expected to last up to an hour. A virtual tour of the exhibition experience is planned for those who are unable to visit in person.
Emma Roberts, programme manager for Railway 200, a cross-sector, Government-backed bicentenary campaign, said: “This special exhibition train is set to become a new, national visitor attraction, providing an unforgettable experience for hundreds of thousands of people across Britain, including many schoolchildren. It will excite, enlighten, entertain and inspire them to take a fresh look at the railway, as part of its anniversary celebrations.”