Flying Scotsman arrived at Edinburgh Waverley station today to celebrate 100 years in service.
The world-famous steam locomotive entered service on February 24, 1923 as it set off on its first journey from the sheds at Doncaster Works.
One hundred years later to the day, it arrived at Edinburgh Waverley station where celebrations took place to mark the centenary.
Celebrations included a reading from Poet Laureate Simon Armitage of a new poem called The Making Of The Flying Scotsman. Dancers from the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society performed The Flying Scotsman, devised by Hugh Thurston in 1966, and the event was rounded off with a set by Celtic rock band the Red Hot Chilli Pipers.
Flying Scotsman was designed by Sir Nigel Gresley and built in Doncaster. Its achievements include hauling the inaugural non-stop London to Edinburgh train service in 1928, and becoming the UK’s first locomotive to reach 100mph six years later.
The National Railway Museum in York, where Flying Scotsman is a working exhibit, has organised a centenary programme featuring events and displays.
Judith McNicol, director of the museum, said: “Edinburgh Waverley is a fitting location to mark the centenary of the world’s most famous express passenger locomotive.
“It was here that Flying Scotsman completed its record-breaking, non-stop journey between London and Edinburgh in 1928, and Edinburgh is also the birthplace of Sir Nigel Gresley, Flying Scotsman’s designer.”
She said the locomotive will spend the rest of 2023 travelling across the country to allow as many people as possible to see it in its 100th anniversary year.
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