Monster Moves

Series 5 - Episode 3: Titanic Trains

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A pair of vintage steam locomotives are shipped 850 miles across Turkey, before being shipped back to the UK.

The two old steam locomotives were sent to Turkey by Winston Churchill but are now in desperate need of some TLC. The scrap man’s blowtorch draws ever closer for this pair of ancient engines, unless a group of British steam enthusiasts can execute a cunning plan to return them to their country of origin.

Unable to run under their own steam, the locomotives need to be moved over torturous terrain towards the port of Izmir, the only Turkish port capable of handling such big pieces of kit. They weigh too much to handle the trip on the roads, so the plan is to hitch a ride on a series of freight trains, before hopping on board a cargo ship that will bring them back to Britain.

But these big beasts are very delicate, the logistics of negotiating a predominantly single-track rail system are, at best, challenging and there is also a time issue. Will the old locos survive the trip around the mountains in one piece? And will they make it to the port before the ship sets sail?

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Comments (13)

  • Keith

    10 months ago

    Keith

    Brilliant

  • Jim

    10 months ago

    Jim

    What an absolutely inspirational video; regardless of the actual trains, ut recognises the sheer guts and determination to succeed by these fabulous guys. Very well done!

  • alan

    10 months ago

    alan

    Amateurs...didn't they realise the damage they were doing to the Track and infrastructure whilst running with the missing bearing. They didn't seem to care and laughed and joked about it.

  • Iain Dodd

    10 months ago

    Iain Dodd

    Be fair to them. They were not provided with means of contacting the driver to report the problem. Anyway other drivers showed attitudes that would not be accepted elsewhere by the way they operated the trains.

  • Gus

    10 months ago

    Gus

    @alan did you watch the same program? They had no option no communications with the driver to tell it to stop, same as when the driver was going too fast.

  • Tomg

    10 months ago

    Tomg

    Absouloutely Brilliant. Due to H&S in the UK it wouldnt be allowed. And had the Stanier's been working they could easily have got the freight trains up both incline. On a sadder note due to various issues caused by Mother Nature the Gloucester and Warwickshire railway is in danger of bankrupcy.

  • Emeisterstee

    10 months ago

    Emeisterstee

    Monster Moves? Didn't they pull freight across Turkey? Nostalgic yes, but interesting or inspirational, NO.

  • Ben

    10 months ago

    Ben

    @Emeisterstee, ok then, you do that.

  • Partyspiritz

    10 months ago

    Partyspiritz

    Just Magic

  • Stan

    10 months ago

    Stan

    The railway programme was magic. Great guys, so enthusiastic and just today I saw one of those engines at Shildon NRM in County Durham and took photographs for Flickr.

  • tallbill

    9 months ago

    tallbill

    What a great project!! BTW the lady shown at about 1.18 at Toddington looks very like a lovely lady I dated a while back..She liked steam trains,had been born in Gloucestershire and lives not too far away.Was it you Ann???

  • louis

    4 months ago

    louis

    well its good i love trains and stuff

  • Judy

    14 days ago

    Judy

    Fantastic what a wonderful achievement

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