GWR 8000 Class
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he Chief Mechanical Engineer of the GWR Frederick W. Hawksworth had hoped to design a new 4-6-2 (Pacific) express locomotive for post war traffic, when he took up office in 1941 but had been prevented by the war from doing so. Unfortunately, the Cathedral class never made it off the drawing board but remained a proposed design with almost became reality.
The following is Fiction & a history that might have been.
Production
Following the end of the Second World War, Frederick Hawksworth received permission from the Board of the Great Western Railway to design and build a new class of steam locomotive – swiftly dubbed the ‘Super King’, much as the Kings had been referred to as ‘Super Castles’ when they were being drafted. Building on the lessons learnt from the Great Western Railway’s experimental engine, No.111, and taking inspiration from the London, Midland and Scottish Railway’s Duchess- and Princess-class Pacific-type 4-6-2 locomotives, Hawksworth constructed the Cathedral-class at the Great Western Railway’s Swindon Works, testing many of the features that would be a part of the Cathedral-class on the second batch of the County-class 4-6-0s which were also in production at the time.
An initial batch of five locomotives were ordered from the GWR Swindon Works in early 1946. The prototype, No.8000, was outshopped on June 6, 1946, and was followed by another four (No.8001-8004) between the end of June and the end of July (Lot. No.359). In total, twenty Cathedral-class locomotives were outshopped from GWR Swindon, with the remaining fifteen being built in three batches across 1947 – No.8005-8010 in January and February (Lot No.361); No.8011-8015 in June and July (Lot No.363); and 8016-8019 in December (Lot No.365).
Train Simulator: GWR Class 8000
Train Simulator: GWR Class 8000
Testing
The prototype, No.8000, was painted in GWR Unlined Green livery and without logos on the tender. Upon being outshopped from GWR Swindon, it was sent to Old Oak Common under the cover of darkness and arrived at the London depot where it was prepared for work. On June 7, the locomotive was tested on an overnight train of 14-coaches from London Paddington to Bristol to ensure it was within gauge. The following night, No.8000 was put through her paces, and achieved high speeds in excess of 100 mph both on the trip to Bristol and the return to London Paddington. These trips were repeated for a week, by which time word of the new locomotive had begun to spread amongst station staff and engine crews, and the publicity department for the Great Western Railway insisted that the locomotive was put on ‘The Bristolian’ express service between London Paddington and Bristol Temple Meads, which she headed between June 14 and 20.
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