The Flying Scotsman - 100th Anniversary (2022)

It was late Autumn nearly 90 years ago when a bright green locomotive roared into the record books and arguably cemented its reputation as the most famous steam engine of all time. The day was 30 November, 1934 when the loco known as the Flying Scotsman steamed into the history books by becoming a the first locomotive to officially break the magic 100mph barrier. The LNER A1 Class Pacific No. 4472 was built for the London and North East Railway in 1923 to a design by the company's Chief Engineer Sir Nigel Gresley. It was one of around eighty locomotives of this class ordered by the company for their services up and down the east coast of England and Scotland. The most famous of these services was the daily 10:00 am departure from London's King's Cross station to Edinburgh known as the 'Flying Scotsman' service. The 1924 British Empire Exhibition provided LNER an opportunity to promote its new locomotive and 4472 was chosen to represent the company. But rather than just showing its number, 4472 was given a name, Flying Scotsman. The name stuck and power and beauty of Gresley's design soon earned the Flying Scotsman a formidable reputation. In this richly illustrated documentary narrated by Tony Robinson (Time Team, Blackadder, Story of Us etc) we tell the story of how Flying Scotsman came into being before exploring what happened to it once it passed into private ownership. It features interviews with Alan Pegler who rescued Flying Scotsman from the breaker's yard and how he and Flying Scotsman played a critical role in enabling these large engines to run on the national rail network. He also talks candidly about the ultimately disastrous decision to take Flying Scotsman to the United States the consequence of which made him bankrupt. We hear from Sir William McAlpine who subsequently rescued the engine and brought it back to England. We also hear from engineers who have played a part in keeping Flying Scotsman running so that today, people can still travel on and admire this engineering marvel one hundred years after it first left the Doncaster works.