Join us at the Chinnor and Princes Risborough Railway for an unforgettable Steam Gala on Friday 31 October and Saturday and Sunday 1 & 2 November 2025 as we commemorate 200 Years of passenger carrying railways.
There are three confirmed locomotives and, fingers crossed, a fourth!
GWR Castle Class 4079 'Pendennis Castle'
The first ever Castle Class to take to our branch line, and will also be the most powerful steam locomotive to grace our railway.
She was built at the GWR Swindon Works and completed on 4 March 1924.
Pendennis Castle is without doubt a celebrity locomotive with its reigning superior in the LNER and GWR exchange trials, and not forgetting its famous stint in Australia with the legendary Flying Scotsman.
Built in Philadelphia, USA in 1945 and shipped in the early to mid 1940's to South Wales and dispatched from the Great Western Railway locomotive depot at Ebbw Junction, Newport.
The locomotive spent the majority of its working life on industrial lines, before being withdrawn.
We are delighted that this engine is also our resident steamer for the 2025 season.
Sentinel 7109 'Joyce'
Built in 1927 at the Sentinel Waggon Works, Shrewsbury, Joyce was ordered by Croydon Gasworks and gained the number 37 in their fleet. It was given the name Joyce after the daughter of Mr Sandeman, the chairman of Croydon Gas works where it operated for 32 years until 1960.
The locomotive is unusual in having vertical water-tube boiler supplying transversely mounted cylinders that transmit power to the wheels via gears and chains.
It's steam haulage at its best and with gradients like our 1-68 Chinnor Bank (and there's others, including quite an incline at the Princes Risborough end of the line), it will be a really very intensive 3-Days of Steam!
This is only the second occasion that an all-steam Gala has been run over 3-days on the Chinnor and Princes Risborough Railway and so please do make an advance note in your diary, or see below and book your tickets today!
BRAKE VAN RIDES AT PRINCES RISBOROUGH:
There will also be brake van rides at Princes Risborough: these will take place between steam departures and arrivals using our Sentinel 7109 'Joyce' brake van and hauled up and down by one or two brake vans for a authentic trip!brake van rides are included in the ticket price!
DAY ROVERS:
Tickets are on sale below and you can buy them online at any time until 18.00 on the day before travel. Understandably, we have had to put our prices up a bit in order to at least cover our costs - although every £1 of profit we manage will go to keeping our trains running throughout the year. We know that you will understand that we will have to pay some large bills to make it happen, and we thank you in anticipation for your support and hope you will come along to this event and others in future!
ONLINE PRICES: Adult tickets are generally cheaper than buying at stations (note a £2 agency fee per on-line transaction applies). Please note 2-day and 3-day tickets can only be purchased online.
- Adult 1-day rover online only £25.00, Child (accompanied 3-15 yrs) £10
- Adult 2-day rover online only £45.00, Child (accompanied 3-15 yrs) £15
- Adult 3-day rover online only £55.00, Child (accompanied 3-15 yrs) £20
All online bookings close at 18.00 on the day before travel.
STATION PRICES: only 1-day rover tickets are available to buy at stations on the day.
- Adult 1-day rover £30.00, Child (accompanied 3-15 yrs) £15
Timetables will be added nearer the time - watch this space!!
COME BY CAR OR TRAIN:
You can join our trains at either Chinnor (free car parking) or Princes Risborough for Chiltern Railways services - for more information, please see the Arriving page.
OVERNIGHT ACCOMMODATION:
For a list of suggestions on overnight accommodation in the local area, please see the Where to Stay page
FOOD & DRINK:
The Station Café at Chinnor serves tea, coffee, soft drinks and bottled water. There is also a selection of sandwiches and baps, all freshly made on the day, together with hot sausage rolls and pasties, homemade cakes, biscuits, crisps etc.
There will also be a range of ales at pub prices (it wouldn't be a Steam Gala without ale!), and we'll also have our own bottle conditioned ales for sale too.
PLEASE NOTE THAT ONLY ALCOHOL BOUGHT ON OUR PREMISES IS PERMITTED
