The Kent & East Sussex Railway (K&ESR) has announced a second guest locomotive for its Dwarves of Steam Gala on the weekend of Saturday, 26th and Sunday, 27th April.

Kerr Stuart No.3063 Willy, an 0-4-0 Well Tank, will appear with Bagnall No.2572 Judy and three of the railway’s own locomotives: Peckett No.1631 Marcia, Southern Railway No.2678 Knowle, and Hunslet No.469 Hastings.

They will show how some of the smallest locomotives of the steam age have strength and versatility.

The two guest locomotives, along with the three from the railway’s fleet, will operate an intensive two-train service between Tenterden Town and Wittersham Road stations.

Two sets of carriages will be used, one formed of three Victorian four-wheeled carriages and one with two larger 1960s bogie carriages.

Services will run from 10.00 and 16.00 on both days. Return journeys from Wittersham Road will see the locomotives’ pulling power tested as they ascend a steep incline between Rolvenden and Tenterden Town.

Rolvenden is the site of the railway’s locomotive shed, and passengers can alight there to go behind the scenes in the shed to view restoration work being carried out on the railway’s most powerful steam locomotive, Great Western Railway 2-8-0 tank No.4253.

Willy, built by Kerr, Stuart & Company in 1918, spent all of its working life at the National Shipyard at Chepstow, which was taken over by Fairfield-Mabey Ltd, who dismantled the shipyard. In 1982, Willy went for restoration to the Flour Mill at Bream in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire.

After restoration, Willy returned to steam in 2012 and has visited a few preserved lines and acted as the works’ shunter.

It later received an overhaul and repainted into its current red livery; it hauled trains on the Swindon and Cricklade Railway during the 2024 season.

The second guest locomotive appearing at the Gala will be Bagnall No.2572 Judy, which was built in September 1937 for use at Par Harbour in Cornwall.

It was planned to name the locomotive Chough after the distinctive species of Cornish bird, but Bagnall thought the name was rather strange, so they delivered it to Par without a nameplate. Judy finally received its nameplates sometime after 1955.

Judy was withdrawn in 1969, and with sister locomotive Alfred gained celebrity status as they were unusually small, and were some of the last working steam engines in Cornwall. They also inspired the Rev. W. Awdry to immortalise them as Bill and Ben in his Thomas the Tank Engine books.

Rapido Trains UK is currently producing an OO gauge model of Judy, which will be available at the end of this year.

The railway celebrated its 50th anniversary last year with a three-day Diesel Gala in April.