On the 25th and 26th of October, The Vale of Rheidol is hosting its Steam Festival.

The festival will also see the long-awaited return of No. 9 ‘Prince of Wales’, which has been out of service for overhaul since 2020.

No. 9 will later be unveiled in a fresh BR Corporate Blue lined livery with cab-side double arrow branding.

Joining the Prince of Wales will be No. 8 “Llywelyn”, No. 7 “Owain Glyndŵr”, and NGG13 Garratt locomotive No. 60 “Drakensberg”.

All three Rheidol Tanks will also be appearing together for the first time in quite a few years.

Multiple locomotives will be in steam each day, with a variety of combinations.

Alongside their intensive timetable, there will be a model railway exhibition, model road steam engines and Pete Waterman’s 208-foot model railway.

Day rover tickets will be available, allowing unlimited travel throughout the day. Tickets can be purchased online.

“The return of No. 9 to traffic in BR Blue is a landmark moment for the Vale of Rheidol. It’s one of the only three steam locomotives ever to authentically carry this livery, and to see it back in Railway200 year – alongside Nos. 7 and 8 in green and black – makes this festival a real celebration of our unique BR heritage. Add in the Garratt, an intensive timetable and a host of model and road steam exhibits, and it promises to be a true festival of steam in every sense.”

Vale of Rheidol Railway Managing Director, Llyr ap Iolo