The Isle of Wight Steam Railway’s Victorian Weekend proved to be another big attraction with visitor numbers over the weekend up a massive 50% year-on-year!

Now in its third year, the event offers visitors a trip back to the era of Queen Victoria with a range of attractions including Victorian stalls, Punch and Judy, children’s stories, steam train travel, and music of the day. Trains over the weekend were hauled by two of the Railway’s Victorian locomotives – the 1876-built ‘Terrier’ class loco ‘Freshwater’ which headed a train of carriages each of which date from the 19^th century, and the 1891-built O2 class loco ‘Calbourne’ which has just returned to steam after 8 years of major boiler repairs.

Music was provided by Fiona Harrison who performed in authentic Victorian costume, while Railway staff were also suitably attired, with ladies in bustle gowns, Victorian maids, pearly kings and even Sherlock Holmes all spotted over the two days! The weekend also saw the final two days of the Railway’s Cuneo Exhibition – a week-long exhibition showcasing the paintings of the respected railway artist, Sir Terence Cuneo. Peter Collins from The Cuneo Society joined in the Victorian theme for the weekend, dressing as the Victorian engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel!

“Our Victorian Weekend continues to grow in popularity and allows a little escapism from the modern world”, said IW Steam Railway Events Officer, Liz Tagart. “While not one of our major events, there’s definitely a keen interest in the era. To increase visitor numbers by 50% is terrific, and we can see that there’s room to grow this event in future years”.

The Railway’s next major events include the Island Steam Show, staged over four days from 27^th to 30^th August, this year featuring Medieval jousting, a court jester, traction engines, traditional fairground, vintage vehicles and many other attractions. In September the Railway hosts the annual Island Morris Minor Rally, a Model Railway Exhibition, a Wine Festival, and in October there will be a special ‘Calbourne Weekend’ to mark the return to steam of the Railway’s flagship loco ‘Calbourne’.