Originally, a request from Scott
Borthwick , posted as a Question on the old Q&A page.
"Does anyone have any gen on the special `FLOWEREX`
trains that ran to the Spalding Tulip festival each May? Also, does
anyone have details of what happened to the stock, where did it stable?"
Question
posted way back on: 10/02/01!
This page was last updated : 25/11/07 .
The 1975 event took place on Saturday 10th May:
Gen
from Nick B .
47430 1G25 Newcastle
47220 1G47 Newcastle
37261 1G45 Southend
46052 1Z43 Manchester
DEMU'S 1033 + 1036 1Z04 Hastings
37026 1Z20 Ramsgate
37081 1Z21 Ramsgate
47087 1Z54 Cardiff
6 Car DMU 1G43 Hull
47148 1Z58 Gloucester
45010 1Z69 Burton On Trent
47147 1Z64 Weston-S-Mare
The 1976 event took place on Saturday 8th May:
Gen from Nick B .
Fifteen Specials were on the annual parade that year - return departure times and destinations as follows:-
1650 to Manchester - 47178
1700 to Kings X - 47552
1720 to Newcastle - 40150
1740 to Newcastle - 46045
1750 to Shoeburyness - 47130
1752 to Burton OT - 47514
1805 to Wolves - 9 car DMU
1810 to Hastings - 6B DEMU'S 1036+1037
1820 to Swansea - 47024
1830 to Ramsgate - 37268
1839 to Weston S-M - 47098
1840 to Ramsgate - 37081 (changed locos at March - 37265 forward) 33031
from Cambridge
1847 to Hull - 8 Car DMU
1855 to Swindon - 47086
1910 to Crewe - 47109
The 1977 event took place on Saturday 7th May:
Known specials so far: Gen from Nick B.
25253+25248 ???? ???? Manchester Pic - Spalding ADEX
47066 ???? ???? Swansea - Spalding ADEX
47513 ???? ???? Gloucester - Spalding ADEX
47515 ???? ???? Crewe - Spalding ADEX
The 1978 event took place on Saturday 6th May:
Gen
from Nick B .
47026 ex Burton on Trent
47043 ex Bath
47409 ex Kings Cross
55016 ex Newcastle
37021 ex Southend Victoria
47524 ex Poole
47265 ex Hertford North
47069 ex Weston-Super-Mare
47020 ex Gloucester
25073+25074 ex Swansea
33034! ex Brighton
47109 ex Ealing
37084 ex Dover
47120 ex- Treherbert
47496 ex Hereford
37036 ex Ramsgate
The 1980 event was on 10th May:
Nigel Hayman wrote : "I find I have
got some gen for 1980. It was a very big event although Class 47s
tended to predominate -
presumably due to traction knowledge issues. I did 47106 on
a 1Z40 06.34 Weston - Spalding (which also worked back,
unfortunately), which then went ECS to March Coal Yard (which I also did,
not wanting to go to the Flower Show!). I also
noted the following (and have shown MR in brackets after the ones which
were definitely stabled at March). Some of the
trains were I think stabled at Spalding, these were presumably mainly those
that had locos not requiring fuel before the return
trip.
47106 1Z40 06.34 Weston - Spalding
47453 1Z24 ex Runcorn
37035 1Z47 ex Cambridge ('The Timelord' reports that this
service arrived Cambridge behind 33030, a fact confirmed by
Nick B, who also reports the orignating point was Wokingham
and that the same locos worked the return legs)
47412 1G12 ex Kings Cross
47145 1Z68 ex Burton-on-Trent (origin point comfirmed by Nick
B)
47566 1Z68 ex Portsmouth ('The Timelord' recorded this
service as coded 1Z46)
56419+50370 1G16 ex Cambridge
47032 1Z41 ex Plymouth
47072 1Z73 ex Oxford (MR - indicating stock stabled March)
47020 1Z27 ex Swansea (MR)
47152 1Z43 ex Chorley (MR)
47111 1Z36 ex Bath (MR)
37266 worked a passenger train through March at 14.57 (1B42 12.40 Harwich
- Peterborough service confirmed by 'The Bisbop' )
31315 ditto at 15.19 (Service confirmed as 1236 Birmingham NS - Norwich
again by 'The Bisbop')
47406 1G13 ex Newcastle (MR)
47501 1Z37 ex Cardiff
As a matter of interest, the routing of 1Z40 was Birmingham - Stenson -
Sheet Stores - Nottingham -
Sleaford - Spalding (ECS to March via Whitemoor of course)"
Nick B adds the following workings:
47094 ???? ex Moreton-on-Marsh . 'The Timelord' recorded this loco
arr with ECS at Cambridge but no other details.
47035 ???? ex Stroud
47041???? ex Congleton returning with 47049
47010 ???? ex Shenfield
10 car DMU from Hull - 50021+56024+50035+56035+50204+56384+50230+56053+50381+56471
The 1981 event took place on
Saturday 9th May:
Nick B reports the following:
47077 ex Burton on Trent
DMU 50641+59249+59390+50630 ex Hull
DMU 50041+56035+50025 ex Cleethorpes
40034 ex Chorley
47434 ex Lichfield
47142 ex Kemble
47462 ex Crewe
46002 ex Shrewsbury (last minute change from booked 8-car DMU
47041 ex Weston Super-Mare
47119 ex Oxford
47094 ex Newcastle
47061 ex Bristol
47579 ex Cardiff - 31107 on Return
37090 ex Shoeburyness
40078 ex Settle
47569 ex Tonbridge
47562 ex Poole
47137 ex Swansea
46036 ex Yeovil
47471 ex Congleton (maybe ex Manchester?)
The 1982 event took place on
Saturday 8th May.
Mike Tongue (who arrived & departed
on the Burton service) reports the following details for the 1982 event;
"Here is what I recorded, although I'm afraid that I don't have details
of the originating times;
47219 1Z34 xxxx Burton - Spalding
47219 1Z34 1630 Spalding - Burton
47186 1Z14 xxxx Wellington - Spalding (Nigel confirms
originating point)
45009 1Z75 xxxx Connisborough - Spalding (Nigel
again confirms originating point)
37110 1G34 xxxx Norwich - Spalding
46009 1G30 xxxx Kings Cross - Spalding
47530 1Z35 xxxx Blackpool - Spalding
40052 1Z44 xxxx Skipton - Spalding
47059 1Z42 xxxx Oxford - Spalding
46047 1G31 xxxx Newcastle - Spalding
47533 1Z39 xxxx Swindon - Spalding
47182 1Z40 xxxx Weston-super-Mare - Spalding
46051 1Z95 xxxx New Mills - Spalding
31405 1Z70 xxxx Guildford - Spalding, (Nigel
adds the time and the fact that 33025 worked to Liverpool St and rtn from
there)
31130 1Z79 xxxx West Ruislip - Spalding
47101 1Z37 xxxx Swansea - Spalding
47574 1Z71 0815 Tonbridge - Spalding (Nigel adds
33065 to Liverpool St and rtn from there).
47511 1Z38 xxxx Plymouth - Spalding
47194 1Z96 xxxx Liverpool LS - Spalding
"As the Burton train was the first to return, I don't have confirmation
of the return departures so I can't state whether the
locos returned to the place from which they came."
Nigel states "All locos returned to their starting points."
Also a ???? ???? Congleton - Spalding was formed of units as
follows: 50508+59164+50456+50458+59166+50514.
In addition, other special's are believed to have run from at least: Banbury,
Bicester, Bridlington & Cleethorpes.
The 1983 evert took place on Saturday 7th May.
The
following details care of Nick B / with additonal details (times/formations) c/o David Rapson
Can anyone add any headcodes / times /
loco's to the above, or does anyone have details of other trains / years?
Contacting us ] Return to the Main Menu ] to the Diary Menu ] to the Features Menu ] to Info Required ?