Latest news with #QuaintonRailwaySociety
BBC News
08-07-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Harry Potter HBO: New Hogwarts Express - from scrapyard to series
Since the new Harry Potter TV series was announced in 2023, we have revealed lots of details and we've got more up our magical sleeves for you think it's more actors confirmed to be involved, I'm afraid you aren't quite on the right track this time - but it is still a major part of the Potter universe.A steam locomotive that looked like it was going to be scrapped, will now be used for the role of the famous Hogwarts locomotive - called Wightwick Hall - was saved from a scrapyard in Barry Island in South Wales in 1978 and has been lovingly restored by volunteers. Olton Hall - the train which originally carried Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson in the movies - was also rescued from the fact, it came from the same from Buckinghamshire Railway Centre spent 40 years restoring Wightwick Hall after it was saved from being Quainton Railway Society, which runs the centre, said it was "extremely proud" that it would "play the role of the iconic locomotive". Wightwick Hall is currently in use on a line near looking after it say trains like it need to be kept running to keep them in working it will be swapping Brighton for Hogwarts via platform 9 ¾.It's due to be used for filming for around six months - with members of the team at Buckinghamshire Railway Centre nearby to make sure the engine is maintained can then begin its magical journey into the world of Harry Potter.
BBC News
04-07-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Buckinghamshire train saved from scrap to star in Harry Potter
A steam locomotive that was saved from being scrapped will star in the upcoming Harry Potter TV from Buckinghamshire Railway Centre spent 40 years restoring Wightwick Hall after it was salvaged from a scrapyard in Barry Island, South Wales, in follows in the tracks of the previous train used in the films, Olton Hall, which had been rescued from the same Railway Society, which runs the centre, said it was "extremely proud" that the train, once destined for the scrap heap, would "play the role of the iconic locomotive for the Hogwarts Express". Wightwick Hall, built at Swindon Works in 1948, was withdrawn in 1964 and sent to a Barry Island scrapyard where hundreds of trains were eventually saved by a railway preservation is currently on loan to Bluebell Railway in West Sussex and operates on a line near Green, general manager of Buckinghamshire Railway Centre, said: "These trains have to be maintained and kept running to keep them in working condition, this one needs a long track which they have at Bluebell."The train will be used for filming for six months of the year before returning to West Sussex of the team at Buckinghamshire Railway Centre will supervise during filming to ensure the train is maintained properly. HBO has already announced a crop of actors have joined the show's cast, including Nick Frost, Paapa Essiedu, Katherine Parkinson and Paul three child actors taking on the lead roles were revealed in Green hoped the train's appearance in the series would attract new fans to the working heritage railway said: "Hopefully it's a boost for tourism. People can come and see the engineering workshops and a similar train under restoration right now." Follow Beds, Herts and Bucks news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
