Scan of a slide taken 23/06/92: In 1992 by chance, rather than design, I managed to photograph both of the locos that returned to the UK in 1989. The other was, of course, M7 No. 30053 which I saw a few weeks earlier at Swanage. ‘Repton’ was built in May 1934 and entered service on the Bournemouth route, with some time operating between Waterloo and Portsmouth before that line was electrified. It was one of the last of the class to be overhauled by British Railways in 1960, so was considered a good choice for preservation. In December 1962 the engine was withdrawn from service, and in 1966 it was purchased and overhauled at Eastleigh, before moving to the USA. It was donated by the purchaser to Steamtown, USA in Vermont, USA. Steamtown in turn loaned the engine to the Cape Breton Steam Railway in Canada, where it operated a regular passenger service. In 1989 it was sold again, to Clifford T. Brown who based the loco on the North York Moors Railway. At this distance I cannot recall if 'Repton' was on a straight forward loan to the GCR back in 1992, or if the loco was sent there for running in, before tackling the steeper gradients of the NYMR.
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