Possibly for the last occasion in our lifetimes, Mallard – the fastest steam engine in the world – will stand side by side with her five sister engines

Next weekend, six historic steam engines will gather at Locomotion, the National Railway Museum at Shildon. More than 70,000 people from all over the world are expected for the week-long Great Goodbye, which will be the last reunion of the six surviving A4 Pacific locos before two of them disappear back to their homes in north America

THE star of the show will be Mallard, possibly the most famous steam locomotive in the world, which is celebrating the 75th anniversary of the day in 1938 when it raced into history and set the world steam speed record – a record which still stands to this day.

The Northern Echo:
All six A4 Pacifics together in York – they will be reunited again at Shildon

Mallard will be joined for what is likely to be the last time in our lifetimes by its five sister engines, including two – No 60010 Dominion of Canada and No 60008 Dwight D Eisenhower – which are about to depart for their permanent homes in northern America.

The two transatlantic locos arrived on UK soil in October 2012 after an epic trek by rail flat car across North America and a 2,527 mile journey across the ocean.

They came for cosmetic restorations – Dominion of Canada spent six months in the workshops at the Shildon museum – and were then ready to help Mallard commemorate its 75th anniversary. The A4 Pacific locos were designed by Sir Nigel Gresley and were built in the 1930s – the golden age of steam – and their main role was to haul passenger expresses on the East Coast Main Line.

Their finest hour was July 3, 1938, when the mighty blue Mallard was recorded as reaching the awe-inspiring speed of 126mph, breaking the existing German record of 124 mph set in 1936 – The Northern Echo’s front page report of this historic event can be seen on the centre pages of today’s special edition of Memories.

No 4468 Mallard, built at LNER’s Doncaster Works, was chosen as the perfect vehicle for the latest attempt on the world steam speed crown because it was the first of the class to be fitted with a double chimney.

Due to the subsequent evolution of diesel traction and the outbreak of the Second World War, Mallard’s record remains and to this day inspires a sense of national pride that a British locomotive is still recognised across the globe as the fastest steam locomotive in the world.

The Northern Echo:
The Prince of Wales visits Mallard and her sister engines in York last summer

Thirty-five of Mallard’s A4 class were built, but when steam was withdrawn from British Railways in 1963, all were due to be scrapped.

Six somehow survived, and on July 3, 2013, they were reunited for the first time in the Great Hall in the York National Railway Museum – Mallard, Dominion of Canada and Dwight D Eisenhower were joined by their British-based sisters Bittern, Sir Nigel Gresley and Union of South Africa.

The Northern Echo:
Mallard arriving at Darlington Station on Wednesday

It was a spectacular international family reunion which fulfilled the dreams of rail fans everywhere, and in the following fortnight, nearly 140,000 visitors from all over the world, including Canada, the US and Australia, flocked to the see the spectacle .

The Mallard 75 series of events and activities, of which HRH the Prince of Wales is patron, has continued throughout the year and is now building towards its finale which will take place at Locomotion, the National Railway Museum at Shildon, starting next Saturday.

The Northern Echo:
Mallard arrives for the Great Gathering last summer in the Great Hall at York’s National Railway Museum

THE Great Goodbye will last the whole of the half-term week, and an early measure of its popularity is that all of the special photographic events – early each morning and floodlit late at night, the Pacifics will be on parade for cameramen – have already sold out.

Both weekends (February 15-16 and 22-23), one of the A4s will be offering rides on Locomotion’s track (for a small charge), and there will be cab access to the others.

The Northern Echo:
Mallard in her heyday at Waterloo Station

There will be talks, displays, trade stands, a gala dinner and simple activities that children can enjoy during their visit.

Composer/writer John Kefela-Kerr is completing a residency at Locomotion in preparation for the production of a piece of work inspired by Mallard and the breaking of the speed record. Short preview performances of John’s work can be seen and heard at the museum on Sunday, February 23, at 2pm and 3.30pm.

The Northern Echo:
Dominion of Canada is returning to Shildon where it had a cosmetic overhaul a year ago. The workshop volunteers contributed more than 1,000 hours of free time to the restoration in which the engine was repainted from British Railways Green livery into the Garter Blue that it wore when it was new in 1937. Also restored was its valanced single chimney, complete with Canadian bell and chime whistle, and replica cabside crests featuring the Royal Coat of Arms of Canada

Then the transatlantic locomotives will begin to prepare for their long journeys home. Dominion of Canada will return to Exporail, the Canadian National Railway Museum in Montreal, and Dwight D Eisenhower to the National Railroad Museum, Green Bay, Wisconsin.

So the Great Goodbye really will be a unique glimpse into rail history.