Weekend marks heritage railway's 35th anniversary

Bure Valley Railway was opened by enthusiasts as an attraction in 1990

A heritage railway is celebrating its 35th anniversary by reuniting two locomotives to re-create the first journey made on its tracks.

Bure Valley Railway opened in July 1990 after new track was laid on the former Great Eastern Railway between Aylsham and Wroxham, Norfolk.

This weekend, locomotives Samson and Winston Churchill, which hauled the first train out of Wroxham station in 1990, will return to the railway.

Managing director Andrew Barnes said: "We have a place in railway history and we will fly the flag for railways in Britain."

LISTEN: A special reunion at Bure Valley Railway

The track bed that the line was built on dates back to 1880 and was crucial for transporting timber, grain and military personnel during World War One.

Following nationalisation, the line closed to passengers in 1952 but was used by freight services until 1982, with the tracks removed by 1985.

Today, Bure Valley Railway attracts more than 100,000 visitors each year.

Andrew Barnes is managing director of Bure Valley Railway

Over the weekend, a variety of locomotives will be back in service with the railway providing the "most intensive train service we've offered in many years", Mr Barnes said.

He added that the Samson and Winston Churchill locomotives were an "integral part" of British railway history.

And Mr Barnes said he hoped the railway would continue for many years to come.

"We've got the skills to maintain everything. We can repair everything here," he said.

"If we can get young people involved, there's definitely a future for it."