Class 50 for the 50th anniversary of the West Somerset. 50049 'Defiance' on a running day at the WSR

Another chance to get out and about with 50049 'Defiance' at the West Somerset Railway today. After the cancellation of the Branch Line Society Lord of the Isles railtour from Kidderminster to Oban where 50049 and 50007 'Hercules' were set to to run to Scotland, bringing 50049 to the WSR last weekend for the gala was a real stroke of genius, and brought a lot of enthusiasts in to ride the locomotive at the gala, some of whom were booked on the original Oban tour.

50049 was also no stranger to the WSR, having been bought for preservation by 'The Class 50 Society', later re-named Project Defiance. Following an overhaul at AWS in Cardiff, it moved to the West Somerset Railway in 1994 where it was repainted into the Railfreight Distribution two tone grey livery as 50149. 'Defiance' left the WSR to attend the SVR Diesel Gala in 1999, and remained at the SVR thereafter, so it was a very fitting gala guest this year, a former resident Class 50 on the 50th anniversary of the reopening of the West Somerset Railway!

Having arrived on the mainline last week and been a crowd pulling star at last weekends Summer Diesel Festival, today offered the first of two opportunities for some bonus Class 50 mileage along the WSR with 50049 working four trips, beginning with the 10.00 off Minehead formed of x3 carriages, then the highly anticipated 12.25 off Bishops Lydeard, formed of x10 coaches, before the 14.30 return to Bishops Lydeard with x7 coaches and a final run to Minehead forming the 16.25 again on load x7.

We begin at Minehead with a run on the 10.00 to Bishops Lydeard with a relatively easy load 3 down the line. Once the three coach formation had arrived at Bishops Lydeard, 50049 ran round and shunted the three coaches back towards Westridge, linking the remaining 7 coaches, forming up a sizeable 10 coach train ready for the 12.25 run from Bishops Lydeard up to Minehead.

Upon pulling back into Bishops Lydeard station there was some dismay from enthusiasts, especially those who’d come to take advantage and ride the advertised 10 coach train, as some train staff insisted on locking off the front three coaches, to make operating the 10 coach train easier for themselves, however, valuable lesson here to be learned, don’t upset your customers and false advertise something you can’t deliver! People paid good money today to ride behind the 50 as advertised, and their support is needed more than ever with rising costs for the railway so there was some serious disappointment and flared tempers when this stunt was pulled. Thankfully common sense prevailed (eventually) and a phone call to Minehead overruled, insisting ALL doors were opened immediately, so enthusiasts were given the full English Electric experience they had come and paid for.

Once that was smoothed over it was back to business with a good run back up to Minehead on load 10, before we head out to Blue Anchor, Castle Hill and Crowcombe Heathfield to see the 7 coach run down the Bishops Lydeard, and the final scenes show the last 7 coach run forming the 16.25 returning to Minehead.

50049 will next be out at the WSR on Sunday 14th June so another chance to see and hear her at work prior to heading off for the Keighley & Worth Valley diesel gala. | 09.06.2026

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