In 2023, the British locomotive Flying Scotsman is 100 years old. A national treasure of engineering and design, it can be admired on tour or at the National Railway Museum in York, conjuring up the golden age of steam travel.
In February 1923, the steam locomotive that became the Flying Scotsman emerged from the former Great Northern Railway (GNR) works at Doncaster. Initially known as No. 1472, this locomotive was the third of the ‘A1’ class to be built – and the first for the London and North Eastern Railway (LNER). The ‘A1’ was an entirely new type of locomotive. Trains of this period had become heavier, following the introduction of more luxurious corridor carriages (with toilets) and restaurant cars, and required more powerful locomotives.
By 1924, locomotive No. 1472 had acquired a new number (4472), smart embellishments to its green livery, the crest of the LNER on the cab side and the name Flying Scotsman. (The locomotive was named in honour of the express train service that had run on the east coast route between London and Edinburgh since 1862.) Ever since that point, there has been confusion between the train and the locomotive. Over a 40-year career on British rails, Flying Scotsman travelled over two million miles (3.2 million km) and became the first steam locomotive to reach a speed of 100mph (161kmh). In 1928, it hauled the first regular non-stop service from London to Edinburgh.
In 2004 it joined the collection of the National Railway Museum. A subsequent rebuild took over ten years, and after the triumphant unveiling in February 2016, the locomotive was once again able to haul excursions, watched by thousands from the lineside. For a century, and through many iterations, Flying Scotsman has well earned its reputation as the most famous steam locomotive in the world.
