Simulated Train Crash, a photo from Cambridgeshire, England

Photographer's Note

Part of the old LNWR line that ran into Peterborough is now a preserved line now known as the Nene Valley Railway.

In 2003, the BBC made a two-episode hospital drama called Casualty and commissioned the NVR to prepare a simulated train crash.

We took a rake of coaches through the tunnel and used our 1931 40-ton steam crane to lay them in positions that they would likely have taken in a real crash.

One big problem was blocking the line with the coaches as near as possible to the tunnel (the crash was supposed to have taken place at its mouth) while leaving room for lowering the jib of the crane so we could get it back through the tunnel. It was a close call, with only inches to spare!

I went up to the top of the tunnel to take the photograph with my only camera at the time, a Canon Ixus APS 'point and shoot'. Thus the image is not the best but I hope the scene, and the scenery, justify its inclusion in TE.

mortijo, AdrianW, benkrut, ktanska has marked this note useful

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ktanska (44492) 2006-01-16 3:40

Hi David,
Very interesting scene here. It would be great to participate such an operation some day.
In this picture I like the sense of depth showing vegetation on the foreground. I guess the viewpoint was not the best possible, the crane covering a lot of details. This one could be improved be cropping away most of the white sky and editing out that date.
Kari