The Railway Correspondence & Travel Society

Archive And Library Open Day
2025-03-12 11:00 - 16:00, 2025-03-06 11:00 - 16:00, 2025-03-01 11:00 - 16:00 (Europe/London) | RCTS Library, Leatherhead Station Approach, Leatherhead, KT22 7SQ, United Kingdom

Swanning Around in the 1990s
2025-03-11 19:30 - 22:00 | CSL Croydon, East Croydon United Reformed Church, Addiscombe Grove, Croydon, CR0 5LP, United Kingdom
A look back at London’s Railways some thirty years ago, as the Network South East era gave way to Privatisation. A chance to see how things were, and how much has changed (or not) since. Just what I was able to get out, swan around and photograph…

"A wee look around Scotland" by Robin Mathams
2025-03-11 19:30 - 22:00 | CBR Fulbourn, Cambridge, The Swifts, Haggis Gap, Fulbourn, Cambridge, CB21 5HD, United Kingdom

That was the year that was - 1962 - Geoff Plumb
2025-03-11 19:00 - 21:30 | EMD Nottingham, The New Mechanics, 3 North Sherwood Street, Nottingham, NG1 4EZ, United Kingdom
A look at the UK railway scene in 1962

Rhys Jones. Steam in Scotland
2025-03-11 19:00 - 21:00 | SFD Sheffield Farm Road Sports & Social Club, Farm Road, Sheffield, S2 2TP, United Kingdom
Rhys presents photos from the mid-1950s to the present day depicting steam traction in action across Scotland.

1960's Cine Miscellany
2025-03-11 14:00 - 16:30 | St Marks Church Hall, Hitchin SG5 1UR, St Mark's Close, Lancaster Avenue, Hitchin, Hertfordshire, SG5 1UR
A Hitchin & Welwyn Garden City branch presentation by David Percival.
Details to follow.
Doors open 13:30 for a 14:00 start.

Not so much a hobby-but a way of life by Jim Connor.
2025-03-10 19:15 - 21:45 | Greenfinch Hall,Greenfinch Avenue Ipswich IP2 0SQ
An affectionate look at Railway Enthusiasm over the years from the early twentieth Century.This presentation replaces that of Society President Brian Arman who is unable to visit us because of sickness.

CHR Private Test Event
2025-03-10 14:30 - 16:30
This is a private event not open to the public

The Vintage Trains Story by Mike Corbett, Northampton Branch Meeting
2025-03-10 14:00 - 16:30 | NHN Northampton – Weston Favell, Weston Favell Parish Hall, Booth Lane South, Northampton, NN3 3EP, United Kingdom

RCTS WEN Branch Meeting : Chris Holland - A Railway Life
2025-03-08 19:00 - 21:30 | WEN Exeter [Mint Methodist Church], Fore Street, Exeter, EX4 3AT, United Kingdom
For our March meeting we welcome Chris Holland a career railwayman who many will know for his work with Class 50s / Preservation and the Class 57 project for FGW. An accomplished photographer Chris will be entertaining us with a talk about his railway career

Bristol - 'LOCOMOTION & The Stockton & Darlington Railway 200' by SLS President Dr Michael Bailey
2025-03-07 19:30 - 22:00 | BTL North Filton, St Teresa’s Church Hall, 71 Gloucester Road, North Filton, BS34 7PL, United Kingdom
SLS President Dr Michael Bailey will be presenting the results of recent research into the historic locomotive LOCOMOTION and the history of the Stockton & Darlington Railway.

Milton Keynes Branch Meeting - ‘Members Presentations’
2025-03-06 19:30 - 21:30 | MKY Milton Keynes, Network Rail - The Quadrant: MK, Elder Gate, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, MK9 1EN, United Kingdom
Join us for our first face to face meeting of the year. Unfortunately our booked speaker from East West Rail is now unable to attend, so we will be enjoying and evening of members presentations.

Kents Bank a hidden gem
2025-03-05 19:30 - 21:30
paul salvesen who many of you will know will outline the fantastic changes he and his team have made since he purchased Kent Bank old railway station building

WFD Branch - 'War and Peace', by Simon Colbeck, 4th March 2025
2025-03-04 19:00 - 21:30 | WFD Watford, Beechen Grove Baptist Church, Clarendon Road, Watford, WD17 1JJ, United Kingdom
SIMON COLBECK – WAR AND PEACE
The railways of Bosnia and Sweden. Preserved and real steam in both countries, with plenty of archive images to add to the interest. Further details may be available nearer the date.
Please note this is a physical meeting, doors open from 18:30 for 19:00 commencement of proceedings.

Members digital images (jpeg files no slides)
2025-02-28 19:30 - 22:00 | Fulwood Lawn Tennis club Highgate Ave Preston PR2 8DY, Highgate Ave, Preston, Lancashire, PR2 8DY

Railways before (and during) the War – that’s the Great War! (Part 3)
2025-02-27 19:30 - 22:00 | Virtual Meeting, Virtual Meeting, United Kingdom
A further presentation of Black and White images, drawn from the Ken Nunn collection and scanned from glass plates, illustrating railways in Britain before the Great War. Tonight’s is the final part, featuring Welsh railways, ventures to Belgium and France, and then a wider look at British railways in 1914 and 1915, when it was still ‘business as usual, before concluding with few shots of the ROD in France in 1918. The Ken Nunn collection was acquired by the LCGB after Ken’s death, and although it has now been transferred to the NRM, ‘showing rights’ to the scanned images were retained, and Jeremy Harrison is making this presentation wearing his LCGB hat.
For this virtual event, you will require a ticket. Free for RCTS members, but a £2.50 donation will be requested at the checkout. Non-member tickets are £2.50. (Or you can join the Society in the same transaction to take advantage of members’ benefits)
To receive information on coming National (and other) Zoom meetings, please join the RCTS National Zoom E-mail List (RCTS-National@groups.io) by visiting https://groups.io/g/RCTS-National , or by e-mail to RCTS-National+subscribe@groups.io.

Railways Remembered in North East England
2025-02-26 19:15 - 22:15 | Virtual Meeting, Virtual Meeting, United Kingdom
Recently published by Crécy is Railways Remembered: North East England. This full colour volume covers the area from the Scottish Border to the Tees, and inland to the North Pennines. All facets of railway operations are covered: steam, diesel and electric; town and country; freight and passenger; BR and industry. One of the co-authors, Charles Roberts, tells how the project came to fruition, illustrating his talk with a series of images and maps, many of which didn’t quite make the cut for the finished product.

Remembering my Lines
2025-02-25 14:00 - 16:30 | HTC Welwyn, Digswell Village Church Hall, Welwyn, Hertfordshire, AL6 0DH, United Kingdom
A Hitchin & Welwyn Garden City branch presentation by Colin Brading.
‘Remembering My Lines’ is a personal ‘photographic potpourri’ of many and varied railway themes. On a wide-ranging journey, Colin will share favourite scenes, places and images that span from his early years with notebooks on platforms to the present-day, reflecting a life-long passion for railways and a fifty-year career as a professional railway engineer.
Doors open 13:30 for a 14:00 start.

China steam in the enthusiast era - Robin Gibbons
2025-02-25 14:00 - 16:30 | EMD Nottingham, The New Mechanics, 3 North Sherwood Street, Nottingham, NG1 4EZ, United Kingdom
In a change to the advertised programme Robin will present his talk
It is an augmented slide show with plenty of images but with a lot of information. It covers mainly the enthusiast era (roughly 1976 – 2012) but with a little bit of more historic information to put things in context.

Eurostar: Where do we go from here
2025-02-24 19:30 - 22:00 | MHD Cox Green, Cox Green Community Centre, Highfield Lane, Cox Green, Maidenhead, SL6 3AX, United Kingdom
A speed look at what 30 years of Eurostar has done for connecting the UK with Mainland Europe before embarking on a high speed journey into the future.
There will also be a small celebration to mark this milestone meeting for the branch.

In Edinburgh: "Modern Traction Miscellany" by Ian McInnes
2025-02-22 14:00 - 16:30 | SCT Edinburgh, Scots Guards Club, 2 Clifton Terrace,, Edinburgh, EH12 5DR, United Kingdom
This presentation will examine a variety of diesel and electric locomotives/trains from the BR blue era through to privatisation. Ian will cover a wide range of locations, mainly across England but also a few from Scotland, Wales, France, Belgium, the Netherlands and even some from California.
Note that this is a Saturday afternoon meeting.

"Swiss Railways" by Peter Mann
2025-02-20 19:30 - 21:30 | WRD Shipley, Saltaire Methodist Church, Saltaire Road, Shipley, BD18 3HJ, United Kingdom

Surrey Branch - Rail Scenes In Germany, Berlin - Brandenburg
2025-02-20 19:15 - 21:30 | SRY Woking, Woking United Reform Church, White Rose Lane, Woking, GU22 7HA, United Kingdom
Unfortunately the previously advertsed speaker, Neil Drury, is unable to attend our meeting. Steve Ollive has steped in at very short notice to give us his presrentaion on Rail Scenes In Germany, Berlin – Brandenburg.

CHM Branch - Royal Funeral Trains
2025-02-20 19:00 - 22:00 | CHM Cheltenham, Victory Club, Burlington House, Lypiatt Road, Cheltenham, GL50 2SY, United Kingdom
It is famously said that when HM Queen Victoria travelled to/from Windsor by train, the driver was instructed to “proceed at no more pace than the horses would reach”. Until, that is, the occasion of her funeral when there was a bit of time pressure, so the Great Western crew got a bit of a wriggle on! Nicolas Wheatley returns with more of his research on funeral trains and will be able to confirm or deny this story.

North East Branch - Steam and Diesel in the Northern Fells
2025-02-20 19:00 - 21:30 | NEA Darlington, Darlington Cricket Club, South Terrace, Darlington, DL1 5JD, United Kingdom
Ian Pilkington travels across The Pennines to bring us images of steam and diesel hard at work across the northern fells of England.

The Effect of World War II on Britain's Railways
2025-02-20 14:00 - 16:30
“Industrial and Railway historian Richard Marks explores the impact of World War Two upon Britain’s railways. Find out the important role that Britain’s four railway companies had in achieving victory in World War Two. Discover the war work that was undertaken in the railway company works across the country and the impact of Luftwaffe operations upon Britain’s railway network during the war. This talk will also look at how the legacy left by the Victorian railway builders benefitted Britain in World War Two.”

An A-Z of Swiss Railways Part 1
2025-02-19 19:30 - 22:00 | SOE Eastleigh, Junction Church (formerly Eastleigh Railway Institute), 2 Romsey Road, Eastleigh, SO50 9FE, United Kingdom

HSD branch - A further look at Colour-rail
2025-02-18 19:30 - 22:00 | HSD Hull, The Highway, Willerby Road, Hull, HU5 5LH, United Kingdom
Paul Chancellor – “A further look at Colour-rail”
