Railway with a Heart of Gold (1965)

This film is an account of the Talyllyn Railway, a historic narrow-gauge slate carrier in Tywyn, Wales, and its operation by a preservation society who saved it from being sold for scrap. Although the release date is 1965, it was actually filmed in the early 1950s. Academic Film Archive of North America director Geoff Alexander visited the railway in June, 2009 as part of the process of preparing the film for uploading:

"Opened in 1865, the Talyllyn railway was the first narrow-gauge steam railway opened specifically for industrial hauling by steam. Since saving the railway in the late 1940's, hundreds of individuals have been involved in keeping it running, and visitors are welcome to ride (www.talyllyn.co.uk) The passion for the railway on the part of the Society is extraordinary. Volunteers are classed in three groups: adults, adolescents, and children, and a significant number of marriages and children have happened as a result of the social interaction among society members. I found the Talyllyn experience to be a culture with a passion for preservation. Filmmaker Kit Davidson gave the Society the right to use this film to raise funds, and they sell the DVD in their shop. When I arrived, the four people cleaning the locomotive spontaneously started whistling the theme to this film, written by Judd Woldin. The railway is easily visited by rail from virtually any point in the UK, as connections can be made to the town of Tywyn, in Wales, where the Talyllyn Railway is located."

For more on the filmmaker, visit www.afana.org/davidsoncarson.htm

Category:

Travel & Events

Tags:

• Talyllyn
• Railway
• David
• Carson
• narrow-gauge
• Tywyn
• Wales
• Judd
• Woldin

[penninefilms]

For some reason this video seems to make you fell quite happy.

[usra060]

@penninefilms Thanks for watching! I like it too.

[MrComedy01]

isn't that Rev. W. Awdry at 5:29 to 6:21 or is it just someone who looks like him?

[usra060]

@MrComedy01 I don't know. Thanks for watching!

[sirrliv]

I do believe I saw this very video running on a TV at the National Railway Museum in York when I visited last year. I remember finding it most amusing and a welcome rest at the time. Thank you very much for bringing this wonderful little memory back to me.

[usra060]

@sirrliv Thanks! I enjoy this video too!

[penninefilms]

@usra060 Thanks for uploading this film.

[hyouma09]

@drawstop Americans don't pronounce it the way you guys do.

[DLW194921]

Thanks for the video I first visited this railway in 1962 and would guess that this film was recorded earlier than 1965, probably in 1955..lovely film and a priceless peice of railway history very nostalgic.....