Cream Tea

Tea & Cakes with the Railway Children

Popular County Durham heritage attraction, the Tanfield Railway, is busily restoring a Victorian railway carriage which was once part of the set in the much loved classic of British Cinema “The Railway Children”.

The carriage, No. 1173, is a wooden bodied 4 wheel First Class Saloon, built in 1870 for the North Eastern Railway, renovated in 1892 it became an Officer’s Saloon in 1897 and was used by the Superintendent of the Line Mr. P. Burtt, before being allocated to the District Engineer in Hull; where it remained in service for more than 30 years.

Over the course of 2024 the volunteers, in the Tanfield Railway’s workshops, plan to restore the coach to its Victorian splendour. Once completed, the railway’s aim is to use carriage No. 1173 on their very popular “Afternoon Cream Tea” service. This is what Robson Green had to say about his visit to the railway in 2022 as part of his Robson Green’s Weekends Away series. “We visited the extraordinary Tanfield Railway where we enjoyed afternoon tea inside the stunning Victorian carriages that journey along the oldest Railway in the World!”

Tanfield Railway’s General Manager, David Watchman, said, “Bringing carriage No.1173 back into active service will allow us to offer First Class party experiences and additional seating on our “Cream Tea Trains”, which have become increasingly popular with our visitors. For anyone wishing to experience a Tanfield Railway Cream Tea there are still a few dates available. More information can be found here: https://tanfield.vticket.co.uk/product.php/43/afternoontea2024

Services operate on the Tanfield Railway, between East Tanfield, Andrews House and Sunniside, on Sundays and Bank Holidays until late October.