GWR 7800 Class 7802 Bradley Manor

After leaving Swindon it was sent to Old Oak Common TMD being transferred to Bristol Bath Road TMD in 1939. Like most of its class it eventually ended up on the Cambrian section, arriving at Machynlleth in 1946 where it stayed until its final transfer to Shrewsbury in 1964. Withdrawn from service in November 1965 it was sent to Woodham Brothers scrapyard in July 1966.

It was rescued from Barry in 1979 by the 'Erlestoke Manor Fund' based at the Severn Valley Railway originally as spare parts for 7812 Erlestoke Manor. However the owners had a change of heart and in 1983 the decision was taken to return 7802 to steam.[1] This was accomplished in 1993 and since then has given excellent service on the Severn Valley Railway, West Somerset Railway and on various main line excursions.

Bradley Manor was withdrawn for overhaul in August 2000, and to help speed up the process it was given the boiler of preserved classmate Erlestoke Manor which was already partially restored.[2] The work on Bradley Manor continued with it first moving under its own steam on 12 March 2002 and entering service for the Severn Valley Railway later in the year.[3] It completed over 9,000 miles during the 2000 season with almost continuous daily service. In 2005, 7802 was featured in the Disney movie The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, in the scenes passing through the countryside.[4][5][6]

The summer of 2003 saw Bradley Manor haul a number of trains in August under the name Torbay Express. Promoted by Past-Time Rail, the itinerary was Bristol Temple Meads to Kingswear and return. The originally planned four trains were so popular a fifth was added in September. Bradley Manor developed a hot axle box on the first run on 10 August and so was unable to haul the next two outings which saw 5051 Earl Bathurst step in. However Bradley Manor returned for the 31 August and 7 September trips. On commenting about the success of the Torbay Express, Past-Time Rail director Andy Staite said that "Bradley Manor was the 'right' motive power for the line - Newton Abbot shed had 'Manors' in steam days and they were a familiar sight on the South Devon Coast route."[7]

In April 2007 new Network Rail standards were introduced requiring all preserved steam locomotives to be fitted with On-train monitoring recorders (OTMR) before they could run on the main line. So halfway through its latest main line certificate the owners decided the cost of returning 7812 Erlestoke Manor to steam and fitting OTMR to 7802 was just too much. Bradley Manor did receive a stay of execution and could run on the main line until the end of 2007, after which, it was restricted to heritage railway use only, running up to February 2011, when issues with the boiler saw it withdrawn for overhaul early, though work on a further overhaul started almost immediately.

In November 2015, 7802 re-entered traffic after an overhaul shared between Bridgnorth works and Tyseley locomotive works. A new 3500 gallon Churchward tender is being built at Tyseley which will eventually replace the 4000 gallon Collett tender used by 7802 in preservation. In March 2018 7802 was paired with 3500 gallon Churchward tender T2334 from 7812 Erlestoke Manor following the latter's withdrawal for overhaul.[8]

Agreement was reached in May 2019 to send 7802 to the West Somerset Railway until early October 2019, with 6960 Raveningham Hall coming to the SVR for at least a similar period.[9] The swap was necessitated by an axle-weight restricted by the West Somerset Railway on its locomotives with the GWR 6959_Class Raveningham Hall being too heavy. 7802 suffered a broken piston rod in July 2019 and was moved to Tyseley Locomotive Works on 30 July 2019 for assessment.[10]

The location of 7802 Bradley Manor on particular dates.[11]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to 7802 Bradley Manor.

• The Erlestoke Manor Fund More information on the loco and its history.
• Severn Valley Railway Official Site