The North Yorkshire Moors Railway has launched an ambitious fundraiser to preserve an important part of Britain's heritage.
The charity is asking for donations of at least £200,000 towards the £400,000 needed to restore steam engine the Green Knight No. 75029.
Built in the 1950s, it's one of only six locomotives of its type that remain, but has been grounded for the last 10 years due to a significant crack in its firebox.
The Green Knight was a railway workhorse, carrying passengers and freight, and it even carried the Olympic torch from Whitby ahead of the 2012 London Olympic Games.
Built in the 1950s, it's one of only six locomotives of its type that remain
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Paul Middleton, Director of Safety, Operations and Compliance at North Yorkshire Moors Railway spoke to GB News.
He said: "It's [the Green Knight] a British Rail standard four class engine. It's a great engine for the railway. It's nice and powerful. It's easy to operate. It's quite modern for a steam engine.
"It came to the North Yorkshire Moors Railway in the early 2000s. It was restored here and now it's in need of a restoration.
"It needs a completely new copper firebox and copper, it's thick plate, it's expensive and it needs that.
"Once we've done that and once we've carried out the overhaul, it'll be good for another 50 or 60 years, so it'll be a proper job. But it's at that time of life now where it needs a bit of TLC."
The North Yorkshire Moors Railway is one of the earliest and most historic lines in the North of England takes visitors on picturesque journeys along an 18-mile railway line aboard steam and heritage diesel trains.
Its origins go back well over a century and a half and were an important trade link between Pickering and Whitby.
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It has been grounded for the last 10 years due to a significant crack in its firebox
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The line was registered as a charity under the title of the North York Moors Historical Railway Trust in February 1973 and since then, it has been dedicated to keeping history alive.
Richard Pearson, Projects and Planning Engineer at North Yorkshire Moors Railway, told GB News the work needed to restore the Green Knight.
He said: "It's the boiler that needs most of the work, but mechanically it's in reasonably good condition. It didn't run many miles before it was withdrawn.
"These are working engines that need to be out there working and earning a living. You have got engines in places, in museums, and they're all nice and shiny, but they've got they're just they just sit there, don't they?
"We're a working railway. We've got to make our engines work. People come to see working steam engines. So we've got to put them at use and, and make them do what they're built for.
The fundraiser also ties in with an important milestone in British train travel, as this year marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of the modern railway.
The fundraiser also ties in with an important milestone in British train travel, as this year marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of the modern railway
GB NEWS
Paul Middleton, Director of Safety, Operations and Compliance at North Yorkshire Moors Railway, said: "We started steam engines in the UK and we're going to continue to run them. This is railway 200 this year, it's 200 years of the railways and it all started here in the North East.
"We're incredibly proud of that, and we want to make sure that we continue that story on for another 200 years.
"I might not be here then, but the team and the railway will be, and it's important that we pass on the skills and we keep these engines running.
"It's all part of our heritage and we mustn't forget that - it's really important."
A full overhaul of the Green Knight is expected to take three to four years and it will ensure future generations can experience the magic of steam travel.
To donate to the renovation of the Green Knight, click HERE.
