The Media Archive for Central England is the public screen archive for the East and West Midlands. An independent charity and company based at the University of Lincoln, MACE acquires, catalogues, preserves and makes widely available moving image materials that inform our understanding of the diverse cultures and histories of communities between the Lincolnshire coast and the Welsh border.
This film is part of Free
Railway Line Reopened
The return of the 'Knotty': the long lost North Staffordshire Railway is reborn at Cheddleton.
From the collection of:
Overview
After an inauspicious start (the train over-runs the spot where the dignitaries at Stoke on Trent station are standing) things pick up for the first passenger train to travel the Churnet Valley line since the 1960s. Its destination is the village of Cheddleton, nestling in what is known locally as the lost valley. It seems a shame that the line was ever discontinued, particularly as it originally provided a way of reaching that popular tourist attraction: Alton Towers.
This train did not in fact lead to a reintroduction of passenger trains on the line, although the private North Staffordshire Railway does operate a preserved railway that runs from Cheddleton to Leek Brook along part of the line.
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