Nearly 40,000 people are expected to visit The Greatest Gathering railway festival at Alstom in Derby over the next three days.

The event is part of the wider Railway 200 celebrations to mark the two centuries which have passed since passengers travelled behind a steam locomotive for the first time on the Stockton & Darlington Railway on 27 September 1825.

Visitors will be able to see more than 140 rolling stock exhibits, including the special Railway 200 exhibition train Inspiration, which is designed to celebrate the industry’s heritage and also to attract young people to a career on tomorrow’s railway.

Rolling stock will cover two centuries, ranging from Locomotion No.1, which hauled the inaugural passenger train in 1825, to a full size mock-up of a carriage for HS2.

Alstom UK and Ireland managing director Rob Whyte said: ‘Alstom’s roots in the UK go right back to 1825, when Locomotion No.1 made its historic journey on the Stockton and Darlington Railway. Through successive mergers the locomotive’s builder – Robert Stephenson and Company – became part of Alstom in 1989 and we are beyond proud to carry that legacy of ingenuity forward.’

Entry is by booking only, and the event has proved to be so popular that all tickets had been snapped up within days.

The Railway 200 exhibition train is pausing at Derby as part of a nationwide tour which began at the end of June, and after Derby the next stop for the train will be at Norwich between 7 and 10 August. Later this year the train will visit several Scottish sites before going to the West Somerset Railway. Inspiration’s final call this year will be at London Victoria from 18 to 20 December, but its travels will continue during the first half of 2026, when the train is expected to visit more places in Wales and the West of England.

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