A CHURCH hall become a station on Saturday, as model railway enthusiasts flocked to an exhibition.
Members of the Chosley and Wallingford Railway group organised the event, returning for the first time since the start of the covid pandemic.
Held at The Warehouse, part of Wycliffe Baptist Church on Kings Road, hundreds of people enjoy seeing a range of carefully curated dioramas, in different gauges.
Groups from as far away as South London and Watford attended the event to showcase their work, as there were several trade and society stands.
The event raised £256 for the railway, a heritage branch line that opened in 1866.
Since 1985, it has been running 45-minute trips from Wallingford through to Chosley, using 1950s coaches, hauled by a heritage diesel locomotive or a visiting steam engine.
The line is run by volunteers, and relies on donations for it operation.
Organiser Richard Standing was pleased with how the event had gone, not least as some of the exhibits were new to him.
“I didn’t really get a lot of time to stop and admire the exhibits myself, although I’d seen most of them before at other exhibitions. One, Stonethwaite, was very nicely done,” he said.
“It was good to be able to put the exhibition on again after a three-year absence, and I’m already starting to think about next year.”
He added: “Special thanks must go to Andy Nibbs of the Loddon Vale Model Railway Club for stepping in to do the bulk of the catering at short notice.”
For more details, log on to: https://www.cholsey-wallingford-railway.com/
