- Class: P
- Wheels: 0-6-0T
- Numbers Carried: 323, A323, 1323, 31323
- Last Overhaul Completed: March 2011
- Last Operational: 9 February 2019
- Owned By: Bluebell Railway
)
Long the flagship of the Bluebell’s fleet, painted blue and named ‘Bluebell’ between 1961 and 1998, this loco was repainted into SE&CR wartime plain green livery, for the 1999 centenary of the SE&CR (Photo: right).
The P-class tank locomotives were, in design terms, an updated copy of the LBSCR Terriers, but, with only eight of them built, made rather less of a name for themselves. However, with four of the eight surviving into preservation, they have blossomed, and are now much more favourably regarded as highly capable little locomotives. Their greater water capacity and larger cabs give them a slight advantage over the considerably older Terriers.
In preparation for the Bluebell Railway’s 50th anniversary, in September 2009 the loco entered the works. Getting it into service for August 2010 was thwarted by the discovery of the need for additional boiler repairs, and after this additional work, the loco returned to service just in time to put in an appearance at the Branch Line weekend in March 2011, painted in a more elaborate version of “Bluebell Blue” than formerly, as seen above.
Following its 2019 annual boiler inspection, it was withdrawn from service. Having run 78,000 miles in Bluebell service it will require significant mechanical work as part of its current overhaul, during which it will be reunited with the boiler it carried when it arrived at the Bluebell in 1960, which until recently was carried by No. 178.
