News Items for 2008

21st December 2008: Members day a great success over 70 turned up. The raffle was drawn with the following lucky winners first prize of the 32 inch flat screen TV went to ticket number 355 Annabel Lamb second prize of a George Jenson candlestick holder kindly supplied by Winsor Bishop of Norwich went to ticket number 190 Gina Wainwright and the 3rd prize of the meal for two at the Kings Arms in Reepham went to ticket number 1298 Mr A Fiddament. 

6th December 2008: Our first set of points are successfully tested.

2nd December 2008: The area to the head shunt is totally cleared.

30th November 2008: 100512 hits on the website in the Month of November.

23rd November 2008: BBC Radio Norfolk uses the Railway Station as their clue 2 in the Sunday Morning Program called Travel Quest (A radio version of the successful Channel 4 Challenge Anika). It was snowing really heavy at the time.

9th November 2008: Members day was a great success with over 70 people attending, coming from as far a field as Berkshire, Essex and Suffolk.

7th November 2008: Membership breaks through the 100 barrier after starting our membership in July 2008.

25th October 2008: Castle Galleries in the Chapelfield mail Norwich asked us to supply railway memorabilia for their two week exhibition with Jeff Rowland.

19th October 2008: The head shunt is exposed for the first time in years showing us where we need to be for February next year.

18th October 2008: We start to install our first set of points and we install the first new window in the station building.

13th October 2008: North Norfolk Railway confirms that they will loan a steam engine for 2009 opening.

3rd October 2008: Delivery of two more carriages from Great Central Railway a BSK no 34712 and a Bogie B Van S272.
   

27th/28th September 2008: We where invited to exhibit at Strumpshaw steam event which went very well.

15th September 2008: Station yard is tidied up.

1st September 2008: Renovation of box van continues with the final coat on one end.

26th August 2008: Broadland District Council planning consent is granted to turn the site into a museum.

22nd August 2008: First Carriage is delivered. This is being sponsored Winsor Bishops the jewellers in Norwich to be turned into a griddle car. The carriage did not make it final destination due to the recent rain that we have had that made the ground too soft .

21st August 2008: Elaine Maslin from the Eastern Daily Press writes another on the Station progress in the Dereham and Fakenham Times .

14th August 2008: We cleared the left hand side of the engine shed ready to lay 80 feet of track for our new coach which should be delivered on Friday 22nd.

26th July 2008: We had a stall at the Reepham Festival today and we signed up another 9 members, sold a large number of polo, T shirts and pads.

19th July 2008: The longest journey was made today we travelled 360 feet for the first time.

17th July 2008: A new logo was agreed.

1st July 2008: A person called Paul left 2 Railway signals at the front entrance for the museum. Thank you.

25th June 2008: The first 200 feet is travelled on with our new addition to our rolling stock a 1956 goods van.

17th June 2008: Arrival of our first goods van.

7th June 2008: First track panels are laid with the help of North Norfolk Railway Permanent Way Men.

5th June 2008: First track panels arrive.

4th June 2008: Broadland District Council approves track plans only.

1st May 2008: Whitwell Station interview was shown on Anglia News throughout the day. Also I did a live radio interview on North Norfolk Radio.

29th April 2008: Media organisations around the country picked up on the story The Metro in London and an Electronics Parts Supplier Rapid Electronics. We also take delivery of our first piece of rolling stock.

23rd April 2008: I was invited to give a talk on the future of Whitwell Station at the Reepham Town Council AGM and I was interviewed by Elaine Maslin from Archant.

9th April 2008: Planning applications submitted .

11th March 2008: Whitwell & Reepham station is mentioned in Heritage Railways Issue 109 Page 15.

8th March 2008 : Busty Rudd visits station. Busty was a Reepham Town councillor who remembers the station, when it was open. He agreed to visit to help identify how the station was laid out in its working days.
 

11th February 2008 : Youths found.

10th February 2008 : First piece of vandalism, two youths late teens one with purple coloured hair where seen drinking mid afternoon on the platform and then proceeded to push two pieces of security fence onto the track bed. Anyone with any information please e-mail mike@whitwellstation.com