Cramlington Train Wreckers Walk 2025
Following the huge success of the stage play The Cramlington Train Wreckers, a walk was held on 6 July 2025, taking in significant locations of the former site of West Cramlington Colliery (today Alexandra Park) and the section of railway line associated with the notorious derailment that took place during the General Strike of 1926.
A big thank you to the 45 walkers and local historians Brian Godfrey, Jon Hill and Brian Ridley.
On 10 May 1926, dozens of striking miners lifted a rail in a bid to stop what they thought was a coal train carrying blackleg coal. Their intention was for the coal train to halt.
Unfortunately, the next train to come along was a passenger train, the Flying Scotsman, carrying 281 people on board.
Thankfully, no one was killed in the derailment and only one person was slightly injured.
Eight Northumberland miners were sentenced to a total of 48 years' imprisonment for the derailment. After serving their sentences, they returned to Cramlington and Dudley as heroes.
The play, written by Ed Waugh, sold out all nine venues it played throughout the North East in November 2024.
Join us on Sunday, 10 May 2026 for the centenary walk!
Another world. West Cramlington was left as a barren wasteland until the development of Alexandra Park in the 1970s.
(Image credit: Brian Godfrey)
"Stop everything on wheels!"
The site of the Flying Scotsman derailment is today the grounds of the Cramlington Learning Village football pitch on the left, directly opposite the broken line of hedgerow in the field on the right.
(Image credit: Ewan Waugh)