This summer, Chester Cathedral is hosting a special event to celebrate a landmark moment in railway history. It has now been two centuries since the first ever intercity train travelled with passengers, making 2025 officially “Railway200”.
The upcoming event is entitled “Making Tracks 200” and will be led by Pete Waterman OBE and his highly skilled team “The Railnuts”. In honour of the new milestone, the exhibit will feature an extensive variety of model trains that date from the 1820s up to the present day.
The 2025 model railway set up within Chester’s Grade-listed cathedral will be 72 feet in length and features Watford Junction and an astonishing cityscape. There will be an abundance of hidden details in the diorama for visitors to discover, plus plenty of opportunities for enthusiasts to drive the model trains themselves.
Waterman and his team received a world record for producing the biggest portable model railway ever created. Measuring 208 feet by 14 feet, the epic layout was named “Making Tracks,” and depicted a dedicated section of Network Rail’s West Coast Main Line (WCML). It was showcased at the Birmingham NEC’s event called Model World Live. The Railnuts are renowned for their detailed and intricate model railways.
Making Tracks 200 will now be live in Chester Cathedral’s South Transept from Thursday, July 24 to Saturday, August 30. The event is open between Monday and Saturday between 10 am and 4 pm and the cathedral is sited on St Werburgh Street in Chester.