Big following for miniature railways celebration

Perth Green Model Railway Club staged their annual show over the weekend, bring together its members and the work of other enthusiasts from across the country to show 13 different layouts.

They featured scenes based on the railways of South Shields, Sunderland’s docks, Chollerford in Northumberland and Teesside’s steelworks, to Blackpool - including its illuminations - and others created from designs set down from scratch.

Some measure 4ft by 2ft up to 30ft long, with the larger scale displays taken along by other clubs.

The annual exhibition was held at Perth Green Community Centre in Jarrow, where it has been based since 1986, for the 29th year running.

Around a dozen traders also set up shop, offering club members and other visitors the chance to find new features and kit for their displays.

Club treasurer John Forster said: “This is our main fundraising event for the year and the money we make will help us keep going for the next 12 months.

“It will also help us with our project to make a model of Brockley Whins Metro Station, which goes down to the point where the bridge goes over the A19.

“We’ve been working on it for five years and it gives our newer members the chance to learn how to do things.

“People also get the chance to find out about us and we usually get two or three new members after each exhibition.

“The majority of people who come along are model enthusiasts and we get a lot of good feedback from them.

“But we also get a lot of families in as well and it’s mainly the boys who like watching what’s going on.

“It’s important to encourage the next generation.”

The club meets at the centre from 7pm to 9pm on Tuesdays and on Wednesdays from 7pm to 10pm, with anyone interested in joining welcome to call in.

More information can be found via its Facebook page, Perth Green Model Railway Club (Jarrow), or its own site www.perthgreenmrc.org.