Sixteen workers pulled a 25-tonne steam locomotive by hand. For an entire hour, a team of employees from Alstom’s Reading depot repeatedly hauled No. 1340 “Trojan” along a 250-metre section of track at Didcot Railway Centre in Oxfordshire, covering a total distance of 1,500 metres before exhaustion finally forced them to stop.
The challenge, conceived by Che McCarthy, Alstom’s Project Supply Chain Leader, began as a coffee-break question: could his team actually move a steam locomotive using nothing but human muscle? By the time it was put to the test on Wednesday, 1 July 2026, the answer was a resounding yes — but not without considerable strain.
Muscle, sweat and a slight gradient
The railway at Didcot has a gentle slope, but it was enough to tell in the straining bodies of the pullers. At several points the men were almost bent double, wrestling the locomotive past junctions and sleepers under the July sunshine. The team had spent weeks training together beforehand, learning the coordination and trust needed to move the 25-tonne engine safely. Visitors to the railway centre looked on, cheering as the engine inched forward — a sight probably far removed from the coal-fired trips they had come expecting.
Among the sixteen was a railway worker named Geoff, prompting inevitable comparisons to the late Geoff Capes, the two-time World’s Strongest Man who famously graced Britain’s Strongest Man in the 1980s. This Geoff, however, was not Capes — but the team’s effort was no less extraordinary.
Support came from Alec’s Angels, who supplied specialist equipment, and three members of Great Western Railway staff joined the pulling team. McCarthy described the day as “a huge achievement” and said the shared effort made it even more rewarding because it was raising money for Variety, the Children’s Charity.
The locomotive: No. 1340 “Trojan”
The engine the team hauled is one of the most historically significant on the Great Western Railway’s preserved roster. Built in August 1897 by the Avonside Engine Company in Bristol (works number 1386), Trojan is an 0‑4‑0 saddle tank locomotive originally ordered for shunting wagons at Newport Town Dock for Messrs Dunn & Shute. It was purchased by the Alexandra Docks Railway in 1903, where it remained unnumbered, before being absorbed into the Great Western Railway in 1923 and allocated the number 1340.
After three decades shuffling wagons on GWR dock lines in South Wales — where the company was the largest dock operator in the world at the time — Trojan was withdrawn from service in Cardiff in July 1932. It then passed into industrial use, first at Netherseal Colliery in Burton-on-Trent, then with Alders (Tamworth) Ltd in 1947. In April 1968 it was sold to Didcot Railway Centre for preservation, ending nearly 70 years of commercial work.
Restoration returned Trojan to working order in 2002. It remained in service until 2011, when it was withdrawn for a ten-yearly overhaul completed by Locomotive Maintenance Services (LMS) in Loughborough. The locomotive re-entered service at Didcot in March 2021 and is now the oldest operational GWR locomotive. Its dimensions: 3 ft (0.91 m) driving wheels, a standard‑gauge frame, and a weight of 22.85 long tons (23.22 t) — slightly less than the 25‑tonne figure used for the charity pull, reflecting the difference between metric and imperial measures.
Fundraising success and a lasting legacy
The challenge had an initial target of £1,000 for Variety, the Children’s Charity, which supports disabled and disadvantaged children across the UK by providing life-changing equipment such as wheelchairs and specialist mobility aids. Imogen Galsworthy, Variety’s Corporate Partnerships Manager, confirmed that the event had already exceeded that goal, raising nearly £1,600 on the day. Organisers hope further donations will continue to arrive in the coming weeks, building on a tradition of challenge events that have included gala dinners, balls and telethons in the US, Canada and Israel.
McCarthy said the team, drawn from Alstom’s Reading depot — which provides technical support and spares for fleets including Heathrow Express and Great Western Railway — had trained together specifically to develop the coordination needed. “Hauling a 25-tonne steam locomotive by hand was a huge achievement and a brilliant day for everyone involved,” he said. “We’ve brought together colleagues, partners and the public to support Variety, and that’s something we’re really proud of.”
