Events

Great Central Railway's Winter Steam Gala

Great Central Railway's Winter Steam Gala

Date: Thu, 23rd Jan 2025 - Sun, 26th Jan 2025

Venue: Loughborough Central Station, Quorn and Woodhouse Station, Rothley Station, Leicester North Station

Kickstart the New Year than with our Annual Winter Steam Gala.

Taking place on the 23- 26 January and including a special twilight train service, this action-packed four-day event will feature an intensive timetable for both passenger and goods trains as well as three special guest locomotives for you to enjoy.

The Great Western 'Grange' Class No. 6880, Betton Grange, completed in 2024, will make its first appearance at our gala. This remarkable locomotive was funded and built by dedicated enthusiasts after none of the original 80 'Grange' locomotives survived the 1960s. The first 'Grange' rolled out in 1936, so this new addition bridges nearly 90 years of steam history.

'Betton Grange' will be joined by Great Western Railway 0-6-0 Collett Tank No. 6695 and Great Western Railway 'Heavy Freight' 2-8-0 No. 3850, as well as locomotives from the GCR's home fleet.

Get ready for a dynamic timetable, running an array of both passenger and goods services throughout the event. Whether you're a dedicated rail enthusiast or just looking for an unforgettable experience, there will be something for everyone.

Latest Events

''The world in your book does not have to be realistic - just plausible': Creative Writing Workshop with Jasper Fforde

''The world in your book does not have to be realistic - just plausible': Creative Writing Workshop with Jasper Fforde

Thu, 30th May 2024 15:00 - 16:00

Join bestselling author Jasper Fforde for a creative writing workshop on absurdist fiction.

Jasper Fforde is the author of 17 books. His work blends a range of genres, including fantasy, crime and sci-fi. He is most well-known for his Thursday Next series, beginning with his debut novel, The Eyre Affair, in 2001.

His most recent novel, Red Side Story, was published in February 2024 and is the second book in his Shades of Grey series. Fforde's bestselling series explores a world whose hierarchies are based on the colour spectrum.

The workshop takes place in Matthew Arnold 105.

Accessibility information is available here: https://www.accessable.co.uk/loughborough-university/east-park/access-guides/mar-1-05

'Alien Invasion': An online video game by Ama Dogbe

'Alien Invasion': An online video game by Ama Dogbe

Fri, 3rd Nov 2023 - Sat, 27th Jan 2024

About Ama Dogbe
Ama Dogbe is a British-Ghanaian artist who builds video games, digital animations and audio-visual installations exploring autobiographical and utopian themes. Her recent work uses interactive virtual world-building as a tool to examine family, identity and the internet. She has created digital forests, sky mazes, and gleaming platforms that audiences can explore online. Her processes often use self-taught and collaborative techniques to produce experimental and unconventional outcomes. Ama has been commissioned by Spike Island, Bristol (2023) and tiata fahodzi, Watford (2022). She has also exhibited with Fermynwoods Contemporary Art (2022), East Bristol Contemporary (2022) and Attenborough Arts Centre, Leicester (2021).


About 'Alien Invasion'
Ama Dogbe presents a new version of Alien Invasion, an interactive web-based game. In Alien Invasion, figures descend upon a garden-like world, and players follow paths to uncover talismans, relics and icons. The game has been created in part through photogrammetry, the process of creating 3D digital outcomes from photographs. Using physical and digital repetition, Ama has created a web of symbols that are both strange and familiar. The game is accompanied by a soundtrack of electronic, ambient and contemporary hip-hop by musician Louis Jack. The video game will be available to play via the Modern Painters, New Decorators website. The project is funded by Arts Council England.


About Modern Painters, New Decorators
Modern Painters, New Decorators is an artist-led organisation running a gallery, shop and studios from a shopping centre in Loughborough, East Midlands, UK. We believe that artists can positively impact where we live and why we live there. We make visual art projects, community workshops and creative networks