THE platforms at Chepstow station were busier than usual for 7pm on a Monday evening as people turned out for a glimpse of this unusual visitor.

British Railways Merchant Navy class locomotive number 35028 Clan Line was returning to London from a day tour to the Wye Valley and Cardiff.

Earlier in the day around 140 people left the train at Lydney for an excursion on the Dean Forest Railway and a coach tour to Tintern Abbey and the Wye Valley.

The train passed through Chepstow at a relatively sedate pace giving the 75 or so people who had waited plenty of opportunity to photograph, video or just admire the engine.

The engine was built in 1948 and spent its career in the south of England hauling prestige expresses such as the Golden Arrow, Bournemouth Belle and Atlantic Coast Express.

It is named after the Clan Line shipping company and is owned by the Merchant Navy Locomotive Association.