One of the icons of the Great Western Railway was Charles Collett's giant 4-6-0, No. 6000 King George V. The locomotive has been the subject of many jigsaw puzzles especially from manufacturers Chad Valley and Victory. Chad Valley produced the locomotive in cut-out style as a 200-piece* or 300-piece puzzle, and in four other puzzles heading different trains - Britain's Mightiest, Locomotives Old and New*, Torbay Express and Royal Route to the West (it also appeared as a ghostly image in The Streamlined Way). *These two puzzles have been featured in previous posts.
In this post (4th November 2010) I am using two more pics of jigsaws featuring this famous locomotive (currently in the National Collection at the NRM, York). The first pic shows Royal Route to the West made by Chad Valley between 1933 and 1939. The locomotive is shown in GWR green livery heading a rake of GWR coaches towards the West Country. The jigsaw is a 150-piece example, reproduced from a 1929 G.H. Davies painting. The puzzle was also available with 200 pieces.
The second pic shows the locomotive, in BR blue livery, exiting a tunnel with a rake of BR carmine and cream passenger stock behind. This puzzle of approximately 70 pieces was made by Ponda. The original painting was by T.E. North.
Following successful trials heading the 'Cornish Riviera Express' in 1927, the locomotive was shipped to America to join the Centenary Celebrations of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad. The trip was so successful that the engine returned to the UK with a commemorative bell and cabside medallions fitted by her American hosts. These fittings are clearly visible in both pics.
