The Duke of Kent visited Oxenhope Station yesterday while the railway hosts Flying Scotsman as part of the locomotive Centenary Celebrations.

His Royal Highness became patron of The Keighley & Worth Valley Preservation Society following a visit to the railway in July 2008, The Society is in its 61st year after being formed in 1962 to save the railway from closure. There are currently over 700 volunteers and 3,500 members, who keep the wheels turning.

Dr Matthew Stroh, chairman of the preservation society, said: ‘It was wonderful to be about to welcome our royal patron, His Royal Highness The Prince Edward, Duke of Kent KG, on a very special day for the Railway, as we are running the first day of our sell-out Flying Scotsman-hauled services. HRH’s eyes lit up when he realised he was going to be able to visit the footplate of the iconic locomotive and he was particularly intrigued by the complexity of the controls. The Duke also met our many volunteers who were working hard behind the scenes in our carriage works at Oxenhope, and marvelled at the locos in our Exhibition Shed. ‘