When two mighty steam trains visited Western Australia

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This might be a bit long for some readers but some discussions lose a lot if they are cut too short. You have my permission to move on. In 1989, the Flying Scotsman and the Pendennis Castle were reunited in Perth, Western Australia. What are they, I hear you ask? They are famous steam locomotives. As is often the case, although the Flying Scotsman had been brought by ship to the Eastern States, there were at first no plans for her to go to WA. In those days, the state was very much the poor cousin of its more illustrious eastern counterparts. In its heyday, the Flying Scotsman had run regularly between Kings Cross and Edinburgh, hauling passengers in luxurious comfort at speeds of around 80 mph. However, by the late 1960s, most of its time was spent taking passengers on 'mystery tours'. The last of these was in 1969. It was then shipped to the USA by owner, Alan Pegler. Following his bankruptcy, Bill McAlpine rescued the Flying Scotsman, returning it to England. Soon after being purchased by MacAlpine, Hamersley Iron, a resource developed in WA, wanted to buy the locomotive. Instead, they had to settle for the Pendennis Castle. She arrived in Dampier in 1970 and did a few trips before being side-lined for extensive modifications and recommencing work in 1980. While in New South Wales, the Flying Scotsman broke a world record for the farthest distance travelled non-stop under steam, running 424 miles non-stop from Parkes to Broken Hill. She was then driven over the Nullarbor to Perth. Together with the Pendennis Castle, she travelled each to Merredin, Kalgoorlie and Kambalda. We went to see the Flying Scotsman in Northam. Crowds gathered at the station to see her off then gathered on a bridge some miles out of town to watch her come round a corner before passing under us with that unmistakeable odour of coal-powered steam. To add to the interest, a group of motor-cycle enthusiasts had cranked up their vintage bikes and followed the train on its journey. Steam train aficionados are a strange breed. Do you know anyone who owns an LP (long-playing record for the under 30s) of train whistles as a train arrives or leaves a station, and engine noises as it grinds its way up a particular gradient? My brother-in-law does!! Do you have any really weird LPs?