Boffin steaming ahead with jubilee loco hope

An eccentric inventor from the Black Country is hoping to play a part in the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations in London next year with his latest project – a replica of a famous train.

Robert Merlyn Farwell has made a scaled-down version of the Stourbridge Lion, which was the first locomotive to run in America.

The original was built at the town's Foster and Rastrick works back in 1828 and earned its name from the picture of a lion's face that was painted on the front.

Mr Farwell, aged 65, spent three weeks making his replica, which also contains a glass-making furnace that he has used at local events. He has now applied to take part in a parade of more than 1,000 boats on the Thames for the jubilee on June 3.

Mr Farwell, who toils away in his self-built workshop in Parkfield Road, Stourbridge, wants to take the Lion on a boat and hold glass-blowing demonstrations.

He said: "It would be a great way to promote the skills and industry of this region and it would increase the profile of the Stourbridge Lion, which a lot of people are unaware of.

Getting a boat shouldn't be a problem, so I'm just hoping I get permission from the authorities."

Mr Farwell is also planning a full-size replica of the train, which he wants to display at the end of the track in Stourbridge Town station. He intends to erect it behind the buffer between the platforms.

Mr Farwell, a father-of-five, spends hours each day in his workshop, which he calls "Camalot Castle" – spelt that way as a nod to his difficulty with spelling.

His varied career has included appearances as an extra in TV shows such as Boon.

Mr Farwell also set up a business called Wizard Merlyn's Costume Hire in Church Street, Stourbridge, in the 1980s.

His talents also extend to magic, and he spent summer seasons in Clacton in the 1970s as a children's entertainer.