Sea shanty singers changed track by entertaining visitors with songs from the railways to celebrate the history of trains.

Special songs were composed by the local Tavy Tars group (who normally sing sea shanties) with the Bere Ferrers Railway Band who performed at the Tamar Belle Railway Heritage Centre in Bere Ferrers.

The free community event was a joint celebration of the national 200-year anniversary of the modern railway – Rail200 – and 35 years of the Tamar Belle centre.

The Tamar Belle offers a nostalgic step back in time for visitors. Guests can stay in comfortable restored sleeping car accommodation, sample the cuisine in the dining car, browse the exhibits in the heritage centre, visit the signal box and enjoy the demonstrations of railway working.

Chris Grove, who runs the centre, was kept busy serving cream teas made by volunteers supporting the event which attracted about 70 people.

Chris said: “This was a great event for local people and they enjoyed the songs which included two especially written by the Tavy Tars with the Bere Ferrers Railway Band – effectively one band on the day. One song was about the Tamar Belle and a second about the former Atlantic Coast Express which used to run between London and Plymouth during the age of steam years ago. I’d like to thank all the volunteers who helped the event go so well and made the cream teas.”

In the heart of the Tamar Valley, sandwiched between Devon and Cornwall, lies the Bere Peninsula. Bounded on the east by the river Tavy and on the west by the Tamar, this tranquil corner of South West England is home to the Tamar Belle Railway Heritage Centre.

Bere Ferrers station once echoed to the roar of main line steam trains on the Southern Railway route connecting Plymouth to London, but is now a stop on the Tamar Valley branch line running from Plymouth to Bere Alston, Calstock and Gunnislake.