London and North Eastern Railway locomotive numbered 4468 Mallard is a Class A4 4-6-2 Pacific steam locomotive built at Doncaster, England in 1938. It is historically significant as the holder of the world speed record for steam locomotives at 126 mph (203 km/h).[1]
The A4 class was designed by Sir Nigel Gresley to power high-speed streamlined trains. The wind-tunnel-tested,[2] aerodynamic body and high power allowed the class to reach speeds of over 100 miles per hour (160 km/h), although in everyday service it rarely attained this speed. While in British Railways days regular steam-hauled rail services in the UK were officially limited to a 90 mph 'line speed', pre-war, the A4s had to run significantly above 90 mph just to keep schedule on trains such as the Silver Jubilee and Coronation,[3] with the engines reaching 100 mph on many occasions.[4][5] Mallard covered almost one and a half million miles (2.4 million km) before it was retired in 1963.
The locomotive is 70 ft (21 m) long and weighs 165 tons, including the tender. It is painted LNER garter blue with red wheels and steel rims.
Mallard is now part of the National Collection at the United Kingdom's National Railway Museum in York.
Mallard features in two of the later books in Railway Series by Christopher Awdry: Thomas and the Great Railway Show (with a face on), and is also mentioned in Gordon the High-Speed Engine.
Mallard also features in the Peter's Railway book Surprise Goods by Christopher Vine, where she rescues a broken down freight train.
A painting of Mallard in her immediate post-war condition features on the 1993 Blur album Modern Life is Rubbish. The painting was a stock image that Stylorouge—Blur's design consultants—obtained from a photo library in Halifax. According to Design Week magazine, the painting "evoked the feel of a Just William schoolboy's pre-war Britain". The 2013 song "East Coast Racer" by British progressive rock band Big Big Train tells the story of Mallard's record-breaking run.
On the popular US TV crime drama NCIS, the Hornby model of Mallard is a usual feature in some of the scenes that take place within the autopsy department. The model can usually be seen above the desk at the end of the room, and belongs to Dr. Donald "Ducky" Mallard (played by David McCallum).
In Thomas the Tank Engine Spencer is based on an LNER Class A4 Pacific. Mallard, holder of the world speed record for steam locomotives, is another member of this class. An additional five members of this class survive in preservation.
