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Wednesday 14 Jan 2026

Pete Waterman gets a little inspiration

Legendary producer Pete Waterman OBE has added an unusual model to his record-breaking track – a tiny version of the popular exhibition train that’s touring Britain.

Inspiration is a free-to-visit travelling exhibition that tells the story of railways through historic artefacts and interactive games. It’s part of Railway 200, which celebrates 200 years of the modern railway.

At just 209cm long, Pete’s new beautifully rendered model is 76 times smaller than its 159-metre-long big brother, and is identical down to the millimetre.

The model was created over 300 painstaking hours by enthusiast Andrew Willsher, who matched every colour shade, 3D printed his own custom parts and used tiny tweezers to apply nearly 350 graphics, some of which are just 1mm tall.

Pete said the model was “unique”. He added: “Railway 200 is about people, 200 years of people giving dedicated public service. Railway men and women have always gone beyond the call of duty.

“If you want a fantastic day out, nip down and see Inspiration. Best of all, it’s free – there’s some inspiration for you!”

Steady-handed Andrew said: “It’s an amazing project to be involved in. I’m really chuffed with myself and the positive response it’s had.”

Pete and his team of rail enthusiasts, the Railnuts, will run the model on the world’s largest portable model railway throughout the year, including this weekend during Inspiration’s visit to Crewe.

Emma Roberts, Programme Manager for Railway 200, said: “When it comes to music, Pete has never been short of inspiration. Now he’ll have a little Inspiration whenever he needs it, thanks to Andrew’s fantastic work.

“Railways are a British innovation that fundamentally changed the world. Our exhibition train celebrates that pioneering spirit while showcasing the fantastic careers available on the railway.”

The life-size Inspiration is in Crewe from Thursday until Monday, before heading to Bury, East Anglia and the south coast. More dates are announced regularly.

Nearly 60,000 people have visited the exhibition train on its 60-stop tour of Britain. It’s travelled more than 7,000 miles, visiting the Cairngorms, Southampton, Llandudno and dozens of other locations.

Inspiration was co-curated with the National Railway Museum. Tara Jones Ulla, who visited in Somerset, said it was “brilliant”, adding: “It was so informative without being overwhelming, with lots of interactive and hands-on exhibits. I came away so happy!”  

Pete’s model railway will be in Glasgow in March and Birmingham in April.