This should be an incredible facility to promote inward investment in tourism in Laois and Offaly.

Past and Present Top No.4 seen at Allenwood in 1991 (edited from a Roger Joanes picture courtesy of Industrial Railway Society handbook team Bottom No.4 seen 2018 at Stradbally awaiting restoration.

Old Allenwood Generating Station memories recreated during our shunting today 😊

The Stradbally Juniors are enthralled by the Peters Railway series at present. It is a wonderful series of storybooks aimed at children advanced on from the "Thomas" age so to speak and has lots of technical info and explanation and oddles of adventure!

Very disappointing given the hard work done throughout the County to improve the tourism offering despite indifference from Fáilte Ireland. Hopefully the situation can be revised as several Counties now benefit from inclusion in multiple brands.

Sadly Laois has been forgotten yet again in the latest marketing strategy from Fáilte Ireland. Many Laois attractions which have been ignored by Irelands Ancient East would fit nicely under the banner of Irelands Hidden Heartland.

#nationalsiblingsday Siblings No.4 "Rusty" and No.4 "Ellie" both worked for the ESB at Portarlington Co.Laois and Allenwood Co.Kildare. In their day these siblings were indeed diesels behind the electricity. Artwork by Thomas Fogarty from a photo by Sean Cain.

#nationalsiblingsday LM316 and LM317 were the original prototype Simplex diesels supplied to Bord na Móna in 1980. LM316 was scrapped while sibling LM317 went on to be the last Simplex in use before preservation at Stradbally beckoned in 2010.

#nationalsiblingsday Our own little Warrior LM167 seen on top and its closest sibling LM54 bottom both converted from Ruston 3VRH engines to Gardner 4LWs at Coolnamona in the early 1980s. LM54 was scrapped around 20 years ago at Kilberry Co Kildare. Photos Sean Cain top Hamish Stephenson bottom

#nationalsiblingsday The former BnM No.1 or LM43 now in altered form as No.7 "Tom Rolt" is the sibling of our own No.2 or LM44. Photos by Darren Turner and Sean Cain.

#nationalsiblingsday Our own No.4 "Rusty" and its twin No.3 seen at Portarlington in 1953. Sadly No.3 was scrapped in 1988.