Childhood memories were revived for pop svengali and rail enthusiast Pete Waterman on his return to Birmingham yesterday to mark the revival of a historic city centre station.
The Coventry- born music producer unveiled a plaque commemorating the £11 million restoration of Moor Street Station which was closed in 1987 after falling into disrepair.
The Grade II listed building has now been completely refurbished to its former Edwardian glory.
A dedicated railway enthusiast, Waterman has invested £27 million in
railways, his lifelong passion. He owns historic locomotives and rolling stock and said the station revived memories of his first visit to Birmingham, at the age of nine, in 1956 when he got lost going to see steam engines.
Waterman was joined at the ceremony, to unveil Moor Street Station's prestigious conservation award from the Railway Heritage Trust, by Trust chairman Sir William McAlpine.
"It's great to see we've once again got a service from Moor Street," said Waterman. "It's like going down the Severn Valley. It's being used properly, as it was meant to be. That's fantastic."
Moor Street Station was opened in 1909 to alleviate congestion at nearby Birmingham Snow Hill Station, the Midlands terminus of the Great Western Railway.
Investment from Chiltern Railways, which runs services between the station and London Marylebone and the Birmingham Alliance, developers of the nearby £500 million Bullring shopping complex, has seen original 1930s features restored.
They include brickwork, GWR-style signs, fixtures and fittings and a restored steam locomotive is now a permanent fixture on the platform.
