Tonight's edition of the One Show on BBC1 features the Farme Colliery winding engine at Summerlee Museum.The engine is one of only two examples of the Newcomen (or Atmospheric) Engine to survive in Scotland and is the only surviving rotative Newcomen engine in Europe.
The engine is unique among preserved Newcomen engines in that its valve gear was manually operated, a fact which led one writer to describe it as being 'in many respects the most remarkable old steam engine in existence' as early as 1879.
The engine came to Summerlee on long-term loan from Glasgow Museums in 1987 after more than 70 years in storage. Since then it has undergone considerable restoration, including the fabrication of a new winding drum based on photographic evidence. A new exhibition recently opened inside the replica engine house with a video explaining how the engine worked.
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