{"url":"https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2026/04/04/francis-bourgeois-chris-harris-interview/","title":"Top Gear's Harris teams with trainspotter Bourgeois to save locomotive","domain":"telegraph.co.uk","imageUrl":"https://images.pexels.com/photos/33267500/pexels-photo-33267500.jpeg?auto=compress&cs=tinysrgb&h=650&w=940","pexelsSearchTerm":"Class 37 locomotive","category":"Entertainment","language":"en","slug":"4bd66c91","id":"4bd66c91-71e3-4d26-beb1-75e7ab58c6d9","description":"Francis Bourgeois and Chris Harris restore 1961 Class 37 locomotive for Quest TV series.","summary":"## TL;DR\n- **Francis Bourgeois** and **Chris Harris** restore **1961 Class 37** locomotive for **Quest** TV series.\n- After **6 months**, they fire up **1,750 bhp** V12 engine at **Bo’ness and Kinneil** railway.\n- Unlikely duo's friendship promotes geeky hobbies amid male loneliness epidemic.[[1]](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2026/04/04/francis-bourgeois-chris-harris-interview/)[[2]](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2026/04/04/francis-bourgeois-chris-harris-interview)\n\n## The story at a glance\n**Francis Bourgeois**, TikTok trainspotter, and **Chris Harris**, ex-**Top Gear** presenter, team up to restore a **1961 Class 37** diesel locomotive at **Bo’ness and Kinneil** heritage railway for a new **Quest** series, *Francis Bourgeois and Chris Harris: We Saved a Train*. The article captures their rapport ahead of firing the engine after **six months** of work. It highlights their friendship born from a **2024** YouTube video that gained **440,000 views**.[[1]](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2026/04/04/francis-bourgeois-chris-harris-interview/)\n\n## Key moments & milestones\n- **2021**: **Francis Bourgeois** goes viral on TikTok with GoPro trainspotting videos.\n- **November 2024**: Duo films **23-minute** YouTube chase of steam train along **A55** in North Wales, hits **440,000 views**.\n- **2025**: Work begins on restoring **37025 Class 37** locomotive, built **1961**, at **Bo’ness and Kinneil**.\n- **April 2026**: After **six months**, they prepare to start **1,750 bhp** V12 engine for **Quest** show, airing from **7 April**.[[1]](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2026/04/04/francis-bourgeois-chris-harris-interview/)[[3]](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/0/whats-on-tv-guide-boat-race)\n\n## Signature highlights\n- **Francis Bourgeois** (real name **Luke Nicolson**), **25**, mechanical engineering graduate, links locomotive to great-great-uncle's **11-year** campaign saving **Kyle of Lochalsh** line in **1960s**.\n- Locomotive **37025**: **100-ton**, transferred to **Inverness** in **1985** for harsh blizzard routes.\n- **Chris Harris** enjoys being \"passenger in someone else’s world,\" relishing sidekick role post-**Top Gear** cancellation in **2023** after **Freddie Flintoff** injury.\n- Show combats male loneliness by celebrating \"geeky\" hobbies like railways, vital for social bonds.\n- Both critique UK railways: advocate locomotives, compartments for talking, state ownership for reliability.[[1]](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2026/04/04/francis-bourgeois-chris-harris-interview/)\n\n## Key quotes\n- “**I don’t think you need to be a train enthusiast to be excited by that**,” says **Bourgeois** of engine start. [[1]](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2026/04/04/francis-bourgeois-chris-harris-interview/)\n- “**Francis radiates enthusiasm, so you get into it via osmosis**,” says **Harris**.[[1]](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2026/04/04/francis-bourgeois-chris-harris-interview/)\n- “**The only thing countries with functioning railways have in common is that they’re state-owned**,” says **Harris**.[[1]](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2026/04/04/francis-bourgeois-chris-harris-interview/)\n\n## Why it matters\nUnlikely pairings like **Bourgeois** and **Harris** revive factual TV amid decline of linear broadcasting, blending YouTube freedom with traditional formats. Viewers gain accessible entry to niche hobbies, encouraging men to embrace passions against loneliness. Watch **Quest** series from **7 April 2026** and **Bourgeois**'s *The Grand Tour* role.[[1]](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2026/04/04/francis-bourgeois-chris-harris-interview/)","hashtags":["#tv","#trains","#topgear","#quest","#hobbies","#railways"],"sources":[{"url":"https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2026/04/04/francis-bourgeois-chris-harris-interview/","title":"Original article"},{"url":"https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/0/whats-on-tv-guide-boat-race","title":""}],"viewCount":2,"publishedAt":"2026-04-05T06:46:51.492Z","createdAt":"2026-04-05T06:46:51.492Z","articlePublishedAt":null}