Changes

Michael John Draper (b. 1932-2022) was SVR(H) Director until 8 March 1994, and [[The Severn Valley Railway in preservation#General_Manager|SVR General Manager]] between 1976-1993, succeeding [[Hugh Mossop]]. He began a career as an Accountant, spending time in the UK and South Africa.

Michael Draper On an early visit to the SVR, he was most impressed by what he saw, and soon was appointed to the Board of SVR(H) as volunteer Finance Director on 1 January 1983 1973 under the Chairmanship of [[Sir Gerald Nabarro]].<ref>SVR News 26, 31</ref> He also became a Director of the [[Guarantee Company]]. While Finance Director, he published several articles in [[Severn Valley Railway News|SVR News]] on Finance and Commercial activities.<ref>SVR News 35, 36, 37</ref>

During his period of office the SVR established itself as the self-proclaimed ‘Premier Steam Railway’. [[SVR Passenger numbers]] grew from 113,000 to 194,000, with the extension of the line from [[Bewdley]] to Kidderminster, with two successful [[Severn Valley Railway (Holdings) PLC##Share_offers|share offers]] funding [[Kidderminster|Kidderminster Town station]] and [[Bridgnorth Loco Works#Boiler_shop|Bridgnorth Boiler Shop]]. Mr Draper travelled widely, speaking at meetings round the country, and was often featured in local Press and Railway magazines. The national profile of the SVR was enhanced with its major contribution to the newly-promoted ‘Steam on BR’ programme, with up to 9 SVR-based locomotives certified to operate on the national network.

He was a proponent of the need for heritage railways to be financially solvent, part of a leisure industry and expected to show a profit. <ref>Burton, Anthony, A Steam Engine Pilgrimage, Pen and Sword, 2017</ref> “The two essentials for a preservation business – Love It – Make a Profit”.<ref> Deayton Alistair and Quinn, Iain, Waverley Steam Navigation Company, Amberley Publishing Limited, July 2014</ref>

Mr Draper is referred to for his repeated view there were too many heritage railways. In 1981 he said the ever growing steam movement was “sowing the seeds of its own destruction”.<ref>Brown, Jonathan, The Railway Preservation Revolution: A History of Britain's Heritage Railways, Pen and Sword, June 2017, p. 266</ref>. He also wrote in 1997 “Make no mistake, there will not be 150 [preserved] railways and steam centres in this country at the end of the next thirty years”.<ref>Carter, Ian, British railway enthusiasm, Oxford University Press, January 2017, p. 284.</ref> Mr Draper’s predictions have not yet come to pass as, despite some failures, by 2019 2023 The Heritage Railway Association has 180 member organisations regularly open to the publicrepresents 173 working railways and 24 museums and steam centres, with 156 many of these operating with passengerswhich operate trains on selected day.<ref>[https://www.hra.uk.com/ resources Heritage Railway Association website] (Retrieved 6 April 201930 January 2023)</ref>

Mr Draper continues to be was also a member of [[List of preservation groups|preservation groups with an SVR connection]].

Mr Draper was sacked by the SVR in 1993 for what was described as “financial irregularities.”<ref>The Railway Magazine, November 2022</ref> In the Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 1993 the SVR(H) noted it was defending an unfair dismissal action brought by Mr Draper. The 1994 Share Prospectus noted proceedings had been issued against Mr Draper for recovery of approximately £16,000 and the 1994 Report noted a County Court claim by SVR(H) against Mr Draper to “recover money owed to us” had been settled out-of-Court with a payment to the Railway of £21,000 “thus fully vindicating the action taken by the Board”.

After his departure from the SVR he held a similar role at another heritage railway for spent a short timeas General Manager of the Great Central Railway based at Loughborough.