Sir Rod Stewart says he finds working on his model train setup relaxing and described going into his workshop as "like entering the gates of heaven”.
The legendary rock singer, 79, has shown off his incredible scale model railway layout, known as "Grand Street & Three Rivers Railroad" in trade magazine Railway Modeller.
And having relocated the layout from his Los Angeles residence to his English country estate in the Summer this year, Sir Rod told of the immense work involved in rebuilding and enhancing the setup to make it even bigger and better. He said: "I’m not happy with the lights – we’ve really got to work on that.
“We’re going to add some uplights on some of the buildings and skyscrapers. Then we’re going to have thunder and lightning, everything but rain put in for effects!” New features also include advanced lighting for day-to-night transitions and there are even sound effects.
"That's fun when it's on. There's a school yard with all the kids screaming, shouting and hollering. Then you've got cars, traffic jams and then there's bells for church. And there's noises from the ironworks." Laughing he added: "It gets on your nerves after twenty minutes though!"
One element on the set, a card model of a church, was a gift from a close friend and fellow model fan Jools Holland. "He wasn't using it," says Rod. "Like me, I've got loads of buildings here that I don't use. And he said 'yeah take it'. He's a good lad Jools." Sir Rod is almost as serious about his trains as he is new tracks in the studio.
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Railway Modeller magazine)He says he finds real solace when he works on the model setup. He said: “When I walk into my workshop, it’s like entering the gates of heaven for me. It's just ahhh...this is my time. I would say I spend, on average, four or five hours a day if I can. Even if there's twenty minutes I go over to my workshop. In twenty minutes I can get quite a lot done. And it's really taken over my life somewhat. In a wonderful way."
Sir Rod's passion for the craft shines through in every detail. He emphasises the joy of creating the scenery himself, stating, “Nearly all the buildings are either scratch-built or adapted from kits. Nothing is recognisable—everything is unique.” And the project isn’t complete: extensions to the layout include docks with large-scale ships, mountainous regions, and a dedicated homage to legendary model railway artist George Sellios, plus a significant extension of railway track from the British manufacturer, PECO.
He is working with professional modelmaker Paul Wells who even creates small scale mock ups of the extensions based on Rod's concepts before they go into production. "I gave Paul an idea of what I wanted and then he refined it," Rod explains. The singer estimates it will take another three years for it to be fully complete with new mining areas and a wood mill also on his list of improvements.
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Railway Modeller magazine)He also wants to streamline the process needed to run the trains over such a large track. At the moment it really needs more than one person operating it in case something goes wrong somewhere, but he even has plans for a screen so a single operator could spot any issues and the trains may be able to run for hour and no doubt more efficiently than the real ones in the UK.
Rod is such a big fan of model railways that in 2019 he donated £10,000 to a model railway club whose exhibition was destroyed by vandals. It allowed the Market Deeping Model Railway Club to rebuild their display.
Asked about his hobby, Rod added: "There was a time I hid away from it. Because I thought railway modelling and rock'n'roll don't go together and I was sort of embarrassed. But I'm not anymore, I'm proud of it. I mean obviously music is my main life's work, but this is definitely second.
* The full interview with Rod is in the January issue of Railway Modeller Magazine, out now.
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English (US) ·