SHE was a grand old duchess, a crowd-pulling celebrity from before the war. He was a fresh-faced school-leaver who liked nothing better than to buff up her boiler.

Now the two are to get together again for the first time in four decades.

Their lives have taken very different paths since they last worked together.

The old girl, better known as the Flying Scotsman, has been lovingly maintained by rail enthusiasts and arrives in York for keeps on Saturday.

Her former maintenance man, Londoner Ivan Steward, 57, has also weathered well.

His career took him from the railways to art salesman to actor - and now to stand-up, bringing his jokes to the Other Side Comedy Club in City Screen, Coney Street, this Sunday.

Having learned from the Diary that the Flying Scotsman arrives in town a day before him, Ivan is planning an emotional reunion with the locomotive at the NRM.

Back in January 1962, on his first day as an apprentice fireman at King's Cross, 15-year-old Ivan was given the privileged task of touching up the Scotsman's paintwork.

But this impressive start nearly ended in tears. Or at least in Edinburgh.

"I was painting the number on the front of the train," he recalled. "The next thing I knew, I could hear the engine going.

"It gradually started moving out of the shed with me on the front.

"I was so scared. I thought I was going to Scotland.

"I clambered to the side of the engine and banged on the window. And the driver slammed on the brakes.

"When he realised I was okay he called me every swearword I could imagine."

Happy days.

Tickets for the Other Side Comedy Club cost £7 and the booking line is (01904) 541144; to pre-book your RailFest tickets, phone 0870 7010208.

GOOD to see the Daily Telegraph wholeheartedly backing the Archbishop of York yesterday.

"For a better Church, believe in Hope" was the headline over its editorial comment praising Dr David Hope's thoughts on worship.

The Telegraph, house paper for the traditional wing of the Church of England, has not always been so supportive.

Last year, it shared with the world Dr Hope's nickname when he was head of St Stephen's College in Oxford - Ena The Cruel.

And it was the Tel which revealed the Archbishop had offered his support to Dr Jeffrey John when he became involved in a homosexual relationship. This further infuriated the anti-gay "Christians" who subsequently hounded Dr John from his post as Bishop of Reading.

THE Diary notes that although its flamboyant former boss has gone, the Sarah Coggles clothes shop has lost none of its adolescent desire to shock.

After the death of Victoria Bage last year, there had been no repeat of previous stunts which saw the Low Petergate shop flooded with gangsta rap's violent and sexually explicit lyrics; or the mock protest banners carrying the slogan "**** my human rights, I want Duffer sale"; or, before that, the slogan "Abuse me".

Until now. One window of Sarah Coggles is taken up by a couple of army-style shirts bearing the sleeve patch: "Major F***up".

No doubt shop assistants would justify this tedious wheeze as a satire on the world situation. But that will be lost on empty-headed high fashion folk.

Perhaps it is time for Miss Coggles to ****ing grow up.

Updated: 10:05 Wednesday, May 26, 2004