Rod Stewart has revealed the lengths he went to in his quest to transport his beloved collection of model railways to the UK.
Last week, the music legend, 79, revealed his unlikely hobby for the first time, after deciding he no longer feels “embarrassed” about it.
Now, it’s been revealed that Rod hired three giant shipping containers to keep his model railroad in one piece, and even built an entire wood shop in California for the job.
Rod hired the same company that manages the logistics for his concerts to handle the transportation of his model railroad.
TO A grid plan of the old layout was made recording the location of all sets, structures and details, and the contents were then securely packed and divided into 46 sections, making reassembly as easy as possible.
Rod described walking into his workshop as “like walking through the gates of heaven” and admitted the hobby “has taken over his life”.
Rod Stewart has revealed the lengths he went to in his quest to transport his beloved collection of model railways to the UK.
Last week, the music legend revealed his unlikely hobby for the first time, after deciding he no longer feels “embarrassed” about it.
But Rod said he was afraid to reveal his new hobby because he thought “railway modeling and rock’n’roll didn’t go together” and so he hid it for years.
Now, for the first time, Rod has shown off his incredible model railway design, which he calls ‘Grand Street & Three Rivers Railroad’.
he said Railway Modelers Magazine who finds working on his set “relaxing” and often spends “four to five hours” in his workshop.
Rod said: ‘When I walk into my workshop, it’s like walking through the pearly gates for me. It’s just ahhh… this is my moment. I would say I spend an average of four or five hours a day if I can. Even if it is twenty minutes I approach my workshop.
‘In twenty minutes I can do a lot of things. And it’s really taken over my life a little bit. In a wonderful way. There was a time when I hid from it.
‘Because I thought that model railroading and rock’n’roll didn’t go together and I was a little 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 my second.’
Rod has transported his 900 feet of track 5,000 miles from Los Angeles to his home in Essex, with plans to expand the model even further.
He also swaps set items with close friend and model train fan Jools Holland, he revealed.
Now, it’s been revealed that Rod hired three giant shipping containers to keep his model railroad in one piece, and even built an entire wood workshop in California.
It comes after Rod’s wife Penny Lancaster broke her silence on MasterChef’s Gregg Wallace after Rod criticized the presenter, following his departure from the BBC show amid a series of misconduct allegations.
Appearing on Loose Women on Thursday, the model, 53, addressed the allegations for the first time and said she had been a “victim and witness” of Gregg’s harassment.
She said: ‘I was definitely a witness and victim of some of Gregg Wallace’s bullying and harassment behaviour. And sadly many members of the production team witnessed it too.’
She continued: “I really feel like he used his position of power to, I think, intimidate and cause distress to a lot of people on set.
“And it’s really unfortunate that someone like him is allowed to get away with it while others stand by and allow it to happen at the same time.” And it’s obvious that a lot of people have come forward.’
Gregg, 60, walked away from MasterChef after 13 people, including Newsnight presenter Kirsty Wark, accused him of “incorrect” and inappropriate “sexualised” behavior during filming.
Following his exit, singer Rod launched a furious rant at the presenter, calling him a “chubby, bald, rude bully” for “humiliating” his wife Penny when she appeared on Celebrity MasterChef in 2021.
Explaining the decision behind Rod’s angry post, Penny said: ‘My husband, when he heard people talking about the disturbing behaviours, couldn’t contain himself.
“The protective husband thought, ‘I’m not going to stay silent, I need to say something,’ because he realized how upset she was at that moment.”
She added that she didn’t find out about her husband’s Instagram rant until later, saying: “I was actually on jury duty and you have to turn off your phones completely, so I was off the grid for a period of time.” .
‘And when I turned my phone back on I got a message from a friend saying, “OMG, how amazing was that message your husband sent!” And I said, “What message? What has he done?”
However, Penny confessed that she also felt ‘vindicated’ upon seeing other people come forward with their claims, explaining: ‘I was shocked and then I thought about all the repercussions of it all.
‘Then a day or two later I felt a bit justified that something had been published. Going back to that whole MeToo thing, it’s shocking to think how many women suffer at the hands of men in powerful positions who are too afraid to speak up and don’t feel at the time that they’re going to be supported or heard.
“So sometimes it can take a few years for someone to mention something and that gives other victims and people who have suffered the confidence to come forward.”
Penny was left in tears during her appearance on the show after Gregg scolded her for being “severely” late with her meal and then refused to eat it.
The moment Gregg refused to eat Penny’s tartar sauce, criticizing her for using “whole eggs instead of yolks”, resurfaced after her husband Rod branded him a “chubby bully”.
Rod described walking into his workshop as “like walking through the gates of heaven” and admitted the hobby “has taken over his life”.
Gregg also berated Penny, who is a volunteer special police constable, for being late to serve her food to the critics in the quarter-finals, leaving her in tears.
Gregg has walked away from MasterChef amid allegations of ‘sexualised’ behavior during filming of the hit BBC show.
Following the announcement, Sir Rod wrote: ‘Good riddance Wallace… You humiliated my wife when she was on the show but they cut that part out didn’t they? You’re a chubby, bald, rude bully. Karma got you.
The BBC has revealed that 13 people, including Kirsty Wark, complained about his conduct while working with him over a 17-year period on five shows from 2005 to 2022.
Kirsty alleges Gregg told stories and jokes of a “sexualized nature” in front of contestants and crew while filming Celebrity MasterChef in 2011 on two occasions, adding that his jokes and comments were “really, really misplaced.”