[…] the philosopher with his long white hair hanging down his shoulders, either writing in his library or “circumnavigating” round his garden […]

The ex-G.C. Class A5 4-6-2T, of which No. 69820 was one, is now extinct.

And burning blades about their heads do blesse.

I find the description wonderfully familiar, less the droogish quality, than the loosey-goosey opportunism.