Tag: 2014

On This Day… In 2014, A Rarity At Peak Rail

BR Mk.1 SLF E2080-20140111 (Peak Rail)British Railways Mk.1 Sleeper First (SLF) E2080
Peak Rail, 11 January 2014

While British Railways Mk.1 passenger carriages are incredibly commonplace on heritage railways, Mk.1 sleeping carriages are definitely a rarity with (as far as I’m aware) only six still in existence.

Most were built with asbestos insulation, which was expensive to remove professionally and so were sold for scrap but a few were bought by preservation societies for use as volunteer accommodation.

E2080 was built in 1959 by Metropolitan-Cammell Carriage & Wagon Co Ltd and was preserved in 1983, initially on the Dart Valley Railway (now the South Devon Railway) before moving to Peak Rail in the late 1980s.

When I visited Peak Rail in April last year it was still undergoing restoration.

On This Day… Night Riviera

57604-2014080657604 PENDENNIS CASTLE
Exeter St David’s station, 6 August 2014

Six years ago today I was staying in Exeter and decided to have a bash at photographing the First Great Western ‘Night Riviera’ sleeper service as it paused at St David’s station at around 1am.

57604 ‘PENDENNIS CASTLE’ (looking splendid in Great Western Railway livery) had departed from Penzance bang on time at 21.45 and would eventually arrive at London Paddington at 05.01 with its seven coach train.

57604 is one of four class 57/6 locos converted from class 47s (47209 in this case) in 2004 for use on the sleeper service between London, Devon and Cornwall and still carries the special livery that was applied in 2010 to commemorate the 175th anniversary of the Great Western Railway (GWR) being incorporated.