50008 Thunderer leaves Oxford with the 1F45 11:00 Network SouthEast fast service to Paddington on 21 October 1988. Strangely 50008 had been allocated to the DCWA engineers pool a couple of months prior to this picture and should therefore have been restricted to low speed departmental workings. Admittedly this was the last day that I saw it operating regular passengers trains, although of course in 1991 it was repainted into 'Laira Blue' and became a railtour locomotive. Note the revised shape crest above the nameplate, which was applied in 1986.