Prior to the reinstallation of double track on the Moreton-in-Marsh to Evesham section of the Cotswold Line, the cutting at Aldington was cleared of all vegetation. This temporarily opened up new viewpoints, until it all started to grow back again. However, this picture shows just how dense the vegetation was prior to the work. The red apples are mostly tantalisingly just out of reach, but make an interesting foreground to this view of 180101, as it speeds through the cutting with the 09:52 Paddington to Great Malvern Great Western service on 18 September 2006.

180101 weaves across from the up relief to the up main line at South Moreton (Didcot East) on 12 November 2007, whilst working the 11:05 Oxford to Paddington First Great Western service. This is one of the limited stop Oxford to London trains, that would have been operated by Class 50s and Mk.1 coaches in days of yore.

180101 approaches Cholsey with the 13:38 Oxford to Paddington service on 12 November 2007, during the final few months of the class's operations with First Great Western. Note the First Great Western HST and Arriva (formerly Virgin) Class 220 disappearing into the distance in the background. The long lens has compressed the perspective, with the houses of North Moreton, nearly two miles away clearly visible on the horizon.

Looking impressive in its stylish new black livery, 180101 speeds past Thorpe Grange with the 1A61 09:18 Sunderland to Kings Cross Grand Central service on 17 June 2010. After a delayed introduction into service and protracted problems when in use by their initial operator, First Great Western, the Class 180s seemed to have turned from unwanted embarrassment to the units that all aspiring operators want. In addition to Grand Central, First Hull Trains and Northern Rail acquired the units, with other operators eying them up.

The new Class 80? A missing digit gives 180101 a false identity, as it passes Bathley Lane (near Newark) on 10 March 2011 with the 1A62 12:30 Sunderland to Kings Cross Grand Central service. The cooling towers of High Marnham Power Station can just be glimpsed in the background.

With Low Farm just visible on the right, 180101 catches a brief patch of very welcome early spring sunshine at Eaton (near Retford) on 10 March 2012, as it heads south with the 1A63 10:22 Bradford Interchange to Kings Cross Grand Central service.

180101 passes Fenwick Common on the unseasonably warm 14 September 2020 with the 1A65 12:30 Sunderland to Kings Cross Grand Central service. The barriers at Fenwick level crossing can just be seen rising up in the background.

180102 catches the first of the early morning autumnal sun at Chilson on 23 October 2007 as it heads towards the capital with the 08:24 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service. The foreshortening effect of the long lens (necessary to clear foreground shadows) has compressed the perspective.

180102 passes through the sylvan surroundings between Combe and Grintleyhill Bridge, on the Cotswold Line with the 10:52 Paddington to Worcester Foregate Street First Great Western service on 16 November 2007. This train was running 18 minutes late, which resulted in the 11:25 Worcester Shrub Hill to Paddington service having to wait at Ascott-under-Wychwood, until this unit cleared the single line section. Luckily it now looks certain that this intolerable bottleneck will be eliminated, with the re-instatement of double track on the 14 mile section between Wolvercote Junction and Ascott-under-Wychwood.

180102 arrives at Kingham station on 22 September 2008 with the 1W02 11:51 Paddington to Hereford First Great Western service. The view from the roadbridge in the background, looking back towards the station used to be a good photographic spot. As can be seen by the trees on both sides, it certainly isn't now!

180102 approaches Burn Lane on 17 June 2010 with the 1A95 08:12 Hull to Kings Cross First Hull Trains service. This section of line was one part of the East Coast Mainline, but due to the prospect of mining subsidence, a new section of line was constructed to the west in the early 1980s. Consequently this section of the route between Selby and Doncaster became a backwater and escaped the electrification that followed a few years later.

180102 passes through the lush Cotswold countryside at Bruern on 25 May 2012 with the 5Z28 07:35 Paddington to Worcester Shrub Hill crew training run. This is in preparation for the class's return to service with First Great Western. 180102 still carries its original livery, but completely devoid of any brandings, or indeed numbers! Because this train is backlit for its entire journey, finding a good photographic location was a challenge. However, this spot, with the overhanging branches, rustic fence and oilseed rape field proved to be an excellent choice.

A totally numberless 180102 speeds through Ascott-under-Wychwood station on 25 May 2012 with the 5Z31 10:18 Worcester Shrub Hill to Paddington crew training run. After an absence of three years, First Great Western are reintroducing the class to the Cotswold Line, replacing the Class 165 & 166 Turbo units.

180102 heads south through the Thames Valley near Radley on 31 August 2012 with the 1P35 08:26 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service. Running slightly late, as these units always seemed to do after their reintroduction onto Cotswold Line services a few months earlier.

180102 passes Hinksey Yard on 4 December 2012 with the 1P40 09:54 Great Malvern to Paddington First Great Western service. Note that a single steam era telegraph pole survives next to the line, now engulfed in trees. It is just visible above the centre of the train.

180102 races through Finstock station on 17 January 2013 with the 1P40 09:54 Great Malvern to Paddington First Great Western service. Despite the dismal conditions requiring a high ISO setting in order to use 1/1000sec to freeze (very apt!) all movement, the chance to picture some frost covered trees and the remnants of the earlier snowfall, was worth venturing out in the cold.

With the snow covered and now little used 'West Midlands' sidings in the foreground, 180102 pulls away from Oxford station on 21 January 2013 with the 1P40 09:54 Great Malvern to Paddington First Great Western service. This low level viewpoint gives a clear view of Oxford's platform 1, showing both the relatively modern canopy, and behind the 1990 built footbridge, the remnant of the former GWR canopy.

180102 passes Shorthampton on 4 March 2013 with the 1W29 11:20 Paddington to Great Malvern First Great Western service. This location was cleared of lineside trees for the Cotswold Line redoubling in 2011, but since this photo was taken the bushes have regrown to obscure the view once again. It was good while it lasted, and I particularly like this picture, with the wobbly fence in the foreground, and the lovely early spring light.

A fine crisp autumnal morning at Chilson on 15 November 2013, as 180102 passes by with the 1P35 08:26 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service. Compare this with a similar view taken four years previously, when the Cotswold Line was still single track at this point.

180102 passes Aldington on 20 June 2014 with the 1P35 08:26 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service. When the line was redoubled in 2011, this cutting was cleared of vegetation, but the drastic pruning has only encouraged rampant regrowth!

In the last of the sunshine, before the black clouds in the distance finally reached the sun, 180102 approaches Walton Well Road, Oxford, on 30 January 2015 with the 1P40 09:54 Great Malvern to Paddington First Great Western service. In the background is the soon to be replaced Aristotle Lane footbridge, with Oxford North Junction just beyond.

With snow still lying beside the track in the shadow of the bushes, 180102 passes Shorthampton on 3 February 2015 with the 1W29 11:20 Paddington to Malvern First Great Western service. This will soon revert to the overgrown state that the line was in before it was redoubled.

180102 passes a field of oilseed rape near Cholsey on 28 April 2015, as it heads towards London with the 1A05 07:34 Didcot Parkway to Paddington First Great Western service. The sad remains of Didcot Power Station dominate the background.

The installation of a big grey generator box does little to improve the photographic viewpoint at Aston Magna! 180102 rounds the sharp curve on 7 August 2015 with the 1P35 08:26 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service.

180102 accelerates away from Charlbury station on 24 May 2016 with the 1W14 06:52 Paddington to Great Malvern GWR service. Admittedly just a going away shot, but with full early morning sunshine, and a hawthorn bush in full bloom, I couldn't resist it!

There aren't many locations left on the national network where you can include four separate ex GWR lower quadrant semaphore signals in one picture. 180102 approaches Moreton-in-Marsh on 6 June 2016 with the 1W10 05:45 Paddington to Worcester Foregate Street GWR service.

180102 passes Wolvercote on 24 August 2016 with the 1P47 12:06 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington GWR service. The train is accelerating away from Wolvercote Junction (just out sight around the corner), where the Cotswold Line joins the route from Banbury. The line on the extreme left is the yet to be commissioned reinstatement of the former down relief line.

180102 passes Daylesford on 2 March 2017 with the 1W29 14:21 Paddington to Worcester Foregate Street GWR service. Apparently the field on the right was once allotments, which seems hard to believe, as Daylesford is only a very small rural village, and is some distance away on the other side of the line!

The sun breaks through the clouds at Didcot North Junction on 25 April 2017, just as 180102 passes by with the 1D13 06:20 Paddington to Oxford GWR service. There is almost a sense of deja vu with these units in the Thames Valley, as in late 2017 they are due to move to Grand Central. It is almost a decade since First Great Western got rid of them for the first time, before welcoming them back in 2012!

180102 passes the well filled Oxford station car park, as it leaves the station on 12 December 2017 with the late running 1P35 08:26 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington GWR service. In the 1980s, when I used to do a lot of photography here, the condition of the cars at this location was not quite so good! Instead of the shiny nearly new BMWs, Audis, etc seen here, the crushed remains of various 1970s rot boxes littered the foreground, as this was a scrapyard, rather than a car park!

A roadside tree next to Little Heck Common Lane provides a convenient frame for 180102, as it heads south down the East Coast Mainline on 30 March 2024 with the 1A67 16:27 York to Kings Cross Grand Central service.

180103 departs from a rain soaked Kemble station on 18 September 2004 with the 11:33 Cheltenham to Paddington First Great Western service. The train is just about to enter the short Kemble tunnel, and the long single track section to Swindon.

180103 approaches Ashbury Crossing, Shrivenham on 8 August 2006 with the 12:48 Paddington to Cheltenham 'Cheltenham Spa Express' First Great Western service. Unfortunately by this time most of the 180s had lost their front end fairing, revealing the coupler and individual coach number.

180103 calls at Charlbury station on 1 March 2007 with the 13:52 Paddington to Great Malvern First Great Western service. A typical weekday scene, with the twice extended car park completely full, and cars parked in the approach road.

A pair of Class 180 Adelante units at Kingham station on 6 April 2007. On the left, 180113 waits with the 06:52 Paddington to Great Malvern First Great Western service, while 180103 arrives with the 07:08 Great Malvern to Paddington service, luckily for the sake of the photograph running 5 minutes late, thus enabling this passing shot. Note that 180103 retains the valance over the coupler, which latterly has been removed on most units.

180103 passes Lower Moor on 10 April 2007 with the 11:06 Great Malvern to Paddington First Great Western service. The Adelante's days on the Cotswold Line were numbered when this picture was taken, but at least this unit's future would be more secure than that of the car in the field by the van bodies!

28 May 2012 marked the reintroduction of a Class 180 to passenger services on the Cotswold Line after a gap of more than three years. Sporting the new First Great Western 'wavy lines' livery, 180103 arrives at Kingham station with the first up working - the 1P57 14:26 Great Malvern to Paddington. It had earlier worked up to Great Malvern with the 1W29 11:20 from Paddington.

180103 speeds through Culham station on 9 August 2012 with the 1W21 09:21 Paddington to Worcester Foregate Street First Great Western service. The building on the right is now prosaically called the Railway Inn. Formerly it was the much more entertainingly named 'Jolly Porter'.

Plenty of snow on the ground, but unfortunately most of it has already fallen off the trees, as 180103 approaches Oxford station on 21 January 2013 with the 1W29 11:20 Paddington to Great Malvern First Great Western service.

180103 passes Shorthampton on 20 February 2013 with the 1W32 12:21 Paddington to Great Malvern First Great Western service. The former farm occupation bridge in the background is virtually inaccessible, even to walkers.

180103 speeds past Kennington on 6 June 2013 with the 2E95 17:15 Didcot Parkway to Great Malvern First Great Western service. This train stops at all stations on the Cotswold Line, including such remote halts as Combe and Finstock. These used to be only served by more mundane units.

The reinstatement of double track on the Cotswold Line has been a tremendous success, but unfortunately is not the complete answer to capacity problems, due to the retention of a long single track section from Charlbury to Wolvercote Junction. This became apparent on 19 July 2013, when the 1P57 14:26 Great Malvern to Paddington First Great Western service became delayed at Charlbury, due to the late arrival of the 1W41 14:21 Paddington to Worcester Foregate Street (which in the event terminated at Shrub Hill). Running fifteen minutes late, 180103 leaves Charlbury and joins the single track section, with the delayed 1P57.

In late 2014 there was a massive tree clearance operation at Hanborough, opening up a new photographic vantage point on the Cotswold Line. Whilst this work merely reinstates the view from the roadbridge towards the station back to what it was like in the early 1980s, the view of southbound trains approaching the station has never been as good as this since I started taking photos in 1978. With the mass of tree stumps indicating just how wooded this view once was, 180103 just manages to dodge the shadows as it approaches Hanborough on 24 February 2015 with the 1P47 12:06 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service.

180103 passes Whitehill (between Combe and Finstock) with the 1W29 11:20 Paddington to Great Malvern First Great Western service on 12 March 2015. This is not a location that a lot of photographers use, as it requires a lengthy walk from the nearest public road.

Having just crossed over the River Thames, 180103 approaches Appleford at speed on 30 June 2015 with the 2Y94 15:53 Worcester Shrub Hill to Didcot Parkway First Great Western service. This was running ten minutes behind another Cotswold Line train led by 43003. Both were running very late, and should have been twenty minutes apart. Still a very small gap for the route.

180103 passes Hinksey Yard on 20 January 2016 with the 1P47 12:06 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington GWR service. This is an excellent location for winter photography, as it usually shadow free, as long as there is nothing parked on the lines on the left.

Just a few months before the classic view of Sonning cutting was ruined forever by the installation of overhead catenary, 180103 passes through the recently cleared cutting on 16 August 2016 with the 1W29 14:22 Paddington to Worcester Foregate Street GWR service.

180103 races through Ascott-under-Wychwood station on 6 October 2016 with the 1P40 09:54 Great Malvern to Paddington GWR service. The yellow lines on the platforms here get a lot of use, as virtually all trains pass through at high speed!

180103 passes Shorthampton on 30 November 2016 with the 1W21 09:21 Paddington to Worcester Foregate Street GWR service. This location is well away from any road, which probably explains why the ancient wooden post and wire fence hasn't been replaced by anything more substantial!

180103 heads away from the camera at Evenlode on 4 December 2016 with the 1W02 10:42 Paddington to Hereford GWR service. This came within a few seconds of blocking out the view of the late running 1P45 11:15 Great Malvern to Paddington. The magpie in the field hasn't moved during the passage of either train!

Viewed from the extremely tall Grintleyhill Bridge, 180103 heads down the Evenlode Valley near Combe on 19 April 2017 with the 1P40 09:58 Great Malvern to Paddington GWR service. Note the width of the bridge in the foreground, clearly indicating that this was one a double track line. Coincidentally, I photographed this same unit, on the same train, at this spot two months later.

180103 approaches Hanborough on 2 May 2017 with the 1P75 17:44 Great Malvern to Paddington GWR service. It won't be long before this viewpoint becomes more restricted again, as the lineside bushes are already growing back, after the recent vegetation clearance.

180103 heads north from Charlbury station on 14 June 2017 with the 1W14 06:52 Paddington to Great Malvern GWR service. Note the HST stop boards on both lines, for use with the very seldom used bi-directional running.

180103 passes Grintleyhill Bridge, Combe, on 14 June 2017 with the 1P40 09:58 Great Malvern to Paddington GWR service. This is just about the worst time of year, and certainly the worst time of day for photography, as is amply proved by the picture of the same unit, with the same train, two months earlier.

180103 leaves Honeybourne station on 11 August 2017 with the 1P47 12:06 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington GWR service. This is a going away shot, but obviously there isn't much possibility of decent approaching picture here!

Dunstall Bridge, just south of Moreton-in-Marsh, was replaced in October 2016, as the original stone arched structure had developed a noticeable sag. 180103 is pictured passing underneath the new bridge on 17 November 2017 with the 1P47 12:06 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington GWR service.

180103 passes through Shipton's diminutive station on 29 November 2017 with the 1P40 09:58 Great Malvern to Paddington GWR service. With the sun constantly disappearing behind the fast moving clouds, I was very lucky to get this one in the sun. The 180s are in their last few weeks of operation on the Cotswold Line, and this makes an excellent picture, with the golden leaves of the beech tree contrasting nicely with the unit's blue livery.

180104 heads back to Reading after working what was supposedly the first revenue earning train for the much delayed class. I missed the outward run of the additional 11:15 Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads service on 28 December 2001, but make no apology for including this going away picture of the return working, in view of its historic significance. The Class 180s, or Adelantes as they were then branded, were initially plagued with problems, and their introduction into traffic with First Great Western was delayed by over a year.

180104 passes through the remains of Shrivenham station on 27 October 2003 with the 09:55 Cardiff Central to Paddington First Great Western service. Although the platforms had been securely fenced off by this time, they both still survived, complete with coping stones.

With the gentle curves of Brunel's Great Western Main Line emphasised by the use of a long lens, 180104 is pictured approaching Compton Beuachamp on 8 September 2006 with the 08:30 Bristol Temple Meads to Paddington First Great Western service. The concrete footbridge in the distance marks the site of the former Ashbury level crossing.

180104 speeds past Aldermaston on 23 November 2007 with the 08:18 Paddington to Exeter St Davids First Great Western service, during the tail end of FGW's association with the class. Best described as an intermediate service, between the long distance trains to the far west (operated by HSTs) and the purely local trains (operated by Turbo units).

A pair of de-branded First Great Western 'Adelantes' 180104 & 180108 move slowly along the down relief line at Ruscombe on 17 April 2008, after weaving across from the main line and consequently being held up by the stopping train in front. Pairs of Class 180s working together were never common, but during their final days with the franchise seem to be happening more regularly. This is presumably an empty stock move.

180104 traverses the last few yards of the Cotswold Line, as it approaches Wolvercote Junction on 5 November 2012 with the 1P47 12:06 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service. This view clearly shows the 40 mph restriction for the junction, followed by the 100 mph limit for the rest of the line.

Superb evening lighting at Radley on 23 April 2013, as 180104 heads northwards with the 1D53 17:18 Paddington to Oxford First Great Western service. I hadn't planned on venturing out, as the Met Office had predicted full cloud after a bright start. Even at 16:00 they were still saying cloud, even when there wasn't a cloud in the sky!

180104 passes Ascott-under-Wychwood on 15 April 2014 with the 1P35 08:26 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service. The long lens has compressed the perspective, making the Cotswold Hills in the background look much more impressive!

180104 passes Wolvercote on 19 January 2015 with the 1P47 12:06 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service. Wolvercote Junction, where this train joined the Banbury line, after travelling down the Cotswold Line, is just behind the bridge that can be seen in the far distance. Note the incomplete relief line reinstatement in the foreground.

180104 passes Shorthampton in some weak winter sunshine on 3 February 2015 with the 1P47 12:06 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service. Unfortunately, the sun had been strong enough to melt virtually all of the previous evening's covering of snow.

180104 comes off the single track Cotswold Line at Wolvercote Junction on 6 February 2015 with the 1P40 09:54 Great Malvern to Paddington First Great Western service. This train was running a few minutes late, after having to wait at Charlbury for the 1W23 09:50 Paddington to Moreton-in-Marsh DMU to clear the long single track section.

180104 approaches Culham on 11 June 2015 with the 1D53 17:18 Paddington to Oxford First Great Western service. The cow parsley is already starting to recolonise the recently cleared trackside, but the forthcoming electrification will ruin the view before the re-growing vegetation does!

180104 passes Hinksey Yard on 11 February 2016 with the 1P47 12:06 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington GWR service. The lake behind the train was excavated by the Great Western Railway when the original line to Oxford was constructed in the 1840s.

180104 passes Wolvercote on 12 July 2016 with the 1W49 16:22 Paddington to Great Malvern GWR service. The newly laid track on the right was ripped up shortly afterwards, thereby confirming most people's opinion that Network Rail haven't got a clue what they are doing!

A lucky picture taken at Sonning on 16 August 2016, showing three different classes of GWR DMUs, five vehicles heading one way, and five the other. 180104 heads west with the 1W45 15:22 Paddington to Great Malvern service, while 166220 & 165125 head in the opposite direction with the 2P61 15:48 Reading to Paddington.

180104 sweeps through Shipton station (just visible in the background) with the 1P40 09:54 Great Malvern to Paddington GWR service on 15 September 2016. The background is dominated by FWP Matthews flour mill. The main part of the building was built in 1912, and as can be seen by the later additions, is still a thriving business today.

180104 climbs the 1 in 467 gradient out of the Evenlode Valley near Combe on 2 November 2016 with the 1P40 09:54 Great Malvern to Paddington GWR service. This is a recently created view, courtesy of some very unusual Network Rail lineside maintenance.

Grintleyhill Bridge, near Combe, has had some repair work done, and instead of the usual Network Rail concrete bodge, proper blue engineers bricks have been used for the coping. Although the lines of mortar are massive compared with the original, it is still an excellent job. 180104 passes by on 19 April 2017 with the 1P47 12:06 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington GWR service.

180104 arrives at Ascott-under-Wychwood station on 22 May 2017 with the 1W33 16:22 Paddington to Great Malvern GWR service. This is the only down train of the day to call at the station. Although there is some cloud in the background of this view, that is nothing compared with the large mass of cloud that was creeping up on the sun behind me. The sun disappeared and reappeared several times as the train approached at what seemed an agonisingly slow speed. Luckily it came to a stop just before the sun vanished for the last time. Although it did reappear sporadically as I was driving home, it was nothing like the full sun evening that the Met Office had predicted!

180104 leaves Moreton-in-Marsh station on 6 July 2017 with the 1P35 08:39 Worcester Shrub Hill to Paddington GWR service. This would normally have started from Worcester Foregate Street at 08:26, but was altered as the unit's inbound working, the 1W12 05:47 departure from Paddington, was running 15 minutes late. Note the signal on the left, which allows up trains which are booked to start at Moreton to leave from the down platform.

Wrong way round, and going the wrong way! Two vehicles of 180104 were turned out in GWR green with various graphics for the Old Oak Common 2017 Open Day. Unfortunately in this picture they are at the front of the train, as it heads away from the camera at Chilson on 6 October 2017. The train is the 1W14 06:52 Paddington to Great Malvern GWR service.

180104 arrives at an almost completely deserted Moreton-in-Marsh station on 12 October 2017 with the 1P83 19:44 Great Malvern to Paddington GWR service. My reason for visiting Moreton station at night was to photograph the 3S31 13:14 Gloucester Horton Road to Worcester Shrub Hill (via Oxford) Rail Head Treatment Train. That plan was scuppered by a late running HST getting in the way. However, by way of compensation, I was able to photograph the rear of this 180, which has been partly rebranded in GWR green.

180104 stands at Moreton-in-Marsh station on 12 October 2017 with the 1P83 19:44 Great Malvern to Paddington GWR service. The two rear coaches were outshopped in GWR green, with various advertising decals, for the 2017 Old Oak Common Open Day. It looks a little odd, with the other three vehicles still being in blue livery, but makes an interesting picture under Moreton station's lights. There was plenty of time to take this picture, as the train is booked to stay here for ten minutes.

180104 arrives at Kingham station on 17 November 2017 with the 1P40 09:58 Great Malvern to Paddington GWR service. The Class 180s will soon be leaving the Cotswold Line again (they left for the first time a decade earlier!). The new footbridge now dominates this small station.

180104 arrives at Evesham on 25 November 2017 with the 1P47 12:06 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington GWR service, while in the foreground the 1W02 10:17 Paddington to Hereford HST, with 43004 leading, waits for it to clear the single line to Norton Junction. Note the advertising vinyls on the rear two coaches of 180104. I had gone to this location to photograph 37884 with the 5V94 08:50 Northampton to Long Marston ECS, conveying London Midland EMU 350235. This was running roughly to time when I left home, but when I arrived I found out that it was still stuck at Nuneaton, after 37884 had failed. By the time rescue loco 37601 had been summoned it was obviously going to be extremely late, so I came home. It passed Evesham 174 minutes late, by which time it would have been very nearly dark.

180104 approaches Joan Croft Junction on 20 April 2019 with the 1A66 15:30 Sunderland to Kings Cross Grand Central service. A new road bridge at this location has created this much improved raised viewpoint.

180105 speeds along the Great Western Main Line at Circourt Bridge, Denchworth with the 13:30 Paddington to Cardiff Central First Great Western service on 9 October 2003. Their reign on these services was short lived, with the majority reverting to HSTs, while the 180s were concentrated on the Cotswold line and Paddington to Oxford services.

180105 heads north from Oxford on 8 August 2004 with the 09:42 Paddington to Hereford First Great Western service. This was before the whole area, both the former railway land in the background, and the railway in the foreground, were changed by hideous development, and track reorganisation respectively.

180105 passes Aldington on 18 September 2006 with the 11:34 Hereford to Paddington First Great Western service. The luxuriant lineside vegetation seen here was severely pruned back a few years later, opening up the view considerably. It does happen sometimes!

Well over a year since it should have been transferred away from the area, 180105 calls at Charlbury with the 11:22 Paddington to Great Malvern First Great Western service on 15 January 2009. Although the majority of the units were returned to their owners Angel Trains in early 2008, three sets were retained by First Great Western principally for use in pairs between London and Oxford. Consequently their appearance on the Cotswold Line has been comparatively rare, with HSTs and Turbo units now being the preferred traction.

180105 heads around the back of Knottingley station on 11 March 2011 with the 1A73 10:22 Bradford Interchange to Kings Cross Grand Central service. Unfortunately the sun was just fading out as I took this picture and it was one of those annoying situations where you just wished the train would speed up a bit, instead of traversing the junction in the background at little more than walking pace, while the sun went in!

180105 speeds past Cromwell Moor on 15 October 2011 with the 1A61 08:30 Sunderland to Kings Cross Grand Central service. 180105 looks a little different here compared with when I photographed it on the Great Western Mainline eight years previously.

180105 The Yorkshire Artist Ashley Jackson speeds past Gamston on 26 June 2014 with the 1A67 14:20 Bradford Interchange to Kings Cross Grand Central service. Apart from a footpath, the crossing from which this photo was taken has been blocked up, so road traffic now uses the bridge in the background.

180105 The Yorkshire Artist Ashley Jackson speeds past the site of Scrooby station on 21 July 2014, as it heads towards the capital with the 1A67 14:20 Bradford Interchange to Kings Cross Grand Central service.

180106 passes Winterbourne in a brief patch of sunshine on 8 June 2002, as it heads towards the capital with the 09:30 Swansea to Paddington First Great Western service. After being shunned by FGW a few years later, 180106 was moved north to work for Northern Rail. However, in 2012 in returned back south to work out of Paddington once more.

180106 sweeps round the curve at Lower Basildon on 3 February 2007 with the 13:17 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service. Running on the up relief line has certainly provided a much better view of the train than would have been possible if it had been using the up main.

A flash of red, white and blue between the autumnal bushes at Chilson on 30 October 2007. 180106 heads westwards with the 07:52 Paddington to Worcester Foregate Street First Great Western service. This is the second train of the day in the down direction.

180106 kicks up the dust as it approaches Shipton station with the 10:23 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service on 30 October 2007. Notices on the station remind passengers that it is a no smoking station and periodic announcements inform passengers that any unattended bags will be removed. It doesn't say who is going to enforce these regulations, as the station is unmanned, virtually no trains stop there, and it is in a secluded location, well away from the nearest Network Rail employee!

After a break of a few years, the Class 180s are back on the Cotswold Line. Banished to pastures new in favour of First Great Western's stalwart Class 166 Turbos, many people were sorry to see the 'Adelantes' (as they were then branded) go, and presumably the line's regulars will now welcome them back. Sporting the new 'wavy lines' livery, 180106 speeds past Shorthampton on 24 May 2012 with the 5Z31 10:18 Worcester Shrub Hill to Paddington crew training run. Unfortunately the early morning cloud had not dispersed as early as the Met Office had forecast.

180106 accelerates away from Charlbury station and passes Cornbury Park on 25 July 2012 with the 1P35 08:26 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service. It is just passing from the recently reinstated double track, onto the single track section to Wolvercote Junction.

180106 speeds through Culham station on 9 August 2012 with the late running 1P35 08:26 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service. Note how the reconstructed up platform is separated from the redundant section in front of the former station building.

180106 passes Cornbury Park, as it slows for the approach to Charlbury station on 19 July 2013, with the 1W41 14:21 Paddington to Worcester Foregate Street First Great Western service. The signal in the background controls access to the recently reinstated double track section.

There is no excuse for HST drivers at Charlbury not knowing where to stop, such is the plethora of signs just to the north of the station! 180106 arrives at Charlbury on 29 July 2014 with the 1P35 08:26 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service. Unfortunately the much publicised recent redoubling of the Cotswold Line has not eradicated all late running as was promised, as there is still a single track section from just south of this point to Wolvercote Junction. A case in point here. As I photographed this train it was on time, but due to a late running train on the single line, it did not leave Charlbury station for another 41 minutes, eventually arriving in London nearly an hour late!

180106 arrives at Kingham station on 29 July 2014 with the 2Y94 15:32 Great Malvern to Didcot Parkway First Great Western service. Judging by the multi coloured vegetation growing on the track in the background, a visit from the weedkilling train is long overdue!

180106 moves across from the up relief to the up main line at South Moreton (Didcot East) on 19 December 2014, as it heads for the capital with the 1P40 09:54 Great Malvern to Paddington First Great Western service. Only Didcot Power Station's chimneys now remain in the background, the cooling towers having been recently demolished.

180106 approaches Cholsey on 2 January 2015 with the 1P47 12:06 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service. The ominous masts on the left herald the end of this viewpoint, and eventually, the use of Class 180s in the Thames Valley.

180106 leaves Oxford station on 1 April 2015 with the 1P27 09:01 departure for Paddington. At least until the electrification of the route, the footbridge at Osney Lane still provides a good view of departing trains, which is surprising, as the bridge was recently rebuilt, but without any of the vandal proof measures that make photography so difficult elsewhere.

180106 runs through the tree lined cutting near Goring on 6 July 2015 with the 1W12 06:52 Paddington to Great Malvern First Great Western service. Directly behind the unit is one of the cross pieces that will span the four tracks. The installation of these, and indeed the erection of the masts, seems to be totally random, and of course well over a year behind schedule!

180106 passes South Moreton on 10 September 2015 with the 1W47 15:52 Paddington to Worcester Shrub Hill First Great Western service. The new masts signal the imminent end of this location for photographic purposes!

180106 is neatly framed by the brick road bridge, as it approaches Finstock station at high speed on 6 May 2016 with the late running 1W45 15:22 Paddington to Worcester Shrub Hill GWR service. 1W45 is normally the 15:22 Paddington to Great Malvern, but the late running resulted in it missing its path along the single line.

Shortly before this well known photographic location was desecrated by the fantastically mismanaged Great Western Mainline electfrication scheme, 180106 passes through Sonning cutting on 16 August 2016 with the 1P40 09:54 Great Malvern to Paddington GWR service.

A frosty morning at Chilson on 30 November 2016. 180106 heads through the wintry landscape with the 1P35 08:26 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington GWR service. Despite the temperature still being well below freezing, the total absence of any wind meant that it wasn't too unpleasant standing around in the sunshine.

180106 passes Chilson on 1 December 2016 with the 1W29 11:20 Paddington to Great Malvern GWR service. The lichen encrusted fence in the foreground adds to the picture, and is definitely preferable to Network Rail's modern equivalent! Houses in the village of Chadlington can just been seen in the background.

180106 races past Lyneham on 22 May 2017 with the late running 1W31 15:22 Paddington to Great Malvern GWR service. The two constant items in this picture over the last three decades appear to be the trackside box in front of the second coach, and the electricity pole on the left. Certainly none of the trees in the background were there when I photographed Class 119 DMU L572 passing this spot in 1985.

180106 approaches Moreton-in-Marsh on 25 August 2017 with the 1W31 15:22 Paddington to Great Malvern GWR service. This was one of my favourite Cotswold Line locations in the 1980s, and while it is still reasonably clear of trees in 2017, 30 years earlier it was considerably better!

A close up view of 180106, as it approaches Finstock at high speed on 1 November 2017 with the 1P40 09:58 Great Malvern to Paddington GWR service. Photo taken from the end of Finstock station's diminutive platform.

180106 passes Lyneham on 30 November 2017 with the 1P47 12:06 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington GWR service. These stylish units have had two spells of use on the Cotswold Line, 2004 to 2008, and 2012 to 2017.

Running late due to a failed LNER Class 800, 180106 slowly passes Cromwell Moor on 29 June 2019 in a queue of delayed trains with the 1A68 15:29 Sunderland to Kings Cross Grand Central service. Although only ten minutes late at this point, the massive hold up it would encounter just a few miles down the line would see it arrive in London 40 minutes behind time.

180107 passes Shrivenham with the 14:30 Paddington to Cardiff Central First Great Western service on 27 October 2003. These units certainly looked better in this original incarnation, with a more stylish livery, and with the front coupling cover in place.

180107 passes Baulking with a westbound ECS working on 12 October 2006. A common problem with streamlined train designs that feature a plastic faring at the front is the type of damage shown here, probably caused by hitting some insignificant object (or wildlife!) at speed.

180107 approaches Cholsey on 6 December 2006 with the 13:05 Oxford to Paddington First Great Western service. The houses of North Moreton village can be seen in the distance. Although Cholsey has a station, the villages of North and South Moreton have never been blessed with a station.

180107 passes Churchill Heath Wood on 17 September 2007 with the 11:25 Worcester Shrub Hill to Paddington First Great Western service. Note the steel sleepers on the up line at this point. This location is midway between Kingham station and Bruern Crossing, and is a fair walk from the nearest road.

180107 passes Brimpton (between Midgham and Colthrop) with the 12:18 Paddington to Exeter St Davids First Great Western service on 23 November 2007. In addition to their main duties between Paddington and Oxford and on the Cotswold Line, Class 180s were still diagramed for a few of these medium distance trains in the final months of their use with First Great Western prior to being handed back to the leasing company.

Grand Central Railway's introduction of a London to Yorkshire direct service has seen the return of passenger trains to the Doncaster to Knottingley line, which had previously been a freight only route for many years. 180107 is seen here passing over one of the two level crossings in the village of Walden Stubbs, approximately half way along the route, with the 14:20 Kings Cross to Bradford Interchange service on 17 June 2010. Unfortunately the line is not very photogenic, with very few clear photographic locations.

180107's top speed of 125mph is completely wasted on this stretch of line. On 12 March 2012 it passes Haywood (Rushy Moor) on the Knottingley to Doncaster line, with the 1A63 10:22 Bradford Interchange to Kings Cross Grand Central service.

180107 speeds past Little Heck on 7 April 2015 with the 1A60 06:45 Sunderland to Kings Cross Grand Central service. The bridge in the background carries the Eat Coast Mainline over the largely freight only Knottingley to Drax and Goole line.

With the autumn colours just starting to show on the trees, Class 180 Adelante unit 180108 heads along the Great Western Mainline at Circourt Bridge, Denchworth on 9 October 2003. It is working the 08:06 Worcester Shrub Hill to Paddington (via Gloucester) First Great Western service. The signal gantries visible in the distance in both directions from this bridge are a useful aid for photographers, as signals on all lines are manually controlled, so a green aspect indicates there is something arriving shortly!

180108 approaches Kintbury on 2 April 2007 with 11:54 Exeter St Davids to Paddington First Great Western service. This is basically an all stations (such as they are) service as far as Reading, from where it becomes non0stiop to Paddington.

180108 passes the south end of Hinksey Yard (near Oxford) with the 15:30 Oxford to Paddington First Great Western service on 2 May 2007. The growth in vegetation around the tracks at this point has now effectively screened out the former view of Oxford.

180108 catches the last of the evening sunshine as it passes the site of Yarnton Junction on 5 May 2007 with the 18:22 Paddington to Hereford First Great Western service. Just behind the train is where the 'Yarnton Loop' line diverged to the left, formerly a connection between the Oxford, Worcester & Wolverhampton Railway (the Cotswold Line) and the London & North Western Railway.

180108 passes Fairwood on 11 September 2007 with the 12:07 Exeter St Davids to Paddington First Great Western service. The bridge in the background spans the junction where the Westbury avoiding line rejoins the original route.

From the lofty vantage point of Grintleyhill Bridge near Combe, 180108 is pictured working the 10:23 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service on 16 November 2007, during the final few weeks of the troubled class's use on the Cotswold Line. Lower Westfield Farm is prominent in the middle distance, while Wychwood Forest can be seen in the far distance. 

Even as late as Spring 2008 First Great Western were still operating a few Class 180 Adelante units in the Thames Valley. They were obviously keen to be rid of the class, as 180108 has had all traces of First Great Western branding removed, when pictured passing Goring with the 07:51 Paddington to Oxford service on 12 April 2008.

After taking a conventional picture of 180104 & 180108 passing Ruscombe on 17 April 2008, I couldn't resist this going away shot, with 180108 at the rear, as the lighting angle was better. Double headed Class 180s are always worth an extra picture!

180108 speeds through Radley on 17 December 2012 with the 1P47 12:06 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service. A lot of the photographic locations in the Radley and Culham area unfortunately feature electricity pylons rather prominently. At least at this particular spot they are a little less intrusive.

180108 passes Hinksey Yard on 1 January 2013 with the 1P43 11:50 Moreton-in-Marsh to Paddington First Great Western service. As there was virtually no freight traffic booked, this well known footbridge did not have the usual group of railway photographers in attendance. However, there were plenty of people taking a New Year's Day walk, which was slightly surprising, as the footpath to South Hinksey village was partly flooded. I know this as I had parked in a flood in the village and walked through the watery landscape to get to the bridge!

180108 approaches Oxford North Junction on 3 January 2013 with the 1W29 11:20 Paddington to Great Malvern First Great Western service. The willow trees on the right separate the railway from the low lying expanse of Port Meadow.

180108 pulls away from Oxford station on 24 January 2013 with the 1P40 09:54 Great Malvern to Paddington First Great Western service. As the snow begins to melt, the cars return to the car park. Three days earlier the snow lay undisturbed over a large area, as lots of people found other means of getting to work, or stayed at home!

180108 speeds towards the capital on 1 May 2013 with the 1P35 08:26 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service. It is passing through the photogenic tree lined cutting at Ruscombe. Not as deep as the nearby Sonning cutting, but less prone to shadows!

180108 runs along the down main line at South Moreton on 7 May 2013 with the 1D43 14:50 Paddington to Oxford First Great Western service. Obviously this location would not be much use once there was a full season's worth of lineside growth in the foreground!

180108 slowly passes Wolvercote on 19 July 2013 with the 1W47 15:51 Paddington to Worcester Shrub Hill First Great Western service. It is approaching Wolvercote Junction, where it will branch off onto the Cotswold Line. In the foreground is a large mound of fresh ballast which is being used for the reinstatement of the down relief line between Oxford and Wolvercote Junction.

180108 accelerates away from Moreton-in-Marsh station on 27 September 2013 with the 1P40 09:54 Great Malvern to Paddington First Great Western service. Although still an interesting location, with plenty of semaphore signals, the station is now a shadow of its former self, with all but one siding (behind my vantage point) having been lifted. The redundant track panels behind the leading coach are from the renewal of the down line through the station.

180108 passes Cholsey on 8 July 2014 with the 3A05 06:14 Paddington to Didcot Parkway First Great Western ECS. It would shortly return with the 1A05 07:34 Didcot Parkway to Paddington. Prominent in the foreground is one of the tubular steel piles that will form the base for the forthcoming overhead electrification catenary.

With the doomed Didcot Power Station visible in the background, 180108 passes Cholsey on 8 July 2014 with the 1A05 07:34 Didcot Parkway to Paddington First Great Western service. Note the tubular steel piles for the forthcoming electrification on the right.

180108 races through Ascott-under-Wychwood station on 17 July 2014 with the 1W29 11:20 Paddington to Great Malvern First Great Western service. I don't normally take this kind of close up station picture, especially as with a train travelling at this speed, getting it 'stopped' in exactly the right spot is tricky, although I seem to have managed it here. However, on this occasion I wanted to give an overall view of the recently upgraded station, which despite its shelters, lighting, help points, etc, still only sees one train in each direction on a weekday, and none at all at weekends.

As the train does not call at Didcot, 180108 makes use of Didcot's east curve, and approaches Didcot North Junction on 3 September 2014 with the 1W29 11:20 Paddington to Great Malvern First Great Western service.

180108 passes Wolvercote on 16 December 2014 with the 1P47 12:06 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service. Having just vacated the single track Cotswold Line at Wolvercote Junction, the route has now been set for the 1W32 12:21 Paddington to Great Malvern, as can be seen by the amber signal with feathers underneath the A34 bridge in the background.

The first signs of the impending electfrication at Cholsey. 180108 runs along the up relief line with the 1P40 09:54 Great Malvern to Paddington First Great Western service on 2 January 2015. Although I visited this location a fair number of times, its impending loss makes me think I should have visited much more often!

Cotswold Line pastoral. 180108 passes Lyneham on 9 February 2015 with the late running 1P47 12:06 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service. Note the bright red branches of the trees in the background on the left, presumably some variety of Cornus. The Met Office were obviously being cautious today, predicting 100% cloud all day. By midday it was mainly sunny, and by the late afternoon there wasn't a cloud in the sky!

180108 passes through Ascott-under-Wychwood station at high speed on 18 February 2015 with the 1P47 12:06 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington GWR service. The platform it is passing sees only one stopping train per day, and this isn't it!

180108 pulls away from Hanborough station on 24 February 2015 with the 1W29 11:20 Paddington to Great Malvern First Great Western service. Recent tree clearance here has completely transformed the view, making it almost as clear as it was in the early 1980s. Until this work was done this view was all but impossible.

Another excellent Thames Valley photographic vantage point disappearing under a sea of ironmongery! 180108 approaches Goring on 6 July 2015 with the 1A05 07:34 Didcot Parkway to Paddington First Great Western service.

180108 pulls away from Moreton-in-Marsh station on 31 July 2015 with the 1P35 08:26 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service. It is passing between the original up starting signal (right), and the newly installed platform 1 up starter (left).

During a brief burst of sunshine, on an otherwise generally cloudy day, 180108 arrives at Honeybourne station on 7 August 2015 with the 1P40 09:54 Great Malvern to Paddington First Great Western service. The station is now completely dominated by a new disabled friendly footbridge.

180108 leaves Moreton-in-Marsh station on 5 October 2016 with the 1P35 08:26 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington GWR service. The site of the former sidings in the foreground is getting gradually more overgrown with bushes, causing problems with shadows as autumn approaches.

180108 adds a touch of blue to an otherwise yellow and brown landscape near Combe on 2 November 2016. It is working the 1P35 08:26 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington GWR service. Combe church can be seen in the background.

180108 approaches Chilson on 7 November 2016 with the 1W21 09:21 Paddington to Worcester Foregate Street GWR service. This location is a long way from the nearest road, which probably explains why I have not seen many other pictures taken here.

180108 passes Daylesford on 13 February 2017 with the 1W29 14:21 Paddington to Worcester Foregate Street GWR service. Even though there is only the merest hint of a cutting here, at this time of year that is enough to put the track partially in the shade.

180108 passes Chilson on 22 February 2017 with the 1P35 08:26 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington GWR service. This view will obviously be very different in a few decades time, judging by the line of newly planted trees in the field. At least they are on the north side of the line!

180108 approaches Didcot North Junction on 25 April 2017 with the 1D15 07:21 Paddington to Oxford GWR service. It has just traversed the east chord, that avoids Didcot Parkway station. It's only booked stops between London and Oxford being Slough and Reading.

180108 William Shakespeare passes Ryther on 30 November 2019 with the 1A65 12:18 Sunderland to Kings Cross Grand Central service. Apart from the unit's black livery, orange seems to be the dominate colour in this picture!

180109 on Great Western metals the first time around. 180109 approaches Circourt Bridge, Denchworth, on 9 October 2003 with the 08:33 Cheltenham to Paddington service. The much delayed entry into traffic of this class came in 2001, and FGW were never entirely happy with their reliability, finally getting rid of them in 2009. However, by 2012 some of the class were back again, with a new livery and improved reliability.

Didcot Power Station dominates the background at Cholsey on 15 June 2004 as 180109 speeds towards the capital with the 09:29 Cheltenham to Paddington First Great Western service. Cholsey station, which can just be seen in the background is served by stopping trains that use the relief lines on the right.

On a miserably dull 25 September 2004, 180109 passes Steventon with the 08:03 Paddington to Cheltenham First Great Western service. At least the dull conditions allowed a picture to be taken from this angle, which apart form very late evening in high summer is ruled out because of shadows.

First Great Western had two goes at trying to use the unreliable Class 180 DMUs. First of all from 2001 to 2009, and again between 2012 and 2017. 180109 is pictured passing Bourton on 13 November 2004 with the 08:00 Bristol Temple Meads to Paddington service.

Speeding along on the four track section of the Great Western Mainline between Wantage Road and Challow, 180109 passes Circourt Bridge, Denchworth on 2 November 2006 with the 12:48 Paddington to Cheltenham First Great Western service, branded as the 'Cheltenham Spa Express'.

Under a threatening sky, 180109 arrives at Charlbury on 1 March 2007 with the 13:23 Hereford to Paddington First Great Western service. Note the pile of concrete cable trough covers on the right, which are obviously desperately needed judging by the way the cables are strewn about at random all over the ballast at the side of the track.

With the clouds rolling in from the west in the background, 180109 weaves across from the relief to the main line at South Moreton with the 1P36 09:37 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service on 24 May 2007. Even though Didcot Power Station's chimney is hidden from view behind the trees, its tell tale signature isn't!

180109 finds a very lucky patch of sunshine as it accelerates away from Westbury and passes Fairwood on 11 September 2007 with the 12:18 Paddington to Exeter St Davids First Great Western service. At the time these 'Adelantie' units were confined to the Exeter workings, with HSTs being deployed on the longer distance trains.

180109 approaches Bruern Crossing on 23 October 2007 with the 11:25 Worcester Shrub Hill to Paddington First Great Western service. It seems that in the last days of their use on the Cotswold Line the 180 Adelante units have generally been refitted with the coupler covers, which previously had often been missing.

180109 pulls slowly into Kingham station with the 11:25 Worcester Shrub Hill to Paddington First Great Western service on 29 November 2007. It was running a few minutes late, and I was worried that the 10:52 Paddington to Worcester Foregate Street which was now due would come in and block the shot. However, that was running even further behind time and did not arrive until this train had left. Yet another example of the poor timekeeping on the Cotswold Line in 2007.

180109 catches the last rays of the setting sun as it passes South Marston on 11 December 2007 with the 1G38 13:48 Paddington to Cheltenham First Great Western service. Soon to be transferred away, the Cheltenham trains were the last services to use these units along the Vale of White Horse line, with the Oxford and Cotswold routes seeing more frequent use.

The shadows are lengthening as 180109 passes the lake at Hinksey with the 13:30 Oxford to Paddington First Great Western service on 2 January 2008. By this time in their careers, the original front faring carrying the unit numbers had long gone, revealing the individual vehicle number. The second digit of this number changes for each vehicle: 99, 69. 59. 49 & 09.

180109 approaches the level crossing at Burn Lane (between Doncaster and Selby) with the 07:20 Kings Cross to Hull service on 17 June 2010. Despite being operated by First Hull Trains, the livery is the original colour scheme applied when the unit was part of the First Great Western fleet. Admittedly the companies are part of the same group, but this unit still looks a bit anonymous.

Dramatic lighting at Little Heck on 11 March 2011 as 180109 speeds southwards with the 1A93 08:12 Hull to Kings Cross First Hull Trains service. Needless to say the ideal combination of a sunlit foreground and dark clouds didn't last that long.

180109 speeds past Yaxley on 6 September 2012 with the 1A92 08:25 Hull to Kings Cross First Hull Trains service. It is quite clear from this view that this line was once four tracks, which helps prevent vegetation growing too near the line and spoiling the photographic potential.

180109 passes Frinkley Lane (near Grantham) on 6 September 2012 with the 1A95 15:10 Hull to Kings Cross First Hull Trains service. This is the view from a public footpath crossing, which was formerly a road between the villages of Hougham and Honington.

180109 approaches Cliffe on 22 February 2019 with the 1H02 09:48 Kings Cross to Hull Hull Trains service. 155342 can just be seen disappearing into the distance with the 2R08 11:10 Hull to York Northern service.

180109 approaches Hagg Lane level crossing, Hemingbrough, on 22 February 2019 with the 1A94 12:33 Hull to Kings Cross Hull Trains service. Definitely not much of a photographic location without the inclusion of the fence and level crossing lights in the foreground.

180109 passes Fenwick on 22 April 2019 with the 1A93 10:33 Hull to Kings Cross Hull Trains service. These units were late into service because of technical problems, were troublesome when used by First Great Western, and have again proved unreliable when used by Hull Trains. Not an unqualified success!

Soon to move on to pastures new (again!), the unloved and unreliable Class 180s are due to move from Hull Trains to East Midlands Railway in early 2020. Running 44 minutes late, 180109 approaches Sandy on 2 October 2019 with the 1A94 12:33 Hull to Kings Cross Hull Trains service.

180109 passes Cossington on 15 March 2022 with the 1B52 13:12 Nottingham to St Pancras International East Midlands Railway service. This is yet another operator for this unit, it having previously worked for First Great Western and Hull Trains.

180110 emerges from the fog at Langley Burrell on 11 December 2004 with the 07:03 Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads First Great Western service. The sun was trying to burn off the fog, but it kept rolling back in again. This was one of the clearer moments!

The troubled Class 180 Adelante units took over from Class 165 & 166 Turbo units on the Cotswold Line, and on 16 August 2006, 180110 is seen here approaching the site of Fladbury station with the 11:15 Paddington to Hereford service. Note the kink in the trackwork in the background where the single track moves from one side of the former double track formation to the other.

180110 passes Whitehill (between Combe and Finstock) on the Cotswold Line with the 13:52 Paddington to Great Malvern First Great Western service on 11 September 2006. Note the width of the trackbed here. Until 1971 this was double track and the it finally seems likely that it will be reinstated before the end of 2010.

180110 passes the site of Challow station on 12 October 2006 with the 09:39 Cheltenham to Paddington First Great Western service. Although the industrial estate in the background occupies the site of the former yard, most other traces of the station were removing with the installation of the relief lines here in the mid 1990s.

180110 arrives at Honeybourne with the 11:34 Hereford to Paddington First Great Western service on 1 November 2006. Note the abandoned platforms and little used sidings on the background. This extra trackwork is the last vestige of a once extensive junction and track layout at this rural location.

On 2 May 2007, 180110 has just passed under the A423 Oxford by-pass, and will shortly be running alongside Hinksey Yard on the approach to the city with the 14:51 First Great Western service from Paddington. The train is just crossing over one of the many streams in this area, which has always been very prone to flooding.

After their short lived career with First Great Western, a number of Class 180 units were transferred to sister company First Hull Trains during 2008. On 10 March 2009, 180110 heads down the East Coast Mainline at Scrooby with the 15:18 Hull to Kings Cross service. It is approaching the site of Scrooby station, which closed in 1958.

180110 passes Balne Lowgate on 12 March 2014 with the 1A95 15:10 Hull to Kings Cross First Hull Trains service. Given the ideal positioning of this photogenic tree, I'm surprised that I haven't seen more photos taken at this location.

180110 passes Cromwell Moor (near Newark) on 18 April 2014 with the 1A92 08:25 Hull to Finsbury Park First Hull Trains service. Normally of course this would carry on to Kings Cross, but Easter weekend engineering works were affecting services near the capital.

The wood pigeon sitting on the return wire on the extreme left takes no notice as 180110 speeds past Scrooby on 21 July 2014 with the 1A95 15:10 Hull to Kings Cross Hull Trains service. This photo is taken from a public footpath crossing, where the adjacent gate giving vehicular access to the fields had seven generations of padlock securing it! Obviously only one needed to be undone to open the gate, but all the others had been retained for no obvious reason!

The road to nowhere. Since the closure of Heck Ings level crossing, the minor road from the A645 serves no useful purpose, other than, judging by the manure heaps, agricultural! 180110 passes by on 22 February 2019 with the late running 1H01 07:27 Kings Cross to Hull Hull Trains service.

Looking smart in its original livery, complete with soon to be discarded coupling cover valance, 180111 passes South Moreton (Didcot East) on 28 October 2003 with the 1L46 09:55 Cardiff Central to Paddington First Great Western service.

The southern section of the Cotswold Line has become very overgrown in many places since the end of steam. Typical is the view at Whitehill on 11 September 2006, as 180111 heads south with the 12:55 Great Malvern to Paddington First Great Western service.

180111 emerges from the bushes at Daylesford on 4 January 2007, as it heads south through the Evenlode Valley with the 11:25 Worcester Shrub Hill to Paddington First Great Western service. Just a few leaves from the previous autumn cling to the small beech tree in the foreground.

180111 passes Badsey on the Cotswold Line with the 09:03 Great Malvern to Hereford First Great Western service on 6 April 2007. As this was Good Friday, a Saturday timetable was in use. This is on the long single track section between Evesham and Moreton-in-Marsh, which causes considerable operational difficulties at times.

December 2007 was due to see the end of Class 180 operations with First Great Western over the Cotswold Line, so on 23 October 2007 a concerted effort was made to photograph these units on my local line. It proved somewhat frustrating, as most of the locations I used during the 1980s, when the remaining through trains were loco hauled, have become completely overgrown. However, this location has stayed comparatively free of bushes. 180111 heads south from Moreton-in-Marsh with the 10:23 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service.

180111 passes Didcot North Junction on 12 November 2007 with the 14:30 Oxford to Paddington First Great Western service. Not only is the original coupling cover missing, but a chunk of the valance is also missing.

180111 makes good use of its 125mph top speed as it passes Frinkley Lane (near Grantham) with the 15:06 Hull to Kings Cross Hull Trains service on 25 July 2009. The last time I saw this unit is was working for First Great Western on my local Cotswold Line.

180111 approaches Cross Common Level Crossing (near Wressle) with the 12:45 Hull to Kings Cross First Hull Trains service on 1 October 2009. It still carries the original First Great Western livery, with the branding subtly altered to read Hull Trains. Rather than a conventional picture which would only have accentuated the pylons in the background, I decided on a wider view and included the level crossing warning notices, giving this view of a typical modern automatic half barrier crossing, so common in rural eastern England.

180111 heads north past Balne Lowgate on 12 March 2014 with the 1H04 13:48 Kings Cross to Hull  First Hull Trains service. The train is passing over Lowgate Crossing, one of two level crossings in the parish of Balne, the other naturally being called Highgate.

180111 heads north from Goole on 5 September 2014 with the 1H05 14:47 Kings Cross to Hull service. The Selby Swing Bridge was closed for major maintenance between the end of July and early September, which resulted in these Hull Trains services being diverted via Goole.

A stranger in town. 180111 arrives at Goole station on 5 September 2014 with the 1A97 19:10 Hull to Kings Cross Hull Trains service. The Selby Swing Bridge was closed for major maintenance between the end of July and early September, with the result that these stylish units were routed via Goole, giving the town's residents a welcome return (albeit briefly!) of through London trains. As can be see by the station lights, by the time this arrived it was virtually dark, requiring the camera to be set at ISO 3200.

180111 passes Melton on 3 October 2017 with the 1H02 09:48 Kings Cross to Hull service. Melton Lane Signal Box, with its fine selection of semaphore signals, can be seen in the background. This Hull Trains service makes an interesting comparison to when I photographed this unit much nearer home whilst it was in the care of First Great Western, a decade earlier.

180111 approaches Cliffe on 22 February 2019 with the 1H03 11:48 Kings Cross to Hull Hull Trains service. Photo taken from a public footpath crossing. This is on the dead straight section of line between Selby and Brough.

180111 passes Balne Lowgate on 22 February 2019 with the 1A95 15:12 Hull to Kings Cross Hull Trains service. On the right can be seen the past, and the future of power generation. Drax Power Station is in the far distance, behind one of the increasingly common wind turbines.

180111 speeds past Scrooby on 23 February 2019 with the 1A94 13:31 Hull to Kings Cross Hull Trains service. These units continue to give problems for their operators. First Great Western had no end of problems with them, and now Hull Trains are getting a bad reputation for punctuality due to their chronic unreliability.

Running 20 minutes late, 180111 passes Frinkley Lane (near Grantham) on 13 September 2019 with the 1A94 12:33 Hull to Kings Cross Hull Trains service. It has just passed the 1D15 13:03 Kings Cross to Leeds LNER train.

180111 passes Hougham on 13 September 2019 with the 1H05 15:48 Kings Cross to Hull Hull Trains service. I particularly like the way the teasel seed heads are highlighted against the shadow from the bank, but I am less pleased with the intrusive wire over the roof of the unit.

180111 speeds past Rossington on a totally sunny 4 December 2019 with the 1A94 12:33 Hull to Kings Cross Hull Trains service. Note the Hull UK City of Culture 2017 logo just next to the first passenger window.

180110 passes Kilby Bridge on 22 April 2021 with the 1B53 14:45 Nottingham to St Pancras International East Midlands Railway service. Let's hope these troubled units finally find a good home, after years of unreliable service with former operators!

180112 approaches the site of Shrivenham station with the 11:45 Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads First Great Western service on 27 October 2003. I'm sure regular travelers on this route were not impressed when some HSTs were replaced with these units in 2002, but they needn't have worried as the quality traction was back within a couple of years!

180112 takes the Swindon line at Standish Junction on 10 September 2006 with the 15:33 Cheltenham to Paddington First Great Western service. By this date FGW had largely abandoned the use of the faring that covered the front coupler, and although this looses some of the sleek streamline look of the class, at least it doesn't make them look as ugly as their Class 175 cousins!.

With only a year of operations left, before First Great Western hands the whole class back to the leasing company in favour of more refurbished thirty year old HSTs, Class 180 Adelante unit 180112 accelerates away from Moreton-in-Marsh station on 23 November 2006 with the 11:34 Hereford to Paddington service. Apart from the fact that the signal box has been fitted with replacement windows, the whole signalling installation here is still very definitely steam age! Despite the fact that by this date most of the leaves had fallen, there is still plenty of autumn colour on show here, particularly the small beech tree on the left.

180112 passes under the Yarnton to Cassington road and speeds towards the site of the erstwhile Yarnton Junction, where until 1970 the Fairford Branch (truncated to Witney since 1962) joined the Oxford to Worcester line. The train is the 11:25 Worcester Shrub Hill to Paddington First Great Western service and the date is 2 May 2007.

One of my favourite photographic locations on the Cotswold Line during the 1980s was the remote farm occupation bridge near Churchill Heath. This offered a superb view of northbound trains in the evening and was well worth the long walk. Unfortunately a couple of decades later the location is not so good, with bushes obscuring the classic viewpoint. However, on 17 September 2007 the sun was not out, so I could take this picture from the 'wrong' side. 180112 heads north with the 10:52 Paddington to Worcester Foregate Street First Great Western service.

Autumn colours and severe backlighting at Didcot North Junction on 12 November 2007, as 180112 speeds round Didcot East Curve (thus avoiding the town's station), whilst working the 14:21 Paddington to Oxford First Great Western service.

180112 James Herriot, in the stylish Grand Central black livery, passes Burn on 11 March 2010 with the 1A62 12:30 Sunderland to Kings Cross service. This livery certainly suits these high speed units very well, and is in excellent taste compared with some of the train operating company's attempts at a corporate image! Grand Central Railways named 180112 after the legendary Yorkshire vet (real name James Alfred Wight) at Kings Cross on 29 July 2009.

180112 James Herriot passes Walden Stubbs on 17 June 2010 with the 15:22 Bradford Interchange to Kings Cross Grand Central service. This previously freight only route between Knottingley and Doncaster now has three booked passenger trains in each direction daily. The stylish black livery is not really improved by the yellow striped edging on the front valence, and it doesn't seem to serve any purpose. Hopefully not another example of HSE meddling!

180112 James Herriot speeds past Yaxley on 6 September 2012 with the 1A59 06:51 Bradford Interchange to Kings Cross Grand Central service. Despite being on the edge of Peterborough, this location in the Crown Lakes Country Park is very rural.

180112 James Herriot heads north past Cromwell Moor on 29 June 2019 with the 1D81 16.27 Kings Cross to Bradford Grand Central service. The level crossing on the Cromwell to Morwell road is just behind he train.

180112 James Herriot approaches Balderton Crossing, Claypole, on 22 July 2019 with the 1D73 14:48 Kings Cross to Bradford Interchange Grand Central service. James Herriot would have appreciated the herd of cows that had just been driven over the railway, and down the track on the right, on their way to milking.

180113 passes Chilson on 10 August 2007 with the 08:24 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service. This was shortly after the disastrous floods, and although the railway seems to have escaped here, just down the road the field walls had been demolished by the force of the water flooding out from the nearby River Evenlode.

180113 speeds past the site of Shrivenham station on 17 December 2007 with the 11:30 Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads First Great Western service. The class would very soon come to the end of its brief and turbulent career with FGW, and move on to pastures new.

The blackthorn is in flower at Bretforton on 6 April 2007 as 180113 passes by with the 10:23 Worcester Foregate Street to Paddington First Great Western service. Although the set number is not displayed, the unit can clearly be identified from the last two digits of the leading vehicle (59913). All the individual vehicle numbers in Class 180 units have the same last two digits. 180113 being made up of: 59913, 56913, 55913, 54913 & 50913.

The December 2007 timetable change did not see the end of Class 180s on the Cotswold Line as originally planned, but HSTs have taken over a number of workings, pending the complete removal of the Adelantes in early 2008. 180113 passes Bretforton (between Honeybourne and Evesham) with the 09:51 Paddington to Worcester Foregate Street First Great Western service on 19 December 2007.

With Wressle station visible in the background, 180113 approaches Cross Common Level Crossing with the 11:48 Kings Cross to Hull First Hull Trains service on 1 October 2009. This is the livery that presumably these units would have ended up in if they had stayed with First Great Western, albeit with different branding. The original Hull Trains livery as used on the Class 222s has not been applied now that the company is trading as part of the First Group.

180113 passes Thorpe Grange on 17 June 2010 with the 1H02 09:48 Kings Cross to Hull First Hull Trains service. Unlike Noblethorpe level crossing, which because it only connects a farm with adjacent fields sees virtually no traffic, the level crossing that can just glimpsed through the heat haze by the signal in the far distance (Joan Croft) saw constant use when this picture was taken. It has since been replaced by a bridge.

The Selby Swing Bridge was closed for major maintenance between the end of July and early September 2014. This resulted in Hull Trains services being diverted via Goole, temporarily giving the town back its former through service to London. On the final weekday of the diversions, Friday 5 September 2014, 180113 approaches Goole with the 1A96 17:10 Hull to Kings Cross service. This unit has done some wandering since I photographed it seven years earlier at Chilson, on my local Cotswold Line.

In what is supposed to be the last few weeks of the class working for Hull Trains, 180113 passes Crabley Creek on 3 December 2019 with the 1H02 09:48 Kings Cross to Hull service. The level crossing gives access to Crabley Farm, and is required to be manned at all times. This agreement dates back to the construction of the line by the Hull & Selby Railway Company in 1840.

The most unreliable class of modern DMU gets yet another (probably very reluctant!) operator. 180113 passes Braybrooke on 23 April 2021 with the 1D56 17:05 St Pancras International to Nottingham East Midlands Railway service. I was expected the usual pair of units on this train, although of course the curve of the line here would hide most of a second unit anyway.

When first introduced, the Class 180 Adelante units were used on London to Bristol services alongside HSTs. On 12 June 2003, 180114 leads another unidentified unit past South Marston with the 17:15 Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads First Great Western service, while a another unit on a balancing working can be seen disappearing into the distance.

Class 180s never had any booked workings on the Gloucester to Bristol route, so this is presumably a Hereford to Bristol Temple Meads ECS move. On 2 August 2003, 180114 passes Rangeworthy in glorious evening light. Although reasonably clear, this is another location that would be improved photographically by the removal of all the lineside vegetation.

180114 speeds past Bourton on 8 September 2006 with the 09:29 Cheltenham to Paddington First Great Western service. This is one of the lesser used locations in the Vale of White Horse, mainly because the bridge is down a rough track, which is OK in the summer, but can get a bit tricky to negotiate with a car during the winter.

180114 speeds past the site of Uffington loops on 9 September 2006 with the 11:29 Cheltenham to Paddington First Great Western service. Although this a public footpath crossing, it always seems rather strange taking pictures at this location, standing on the ballast which at any other location would be blatant trespass! Nature is gradually reclaiming the site of the former freight loops (replaced by the four track section further east), with brambles leading the advance and colonising the ballast.

Just to the north of Kingham station, on the Cotswold Line, a well used footpath linking the villages of Bledington and Kingham crosses the line. On 5 April 2007 I revisited the location after a break of several years, only to find the lineside bushes had grown somewhat. Therefore, I decided to include the crossing notice in a wider than normal picture. The highest number Adelante unit 180114 slows for the Kingham stop with the 15:20 Hereford to Paddington First Great Western service.

180114 passes some lineside buddleia bushes at Cridling Stubbs on 17 September 2012, as it heads south with the 1A59 06:51 Bradford Interchange to Kings Cross Grand Central service. Ferrybridge Power Station can be seen in the distance.

180114 speeds past Great Heck on 22 June 2013 with the 1A68 15:29 Sunderland to Kings Cross Grand Central service. Note the new fence on the left, requiring a stepladder to comfortably photograph over. At least it isn't the 'anti-photographer' palisade type!

The very last rays of the afternoon sun illuminate 180114 as it speeds past Balne Lowgate on 12 March 2014 with the 1A66 15:18 Sunderland to Kings Cross Grand Central service. The train is approaching Balne Lowgate level crossing, one of a surprising number of manually operated gates on the East Coast Mainline.

180114 passes Scrooby on 23 February 2019 with the 1A65 12:18 Sunderland to Kings Cross Grand Central service. The black livery certainly makes a contrast to the bright white and red colour scheme of the LNER trains, which are the main users of this line.