47701 looks slightly out of place wearing ScotRail livery as it leaves Oxford with the 1F06 09:55 Network SouthEast departure for Paddington on a dull and drizzly 17 March 1991. Admittedly the ScotRail branding has been painted out in a different shade of grey, but the colour scheme still doesn't match the NSE colours on the coaches! The loco had recently been transferred from Scotland to augment the Class 47/7s already working the Thames Valley services, following the demise of the Class 50s in the area. Along with several other former Scottish machines it spent several months in traffic wearing its former operator's livery before being repainted into NSE colours.

47701 passes Southall on 22 June 1991. Although only a light engine picture, this scene is full of interest. Firstly, it shows 47701 in its former ScotRail livery. Despite having been transferred to the Thames Valley area several months previously, the only concession to is new duties is the painting out of the word 'ScotRail', although they obviously couldn't find the right shade of grey to do this! More importantly, the picture is taken from one of the country's most famous railway footbridges (a section of which can be seen on the right). This is where the founder members of the Great Western Society used to meet to watch the trains go by in the 1960s. The bridge was well used by railway photographers from the earliest days, but now it has sadly been removed to make way for the extension of Southall station's platforms. In the background Southern Railway Merchant Navy Class 4-6-2 35028 Clan Line is in steam.

How's this for an unusual colour combination! In 1991 after being transferred to Thames Valley passenger duties, 47701 still carried ScotRail livery (admittedly with the word 'ScotRail' painted out in a different shade of grey) for a while before being repainted into Network SouthEast livery. Here it passes Hinksey with the 1F45 10:00 Oxford to Paddington service on 5 July 1991, formed of the customary rake of Mk1s. This Scotrail /NSE livery combination wasn't unusual at the time, but the inclusion of the Royal Mail liveried van at the head of the train certainly was!

47701 Old Oak Common Traction & Rolling Stock Depot passes through the abandoned Seaton Junction station on 30 October 1991 with the 1O35 09:45 Exeter St Davids to Waterloo Network SouthEast service. Note the two adjacent Southern Railway concrete footbridges. The first one linked the platforms, and the rear one carried a footpath over the station site.

47701 Old Oak Common Traction & Rolling Stock Depot arrives at Templecombe station on 20 November 1991 with the 09:45 Exeter St Davids to Waterloo Network SouthEast service. Templecombe station had closed in 1966, at a time when the whole former Southern Railway West of England route was being rationalised. The line was reduced to single track the following year. After vigorous local campaigning, the station was reopened in 1983.

47701 Old Oak Common Traction & Rolling Stock Depot passes Milborne Wick on 24 May 1992 with the 1V15 14:55 Waterloo to Exeter St Davids Network SouthEast service. The provision of nine coaches (including two InterCity livered vehicles on this occasion), makes today's equivalent of a pair of Class 159 DMUs look pretty pathetic.

The last loco hauled Network SouthEast services out of Paddington ran on 3 July 1992. To commemorate the passing of an area, 47701 Old Oak Common Traction & Rolling Stock Depot & 47423 were booked to work the 1K68 17:48 Paddington to Westbury, with a fourteen coach rake and special headboard. The train is pictured arriving at Bedwyn in appropriately funereal weather. This train would normally be worked by a DMU and would terminate here. The headboard reads: 'The Westbury. Last loco hauled service from Paddington. 3 July 1992'.

47701 Old Oak Common Traction & Rolling Stock Depot & 47423 accelerate away from Bedwyn station on 3 July 1992 with the final loco hauled Network SouthEast train from Paddington, the 1K68 17:48 Paddington to Westbury. I had already photographed it arriving at the station, and was surprised that I had time to drive to this location for another picture. The headboard reads: 'The Westbury. Last loco hauled service from Paddington. 3 July 1992'. Narrowboats on the Kennet & Avon Canal can be seen in the background.

47701 Waverley passes through the remains of Crosby Garrett station on 5 February 2000 with the late running diverted 1S46 06:55 Birmingham New Street to Edinburgh Virgin CrossCountry service, which it worked between Preston and Carlisle. This was diverted onto the Settle & Carlisle line due to engineering works on the West Coast mainline.

47702 Saint Cuthbert passes Lower Basildon on Sunday 28 April 1991 with the 1F11 16:20 Paddington to Oxford Network SouthEast service. Either because I have got so many slides, or else because I am going senile, I had completely forgotten that I had ever taken a picture from the field next to the line at Lower Basildon, rather than the more common shot from the road bridge!

47702 Saint Cuthbert passes Bradford Abbas in stunning lighting conditions on 15 August 1991 with the 1O34 08:10 Exeter St Davids to Waterloo Network SouthEast service. The dramatic lighting (which of course didn't last very long) also highlights two of the Barwick Park follies in the background. Slightly to the right of where the railway appears is the Cone, otherwise known as the Rose Tower, while to the left at a slightly lower level the bizarrely named Jack the Treacle Eater can just be seen. Surprisingly this is the only occasion I have visited this location.

A very mixed rake of coaching stock, pictured at Potbridge on 6 November 1991. Two InterCity liveried coaches, and four blue and grey vehicles, with (hidden in the shadows at the rear) a single Network SouthEast coach, make up the 1V09 08:40 Waterloo to Exeter St Davids Network SouthEast service, led by 47702 Saint Cuthbert. Despite receiving NSE colours when transferred from Scotland the year before, 47702 would retain its inappropriate Scottish nameplates for another couple of years.

47702 Saint Cuthbert passes Newnham in terrible weather on 17 December 1991 with the 1V11 11:00 Waterloo to Exeter St Davids Network SouthEast service. On the plus side, it would not be possible to take a decent picture from this angle if the sun was out.

47702 Saint Cuthbert pulls away from Andover station on 1 February 1992 with the 2V13 13:15 Waterloo to Exeter St Davids Network SouthEast service, during the tail end of loco hauled trains on the former Southern route to the west. Note the amount of trackwork still surviving in the erstwhile goods yard. Little has actually changed here in the following two decades, apart of course from the motive power and stock!

47702 Saint Cuthbert pulls away from Gillingham station on 25 July 1992 with the 2O82 06:45 Exeter St Davids to Waterloo Network SouthEast service. Gillingham station is largely unchanged since this picture was taken, although the Kemira fertilser depot in the background has now closed.

Bristol Temple Meads on 17 July 1999. 47702 County of Suffolk pilots 47565 Responsive on the 1V36 06:13 Preston to Paignton Virgin CrossCountry service, with DVT 82143 at the front of the train. As 47702 was added at Bristol, perhaps 47565 wasn't so Responsive after all!

47703 The Queen Mother passes through Cholsey cutting on 16 August 1991 with the 1F79 17:00 Oxford to Paddington Network SouthEast service. Despite the Class 50s having left the area the previous year, there was still plenty of loco hauled interest in the Thames Valley at the time, especially with various non NSE liveried locos in the NWRA pool.

A slightly odd combination of colours that was surprisingly not at all uncommon in the Network SouthEast region in the early 1990s. Parcels red liveried 47703 The Queen Mother comes off the single track Cotswold Line at Wolvercote Junction on 18 August 1991 with the 1A68 16:12 Hereford to Paddington service. The reason for the seemingly inappropriate colour scheme is that the loco had just be transferred from Crewe's RXLC parcel pool to Old Oak Common's NWRA pool. It was only to stay at Old Oak for a few months before transferring to similar Network SouthEast passengers workings on the West of England line. At the time the Cotswold Line only had loco hauled trains at the weekend.

47703 The Queen Mother arrives at the impressive former London & South Western Railway station at Crewkerne on 21 August 1991 with the 2V13 13:15 Waterloo to Exeter St Davids Network SouthEast service. At the time I was disappointed that this wasn't a Class 50!

47703 The Queen Mother passes Coker Wood (between Yeovil and Crewkerne) with the 1V09 09:15 Waterloo to Exeter St Davids Network SouthEast service on 25 July 1992. I only visited this location once, and this is the only picture I took of a westbound train.

Parcels sector red liveried 47703 The Queen Mother calls at Shipton station on 18 June 1994 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z56 07:17 Worcester Shrub Hill to Norwich 'Norfolk Explorer' railtour. The fact that vegetation is encroaching onto both platforms is a clue that this station is not the busiest on the Cotswold Line! A loco hauled train stopping here is something of a novelty, hence my reason for taken the picture, even in such poor light.

47703 passes the site of Llanvihangel station on 18 March 2000 with the 1V77 08:33 Manchester Piccadilly to Cardiff Central rugby special. Llanvihangel station served the small village of Llanvihangel Crucorney, and the neighbouring sparsely populated Welsh borders area. It closed in 1958.

47703 Hermes passes Spetchley in a small patch of weak early morning sun on 29 April 2006 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z53 05:36 Taunton to Barmouth 'Cambrian Borderer' railtour. The train was running approximately an hour late due to the guard being involved in a minor road traffic accident en-route to Taunton. The cutting sides on both sides of the line at this location have seen considerable damage from rabbits, although surprisingly Network Rail have not yet thought of using this as an excuse for delays to trains!

After photographing 47840 light engine at Uffington on 9 February 2007, I nipped round to the next bridge at Baulking to see 47703 Hermes on the 5Z80 11:30 East Ham to Gloucester Blue Pullman ECS. Unfortunately there was even less snow at this location. Note the green signal on the up line, which had just cleared for a Avonmouth to Didcot coal train which could easily have blocked off this shot.

47704 Dunedin accelerates through North Queensferry station on 16 July 1983 with the 1M57 06:00 Aberdeen to Birmingham New Street. I only managed to get two pictures of the original batch of Class 47/7s at work in Scotland, and this is by far the better picture, especially as the loco is still in the original livery of rail blue with a white roof.

Scotland in the Thames Valley! Just a few days after being transferred into Old Oak Common's NWRA pool, 47704 Dunedin is pictured passing Culham in failing light on 10 July 1991 with the 1F66 19:20 Paddington to Oxford Network SouthEast service. I can't remember exactly now, but as there wasn't much gen about in those days, I assume that the spectacle of a loco in full ScotRail livery, complete with West Highland Terrier motif, speeding past on NSE Mk1s was a complete surprise.

ScotRail meets Network SouthEast! 47704 Dunedin takes the Southampton line at Salisbury Tunnel Junction on 27 July 1991 with the 09:25 Plymouth to Waterloo service. Freshly transferred to Old Oak Common and nominally allocated to the NWRA pool, which should see it sticking to Thames Valley services, the ex Scottish push pull loco is here having a day out even further from its former home. Unlike several other ex-ScotRail imports to the NSE fleet, this one hasn't yet seen a grey paintbrush, and therefore still sports the ScotRail logo and West Highland terrier motif, as well as the overtly Scottish name, of course.

47704 Dunedin is pictured near Old Basing on 27 July 1991, as it heads towards the capital with the 1O86 09:25 Plymouth to Waterloo Network SouthEast service. This was one of those rare occasions when I decided to chase the train for a second picture, in this case only possible because the train travelled via Southampton. After the first picture at Salisbury, it was easy to get ahead of it to secure this second picture of NSE's recent Scottish acquisition.

Still wearing ScotRail livery, complete with West Highland terrier motif, 47704 Dunedin passes South Moreton on 2 August 1991 with the 1F53 2:00 Oxford to Paddington Network SouthEast service. The former Scottish loco only spent a couple of months on passenger duties in the south east, before being transferred to the parcels sector.

47704 passes the tiny and remote station at Cilmeri, on the Central Wales line, with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z60 07:43 Birmingham New Street to Llandrindod Wells 'Central Wales Explorer' railtour on 15 October 1994. The headboard indicates that this was one of Pathfinder's 'Executive' tours, aimed more at the tourist market, and using Class 47/7s instead of more exotic motive power.

47704 passes through Penybont station on 15 October 1994 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z60 17:25 Landrindod Wells to Cardiff Central 'Central Wales Explorer' railtour. Note that the one remaining used platform can only be accessed from the disused platform side of the line.

47705 passes Shipton at speed on 8 October 1989 with the 1B31 13:45 Paddington to Hereford Network SouthEast service, which although it was late afternoon, was the first down train of the day over the Cotswold Line on a Sunday at this time. As virtually always seemed to be the case in the 1980s, this was running exactly to time, which was lucky considering the encroaching shadows! This is one of the very few occasions on which I saw one of the ex Scottish Region Class 47/7s on the Cotswold Line.

47705 passes Marshfield on 4 November 1989 with the 2Z28 12:15 Newport to Cardiff rugby special. The Wales v All Blacks rugby match at Cardiff Arms Park brought a number of additional trains to the South Wales mainline, a number of them, like this one, in totally inappropriate Network SouthEast livery!

This was not the picture I was anticipating! 47705 & 50023 Howe approach Didcot North Junction on 6 May 1990 with the 1F35 09:30 Oxford to Paddington Network SouthEast service. I'm not sure whether 50023 had failed, or if this was just a positioning move. At the time I was really annoyed that the 50 was not leading, but over two decades later it does have some novelty value.

The low evening sun highlights the abundant weeds growing in the foreground sidings, as 47705 leaves Oxford station on 18 July 1990 with the 1F87 18:39 Banbury to Paddington Network SouthEast service. In the background, the 1B58 18:20 Paddington to Hereford HST is just arriving at the station.

47705 arrives at its destination on 24 July 1990 with the 1F60 18:37 Paddington to Oxford Network SouthEast service, passing 155326 which is waiting in the turnback siding. On the left can be seen the scrapyard, which was later converted into Oxford station's car park.

47705 approaches Didcot North Junction on 3 November 1990 with the 1F39 09:05 Oxford to Paddington Network SouthEast service. Appleford Crossing signal box can be seen in the distance, just to the right of the signal. The signal remains today, but the signal box is now long gone.

47705 approaches Tisbury on 2 February 1991 with the 1O34 08:11 Exeter St Davids to Waterloo Network SouthEast service. I remember being disappointed that this wasn't a Class 50, but at least the train coming from the opposite direction an hour later was hauled by 50001 Dreadnought.

A slightly misty day at Grateley on 13 April 1991. 47705 heads towards London with the 1O35 10:20 Exeter St Davids to Waterloo Network SouthEast service. I haven't been back to this location for a while, but the last time I was there, the grassy bank on the left had been completely engulfed by bushes and trees.

47705 rounds the curve at Milborne Wick on 14 April 1991 with the 1O41 14:55 Plymouth to Paddington Network SouthEast service. 47705 was supposedly in the NWRA Paddington pool at this time, and would not be transferred to the NTWE West of England pool until October 1991, but clearly that made very little difference to where it actually operated!

A week after the longest day, and the late evening sun has swung right round to the north side of the line at Circourt Bridge, Denchworth, on 28 June 1991. The warm low lighting highlights the Network SouthEast / InterCity combination of 47705 on the 1C77 19:45 Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads service. The original brick Denchworth Bridge can be seen in the background, with Didcot Power Station steaming away on the horizon. Although nothing like as extensive as what was to come later, the sprawl of Grove's housing estates can be seen in the distance on the right.

47705 passes Culham on 10 July 1991 with the 1F60 18:37 Paddington to Oxford Network SouthEast service. Culham station can just be seen in the background, while on the left a couple of former aircraft hangars mark the site of RNAS Culham (now an industrial estate).

47705 arrives at Grateley station on 14 November 1991 with the 1V09 08:40 Waterloo to Exeter St Davids Network SouthEast service. I remember noting that the train was virtually empty, but presumably there isn't much demand for an early morning train from London to Devon in late autumn!

47705 slowly traverses the flyash loop at Didcot Power Station on 3 December 1994 with the Hertfordshire Railtours 1Z60 07:50 Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads 'Westerleigh Wizard' railtour. Unfortunately, as is often the case, an interesting railtour coincided with atrocious weather!

47705 passes Highworth Junction on 3 December 1994 with the Hertfordshire Railtours 1Z60 07:50 Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads 'Westerleigh Wizard' railtour. The train would only travel a short distance further, as only a short section of the former Highworth branch now remains. 37072 & 37264 would then bring the tour back out on the mainline. As can be seen from the dark clouds in the background over Swindon, it was not a very pleasant day, and prior to the train turning up we had got well and truly soaked!

47705 arrives at Westerleigh on 3 December 1994 with the Hertfordshire Railtours 1Z60 13:40 Bristol Temple Meads to Paddington 'Westerleigh Wizard' railtour. Unfortunately by the time it got here it was virtually dark, which explains the exceedingly poor quality image. However, I thought it worth recording, in view of the train's name.

One of several special trains to Cardiff on Saturday 26 June 1999 was the 1Z28 08:35 from Crewe, worked by 47705 Guy Fawkes. It is pictured here just to the south of Cwmbran. The specials were run in connection with the Wales v South Africa rugby match - the first to use the new Millennium Stadium.

With five different liveries in its six coach train, 47705 Guy Fawkes passes Woofferton on 6 November 1999 with the 1V77 08:33 Manchester to Cardiff Rugby World Cup special. Superb lighting, but a very close run thing, judging by the background. A day earlier would have been more appropriate for this particular locomotive!

47705 Guy Fawkes passes Marshfield in the pouring rain on 11 November 2000 with a Crewe to Cardiff rugby special. Apologies for the vagueness of the working, but I seem to have mislaid the headcode. A reminder would be much appreciated!

47706 passes Potbridge on 6 November 1991 with the 1O31 06:11 Exeter St Davids to Waterloo Network SouthEast service. Unfortunately the sun was still mostly hidden by some low cloud, but it was always worth photographing one of the several ScotRail liveried Class 47/7s that were used on the route at the time.

Although the ScotRail branding has been removed, 47706's faded Scotrail livery is hardy appropriate here as it passes Fenny Bridges (near Honiton) with the 1V11 11:00 Waterloo to Exeter St Davids Network SouthEast service on 20 November 1991. The former Edinburgh to Glasgow stalwart continued to work West of England trains in this tatty condition for a number of months. The loco was broken up in 1995, although bizarrely not officially withdrawn until a year later! Presumably the S reg Ford Transit camper van in this view has also been cut up by now! The shutter was deliberately  fired a little earlier than normal here, not only to avoid the shadows across the track, but also to show off the rural scene to advantage.

47706 passes Coker Wood (between Crewkerne and Yeovil) with the 1O86 09:54 Paignton to Basingstoke Network SouthEast service on 25 July 1992. The white 'Westie' logo is the only branding left on the very tatty ScotRail liveried loco, which certainly made a change from the usual NSE colours on the route. This is one of the few occasions that I have had to climb a tree to take a photo!

47707 Holyrood approaches Grateley on 20 April 1991 with the 1O34 08:11 Exeter St Davids to Waterloo Network SouthEast service, which it had taken over at Salisbury. Despite the fact that it had moved down from Scotland the previous year, and acquired NSE livery, it retained its Scottish Holyrood name.

47707 Holyrood passes Didcot North Junction in the very last of the late evening light on 1 July 1991 with the 1F66 19:20 Paddington to Oxford Network SouthEast service. As my standard film in those days was Fujichrome 50, this required the lens to be wide open at f1.4. Not perfect, but the quality of the old Canon FD 50mm f1.4 was a hell of a lot better wide open than the later EF version, which I unfortunately purchased when I went digital.

47707 Holyrood passes Hinksey Yard on 5 July 1991 with the 1F27 07:26 Oxford to Paddington Network SouthEast service. The inappropriately named loco had moved down from Scotland the previous year, and after spending a few months working Thames Valley trains, would move on to the Waterloo to Exeter line.

47707 Holyrood passes Monxton on 27 July 1991 with the 2V08 07:52 Waterloo to Exeter St Davids Network SouthEast service. Another one of my 1991 trips to the West of England line to photograph the last few months of loco haulage. Thankfully the weather got better later in the day!

47707 Holyrood passes Worting Junction on 29 July 1991 with the 1L05 10:00 Waterloo to Salisbury Network SouthEast service. If you didn't want to stray too far from your car, this was the ideal photographic location, as you could just sit in the parked car and take pictures through the window!

47707 Holyrood makes a smoky departure from Tisbury on 5 October 1991 with the 1V09 09:15 Waterloo to Exeter St Davids Network SouthEast service. The reason for standing in the rain in this field was for the following train, which was booked for D400 & 50030 Repulse.

With Sherborne Abbey just visible in the background, 47707 Holyrood heads away from the Dorset town on 25 July 1992 with the 1V11 11:15 Waterloo to Exeter St Davids Network SouthEast service. 47707 was having a quieter life in the south of England compared with its time on Scottish Edinburgh to Glasgow push pull services in the 1980s. It was the loco involved in the Polmont derailment, when the train hit a cow, and it also caught fire at nearby Falkirk a few years later! In both cases it was pushing at the rear of the train.

47707 Holyrood crosses Hurstbourne Viaduct with the 1V09 09:15 Waterloo to Exeter St Davids Network SouthEast service on 13 March 1993. A perfect location, that surprisingly doesn't require any effort to get to, as this view is from a public road. I had plenty of opportunity to contemplate the view, as someone had just run into my car (a BMW in those days) and damaged the rear end. As this rendered it undrivable, I therefore had several hours to wait for the AA to turn up. Unfortunately the horses had decided to wander off when the next train was due!

47708 Templecombe arrives at Oxford on 28 June 1991 with the 1F08 08:20 Network SouthEast service from Paddington. This is the only time that I saw 47708 in the Oxford area, which is not surprising, as it was only allocated to the NWRA Thames Valley passenger pool for a few months, being more at home on the West of England line, as befitted its name.

With the rusting barns and derelict windpump at Beechwood Farm visible in the background, 47708 Templecombe approaches Feniton at high speed on 15 September 1991 with the 2V13 13:15 Waterloo to Exeter St Davids Network SouthEast service.

The first up train of the day on the West of England line leaves Basingstoke on a bright but cold Sunday 16 February 1992. 47708 Templecombe is working the 2L18 08:28 Salisbury to Waterloo Network SouthEast service. This picture encapsulates the full range of old style motive power in the area, including loco hauled, slam door EMUs, and DEMUs. On the left Class 423 4-VEP EMU 3006, and Class 205 DEMU 205033 are awaiting their next turn of duty.

47709 slowly approaches Culham on 21 June 1991 with the 1F52 18:08 Paddington to Oxford Network SouthEast service. It is preparing to stop at the station, something normally only DMUs did at the time. However, this train called at all stations after Reading. The loco had been transferred to Old Oak Common from Scotland a few months earlier, but unlike several other locos that made that journey, it didn't continue working in the Thames Valley in tatty ScotRail livery, but quickly received a repaint into Network SouthEast colours.

With the well known Potbridge road bridge in the background, 47709 passes Shapley Heath on 21 July 1991 with the 1O35 09:28 Exeter St Davids to Waterloo Network SouthEast service. Because of the deep cutting, and the tall trees, this location is only useable in summer, if the sun is out.

47709 passes Stoford on 15 August 1991 with the 2V07 07:45 Basingstoke to Exeter St Davids Network SouthEast service. The concrete PW hut on the left immediately identifies this as a former Southern Railway route.

47709 passes North Perrott on 21 August 1991 withy the 1O37 11:55 Exeter St Davids to Waterloo Network SouthEast service. This is the view looking west from Wood Lane, a rough track that I visited three times during 1991, and not once since!

47709 passes West Hatch in the rain on 5 October 1991, as it accelerates away from Tisbury with the 1V11 11:15 Waterloo to Exeter St Davids Network SouthEast service. Even in 1991 it is doubtful that I would have normally travelled to the West of England line in such poor weather, but I had gone out specifically to photograph D400's return to traffic.

47709 catches the last of the afternoon sun at North Perrott on 30 October 1991, as it heads west with the 2V13 13:15 Waterloo to Exeter St Davids Network SouthEast service. Haselbury Park Farm can be seen on the left.

47709 arrives at Grateley station on 14 November 1991 with the 1O32 07:50 Yeovil Junction to Waterloo Network SouthEast service. As this train had been worked by a Class 50 most of the time for the previous couple of weeks, I was a little disappointed when this turned up. Looking back, it doesn't seem so bad!

47709 runs alongside the Basingstoke Canal at Pirbright on 21 March 1992 with the 1O34 08:10 Exeter St Davids to Waterloo Network SouthEast service. This was the only occasion that I visited this spot, possibly due to it being right next to Pirbright Army Camp!

47709 crosses the bridge over the River Cherwell at Hampton Gay on 28 June 1993 with the 1M85 14:32 Tonbridge to Preston parcels. The parallel trackless bridge in the foreground once carried the Woodstock branch, which ran beside the mainline from Kidlington to just after this bridge.

47709 pilots failed 47847 past Overthorpe on 16 June 1999 with the late running 1M50 14:18 Brighton to Preston Virgin CrossCountry service. This was a grab shot, as I had only just arrived at the location. Unfortunately this is a 35mm scan, as I had not even had time to assemble my dual camera bracket, which held both a Canon A1 and a Pentax 6x7.

47709 Dionysos approaches Wellingborough on 19 July 2002 with the 1B19 09:28 Nottingham to St. Pancras service. This was a regular working at the time, with the loco and stock being hired in to cover for a lack of Midland Mainline HSTs.

47710 passes Radley at high speed with the 16:00 Oxford to Paddington Network SouthEast service on 14 March 1991. At the time these trains were branded as 'Network Express' services and generally only stopped en-route at Reading. 47710 had moved from Eastfield to Old Oak Common during the previous year in order to take over from the Class 50s on these Thames Valley services. These ex Scottish machines were not generally welcomed by enthusiasts at the time, as they were replacing the hugely popular 50s. Time however has since moderated this viewpoint!

47710 approaches Didcot North Junction on 24 March 1991 with the 1F06 09:55 Oxford to Paddington Network SouthEast service. This would not be calling at Didcot, and was therefore travelling at full line speed, as it was about to traverse the east curve, avoiding Didcot station.

47710 passes Worting Junction on 29 July 1991 with the 1O32 06:45 Exeter St Davids to Waterloo Network SouthEast service. Note the difference in colour between the later dark blue of the loco, compared with the lighter shade on the coaches.

47710 was named Capital Radio's Help A London Child at the Old Oak Common Open Day on 17 August 1991. Four days later it was still looking immaculate when it came to the aid of D400 which had failed prior to working the 1V09 08:40 Waterloo to Exeter St David's Network SouthEast service. The ensemble is pictured here at Stoford. As a result of its failure, D400 was to receive the power unit from withdrawn 50048, even though its current engine had only been in situ for less than a year.

47710 Capital Radio's Help A London Child approaches the skew bridge at Baverstock on 10 September 1991 with the 1O35 09:45 Exeter St Davids to Waterloo Network SouthEast service. The bridge carries the B3089 Dinton to Barford St Michael road over the railway.

A convenient tree makes a perfect frame for 47711 as it approaches Tisbury on 2 February 1991 with the 1O35 10:20 Exeter St Davids to Waterloo Network SouthEast service. The loco is taking a short break from its more usual workings out of Paddington, as it was not until the following autumn that it was actually allocated to the West of England route.

A slightly different angle at Didcot North Junction on 24 March 1991. 47711 heads north with an Old Oak Common to Oxford ECS, prior to working the 1F08 11:30 Oxford to Paddington Network SouthEast service an hour later. Didcot Power Station dominates the background, although the view across the fields has just been interrupted by the then recently constructed Tesco distribution centre. On the right is the depot of Tappins coaches.

47711 approaches Culham on 3 July 1991 with the 1F52 18:08 Paddington to Oxford Network SouthEast service. With weak hazy evening light and only a f2.8 lens, the highest shutter speeds I had available using Fujichrome 50 was 1/250sec. However, this didn't matter, as this was one of NSE's evening peak 'all stations' loco hauled trains, and it was slowing down in order to call at Culham station.

Standing on the end of the platform, notebook in hand, checking what comes along! Well not exactly, but here is a platform end view of 47711 approaching Radley on 9 July 1991 with the 1F60 18:37 Paddington to Oxford Network SouthEast service.

47711 approaches Stoford on 25 July 1992 with the 1O34 08:10 Exeter St Davids to Waterloo Network SouthEast service. With the Class 50s having departed from the route two months earlier, there were markedly less photographers about on my subsequent visits to the West of England line, although the number would probably drop to virtually zero once the Class 159 DMUs took over!

Network SouthEast liveried 47711 County of Hertfordshire was most unusual motive power for the 7M53 14:23 Bridgwater to Sellafield nuclear flasks on 11 September 1997.  A Class 37 was more usual motive power with Class 31s being a possibility, but this was certainly different! The final container has just being loaded and the loco will shortly move forward the short distance into Bridgwater station, before running round and then heading north. 47711 was one of the original Scottish push pull conversions, in which guise it was named Greyfriars Bobby. It was later transferred to NSE and worked on the West of England Line and on Paddington to Oxford services, until displaced by units in the early 1990s.

After running round its train in the station, 47711 County of Hertfordshire waits underneath the station footbridge at Bridgwater on 11 September 1997 with the 7M53 14:23 Bridgwater to Sellafield nuclear flasks. A little earlier I had photographed one of the flasks being loaded, just around the corner, on the stub of the Bridgewater Docks branch. A single 30 year old locomotive could be trusted with this hazardous load in 1997, something that would new require a pair of almost new locos!

47711 County of Hertfordshire heads away from Bicester North station on 6 August 1998 with the 4C13 11:21 Calvert to Bristol Avon Binliner empties. Annoyingly the train lost its path over the single line to Oxford, and was now running two hours late, with the result that the lighting had become hopelessly head on. This was especially irritating, as for most of that time it was sat at the level crossing in the background of this picture! I have included it here, as a Network SouthEast loco on this working was a bit of a novelty.

Major engineering works to the north of Bristol resulted in Virgin CrossCountry services being routed via the Great Western Mainline on Sundays in the late autumn of 1998. On 29 November, 47711 County of Hertfordshire passes Circourt Bridge, Denchworth with the 1E28 08:22 Bristol Temple Meads to York. A little to the east of here at Didcot, Virgin trains were an everyday sight, but that was certainly not the case here.

47711 County of Hertfordshire pulls away from Bristol Parkway station on 29 August 1999 with the 1E28 10:00 Bristol Temple Meads to York Virgin CrossCountry service. Visible through the Sulzer exhaust haze is the partly constructed new multi-storey car park. This was needed as a new Royal Mail terminal would later be built on part of the old car park (the area between the gates and the construction site). This expensive folly opened the following year, but closed four years later, when Royal Mail stopped using rail, thereby putting even more lorries on the already overloaded motorway network. I wonder if there is such a job title as advance planning manager at the Royal Mail?

47712 Lady Diana Spencer has just arrived at Gillingham on 15 August 1991 with the late running 5V32 05:30 Eastleigh to Yeovil Junction ECS. Rather than cause even more delay to its next working, the 1O32 07:50 Yeovil Junction to Waterloo Network SouthEast service, the decision was taken to start the train from Gillingham. The tail lamp is being removed from the stock, as the loco runs round, seemingly being driven from the rear cab! The train left 25 minutes late.

47712 Lady Diana Spencer makes a smoky departure from Gillingham station on 15 August 1991 with the late running 1O32 07:50 Yeovil Junction to Waterloo Network SouthEast service, which on this occasion had actually started from Gillingham, due to the late running of the 5V32 05:30 Eastleigh to Yeovil Junction ECS.

With the delightfully named Cherryfield Wood in the background, 47712 Lady Diana Spencer passes West Hatch on 15 August 1991 with the 2V13 13:15 Waterloo to Exeter St Davids Network SouthEast service.

47712 Lady Diana Spencer passes South Moreton on 18 August 1991 with the 1B29 13:40 Paddington to Hereford service. This former parcels sector locomotive had just been transferred to the NWRA Thames Valley passenger pool, bringing a splash of a different colour to the already colourful trains on the route. This was a very interesting time livery wise for locos working for Network SouthEast, including such out of place examples as former ScotRail machines.

47712 Lady Diana Spencer passes Feniton on 15 September 1991 with the 1O39 15:48 Exeter St Davids to Waterloo Network SouthEast service. The wide grassy area on the left is explained by the fact that this was formerly the junction for the Sidmouth branch (closed in 1967). The basic platforms of Feniton station, which can be seen in the background, are all that remains of what was formerly Sidmouth Junction station. In addition to a goods yard, there was also a turntable approximately where the fence ends on the left.

47712 Lady Diana Spencer passes Potbridge on 6 November 1991 with the 1O34 08:10 Exeter St Davids to Waterloo Network SouthEast service. This loco had received the name Lady Diana Spencer a decade earlier, although originally it was to have been named Prince Charles Edward.

47712 Lady Diana Spencer approaches Sherborne on 5 January 1992 with the 1V09 08:55 Waterloo to Yeovil Junction Network SouthEast service. I only visited this location once, and I can't remember now whether the inclusion of my car in the picture was deliberate, or whether there was nowhere else to park!

47712 Dick Whittington emerges from Dainton Tunnel with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z34 07:30 Ealing Broadway to Totnes 'Dart-Exe Cursion' railtour on 16 March 1996. The highlight of the tour was the return behind GWR 4-6-0 Manor Class 7802 Bradley Manor.

47712 Dick Whittington leaves Dinas Powys station on 2 June 1996 with the 09:00 Rhymney to Barry Island service. This was loco-hauled instead of the usual DMU in connection with the Road Transport Festival at Barry Island. 37254 is on the rear of the train.

47712 Dick Whittington arrives at Barry Island under a threatening sky with the 11:00 service from Cardiff Central on 2 June 1996. This was loco-hauled instead of the usual DMU in connection with the Road Transport Festival at Barry Island.

47712 Dick Whittington enters Taffs Well station on 2 June 1996 with the 2A10 13:00 Merthyr Tydfil to Barry Island service. This was loco-hauled instead of the usual DMU in connection with the Road Transport Festival at Barry Island. 37254 is bringing up the rear. Unfortunately the distinctive GWR centre pivot signal has now been replaced by a mundane colour light. Although of GWR design, the arm may well only date back to early 1950s. It can clearly be seen to originally have had two arms, the removed one on the right controlling access to the Nantgarw branch. This was the erstwhile Walnut Tree Junction.

47712 approaches Wolvercote Junction on 18 May 1998 with the 1M79 16:47 Reading to Liverpool Virgin CrossCountry service. There is a bit of a mystery here, as 47712 allegedly carried its Dick Whittington nameplates from 1995 until 2000. However, there clearly isn't a plate on this side of the loco in this picture. Is this a case of some duff (pardon the pun) information?

1998 was the year of frequent loco substitutions on Virgin CrossCountry services. Such was the case on 20 June, when 47712 was called upon to work the 1M50 14:15 Brighton to Preston train, in place of the usual 47/8. It is seen here passing Kings Sutton.

47712 passes South Moreton on 29 November 1998 with the 1O08 08:25 Wolverhampton to Poole Virgin CrossCountry service. The loco's black livery certainly looks smart (at least when clean, as here), but it looked even better in its former parcels sector livery, which is was what it was wearing when I photographed it from the bridge in the background of this picture, heading in the opposite direction in 1991.

47712 Artemis passes Baulking on 12 October 2006 with the Hertfordshire Railtours Victoria to Lydney Junction 'Dean Forest Railway Blue Pullman' railtour. 47832 can just be seen on the rear of the train. The tour participants traveled over the Dean Forest Railway one the train had arrived at Lydney Junction.

After picking up passengers at Oxford, 47712 Pride of Carlisle & 47832 Solway Princess accelerate northwards towards Oxford North Junction and try to blot out the background with their exhaust, as they work the Pathfinder Tours 1Z33 05:54 Eastleigh to Carlisle 'Lakes & Borders Explorer' railtour on 16 July 2011. To add to the generally misty look, it had just started to rain. At least the train was only running a couple of minutes behind time, which meant I got back to the car before the rain really set in with a vengeance.

47712 Lady Diana Spencer brings up the rear of the 1Z42 10:35 Appleby to Skipton 'Staycation Express' at Ribblehead on 12 September 2020. I wouldn't normally bother with a side shot of a trailing loco, but I definitely think a ScotRail liveried loco in nice lighting is worth a picture.

47712 Lady Diana Spencer passes through Dent station on 12 September 2020 with the 1Z43 12:18 Skipton to Appleby 'Staycation Express'. Like virtually every other occasion on this last day of these special trains, the sun came out at the very last minute, although in this case the severe backlighting isn't necessarily an advantage.

47712 Lady Diana Spencer passes Waitby on 12 September 2020 with the 1Z45 16:12 Skipton to Appleby 'Staycation Express', with 40145 bringing up the rear. This was the only picture I took on this last day of these special trains that wasn't in the sun.

47712 Lady Diana Spencer brings up the rear of the 09:00 Kidderminster to Highley service, as it leaves Kidderminster on 20 May 2023, during the Severn Valley Railway's Spring Diesel Gala. 56051 Survival is at the front of the train.

47712 Lady Diana Spencer approaches Foley Park Tunnel on 20 May 2023 with the 09:45 Highley to Kidderminster service, during the Severn Valley Railway's Spring Diesel Gala. 56051 Survival is bringing up the rear.

47712 Lady Diana Spencer passes Bewdley's distant signal, as it brings up the rear of the 11:00 Kidderminster to Highley service near Foley Park Tunnel on 20 May 2023, during the Severn Valley Railway's Spring Diesel Gala. Visiting DB loco 60062 Sonia is at the front of the train.

47712 Lady Diana Spencer brings up the rear of the Statesman Rail 1Z88 05:43 Chesterfield to Bath Spa 'Bath Christmas Statesman' railtour at Uffington on 25 November 2023. An inconveniently positioned bush is hiding D1935 (47805) Roger Hosking MA 1925 - 2013 at the front of the train.

47712 Lady Diana Spencer passes underneath the footbridge at Uffington on 6 December 2023 with the Statesman Rail 1Z70 06:09 Norwich to Bath Spa 'Bath Christmas Statesman' railtour. The fog had cleared, but it was still really dull, so I opted for this different viewpoint, that would be impossible in better light.

47712 Lady Diana Spencer passes Yarnton on 8 December 2023 with the Locomotive Services Ltd 5Z42 10:09 Crewe to Eastleigh Arlington ECS. A real mixed bag of stock, comprising: InterCity livered Mk3 10411, Pullman Mk2 3438, Carmine & Cream Mk1 13227, Carmine & Cream Mk2 5366, 1203, 5991, Pullman Mk2 5912 & InterCity 9513.

47712 Lady Diana Spencer brings up the rear of the Statesman Rail 1Z60 05:22 Stafford to Windsor & Eton Riverside 'Royal Windsor Statesman' railtour, as it passes Purton on 11 April 2024, headed by 47828. Worth recording, despite the dull and damp conditions.

Just a few months after its transfer from Scotland, and the first of many Class 47/7s to be drafted into the Thames Valley to replace Class 50s, 47714 is pictured passing underneath the footbridge at Hinksey (North) on 23 July 1989 with the late running 1F08 11:30 Oxford to Paddington Network SouthEast service. Despite appearances, this is not a trespass shot, but in order to include all of the bridge in the picture it was necessary to hang over the lineside fence in an extremely uncomfortable position!

47714 approaches Didcot North Junction on 21 July 1990 with the 1F39 09:00 Oxford to Paddington Network SouthEast service. Class 47s had taken over the last Class 50 Thames Valley diagrams just a week earlier, but at least there was still a couple of year's worth of loco haulage out of Paddington, before the Class 166 DMUs took over.

A picture of 47714 in the Thames Valley in 1990 would not normally be particularly noteworthy, but the InterCity stock in this picture is a clue that this is something unusual. Whilst some trains in the area did have this bizarre Network SouthEast and InterCity mix, this really is something different. Cornwall could by no stretch of the imagination be called the south east, but that's where this train has come from, as it is the 1A51 10:30 Penzance to Paddington (via Bristol) service, pictured passing Lower Basildon on 2 September 1990.

47714 accelerates away from Cholsey station on 4 July 1991 with the 1F46 17:37 Paddington to Didcot Network SouthEast service. This is obviously a rush hour commuter train, but even in the 1990s you would have thought a pair of three car Class 117 DMUs would have been sufficient for this all stations service. Luxury provision indeed for a train that called at nearly every station!

47714 passes through Radley station on 9 July 1991 with the 1F87 18:39 Banbury to Paddington Network SouthEast service. This view clearly shows the course of the former loop line and Abingdon branch platform.

I don't normally take pictures of light engine moves, and certainly not when it's a going away shot. However, I couldn't resist this one of 47714 darkening the sky at East Grimstead on 27 July 1991, as it heads west, en-route from Eastleigh to Salisbury.

47714 passes underneath the farm occupation bridge at Dorn, and approaches Moreton-in-Marsh with the 1A68 16:12 Hereford to Paddington Network SouthEast service on 8 September 1991. The loco was nearing the end of its short period of operation in the Cotswolds and Thames Valley, and would shortly be transferred to the West of England line.

The epitome of the colourful Network SouthEast era! Amid a sea of red lamp posts, 47714 arrives at Overton station on 13 March 1993 with the 2O02 06:45 Exeter St Davids to Waterloo service. Just a few months later the Class 47s would displaced from this former Southern Railway route to the west by the then brand new Class 159 DMUs.

47714 passes a polythene covered field near Ruskington on 30 April 2005 with the Heartland Rail 1Z48 16:40 Peterborough to Shrewsbury 'Peterborough, Spalding and Lincoln Excursion' railtour. 47316 Cam Peak is brining up the rear of the bizarrely coloured train. Evedon church can just be seen on the horizon.

47714 passes Winthorpe on 30 April 2005 with the Heartland Rail 1Z48 16:40 Peterborough to Shrewsbury 'Peterborough, Spalding and Lincoln Excursion' railtour returning from East Anglia. Plenty of colour contrast here, although I'm not too sure about the combination of Anglia Railways turquoise and Virgin red against a backdrop of the yellow of oilseed rape!

Running nearly an hour late, 47714 & 47810 Porterbrook pass Panteg on 28 May 2005 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z48 14:00 Swansea to Wolverhampton 'Swansea Flyer' railtour. The sidings are all that remains of the once vast Panteg Steelworks.

Wearing extremely faded Anglia Railways livery, 47714 produces some typical Sulzer clag as it passes Woodthorpe on the Great Central Railway with the 1A33 15:10 Loughborough to Leicester North service, during the line's Diesel Gala on 12 September 2009.

ScotRail in the Thames Valley! 47715 Haymarket passes South Moreton on 10 June 1990 with the 1F16 14:25 Oxford to Paddington Network SouthEast service. The loco had been transferred to Old Oak Common from Eastfield a couple of months earlier, and as it was repainted into NSE livery very shortly after this picture was taken, this is the only picture I have of it in the Oxford area in the highly inappropriate ScotRail colour scheme.

47715 Haymarket passes Wolvercote on 23 July 1990 with the 16:50 Paddington to Banbury Network SouthEast service, running very late and passing hare at about the time it should have been arriving at Banbury. This was very lucky for me, as I had only just arrived at the location! An interesting viewpoint but not a location I have been back to, as it is taken from the A34 Oxford bypass, and the constant traffic passing only inches from you (admittedly behind a barrier) gets a bit much after a while!

47715 Haymarket waits at platform 1 (as it was then) at Oxford station on 24 July 1990, prior to leaving for London with the 1F83 18:00 Network SouthEast service to Paddington. Class 117 DMU L423 waits on platform 2 with the late running 2C60 17:05 Reading to Banbury train.

47715 Haymarket crosses Hurstbourne Viaduct with the 1V11 11:15 Waterloo to Exeter St Davids Network SouthEast service on 13 March 1993. Hurstbourne station, which was situated in open country between Hurstbourne Priors and St Mary Bourne, was sited at the end of the embankment, just off the right of the picture. It closed in 1964.

47716 Duke of Edinburgh's Award arrives at Oxford on 18 July 1990 with the 5F50 18:43 Twyford to Oxford ECS. This was the continuation of the 1F50 17:53 Paddington to Twyford Network SouthEast service, but why it was booked to run the rest of the way as empty stock, during the evening peak, is a bit of a mystery.

47716 Duke of Edinburgh's Award passes Lower Basildon on 28 April 1991 with the 1F20 16:30 Oxford to Paddington Network SouthEast service. 1991 was the last full year of Class 47s on these workings. The Class 50s had departed for the West of England line the year before, and the following year loco hauled services out of Paddington were downgraded to DMU operation.

47537 Sir Gwynedd / County of Gwynedd failed prior to departure with the 1A37 09:35 Cardiff Central to Paddington service on 27 June 1991, so 47715 Haymarket was called upon to assist. The duo are pictured approaching the grass covered platforms of the long closed Challow station.

47716 Duke of Edinburgh's Award passes Old Basing on 27 July 1991 with the 2O83 11:50 Exeter St Davids to Waterloo Network SouthEast service. Unfortunately a period of settled high pressure has given the background a misty look.

47716 Duke of Edinburgh's Award passes Worting Junction on 29 July 1991 with the 1O34 08:10 Exeter St Davids to Waterloo Network SouthEast service. The loco had moved down from Scotland the previous year, and initially worked NSE trains in the Thames Valley, before moving to the West Country.

47716 Duke of Edinburgh's Award passes the disused sidings at Exmouth Junction on 10 July 1993, as it nears journey's end with the late running 1V08 08:35 Waterloo to Exeter St Davids Network SouthEast service. Exmouth Junction was the site of the Southern Railway's concrete works, that turned out all manner of prefabricated concrete structures, including: PW huts, fences, footbridge, platforms, etc. After the concrete plant closed, the site became a large coal concentration depot, as seen here. Apart from the sidings nearest the mainline, the site has now been completely obliterated, with the area now used for commercial storage purposes.

Deputising for an unavailable HST, passes 47717 passes South Moreton on 15 August 1991 with the 1B40 16:30 Paddington to Cardiff Central service. 47717 was converted from 47497 in 1988, using salvaged components from fire damaged 47713.

Lengthening shadows on the approach to Buckhorn Weston Tunnel on 5 October 1991, as 47717 heads westwards with the 1V15 15:15 Waterloo to Exeter St Davids Network SouthEast service. This had taken over from classmate 47710 Capital Radio's Help A London Child at Salisbury. It had obviously been a pretty swift loco change, as this was only running ten minutes late.

47721 Saint Bede passes the overgrown site of Malago Vale carriage sidings in the pouring rain on 12 June 1999 with the 7Z71 10:50 Newport Alexandra Dock to Bridgwater, consisting of just a single VGA wagon. 47721 was to remain in traffic for another three years, finally being cut up in 2007.

47722 The Queen Mother passes Croome on 19 August 1995 with the 1V41 08:10 Liverpool to Paignton, which it had taken over at Birmingham New Street. At the time summer Saturdays were stretching the cross country fleet to the maximum, hence this hired in Res loco.

A slightly different view of Culloden Viaduct in some dramatic and very transient lighting. 47725 The Railway Mission accelerates off the iconic structure with the 1M16 20:20 Inverness to Euston ScotRail sleeper on 6 August 2000. Although the cloud was covering virtually all of the sky, I noticed a small clear area near where I thought the sun was, so after setting up another camera on a tripod on the other side of the line for Bernadette to take the more conventional view, I decided to use the small occupation underbridge in the lower right corner of this picture to cross the line, just in case the sun came out. Amazingly it did!

47726 Manchester Airport Progress passes Water Orton on Sunday 11 August 2002 with the diverted 1A48 13:19 Wolverhampton to Euston Virgin West Coast service. Directly behind the loco is DVT 82125, while out of sight on the rear is 86229.

47727 Duke of Edinburgh's Award darkens the already gloomy sky at Brancliffe East Junction on 16 December 2000 as it passes the boarded up signal box with the 1Z16 Cleethorpes to Sheffield Serco track recording train. The signal box had closed two years earlier, and has subsequently been demolished. It is hiding 47733 Eastern Star on the rear of the train.

In glorious late afternoon spring light, 47727 Rebecca & 47739 Robin of Templecombe pass the site of Bletchingdon station (between Banbury and Oxford) with the 6Z48 13:05 Burton upon Trent to Dollands Moor Colas Rail steel empties on 26 March 2009. The day was mostly cloudy with intermittent showers and I expected to just get a record shot here. However, just as the 47s came into view a large hole appeared in the clouds, but such was the wind speed that by the time the train had passed under the bridge on which I am standing the sun went in and that was pretty much it for the rest of the day! Just as with the previous week's run this was running exactly to time when it passed me, despite some early running further north.

On 2 April 2009, 47727 Rebecca was entrusted on its own with the 6Z48 13:05 Burton upon Trent to Dollands Moor Colas Rail steel empties, having previously worked the service with classmate 47739 Robin of Templecombe. I knew the train was only seven vehicles long before I left home, so decided to head to Rousham for a train in the landscape type picture. The tree on the right neatly frames the train in this view, which by virtue of the fact that it is at least a mile's walk from the nearest road probably hasn't featured on many websites yet! I have been very lucky with this train as each time so far I have pictured it in full sun with the sun on the nose. That kind of luck can't last!

47727 Rebecca & 47749 Demelza approach the site of Kidlington station with the 6Z48 13:05 Burton upon Trent to Dollands Moor Colas Rail steel empties on 4 June 2009. Normally this train runs exactly to time, but today it was a few minutes late, which ironically meant that the sun had disappeared behind a cloud. Of course there was full sun when it should have appeared! The occupation bridge in the background, although now much overgrown, is still a good location for southbound trains. Compare this view with the same train three weeks later taken from that bridge.

47727 Rebecca & 47749 Demelza pass Thrupp in a patch of very weak sun on 25 June 2009 with the 6Z48 13:05 Burton upon Trent to Dollands Moor Colas Rail steel empties. A young fox had been wandering across the track and was still walking along the up line as the 47s approached, only deciding to move into the bushes on the right at the very last moment. This location is only a few hundred yards north of where I photographed this train three weeks previously, although being just an occupation bridge between fields is considerably quieter!

It's a Thursday afternoon in 2009 and the sun is out, therefore it must be time to get a picture of the Colas steel empties! I wanted an identifiable location for my picture on 2 July 2009, and the nameboard on the right certainly fills that criteria. 47727 Rebecca & 47749 Demelza pass through Appleford station with the early running 6Z48 13:05 Burton upon Trent to Dollands Moor. A lucky shot, as the sun went in as the train was still passing me, and then a few seconds later a Voyager came from behind and blocked out the view!

On 8 February 2011, a rake of eight ex First Great Western NVA Motorail vans was moved from Long Marston to Eastleigh. 47727 Rebecca passes Wadborough, running exactly on time with the 5Z47 13:00 Long Marston to Eastleigh. I had picked this location as the angle of the sun is perfect, and I think the wood in the background forms an excellent backdrop. The first two vehicles have certainly suffered during their long period of storage, as the dark green livery has been augmented by a good covering of mold!

The construction of a new link line between the two railway routes at Bicester has resulted in ballast trains working down from Crewe to supply materials to the site. The loaded train runs during the night, but the empties return from Bicester in daylight. 47727 Rebecca passes through the short cutting at Islip on 11 September 2013 with the 6T99 09:31 Bicester London Road to Hinksey ballast empties. 66849, which is on the rear of the train, would later work the empties back to Crewe as the 6M52 16:21 Hinksey to Crewe.

47727 Rebecca passes Brookfurlong Farm, between Oddington and Islip, with the 6T99 09:31 Bicester London Road to Hinksey ballast empties on 19 December 2013. 66510 is on the rear. This train is in connection with the works to construct a new curve between this line (Oxford to Bletchley), and the Chiltern line at Bicester. A cloudless morning at a remote rural location, so what could possibly go wrong? The answer is a Network Rail van driving along the course of the former up line from the Islip direction, and steadily getting nearer behind me, just as the train was approaching! Luckily, the driver stopped and waited until the train had passed - very considerate.

I don't normally take pictures of light engine moves, but when a loco is parked in the sun, just as I arrive at a location, why not! 47727 Rebecca waits for the road at Challow on 19 December 2013, as it works the 0Z47 11:50 Hinksey to Westbury. Definitely not as good a picture as when I saw it a few hours previously.

Witnessed only by myself and one other photographer, 47727 Rebecca leaves Long Marston on 11 June 2014 with the 6Z56 10:56 Long Marston to Grangemouth, conveying 13 empty TEA oil tanks. Luckily this departed half an hour ahead of schedule, and so corresponded with a brief sunny spell, although not yet with the ideal lighting angle. With a headcode like 6Z56 it seems that a slightly more powerful form of vintage traction was expected!

47727 Rebecca passes Broad Marston on 11 June 2014 with the 6Z56 10:56 Long Marston to Grangemouth This is not the best location to photograph a lengthy train of bogie tanks, and the lighting is far from ideal, but after leaving Long Marston it is only a very short drive to this spot. At least the menacing dark sky improves the picture. With that lot it was lucky I got a sunny picture!

After its 45 minute layover at Oxford North Junction, 47727 Rebecca leads the 3S31 09:50 Kings Norton to Worcester Shrub Hill (via Ledbury and Oxford) Rail Head Treatment Train through Combe on 31 October 2015, with classmate 47739 Robin of Templecombe bringing up the rear. As this train would normally pass this spot at a totally unphotographable 02:07, this rare daylight run was not to be missed, especially as the weather turned out to be so good. This picture is taken from the extremely lofty Grintleyhill Bridge.

Caledonian blue liveried 47727 Caisteal Dhun Eideann / Edinburgh Castle passes Heytesbury on 16 July 2018 with the 5Z47 09:31 Doncaster Works Wagons Shops to Eastleigh ECS. As can be seen from the unusual profile of the barrier coaches, they are a former Class 508 EMU converted to translator vehicles 64707 & 64664. This was running 38 minutes late, which was very good going, considering it left Doncaster 89 minutes late, and later on came to a stand for some time in the Bristol area due to a signalling failure.

47727 Caisteal Dhun Eideann / Edinburgh Castle runs alongside the River Severn at Gatcombe on 21 July 2018 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z53 07:17 Cardiff Central to Portsmouth Harbour 'Solent & Sussex Explorer' railtour. 66741 Swanage Railway is bringing up the rear. The blue sky and sunshine was not forecast, but a very welcome surprise!

Failed Caledonian blue liveried 47727 Caisteal Dhun Eideann / Edinburgh Castle brings up the rear of the GBRf Charity Railtours 1Z52 18:35 Birmingham International to Basingstoke 'Dub & Grub' railtour at Banbury 5 August 2018. It should have been on the front, but 50049 Defiance & 50007 Hercules were having an unexpected outing to the south instead!

47727 Caisteal Dhun Eideann / Edinburgh Castle & 47749 City of Truro pass Up Hatherley on 3 June 2019 with the late running 5Z43 08:56 Laira to Long Marston (via Birmingham) ECS, comprising a barrier vehicle, six Mk3 HST coaches, and HST power car 43056 bringing up the rear. This pair of locos looked very different when I photographed them a decade earlier with the 6Z48 13:05 Burton upon Trent to Dollands Moor steel empties.

47727 Caisteal Dhun Eideann / Edinburgh Castle passes Kilby Bridge on 31 July 2020 with the 5Q47 10:44 Derby Litchurch Lane to Wolverton Centre Sidings, conveying brand new Greater Anglia EMU 720540. 47739 is bringing up the rear.

47727 Caisteal Dhun Eideann / Edinburgh Castle passes Weston Colley on 8 August 2022 with the 5Q10 08:59 Worksop Down Yard to Eastleigh, conveying brand new EMU 701049 for its new life with South Western Railway. This was running 81 minutes late, after having been delayed at Leicester, and then after recovering virtually all of its lost time, delayed again in London.

47727 Caisteal Dhun Eideann / Edinburgh Castle passes Uffington on 4 May 2023 with the 5Q66 10:09 Willesden to Long Marston ECS, conveying EMU 701018 for storage. This was running an hour late, which I thought would be ideal, as the sun would now be on the front at this location. The sun was out when I left home, but gradually got less as I drove towards Uffington, and had disappeared entirely by the time I had walked across the fields! This is a change of locos for these trains, all the previous ones having been worked by 47749 City of Truro.

47727 Caisteal Dhun Eideann / Edinburgh Castle slowly passes South Marston on 16 May 2023 with the 5Q66 10:09 Willesden to Long Marston ECS, conveying EMU 701013 for storage. It was about to cross over onto the up line, to approach Swindon on the 'wrong' line. This was because 802112 with the 1C11 11:02 Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads GWR service was right behind it. Having missed out its stop at Challow, the 47 was running 22 minutes early. By missing out further stops, it would be 72 minutes early by the time it got to Gloucester!

47727 Caisteal Dhun Eideann / Edinburgh Castle passes Worting Junction on 17 May 2023 with the 5Q64 07:09 Eastleigh to Willesden ECS, conveying EMU 701026 for storage at Long Marston. As there wasn't a cloud in the sky (yet!), I was surprised that I was the only photographer at this very well known location.

47727 Caisteal Dhun Eideann / Edinburgh Castle prepares to stop at the next signal, as it moves slowly along the down relief line at Circourt Bridge, Denchworth, on 17 May 2023 with the 5Q66 10:09 Willesden to Long Marston ECS, conveying South Western Trains EMU 701026 for storage.

Will they ever enter service? Yet another Class 701 EMU is towed for storage on 7 September 2023 by 47727 Caisteal Dhun Eideann / Edinburgh Castle. The 5Q68 10:09 Willesden to Bicester MoD is pictured passing Oddington, taking 701054 to join some of its classmates in the army depot.

47733 Eastern Star passes through the sharply curved platforms of Hartlepool station on 12 April 1998 with the diverted 1S11 09:00 York to Glasgow Central GNER service. DVT 82229 is directly behind the locomotive. The twisting nature of the line through Hartlepool can be gauged by the fact that 91004 on the rear of the train can be seen in the background, almost directly above the lead loco. The North Sea can be seen in the distance, with a tanker on the horizon. One of the ever present gulls is flying over the rear of the train.

47733 Eastern Star brings up the rear of the 1Z16 Cleethorpes to Sheffield Serco track recording train at Brancliffe East Junction on 16 December 2000. 47727 Duke of Edinburgh's Award is making all the smoke at the front of the train.

47734 Crewe Diesel Depot Quality Approved passes Defford in superb evening light on 1 May 1997 with the 1E43 15:09 Plymouth to Low Fell mail vans. This train was booked for ten vans, whereas the earlier running 1S81 12:44 Plymouth to Glasgow was only booked for seven.

47736 Cambridge Traction & Rolling Stock Depot passes Saxilby on 25 August 1996 with the diverted 1A10 10:40 Leeds to Kings Cross GNER service. Work on the East Coast Mainline required all normally electrically hauled services to be dragged by diesel locos between Doncaster and Newark, via Gainsborough. The fine station building at Saxilby is now used as offices (although the windows appear to be boarded up in this view) and the station is now totally unmanned. As can be seen from the virtually 100% cloud cover, I was very lucky to get the sun with this picture.

47737 Resurgent passes Barton-under-Needwood with the 1V64 14:40 Low Fell to Plymouth mail vans on 15 July 1996. This is the site of Barton and Walton station, opened by the Birmingham and Derby Junction Railway in 1839. It closed to passengers in 1958 and freight in 1964. A prominent local landmark, the Bass Tower at Burton upon Trent, can be seen in the distance.

47737 Resurgent passes Waverton on 16 August 2003 with the 1G11 13:56 Holyhead to Birmingham New Street service. Four First Great Western Mk 2 coaches hauled by a Res 47 is certainly an unusual combination, but was standard fare for this diagram during the summer of 2003.

47738 Bristol Barton Hill passes Thrupp on 15 March 1994 with the 1S81 13:24 Tonbridge to Glasgow Royal Mail parcels. Although only five vehicles, the train contains four different liveries! Res, blue and grey, plain blue, and InterCity.

47739 Resourceful passes Melton Ross on 18 February 1995 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z27 05:45 Bristol Temple Meads to Killingholme 'Hym'n'Ham' railtour. Unusually for a railtour from around this time, this was actually running a little early!

47739 Resourceful passes Great Coates Sidings on 18 February 1995 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z27 05:45 Bristol Temple Meads to Killingholme 'Hym'n'Ham' railtour. 56039 Port of Hull is bringing up the rear. This location, on the edge of Grimsby, has now become much more overgrown.

47739 Resourceful passes Immingham East Junction on 18 February 1995 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z27 05:45 Bristol Temple Meads to Killingholme 'Hym'n'Ham' railtour. 56039 Port of Hull is bringing up the rear. The ribbon on the front of the loco is in celebration of the wedding of Roger Elliot and Dawn Fydell, who were having their reception on the train, as it traversed these rare (for a passenger train) freight lines!

47739 Resourceful, pictured in the days when test trains were red, not yellow! The Res livery almost matches the red of the Serco coaches. The colourful ensemble is seen here heading west at Woodborough on 28 July 1999.

47739 Robin of Templecombe & 47727 Rebecca head south down the Cherwell Valley near Tackley on 19 March 2009 with the 6Z48 13:05 Burton upon Trent to Dollands Moor Colas Rail steel empties. This was the second week that this particular train ran but not only was the weather poor in the Oxford area the previous week, but I was in Yorkshire anyway so couldn't get the shot. With settled high pressure weather conditions this time sunshine was virtually guaranteed for this picture, albeit very weak and hazy. However, just to prove that railway photography isn't easy a number of clouds started to appear from nowhere as the train was due only to melt away later. Luckily none of them got in the way at the critical time!

47739 Robin of Templecombe & 47749 Demelza pass Tackley with the 6Z48 13:05 Burton upon Trent to Dollands Moor Colas Rail steel empties on 21 May 2009. Unlike all previous occasions this was not running to time, having been blocked in by another train at Burton, consequently it passed me some 90 minutes late. An odd coincidence, as I had just seen 37516 on 5Z37 running 90 minutes early! This was something of a grab shot, as I had just walked approximately half a mile to the south of Tackley station to investigate the possibility of a new location and had just reached the line when a hoot announced that the 47s were approaching the station. There was just time to find a stable bit of ground for the stepladder, avoiding the rabbit burrows!

47739 Robin of Templecombe passes Kings Sutton on 3 March 2010 with the 5Z47 10:25 Eastleigh to Barrow Hill stock move conveying withdrawn Class 421 4-CIG EMU 1881. Note that the lower bodyside of the first two coaches have been repainted with grey primer, presumably in order to disguise a graffiti attack. The former Southern Region unit is destined to be broken up for spares for classic EMU restoration. The floods on the right are a normal winter occurrence at this location.

47739 Robin of Templecombe passes Aldington (near Evesham) on 16 June 2010 with the 6Z48 13:10 Long Marston to Doncaster Decoy wagon transfer move. The fact that this train is the perfect length for this location and the back isn't cut off by the bridge is pure luck! 47739 looks like it has seen the washer for a few weeks!

The most direct route from Birmingham to March in Cambridgeshire is most certainly not via Oxford and London. However, that is exactly the route 47739 Robin of Templecombe took with this crane on 23 November 2012! Passing the site of Bletchingdon station on its roundabout journey is the 6Z81 11:30 Washwood Heath to Whitemoor Yard. The immaculate condition of the Colas crane is somewhat let down by the filthy state of the loco!

47739 Robin of Templecombe passes through Elton & Orston station on 16 October 2013 with the 07:38 Washwood Heath to Boston Docks steel empties. Situated between Bingham and Bottesford, this little used station is in a very rural location. This remoteness is empathised by being in a shallow tree lined cutting.

47739 Robin of Templecombe speeds through a deserted Charlbury station on 31 October 2015 with the 3S31 09:50 Kings Norton to Worcester Shrub Hill (via Ledbury and Oxford) Rail Head Treatment Train. 47727 Rebecca is bringing up the rear. This was a rare daylight run for the Colas operated RHTT, and with the prospect of a sunny afternoon, a picture not to be missed! I was slightly surprised to be the only photographer present at what is an obvious choice of location, especially as it includes the GWR style running in board prominently in the picture.

47739 brings up the rear of the 5Q47 10:44 Derby Litchurch Lane to Wolverton Centre Sidings EMU delivery working at Kilby Bridge on 31 July 2020. This was taking 720540 to is new home with Great Anglia. 47727 Caisteal Dhun Eideann / Edinburgh Castle is leading the ensemble.

Running 43 minutes late, 47739 passes Kemble Wick on 16 November 2023 with the 5Q46 11:45 Long Marston to Eastleigh ECS, taking South Western Railway EMU 701004 back home after its summer holiday in storage at Long Marston! Eight months earlier I photographed this unit going in the opposite direction. As these units are now nearly four years late entering service, they must rate as one of the most mismanaged fleet introductions in history!

47741 Resilient emerges from Wickwar Tunnel on 6 May 1994 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z57 16:40 Gloucester to Plymouth 'Tamar Severn Ltd' railtour. I would imagine that there are far fewer pictures of this leg of the tour, compared withthe northbound working, which was hauled by GWR steam King Class 4-6-0 steam locomotive 6024 King Edward I.

Top'n'tail Virgin CrossCountry Class 47s at Oxford on 7 April 2001. 47741 Resilient approaches the station with the 1S54 05:50 Bournemouth to Glasgow service, with 47839 bringing up the rear. Most of Virgin's fleet of Class 47s were 47/8s, with only seven Class 47/7s receiving their red livery.

47741 Resilient makes a characteristic smoky start from Leamington Spa station on 19 January 2002 with the 1O09 08:15 Manchester Piccadilly to Bournemouth CrossCountry service. Parked in the centre road, in a totally unphotographable position due to the shadows from the station canopy, are 60011 & 60021 at either end of an engineer's train.

47742 The Enterprising Scot passes Great Bourton on 20 July 2000 with the 1M02 p6:00 Paddington to Manchester Piccadilly Virgin CrossCountry service. Normally I wouldn't chose a location where the foreground is in shade like this, but I had arrived with little time to spare, and I wasn't going to risk missing the picture by trying to find an alternative spot.

47742 The Enterprising Scot passes Whitnash on 16 July 2001 with the 1O40 10:40 Edinburgh to Brighton Virgin CrossCountry service. Unfortunately 47742 didn't get to Brighton, as it failed near Iver, and the train had to be rescued by 47840 North Star.

47744 The Cornish Experience passes Pilning on 7 March 1998, as it descends towards the Severn Tunnel with the Hertfordshire Railtours 1Z27 07:30 Paddington to Llandrindod Wells 'Heart of Wales' railtour. The headboard (which was carried on a number of tours around this time) reads: 'Hertfordshire Rail Tours Merrymaker Rail Charter Partnership'.

With clouds of acrid smoke billowing from dragging brakes on the leading bogie of 91002, 47744 The Cornish Experience rounds the curve by the site of Hart station on 12 April 1998 with the diverted 1E01 09:00 Edinburgh to Kings Cross GNER service. The cycleway on the left follows the course of the disused line to Murton, which rejoined the coastal route at Ryhope.

47744 approaches Llandrindod Wells on 1 May 2000 with the Green Express Railtours 1Z39 06:33 Leeds to Cardiff Central 'Heart of Wales Scenic Circular' railtour. There was a pathing stop at Llandrindod Wells, which allowed enough time to get to Llanwrtyd Wells for another picture.

47744 approaches Llanwrtyd Wells on 1 May 2000 with the Green Express Railtoues 1Z39 06:33 Leeds to Cardiff 'Heart of Wales Scenic Circular' railtour. This remote location on the Central Wales Line was visited a few years later for 40145 on a railtour travelling in the opposite direction, albeit in much poorer lighting.

47745 Royal London Society for the Blind & 47762 pass Spetchley on 30 April 1999 with the 1S81 12:44 Plymouth to Shieldmuir Royal Mail vans. I'm not sure why there was a pair of locos on this, but it was certainly a welcome surprise.

47746 just manages to avoid the clouds, as it passes Lower Basildon on 15 March 1995 with the 1S81 13:26 Tonbridge to Glasgow Royal Mail parcels, which I had seen earlier in the day with even more interesting traction, in the shape of 73129 City of Winchester.

Sunday engineering work on 25 August 1996 saw the East Coast Mainline closed, and trains diverted via Gainsborough. 47746 The Bobby drags 91030 past Gainsborough Lea Road signal box with the 1S28 12:30 Kings Cross to Edinburgh GNER service. Unfortunately this fine Great Northern Railway signal box was severely damaged by fire in 2009.

47746 Chris Fudge 29.7.70 - 22.6.10 stands in the 'West Midlands' sidings, just south of Oxford station on 1 April 2015, after having worked the 5Z30 04:35 Southall to Oxford ECS, in preparation for the 1Z30 Oxford to Kingswear Cathedrals Express' railtour, hauled by LNER B1 61306 Mayflower. The brick building directly behind the locomotive is the recently completed student accommodation block for Cherwell College, whilst in the background is the former Oxford Power Station. This closed in 1969, shortly after the opening of the nearby 2,000 megawatt coal fired Didcot Power Station, now also closed.

47746 Chris Fudge 29.7.70 - 22.6.10 passes the site of Ashbury Crossing, near Shrivenham, on 11 September 2015 with the West Coast Railway 5Z39 11:21 Southall to Bristol Kingsland Road ECS. What a pity WCR didn't paint their locos in the maroon livery seen on the coaches here, rather than the universally hated drab brown/maroon colour scheme.

Deputising for the unavailable LMS Princess Royal Class 4-6-2 46201 Princess Elizabeth, Filthy 47746 Chris Fudge 29.7.70 - 22.6.10 passes Hanborough station on 9 July 2016 with the Steam Dreams 1Z27 09:18 Southend Victoria to Worcester Shrub Hill 'Cathedrals Express' railtour. 47760 is on the rear of the train.

47746 Chris Fudge 29.7.70 - 22.6.10 & 47237 pass Tackley on 16 July 2021 with the Saltburn Railtours 1Z18 07:48 Saltburn to Torquay railtour. This was running 65 minutes late, as problems with 47237 meant that 47746 had to be moved on to the front of the train of Leamington Spa. On the plus side, it did mean that the lighting angle was better, although the foreground shadows were lengthening, and two locos on the front was a definite bonus compared with the expected top'n'tail formation.

47746 Chris Fudge 29.7.70 - 22.6.10 passes Circourt Bridge, Denchworth, on 24 November 2023 with the West Coast Railways 5Z23 11:50 Southall to Bristol Kingsland Road ECS. This was in preparation for the following day's Bristol to Chester railtour using LMS 'Black Five' 4-6-0 44871.

47747 Graham Farish approaches Wolvercote Junction on 21 May 2001 with the 1M32 14:40 Portsmouth Harbour to Blackpool Virgin CrossCountry service. By this date the lineside vegetation was starting to become a problem, if not actually getting in the way, still casting shadows across the line, meaning it was no longer possible to keep photographing at this spot until near sunset.

47749 Atlantic College approaches Milton on 15 April 1997 with a rake of HST coaches, presumably en-route from Bristol St Philips Marsh to Old Oak Common. It's only now, whilst looking at this picture, that I realise that the footpath on the right would probably have made a good location for photographing westbound trains late on a summer's evening. Too late now, with the location ruined by 25kV overhead electfrication!

47749 Atlantic College catches the very last rays of the setting sun, as it passes Spetchley on 30 April 1999 with the 1V64 14:03 Low Fell to Plymouth Royal Mail vans. This loco had the distinction of being named by royalty, but not by Queen Elizabeth II. The nameplates were unveiled on 23 November 1995 by Queen Noor of Jordan, at Victoria station.

47749 Atlantic College passes Hunslet on 30 April 2000 with the diverted 1D38 12:10 Kings Cross to Leeds GNER service. The spectacular stack of empty containers has now disappeared, to be replaced by Freightliner's Midland Road maintenance depot. This had become infamous in recent years as the resting place for a good chunk of the company's unreliable Class 70s, which can be seen stored in a long line next to the main line.

47749 Atlantic College drags the diverted 1A15 16:14 Leeds to Kings Cross GNER service past Normanton on 30 April 2000, with the train's normal means of propulsion, 91030, directly behind the Class 47. The Bank Holiday closure of the line between Leeds and Wakefield for engineering works was the reason for the deviation.

Running exactly to time as usual, the 6Z48 13:05 Burton upon Trent to Dollands Moor Colas Rail steel empties passes through Kings Sutton station on 23 April 2009, with 47749 Demelza & 47739 Robin of Templecombe in charge. Although there is still some light, the sun was rapidly fading out into high cloud.

On 7 May 2009 the 6Z48 13:05 Burton upon Trent to Dollands Moor Colas Rail steel empties ran with only three wagons behind 47749 Demelza, so despite the indifferent weather I set out for the location at Thrupp which I knew would ideally suit this 'model railway size' train. Although there was intermittent sun when I arrived, the freight, which was as usual running exactly to time, corresponded with an extremely dull period, with that bane of a photographer's life - a considerably brighter and therefore burnt out sky. Luckily I foresaw this happening and so Photoshop layers have once again saved the day.

A welcome and colourful surprise Sunday working at South Moreton on 21 July 2013. 47749 Demelza & 47739 Robin of Templecombe near journey's end with the 6Z47 12:30 Dollands Moor to Didcot, conveying a rake of covered car carriers. Allegedly these wagons were getting in the way at Dollands Moor, and were therefore moved before the start of the working week. Unfortunately, this pair of locos had less success the following day, when an engine fire caused their Eastleigh to Long Marston train of track machines and assorted wagons to be declared a failure at Bristol Parkway, therefore causing me to drive over a hundred miles for nothing!

Soon to lose its Colas livery in favour of Caledonian Sleeper blue, 47749 City of Truro passes Hatton North Junction on 19 April 2018, running as the 0Z48 14:03 Leicester to Eastleigh light engine. This was a positioning move in preparation for the following day's Pathfinder Tours 'York Moors Venturer' railtour. Note that there is nothing at all to indicate that GBRf now own this loco.

47749 City of Truro passes Tredington shortly after sunrise on 21 April 2018 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z47 05:27 Newport to Scarborough 'York Moors Venturer' railtour. Although it sounded in fine form when it passed me, the ex Colas (now GBRf owned) 47 unfortunately failed an hour later at Cradley Heath. After a lengthy delay, 66518 arrived to rescue the train, but as it was now approaching four hours late, the tour was terminated at York.

47749 City of Truro & 47727 Caisteal Dhun Eideann / Edinburgh Castle storm through a foggy Ashchurch station on 14 July 2018 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z84 05:35 Gloucester to Sunderland 'Tees and Wear Explorer' railtour. The debranded Colas livery of 47749 contrasts markedly with the Caledonian blue of 47727, and in view of the gloomy conditions, I'm glad that 47749 was leading. Such was the poor light that ISO 3200 was required for this picture.

GBRf 47749 City of Truro arrives at Kidderminster on 16 May 2019 with the 09:35 Bridgnorth to Kidderminster service, during the Severn Valley Railway's Diesel Gala. The same company's 60095 is bringing up the rear. The train is passing 88006 Juno, which had just arrived as the 07:45 light engine from Crewe Gresty Bridge.

47749 City of Truro passes Stroud on 24 March 2023 with the 5Q70 06:50 Eastleigh to Long Marston ECS, conveying brand new South Western Railway EMU 701004 for storage. As with a lot of new trains, these units are overly complicated, and beset with software issues, preventing their introduction into service. They are already over three years late! This was running 10 minutes late, which was fortunate, as at the booked time the sun was still hiding behind a large cloud!

47749 City of Truro approaches Chalford in the rain on 5 April 2023 with the 5Q66 10:00 Willesden to Long Marston ECS, conveying brand new South Western Railway EMU 701030 for storage. This was running 76 minutes late, a delay not helped by the train apparently stopping for about 20 minutes between Swindon and Kemble. Strangely, Realtime Trains was showing this as cancelled, despite continuing to show the train's progress!

47749 City of Truro runs along the down relief line at Circourt Bridge, Denchworth, on 6 April 2023 with the 5Q66 10:00 Willesden to Long Marston ECS, conveying brand new South Western Railway EMU 701048 for temporary storage. Unfortunately the earlier sunshine had now disappeared!

47749 City of Truro passes Minety on 12 April 2023 with the 5Q66 10:09 Willesden to Long Marston ECS, conveying South Western Railway EMU 701023 for storage. Although it had stopped raining, unfortunately this corresponded with one of the darkest periods of the whole day!

47749 City of Truro passes Brimscombe in the rain on 13 April 2023 with the 5Q66 10:09 Willesden to Long Marston, conveying South Western Railway EMU 701025 for storage. This is the view from a public footpath crossing next to the Cirencester to Stroud road.

47749 City of Truro passes Oaksey on 19 April 2023 with the 5Q66 10:09 Willesden to Long Marston ECS, conveying South Western Railway EMU 701051 for storage. The blackthorn blossom makes an impressive foreground, but the rapidly growing bush is soon going to make photography increasingly difficult at this location. I had intended to photograph the diverted 6E11 11:07 Appleford Sidings to Milford West Sidings containerised flyash empties here as well, but that was still sat in the loop at Steventon, so I cam home. It eventually passed here nearly three hours late.

47749 City of Truro passes Brimscombe on 20 April 2023 with the 5Q66 10:09 Willesden to Long Marston ECS, conveying South Western Railway EMU 701034 for storage. Although not obvious from this picture, the Cirencester to Stroud road is right next to the line on the left, and a picture could easily be ruined by an ill-timed lorry suddenly appearing from behind the bushes! The Thames & Severn Canal can just be glimpsed through the trees on the right.

47749 City of Truro passes through Hailey Wood on 28 April 2023 with the 5Q66 10:09 Willesden to Long Marston ECS, conveying EMU 701052 for storage. This was my second attempt at this picture. The previous day I was just walking up to the bridge when it passed by, running half an hour early, so no picture. A real surprise, as it was on time when I checked a little earlier! On this second occasion the sun unexpectedly came out, which meant a change of position, a very head on shot being preferable to one taken from the shadow side.

47749 City of Truro passes Ebley on 2 June 2023 with the 5Q66 10:09 Willesden to Long Marston ECS, conveying brand new South Western Railway EMU 701041 for storage. This is one of the very few locations in the area where the sun is on the front for this train.

Running 36 minutes late, 47749 City of Truro passes the site of Ashbury Crossing, Shrivenham, on 28 November 2023 with the 5Q86 06:32 Eastleigh to Long Marston, conveying brand new South Western Railway EMUs 701519 & 701517 for storage. It is slightly ironic that one of the ten car 701s went the other way a couple of weeks earlier!

47749 City of Truro races through Kemble station at high speed on 4 January 2024 with the 5Q86 08:51 Eastleigh to Long Marston, conveying brand new South Western Railway EMUs 701524 & 701518 for storage. This was running 15 minutes early. By missing out further stops it would become even earlier, until it came to a stand in Eckington Loop, where it stayed for over three hours due to a problem with the train's documentation. It makes you wonder why this wasn't sorted out before it left Eastleigh! The late running caused it to be terminated at Worcester, from where it carried on to Long Marston the following day.

47749 City of Truro passes Islip in the rain on 19 April 2024 with the 5Q75 09:21 Eastleigh to Bicester MoD, conveying brand new South Western Railway EMU 701530 for storage. Although a very tentative move has been made to introduce these new units into traffic, this only amounts to a few trains per day, and so there is the ridiculous sight of the recently delivered units being dragged miles away from their intended area of operation by a 60 year old diesel loco!

A variation on the red theme at Woodborough on 28 July 1999. 47750 Royal Mail Cheltenham, 47785 Fiona Castle & 47767 Saint Columba head west with a single Royal Mail van. The two Res liveried locos in this convoy have subsequently been scrapped, but the EWS liveried 47785 has made it into preservation.

With the town of Banbury in the background, complete with the Kraft Food's coffee factory visible in the gap between the trees, 47750 Atlas approaches Overthorpe on a bitterly cold 22 December 2001 with the 1V93 09:15 Manchester Piccadilly to Paddington Virgin CrossCountry service.

47750 Atlas passes Coalpit Heath on 29 March 2002 with the 1E33 12:10 Bristol Temple Meads to Newcastle Virgin CrossCountry service. This loco was one of the early named examples, acquiring the Atlas name (whilst numbered D1667) in 1966. It had been renamed Royal Mail Cheltenham in 1996, but reacquired its Atlas name in 2000.

47757 Restitution rounds the curve at Miskin on 6 April 1996 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z63 15:36 Swansea to Crewe 'Tawe Taw Tourer' railtour. This was running 50 minutes late, and was deputising for Southern Railway West Country Class 4-6-2 34027 Taw Valley, which had failed on the outward run at Bridgend, with a hot axle box.

47758 Regency Rail Cruises crosses the River Clyde at Crawford on 23 October 1998 with the Pathfinder Tours / Regency Rail 1Z59 05:22 Cardiff Central to Spean Bridge 'West Highlander' railtour. This was day one of a three day tour, which would later use 37427 & 37413 in the Highlands.

47759 swings round the curve at Sutton Bridge Junction, near Shrewsbury with the EWS 1Z43 06:47 Rose Grove to Cardiff 'St James' Day Tripper' special on 13 May 2000. 47759 was one of the minority of Res liveried locomotives that never received a Res themed name. It survived for another couple of years after this picture was taken, then after a lengthy period in store was finally cut up at Ron Hull's Rotherham yard in January 2008.

Under an azure blue sky on 25 June 1999, 47760 Ribblehead Viaduct crosses the River Avon at Eckington with the 1E43 15:09 Plymouth to Low Fell mail train. As there was unusually no other photographers at the location, I decided to move further back than normal, to include the rustic stile in the foreground. As the usual spot for taking pictures is by the fishing pegs in the next field, this of course would not be possible if anyone else had been there.

47760 Ribblehead Viaduct passes the site of Shrivenham station on 22 September 2002 with the 1Z29 10.15 Swindon to Paddington Countryside Alliance special. Unfortunately the sun had largely disappeared since the other 'Countryside March' special had passed, behind the much less interesting 66042.

47760 passes Knighton with the Nenta Train Tours 05:04 Norwich to Cardiff Central 'Cheddar Gorge & the Welsh Capital' railtour on 22 August 2009. Classmate 47786 can just be seen on the rear of the train. The small clouds behind the loco were a sign of things to come, with the weather getting progressively worse throughout the day.

47760 passes through Kingham station on 9 July 2016 with the Steam Dreams 1Z28 17:53 Worcester Shrub Hill to Southend Victoria 'Cathedrals Express' railtour, with classmate 47746 on the rear. This should originally have been worked by LMS Princess Royal Class 4-6-2 46201 Princess Elizabeth. At first I thought 47760 was carrying some new decal behind the cab door, but on closer inspection it just seems to be a large area of missing paint!

47761 calls at Kemble station on 29 August 1994 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z27 09:00 Swindon to Paignton 'Torbay Pullman VSOE' railtour. This attracted a lot of local interest, with some people expecting a steam loco, after hearing it was the Orient Express! The train reversed at Gloucester, allowing another picture to be taken at Standish Junction.

47761 passes Standish Junction on 29 August 1994 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z27 09:00 Swindon to Paignton 'Torbay Pullman VSOE' railtour. I had photographed this an hour earlier at Kemble, since when the train had reversed at Gloucester. This was one of Pathfinder's 'Executive' series of charters, which predominately used Class 47s.

47761 passes East Usk Junction on 18 August 1995 with the 5M24 14:20 Bristol Temple Meads to Cardiff TPO empty stock. Res 47s, Traveling Post Offices, and even the industrial buildings in the background are all now things of the past.

47762 speeds past Lower Wick (between Gloucester and Bristol) with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z33 06:30 Birmingham New Street to Penzance 'Penzance Flyer' railtour on 22 June 1996. I do not normally take many pictures from the trackside at such close quarters with a standard lens, as although this is the classic style of railway photography, I tend to favour a more scenic shot. In this case however the last minute rather fruitless search for a new location left little alternative and the speed of the train certainly required the 1/2000 sec shutter speed of my Canon F1.

47764 Resounding emerges from Twerton Tunnel on 23 April 1998 with the 1V33 15:58 Wembley to Plymouth Royal Mail vans. The rear four vehicles would be detached at Bristol, to form the 1B60 19:22 Bristol Temple Meads to Swansea. Unfortunately all this mail traffic now clogs up our motorway network, instead of going by rail.

47764 Resounding passes through Severn Tunnel Junction station on 27 August 1998 with the 5S09 14:33 Bristol Temple Meads to Cardiff Central Royal Mal TPO ECS. In the distance, 60073 is approaching with the 6V05 09:20 Round Oak to Margam steel empties.

Oh dear, who's been a naughty boy then! After setting fire to the embankment at various locations on the outward run, GWR 4-6-0 5029 Nunney Castle had to have diesel assistance for the return 'Cotswold Venturer' railtour from Worcester to Didcot on 17 July 1994. 47765 Ressaldar disappoints the crowds as it passes through Kingham station.

47765 Ressaldar emerges from the fog at Seaham on 3 April 1999 with the diverted 1S13 07:00 Kings Cross to Glasgow GNER service. The bracket signal, which had already lost one of its arms, has since been replaced by the inevitable colour lights.

47765 Ressaldar passes Coedkernew on 3 September 1999 with the early running 6C36 12:52 Cardiff Canton to Bristol Barton Hill empty Royal Mail vans. Only three vehicles, but three distinct types. The leading vehicle is a NAA propelling control vehicle, the second is a NSA Travelling Post Office van, and the third is a NSX sorting van.

47765 Ressaldar passes Great Heck on 20 March 2000 with the 6D94 09:26 Doncaster to Selby Enterprise. The vans at the rear are for the Potter Group at Selby, while the rest of the train would continue on as the 6D95 11:00 Selby to Doncaster Belmont, dropping off the coal containers at Gascoigne Wood, and the single fuel oil tank at Knottingley depot.

47765 Ressaldar approaches Gascoigne Wood on 20 March 2000 with the 6D95 11:00 Selby to Doncaster Belmont Enterprise. The train would reverse at Knottingley, where it would deposit the single fuel oil tank, which can just be seen on the rear of the train.

47765 Ressaldar passes Gascoigne Wood for the second time on 20 March 2000 with the 6D95 11:00 Selby to Doncaster Belmont Enterprise. Although the Gasgoine Wood loading point served the largest deep mining complex in the world, it closed in 2004, after a working life of just over twenty years.

47766 Resolute passes Droitwich on 29 March 1996 with the 5Z64 Longsight to Long Marston stock move, consisting of withdrawn EMUs, 304004, 304017 & 304009 for storage. The train is just coming off the single track line from Stoke Works Junction. Judging by the dark background, I did well to get this in the sun!

A conveniently placed upper quadrant distant signal adds interest to this picture, as 47766 Resolute passes Gate Burton (between Gainsborough and Lincoln) with the diverted 1E05 10:00 Edinburgh to Kings Cross GNER service on 25 August 1996. The train was diverted away from the East Coast Mainline due to engineering works. DVT 82202 is directly behind the locomotive.

47766 Resolute heads north at Slindon on 15 May 1997 with four Royal Mail vans. This loco was new to Toton (as D1621) in 1964. It received the TOPS number 47040 in 1974, and 47642 in 1986. Its final renumbering was to 47766 in 1994. Withdrawn in 2000, it was cut up at where it had started, at Toton, in 2004.

47767 Saint Columba passes Coalpit Heath in the rain on 23 April 1998 with the 1S81 12:44 Plymouth to Shieldmuir parcels. Behind the loco groundwork for a new industrial estate is taking place. This would also see the replacement of the small building in the background with a much larger industrial unit.

47769 Resolve passes Totton on 3 June 2001 with the 1M84 10:05 Poole to Manchester Piccadilly Virgin CrossCountry service. The non-electrified lines in the foreground mark the start of the freight only branch line to Marchwood and Fawley.

47770 Reserved crosses the River Avon at Eckington on 26 June 1995 with the 1E43 17:42 Bristol Temple Meads to Newcastle Low Fell Royal Mail service. This used to be the ideal spot to spend a warm summer evening when there was an endless procession of interesting trains passing. You just had to make sure you pressed the shutter at exactly the right moment! Although obviously a popular spot with anglers, I have only occasionally seen any number at this spot, and have never managed the 'fisherman casting just as the train goes by' type of picture!

47770 Reserved heads south from Colton Junction on 16 May 1998 with the ECS from the earlier Appleby to York VSOE luxury dining charter. This was running very late, due the failure of the tour locomotive, 47792 Saint Cuthbert, which was presumably swapped for 47770 at York. This late running has resulted in some very intrusive shadows almost ruining the picture.

47770 Reserved accelerates through Severn Tunnel Junction station on 22 February 2003 with the 1Z27 12:15 Victoria to Cardiff VSOE rugby special. Definitely up market stock for a rugby match, and a world of difference to the image of 1970's football special!

47772 descends the 1 in 37 Lickey Incline on 10 September 1994 with the Nenta Train Tours 06:45 Norwich to Cardiff Central 'Heart of Wales Explorer' railtour. Whether by accident or design, consecutively numbered 47773 Reservist worked the return leg of the tour.

47772 approaches Appleford station on 13 April 2002 with the 4Z08 Swindon to Longbridge Rover car body panels. A very poor quality picture, but I have included it as this is the only time that I saw a Res Class 47/7 working one of these trains, and also the only time that I saw it running on a Saturday.

47773 The Queen Mother emerges from the fog into a small patch of weak autumnal sunshine at Bourton on 21 September 2003. It is working the Scottish Railway Preservation Society 1Z32 10:05 Bristol Temple Meads to Aberdeen charter. This was the return working of a three trip which also visited the Eden Project in Cornwall

47773 approaches Goring with the Vintage Trains 1Z57 06:26 Birmingham Moor Street to Portsmouth Harbour 'Pompey Vectis Explorer' railtour on 12 April 2008. Not only did this run unexpectedly on the relief line, resulting a very head on picture, but also the lighting was the worst of all possible combinations - sun out in the background, but not on the train. Not a very good picture, but included for the novelty of seeing a two tone green 47 with TDM cables on the front! Hidden on the rear of this train is 37248.

The hawthorn is in blossom as 47773 (D1755) slowly approaches Oxford with the Vintage Trains 1Z44 06:26 Birmingham Moor Street to Weymouth 'Purbeck & Weymouth Explorer' railtour on 10 May 2008. 50049 Defiance can just be seen on the rear of the train. As the train was running a few minutes early, it was approaching a red signal, as the 08:30 Oxford to Paddington First Great Western 'Turbo' unit had only just pulled into the station from the carriage sidings. Although the sun came out later, unfortunately the day started with very dull and misty conditions.

47773 (D1755) & GWR 57xx 0-6-0PT 9600 arrive at Banbury on 3 July 2010 with the 5Z28 07:00 Tyseley to Banbury ECS. At Banbury the 47 would be removed and the pannier tank would carry on solo to Princes Risborough (for Chinnor) with the Chiltern Railways  'Centenary Express' railtour, celebrating 100 years of the Great Western's Bicester 'cut off' route.

With its reinstated pre TOPS number (D1755) clearly visible, 47773 speeds past Sandy Lane Crossing, Kidlington on 22 September 2012 with the Vintage Trains 1Z23 07:00 Solihull to Portsmouth 'Waverley Paddle Steamer' excursion. 47760 is doing the decent thing, in view of its awful West Coast livery, by hiding in the shadows on the rear of the train. At Portsmouth the tour participants would enjoy a cruise around on the Isle of Wight on the paddle steamer 'Waverley', the world's last surviving ocean going paddle steamer.

47773 (D1755) passes a totally flooded Port Meadow at Wolvercote on 9 February 2014 with the Vintage Trains 1Z53 15:50 Oxford to Banbury. This was a part of the 'Chiltern Champion Part 2' railtour from Marylebone to Marylebone (via Quainton Road, Claydon Junction, Oxford and Banbury). It would then work back to Solihull as the second part of the 'Chiltern Champion Part 1' tour! The highlight of this tour was of course D1015 Western Champion, which can be seen on the rear here. However, this picture is not only in better light than my Western shots, but also shows the work in progress on the reinstatement of the Oxford to Wolvercote down relief line.

47773 traversed the Cotswold Line on Saturday 18 October 2014 with the Vintage Trains 1Z44 07:27 Tyseley to Bristol Temple Meads 'Western Streak' railtour. It is pictured here passing Cassington in atrocious light. The railtour's name is of course a clue as to what form of traction would take over the train at Didcot!

47773 (D1755) passes the site of Shrivenham station on 3 October 2015 with the Vintage Trains 1Z95 07:24 Tyseley to Oxford 'Cotswold Explorer' railtour. This was originally supposed to have been hauled by GWR Castle Class 4-6-0 5043 Earl of Mount Edgcumbe, but that was unavailable, and so Hall Class 4-6-0 4965 Rood Ashton Hall was substituted. However, that failed its fitness to run exam on the evening before the tour, and so 47773 was the last minute substitution. In my book a two tone green 47 is a more than adequate substitute! Note the workman by the new bridge footings in the foreground engaged in the modern equivalent of leaning on a shovel - chatting on a mobile!

D1755 (47773) passes Lyneham on 3 October 2015 with the Vintage Trains 1Z96 15:54 Oxford to Tyseley 'Cotswold Explorer' railtour. The immaculate Class 47 was deputising for the unavailable GWR Hall Class 4-6-0 4965 Rood Ashton Hall. Although I remember seeing two tone green 47s on the Cotswold Line in the early 1970s, that was before I had a decent camera, so this was definitely not one to miss. Although the train passed in hazy sunshine, typically soon afterwards the sun dropped out of a band of cloud, and stayed out for the rest of the evening.

47773 (D1755) & 47237 speed through Ashchurch on 18 June 2016 with the late running Vintage Trains 1Z73 08:04 Tyseley to Minehead 'Whistling Ghost IV' railtour. Although the terrible lighting makes both locos look drab, this is a lesson in what colour scheme a Class 47 looks good in. Classic 1960s two tone green versus inspired by God know what sludge brown!

47773 (D1755) brings up the rear of the Vintage Trains 1Z72 17:35 Oxford to Dorridge 'Cotswold Venturer' railtour at Churchill Heath on 6 April 2019. GWR Castle Class 4-6-0 7029 Clun Castle can bee seen at the head of the train. Unfortunately this was not working very hard at this point, but at least that means the 47 isn't enveloped in smoke!

47773 brings up the rear of the Vintage Trains 1Z65 18:32 Oxford to Solihull 'Oxford 175 Express' railtour at Tackley on 15 June 2019. The smoke betrays the presence of GWR Castle Class 4-6-0 7029 Clun Castle at the head of the train. This picture illustrates some of the behaviour that gives rail enthusiasts a bad name. Some idiot has set up a tripod right next to the line, so close to the track that I'm surprised the earlier CrossCountry Voyager's slip stream didn't knock it over. It can just be seen to the right of the person who is standing perfectly safely on the right side of the fence next to the crossing.

47773 brings up the rear of the Vintage Trains 1Z30 15:45 Swindon to Birmingham Snow Hill 'SLS Special' railtour at Yarnton on 25 September 2021. GWR Castle Class 4-6-0 7029 Clun Castle on the front of the train, is just passing underneath the A44 Oxford to Woodstock road.

D1755 (47773) brings up the rear of the Vintage Trains 1Z50 08:35 Solihull to Bristol Temple Meads 'Merchant Venturer' railtour at Tackley on 11 December 2021. Sweeping round the curve, and heading towards Tackley station, GWR Castle Class 4-6-0 7029 Clun Castle is at the front of the train.

D1755 (47773) seems to spend most of its time on the rear of trains. On 19 July 2023 it brings up the rear of the Vintage Trains 1Z15 07:56 Birmingham New Street to Norwich 'East Anglian' railtour, as it passes Burbage Common in the rain, led by 37403 Isle of Mull.

47773 (D1755) passes Oaksey on 5 October 2024 with the 1Z87 13:27 Paddington to Kemble private charter. 20142 Sir John Betjeman is bringing up the rear. I had thought about going to Kemble to see the train using the rarely used crossover from the down to the up line on the approach to the station, but unfortunately at this time of day that would be mostly in shadow.

Token exchange at Norton Junction on 22 May 1994. 47774 Poste Restante comes off the single track Cotswold Line with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z18 16:00 Didcot Parkway to Swansea 'Cotswold Sovereign' railtour. The outward leg of this tour had been behind GWR King Class steam locomotive 6024 King Edward I.

47774 Poste Restante accelerates away from Swindon station, and passes Stratton St Margaret with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z27 07:11 Worcester Shrub Hill to Ashford 'Festive Kent Explorer' railtour on 7 December 1996. The lights on in the Rover factory in the background gives a clue as to how dark it was!

47774 Poste Restante drags the diverted 1E15 14:00 Edinburgh to Kings Cross GNER service past Stockton on 3 April 1999. 82202 is the DVT directly behind the loco, whilst 91019 is virtually hidden on the rear of the train. Weekend engineering work near Darlington resulted in trains being diverted via Hartlepool and Stockton. The 47 worked the train between Newcastle and York.

47774 Poste Restante passes Tackley on 15 July 2001 with the 1Z92 Victoria to Leamington Spa VSOE luxury charter. The passengers would obviously be impressed by the beautifully maintained Orient Express coaches, but probably less so with the scruffy unwashed Res loco up front!

47776 Respected climbs the Lickey Incline on 24 May 1997 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z90 05:45 Salisbury to Carlisle 'Cumbrian Mountain Express' railtour. The (at the time) mundane Class 47 would be replaced by LMS 8F 2-8-0 48151 for the run over the Settle & Carlisle line.

47776 Respected passes Shottesbrooke on 14 March 1998 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z65 05:57 Crewe to Ashford International 'Kent Venturer' railtour. As was customary in those days, the 47/7 was used on the 'unspecified traction' part of he tour, with the more interesting traction, in the shape of 73101 The Royal Alex & 73131 taking over at Kensington Olympia.

With face adorned LMS 8F 48773 taking part in the Severn Valley Railway's 'Thomas the Tank Engine' event in the background, 47776 Respected arrives at Kidderminster on 15 May 1999 with the 5Z72 Peterborough to Kidderminster empty stock move, consisting of just Racal Belle saloon 999503.

Nice loco, shame about the stock! 47777 Restored passes Defford on 23 July 1994 with the Cheshire Railtours 1Z16 Crewe to Minehead 'West Country Express' railtour. The first coach looks great, but the remainder of the train is formed of the infamous Pilkington liveried Mk1 set - surely one of the worst ever coaching stock liveries.

Crowds of pro-hunt supporters get ready to board their special train at Kemble on 10 July 1997, as 47777 Restored rolls into the station with the Cotswold Hunt organised 07:30 Cheltenham Sa to Paddington charter. It was all a waste of time, as hunting was banned in 2005, although unfortunately it is very difficult to police, largely taking place away from the public eye.

47777 Restored approaches Radley station at speed on 11 July 1997 with a Stirling to Portsmouth charter. This was one of three special trains bringing competitors from Scotland to the qualification rounds of the UK Special Olympics, which were being held in the city.

47778 Irresistible passes Barrow Hill on 29 June 1996 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z28 06:10 Swindon to Newcastle 'North Eastern Explorer' railtour. What appears to be a church at the top of the cutting is in fact Barrow Hill Primary School. Quite why it has a spire, when the nearby parish church doesn't is unclear!

47778 Irresistible brings up the rear of the Hertfordshire Railtours 1Z46 Kings Cross to High Marnham 'Grand Old Dukes' railtour, as it approaches its destination on 6 February 1999. Just visible in the background is 58013, waiting to leave the power station with MGR empties.

47779 has a matching set of Rail Express Systems (RES) vans in tow, as it passes the recently harvested field at Defford on 10 August 1995 with the 1E43 17:42 Bristol Temple Meads to Newcastle Royal Mail working.

47779 passes Claydon on 3 July 1998 with the1E43 15:09 Plymouth to Low Fell Royal Mail vans. In the 1980s this used to be an excellent viewpoint for northbound trains, by 1998 a very long lens was required, now it is next to impossible!

One of the highlights of mid June evenings in the Oxford area used to be the various special trains returning from Royal Ascot. Culham was a favourite location, although by the new millennium the lineside bushes were beginning to cause shadow problems, as can be seen in this view of 47780 heading north on 21 June 2001 with a returning Ascot special.

47781 passes Milton on 14 May 1994 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z36 07:09 Worcester Shrub Hill to Ashford executive excursion. Just visible in the mist in the background is the road bridge in the village of Steventon, a much more well known photographic location than this rather noisy vantage point on the side of the A34!

47781 Isle of Iona sweeps round the curve at Lowgill on 16 September 1995 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z27 05:45 Didcot to Carlisle 'Cumbrian Mountain Express' railtour. The Class 47 would be replaced at Carlisle by the highlight of the tour - LMS Princess Royal Class 4-6-2 46203 Princess Margaret Rose, which would work the train as far as Crewe, being replaced there by 47780.

47781 Isle of Iona passes Burton Salmon on 25 October 1995 with the 1V53 York to Frome Royal Scotsman. This loco was delivered new at Cardiff Canton (as D1674) in April 1965. The application of TOPS saw it become 47088, then with conversion to ETH, 47653. In 1989 it was renumbered 47808, then in 1993 it was back to 47653, before finally becoming 47781 in 1994.

47781 Isle of Iona passes Hawkeridge Junction on 29 December 1999 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z36 08:14 Reading to Exeter St Davids 'Centenarian' railtour. The tracks on the right (normally freight only) connect the Trowbridge line to the main West of England route.

47781 Isle of Iona stands at Aber station on 18 March 2000, having just failed whilst working the 2D11 15:06 Cardiff Central to Rhymney service. The train had arrived at the station and then the loco promptly shut down. An hour went by while various rail workers investigated the problem, two of whom can be seen on the platform. Eventually it was decided to push the train to Ystrad Mynach, where it was terminated. As 47575 City of Hereford was on the rear of the train, I don't know why they didn't do this earlier!

47782 passes Baulking on 14 August 1994 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z27 08:50 Weston-super-Mare to Worcester Shrub Hill 'Cotswold Venturer' railtour. The train would return just over an hour later, hauled by GWR Castle Class 4-6-0 5029 Nunney Castle.

47782 passes Great Cheverell on 9 April 1999 with the 1Z39 Cambridge to Torquay charter. This loco started life as a 47/0 (as D1780 and then 47185), later became a 47/4 (47602), then a 47/8 (47824), before finishing its career as a 47/7 (47782).

When the 1M22 09:36 Glasgow Central to Euston Virgin West Coast service failed between Beattock and Lockerbie on 17 May 2002, 47782 was sent to assist. The train is pictured crossing the River Esk at Metal Bridge, running a staggering 155 minutes late. DVT 82110 is directly behind the locomotive.

47782 approaches Wellingborough on 19 July 2002 with the 1Z11 09:08 Toton to Cricklewood crew training run, formed of eight mail vans. The train would later return to Toton via Barrow Hill. It's Not often that you can get six different speed restriction signs in one picture!

47783 Saint Peter passes Cargo Fleet on 18 November 1995 with the Hertfordshire Railtours 1Z49 07:30 Kings Cross to Boulby 'Boulby Prize' railtour. 56108 is bringing up the rear. The disused Cargo Fleet station (closed as recently as 1990) can be seen in the background.

47783 Saint Peter crosses the unusual concrete viaduct at Carlin How on 18 November 1995 with the Hertfordshire Railtours 1Z49 07:30 Kings Cross to Boulby 'Boulby Prize' railtour. Although the sun angle is perfect, what I hadn't planned for was the low autumn sun. Although not effecting the subject, the shadow of the hill I am standing on does rather spoil the foreground of the picture.

Running in place of the booked HST, 47784 Condover Hall passes the classic location of Kings Sutton on Saturday 20 June 1998 with the 1M14 14:21 Bournemouth to Manchester Piccadilly Virgin CrossCountry service.

47785 Fiona Castle crosses the flat expanse of West Fen (between Whittlesea and March) with the 6L76 07:56 Doncaster to Ely Enterprise service on 11 March 1999. The train is made up entirely of OTA timber wagons, which will later be tripped to Brandon. This was one of a number of short lived timber flows that could be seen on the national network in the late 1990s, this being one of the few that wasn't in Scotland. Brandon sits on the edge of Thetford Forest, making it an ideal loading point for felled trees.

47786 Roy Castle OBE passes Stoke Orchard on 22 July 1995 with the Derby to Cardiff leg of the mammoth 'Tour of Hope' special. The train was run to raise funds for the Roy Castle Foundation, with the aim of funding research into lung cancer. Roy Castle had died the previous year, after a long battle with the disease.

47786 Roy Castle OBE passes Cattybrook on 22 July 1995 with the Cardiff to Derby leg of the mammoth 'Tour of Hope' special. The train was run to raise funds for cancer research, and was in memory of the entertainer Roy Castle Foundation, who had died the previous year.

Crisp early morning light at the Hodgehill Garden Centre footpath crossing, near Kidderminster on 26 October 1996. 47786 Roy Castle OBE is in charge of the Pathfinder Tours 1Z27 06:28 Cardiff Central to Carlisle 'Settle Carlisle Explorer' railtour. The tour was booked to use what at the time what fairly mundane motive power, with 47786 for the outward run, and 47766 for the return. However, 47766 failed between Sheffield and Derby, so passengers were treated to 56048 as far as Derby. Normally was restored at Derby, with 47634 provided for the journey back to Wales!

47786 Roy Castle OBE passes Wolvercote in atrocious light on 20 March 1999 with the Hertfordshire Railtours 1Z36 08:34 Paddington to Kineton 'Edge Hill Secret' railtour. This was booked to traverse the army depot at Kineton, but due to the war in Kosovo, it only approached close to Kineton, and then did a tour of Birmingham instead.

47786 Roy Castle OBE passes Gaer Junction, Newport, on 11 September 1997 with the 6Z80 11:00 Newport Alexandra Dock Junction to Hereford logs, destined for the sawmill at Pontrilas. The timber, which originated in Scotland, would have passed through Hereford the previous day on a trunk 'Enterprise' service. 37197 can be seen in the background with a snort train of new concrete sleepers. The diverging line climbing away towards Gaer Tunnel in the background heads towards Ebbw Vale, and forms a triangle with the line between Park Junction and Ebbw Junction.

47786 Roy Castle OBE has 91012 County of Cambridgeshire in tow, as it passes Hunslet on 30 April 2000 with the diverted 1A23 13:44 Leeds to Kings Cross GNER service. Dominating the background are the distinctive Crescent Towers and Crescent Grange 1960s built blocks of flats.

47786 Roy Castle OBE passes Normanton station on 30 April 2000 with the diverted 1D38 14:10 Kings Cross to Leeds GNER service. 90025 is on the rear of the train. As can be guessed from the large area on the right, Normanton station once boasted an extensive area of sidings.

47786 Roy Castle OBE passes Uffington in atrocious light on 13 July 2010 with Royal Scotsman 1Z30 14:52 Bath to Oxford 'Grand Tour of Britain' luxury charter. Earlier in the day it had started from Hereford as the 1Z29 06:24 to Bath, from where it traveled ECS to Westbury and back. After arrival at Oxford, the train would then work ECS to Haddenham & Thame Parkway (via a reversal at Banbury), from where it would pick up the passengers once more, and then continue on to Fletton Junction (for the Nene Valley Railway) arriving at 02:25. And this is just day three of an eight day tour! 47804 is on the rear of the train. Unfortunately West Coast Railway's livery looks dull at the best of times, so it doesn't really suit these miserable conditions.

47786 Roy Castle OBE passes Tempsford on 5 April 2014 with the West Coast Railways 1Z48 06:12 Doncaster to Chichester 'Channel Coast Express' railtour. 47854 is on the rear of the train. Purely a record shot, whilst en-route to Norfolk.

Race special meets coal empties at Foxhall Junction, Didcot, on 13 March 1997. 47787 Victim Support heads west with a Cheltenham Gold Cup special, while 60086 Schiehallion waits at the signal with the 6C67 09:43 Didcot Power Station to Avonmouth MGR empties. It will shortly move forward to run round, then follow the 47 towards Swindon.

47787 approaches Linlithgow with the Royal Scotsman 1H85 13:32 Edinburgh to Spean Bridge 'Western Tour' on 5 October 2007. The West Coast Railways loco is one of a number of locos painted maroon to match the Royal Scotsman stock, which is surely much more fitting for this prestige train than the EWS liveried locos that operated it a few years ago. Both Forth Bridges can just be seen in the background.

47787 accelerates away from Bo'Ness Junction and passes Lathallan with the Royal Scotsman 1H85 13:32 Edinburgh to Spean Bridge 'Western Tour' on 5 October 2007. The train had waited in the loop at Bo'Ness Junction for 35 minutes, enabling me to easily get this second picture after seeing it at Linlithgow.

47787 passes Fort William Junction on 6 October 2007 with the Royal Scotsman 1H86 08:23 Spean Bridge to Fort William 'Western Tour'. It was still virtually dark and drizzling with rain, requiring ISO1600 for this picture, in complete contrast to the previous day's sunshine!

47787 arrives at Spean Bridge in the rain on 6 October 2007 with the Royal Scotsman 5H86 13:47 Fort William to Spean Bridge ECS. It would then reverse into the platform on the right, using 33207, which is on the rear of the train.

47787 Windsor Castle passes the site of Challow station on 17 April 2010 with the Railtourer 1Z51 06:25 Skegness to Oxford railtour, with 47826 just visible on the rear of the train. It was a toss up between staying local and seeing this Class 47 railtour as well as the first non-stop steam hauled London to Bristol train for over 40 years, or traveling to Yorkshire to see the first Class 70 hauled railtour. No contest really! Ideally I would have chose a different location for this tour, but it was selected in order to be able to photograph 5043 Earl of Mount Edgcumbe, which was obviously the highlight of the day. The steam special had passed only a few minutes before, but already the large crowd had dispersed, leaving just me on the bridge.

After picking up some more passengers at Worcester Shrub Hill station, 47789 Lindisfarne approaches Tunnel Junction on 4 May 1996 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z31 05:50 Cardiff Central to Peterborough 'Lincolnshire Explorer' railtour. This superb vantage point gives a good view of Worcester, with the cathedral dominating the view, but also including the spire of the former church of St Andrew's, with the tower of St Swithun's in front, and the Malvern Hills in the distance.

47790 Saint David/Dewi Sant passes milepost 69¾, near Compton Beauchamp, with the 1V53 15:58 London to Swansea Royal Mail vans on 9 September 1997. Note the inclusion of two PCVs (Propelling Control Vehicles), one directly behind the loco, and one half way down the train.

47790 Saint David/Dewi Sant stands at a very wet Aviemore station on the morning of 6 September 2000, having just arrived with the 1S25 21:30 Euston to Inverness ScotRail sleeper. Saint David is hardly a very appropriate name in this situation! I never did see the more fitting 47701 with its Saint Andrew nameplates, as by the time I saw it, it was nameless and working trains from Oxford!

47790 speeds past Fenwick on 13 September 2003 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z91 17:03 York to Eastleigh 'York & Castle Howard Excursion' railtour. Note the headboard celebrating 30 years of Pathfinder Tours, which until 1987 traded as F&W Railtours. 47790 was one of only 15 Class 47s to receive the EWS red livery.

47790 worked the 6Z50 08:00 York Works to Reading RHTT tanks on 14 November 2007. It was fairly sunny when I set out, so I decided to go to the footpath crossing near Kings Sutton, which would be one of the few locations between Banbury and Oxford that would be clear of shadows. Of course what happens when the train turned up (half an hour early), a cloud passes in front of the sun at the crucial moment! Although the roadbridge in the background was in partial sun, the foreground definitely wasn't. Normally exposing for the train would have resulted in a completely burnt out sky, so the whole scene was underexposed and with the magic of Photoshop layers the result was corrected, although I resisted the temptation to give it the artificial sun look!

47790 Galloway Princess powers past Fiddington on 16 March 2012 with the Northern Belle 1Z71 06:40 Liverpool Lime Street to Cheltenham Gold Cup special. Similarly liveried 47832 is bringing up the rear. There is something of the flavour of past decades here, when numerous Class 47s used to converge on Cheltenham during festival week, and especially on Gold Cup day. Sadly this was the only train with heritage traction on this occasion, the others having to make do with Class 67s. Nevertheless, I don't expect any of the passengers cared what was on the front, as they looked forward to a day of standing in the cold and losing their money on the horses!

47790 Galloway Princess passes Stonehouse (Bristol Road) on 9 June 2012 with 1Z47 06:16 Doncaster to Bath Northern Belle charter. 47832 is out of sight on the rear of the train. The remains of the sidings that once served the former coal depot are now all but invisible in the undergrowth.

47790 Galloway Princess passes an exceedingly gloomy Compton Beauchamp on 7 July 2012 with the 1Z13 14:52 Salisbury to Oxford Northern Belle luxury lunch excursion. After a quick reversal at Swindon, it would shortly be retracing its route as far as Didcot, this time with 47805 leading.

A close up view of Northern Belle liveried 47790 Galloway Princess, as it passes Hinksey on 12 April 2013 with the 0Z30 11:23 Eastleigh to Crewe Gresty Bridge light engine move. The immaculate loco contrasts notably with the graffiti covered lineside building.

47791 Venice Simplon Orient Express does not quite have the right name for the stock it is hauling here, but not that far off! It is pictured passing Culham on 22 June 1995 hauling the Statesman Pullmans, with an Ascot to Liverpool race special. Unfortunately the light was fading rapidly, but at least the poppies in the foreground add a splash of colour.

47791 Venice Simplon Orient Express emerges from the mist, and slowly approaches Eggborough Power Station on 14 October 1995 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z27 05:25 Swindon to Drax 'Aire Freighter' railtour. Out if sight around the corner, 56067 is bringing up the rear.

47791 passes Crosby Garrett in typical Settle & Carlisle weather on 5 February 2000 with the diverted 1O40 08:55 Edinburgh to Brighton Virgin CrossCountry service. The 47 worked the train between Carlisle and Preston.

47792 Saint Cuthbert approaches Whitacre Junction on 14 September 1997 with the diverted 1A43 12:19 Wolverhampton to Euston Virgin West Coast service. The 47 would work the train as far as Nuneaton. The train's locomotive, 86240 Bishop Eric Treacy is bringing up the rear. Directly behind the 47 is DVT 82132 West Midlands.

With the choppy North Sea in the background, 47792 Saint Cuthbert passes Hart on 12 April 1998 with the diverted 1S14 09:45 Doncaster to Glasgow Central GNER service, with 91028 on the rear. Diverted away from its usual route by weekend engineering works, it would however rejoin the East Coast Mainline at Newcastle. Saint Cuthbert is an appropriate (though accidental) choice of traction, as between Newcastle and the Scottish border, the train would pass within sight of the island of Lindisfarne, where the Anglo-Saxon monk Saint Cuthbert spent a large part of his life.

47792 Saint Cuthbert rounds the curve at Bayston Hill on 25 February 2001 with the 09:40 Liverpool to Cardiff 'Northern Belle', run in connection with the Football League Cup Final at the Millennium Stadium. The red Res livery certainly stands out in the otherwise drab countryside at this time of year.

47793 Saint Augustine runs light engine past Compton Beauchamp on the evening of 14 May 1997. This was the final Class 47/7 conversion (excluding the two Royal Train locos), being converted from the former 47579 in 1995.

47798 Prince William approaches Donington (between Sleaford and Spalding) on 2 May 1998 with the Regency Rail Cruises 1Z64 06:35 Blackpool to Spalding 'Spalding Belle' railtour. A line of trees has since been planted along the edge of the field on the right.

47798 Prince William glints in the low winter sunlight at Sherburn-in-Elmet on 8 December 2001, as it heads northwards with the 08:00 Manchester to Edinburgh Northern Belle Christmas shopping special. Luxury at £165 per person with champagne on the outward journey and a five course dinner on the way home!

47798 Prince William passes Lowdham on 23 June 2002 with the 5Z48 17:13 Lincoln Central to Toton Northern Belle ECS, while 156411 heads in the opposite direction with the late running 17:42 Nuneaton to Lincoln Central Trains service.

47798 Prince William accelerates away from a signal check at Pontrilas on 2 March 2003 with the 1Z38 09:42 Liverpool Lime Street to Cardiff Central football special. The Liverpool fans were in for a good day, as Liverpool beat Manchester United 2-0.

47799 Prince Henry passes Sevington on 14 February 1998 with the British Pullman 1Z44 11:15 Victoria to Victoria Valentine's Day VSOE circular tour of Kent. The Channel Tunnel Rail Link (HS1) now runs parallel with the line at this point.

Superb evening lighting at Culham on 15 June 1999, as 47799 Prince Henry heads homewards with the 1Z97 18:48 Ascot to Stockport charter, full of happy (or broke) racegoers. Ascot week luckily often seemed to correspond with good weather in the 1990s and was always worth a trip to the lineside. Until of course Class 67s took over the workings!

Royal Train loco 47799 Prince Henry catches the last rays of the setting sun as it passes under the M40 motorway at Overthorpe (near Banbury) with a train load of race goers returning from Royal Ascot to Manchester Piccadilly on 16 June 1999, running as the 1Z97 19:05 ex Ascot. Traffic levels on the motorway were obviously not as high in those days, as I haven't had to resort to Photoshop to remove any road vehicles from this view!

After working the VSOE stock to Bath for a railtour with LNER A3 4-6-2 4472 Flying Scotsman, 47799 Prince Henry heads back to London light engine on 9 October 2003. It is pictured here at Circourt Bridge, Denchworth.