37407 Blackpool Tower passes through Finstock station on 24 October 2025, running as the 0A36 10:38 Long Marston to Wembley Loco Sidings light engine. This was running 13 minutes late, partly because the loco didn't leave Long Marston on time, but mainly because it had to wait at Charlbury until the late running 1P24 09:56 Great Malvern to Paddington service had cleared Wolvercote Junction. The loco had earlier taken a couple of Class 350 EMUs from Wembley to Long Marston, travelling via Birmingham.

56045 & 56103 run alongside the Kennet & Avon Canal at Bridge 99, near Crofton, on 22 October 2025 with the 6V23 10:34 Willesden DC Rail Sidings to Merehead Quarry stone empties. The 56s were standing in for 60028, which had failed the previous day. This was running four minutes late, which was very fortunate, as it was still cloudy at the booked time. The lucky sun makes an excellent picture, with the added bonus of some colourful autumn foliage.

In typically dull Scottish weather, 37401 The Royal Scotsman crosses over the River Bran, and arrives at Achnasheen station on 5 October 2001 with the 1H98 13:25 Kyle of Lochalsh to Dundee 'Royal Scotsman' luxury charter.

158844 passes the site of Westbury station (between Shrewsbury and Welshpool) on 14 June 2003 with the 17:33 Shrewsbury to Aberystwyth Central Trains service. The unit had arrived at Shrewsbury, along with a classmate, as the 16:34 from Birmingham New Street. The other unit then worked the 17:35 Shrewsbury to Chester train.

158780 passes through Radley station on 25 June 2001 with the 17:29 Bristol Temple Meads to Bicester Town First Great Western service. Central Trains Class 158s were occasionally hired in for these trains, which were normally worked by Class 165s, like the 18:33 Oxford to Paddington Thames Trains service, which can be seen disappearing into the distance.

47150 passes Claydon on 19 April 1991 with the 4O34 11:38 Garston (Speke) to Eastleigh Ford Transit vans. In later years it was common to see trains of Transits going north to Garston from the Ford factory at Swaythling (Southampton), but during 1991 this train ran in the opposite direction. Sometimes it ran with as little as four wagons (eight vans), and although I only saw it a few times, this is definitely the greatest load I ever photographed.

47309 European Rail Operator of the Year approaches Wolvercote Junction on 23 August 1999 with the 4S59 15:13 Millbrook to Coatbridge freightliner. The green and yellow Macfarlane Transport vehicles were a common sight on the roads at the time. The company ceased trading in 2010.

47238 Bescot Yard approaches Goring on 28 August 1991 with the 4O81 07:00 Coatbridge to Southampton Maritime freightliner. By this time in the evening (17:50) even the relief lines were unfortunately mostly in shadow.

47316 passes Goring on 28 August 1991 with the lightly loaded 4M57 15:50 Southampton Maritime to Trafford Park freightliner. This is yet another Thames Valley location that I haven't visited since the wires went up in 2016.

You don't need two Class 47s for a five coach train, even up the formidable Dainton Bank. However, on 16 March 1996, 47828 & 47847 were provided for the 1M40 11:44 Plymouth to Liverpool Lime Street service, seen here climbing the last few yards of the bank before entering Dainton Tunnel.

47840 North Star passes Clay Cross on 9 April 1992 with the 1V60 14:41 York to Plymouth InterCity service. The convenient unofficial spotter's car park has long since been fenced off, and the whole area has become much more overgrown.

The 5Q86 13:44 Long Marston to Eastleigh ECS passes Whitehill (between Finstock and Combe) on 17 October 2025 with Mk5a driving trailer 12806 leading and 68031 providing power at the rear. The former TransPennine stock is destined for a new career with Chiltern Railways. There was nothing else to photograph while I was waiting for this, as in true GWR tradition, both up and down passenger trains just before this were cancelled. Just two of at least ten Cotswold Line trains cancelled during the day!

Unbranded plain blue liveried 68031 propels the 5Q86 13:44 Long Marston to Eastleigh ECS past Whitehill (between Finstock and Combe) on 17 October 2025. The Mk5a set, led by driving trailer 12806, is going to receive some modifications, before entering service with Chiltern Railways. Although I have some pictures of Class 68s working to Long Marston from the Worcester direction, this is my first picture of one of the class (or indeed a Mk5a driving trailer!) on the southern end of the Cotswold Line. There may not have been any sunshine, but at least there is a fine range of autumn colours visible in background. 

47361 Wilton Endeavour passes South Moreton on 6 May 1992 with the 4M57 15:50 Southampton Maritime to Trafford Park freightliner. This was an excellent and sadly missed Didcot area location, although not quite so good for anything on the fast line!

Just a few days after being introduced into service, 165034 runs along the up relief line at South Moreton on 6 May 1992 with a crew training run from Oxford to Paddington. Class 165/0s were destined for the Chiltern Line, but in 1992 they were used on Thames Valley services, pending the arrival of the route's dedicated Class 165/1s.

37072 slows for 120 degree curve at Firsby on 17 September 1988 with the 1J26 13:10 Skegness to Sheffield service. The Skegness line was well worth a visit on a summer Saturday, as there were several loco hauled trains, and a wide variety of interesting traction.

37010 prepares to reverse the 6Z23 Thameshaven to Littlemore oil train into Littlemore Oil Depot on 15 May 1997. This was the first train here for many years. Unfortunately the blue sky in the background is deceptive, as it clouded up a few minutes later.

55012 (TS062) and an unidentified Class 116 unit pass Bishopton on 8 June 1985 with the 12:10 Birmingham Moor Street to Stratford-upon-Avon (via Henley-in-Arden) service. This location has changed beyond all recognition since this picture was taken. Stratford Parkway station now occupies the site, but in 1985 this was still just a rural spot on the outskirts of Stratford-upon-Avon. Even the A46 Stratford bypass, which now crosses the line in the back of this view, had yet to be built. In addition to the new station, the area behind where I was stood was fields in 1985, and four decades later is now covered in houses.

47245 Linnet passes Culham on 22 June 1990 with the 4M79 15:51 Southampton Maritime to Lawley Street freightliner. The loco had received the unofficial Linnet name at Tinsley the previous November. By early 1991 it had lost the name, when it was repainted into Railfreight Distribution livery.

47530 accelerates away from Cholsey station on 3 July 1991 with the 1F46 17:37 Paddington to Didcot Parkway Network SouthEast 'all stations' service. For the small Thames Valley stations that normally relied on three coach Class 117s, this seven coach loco hauled train was luxury!

50008 Thunderer passes Golant on 4 May 1991 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z16 Manchester Piccadilly to Penzance 'Cornish Centurion 2' railtour. 50015 Valiant is bringing up the rear. Apologies for the very poor quality of this image, but the weather was abysmal, and this picture was taken at 07:25. The long drive to Cornwall required a 03:00 start! I have seen numerous more recent pictures of Golant, but I don't think there is now this unobstructed view of the cottages in the foreground. Note the surf board propped up against one of the houses.

87101 Stephenson approaches Colton Junction on 18 November 1995 with the Hertfordshire Railtours 1Z49 07:30 Kings Cross to Boulby 'Boulby Prize' railtour. The electric loco would be replaced at York by 47783 Saint Peter, which would take the train onto the Boulby branch, with 56108 at the rear.

L403 (51378, 59488 & 51336) passes the then recently built Foundation Park industrial estate, White Waltham, on 6 January 1991 with the 2A42 11:15 Reading to Paddington Network SouthEast service. After L403 was displaced from the Thames Valley duties in late 1992, it was reformed as two car unit L708.

33104 & 33027 Earl Mountbatten of Burma pass underneath the Walton Well Road bridge, as they approach Oxford on 21 August 1982 with an unidentified southbound freightliner. I presume the locos must have been swapped from a northbound liner at Banbury, as they passed by in the opposite direction just over an hour earlier. Any information would be gratefully received.

20137 passes Didbrook on 10 August 1995 with the 11:00 Toddington to Far Stanley service, during the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway's Diesel Week. 20137 had arrived at the railway on 18 June 1994. It retained its Railfreight grey livery for the first couple of years in preservation.

The Leyland 680 six cylinder 11.1 litre diesel engine was used extensively on first generation DMUs, with a pair of engines on each powered vehicle. No.2 engine is pictured on Class 119 DMS 51085 (set L593) at Moreton-in-Marsh on 9 April 1983. Class 119s originally had AEC engines. It looks like this engine has had some welding work done to the rocker covers.

47529 passes West Drayton on 6 November 1986 with the 09:15 Cardiff Central to Paddington relief. This was in the days when the railways were run for the benefit of passengers, and not for the profit (hopefully) of some private company. Relief trains were as common then as rail replacement buses are now!

The pig is not interested! 56004 passes Culham on 1 May 1982 with the 6M56 11:40 Didcot Power Station to Washwood Heath MGR empties. This loco spent its entire career in BR blue livery. It arrived in the Country at Harwich in August 1976, but due to having to correct numerous faults, was not accepted into traffic until February 1977. After several periods in storage, it was finally cut up at Booths, Rotherham, in July 2006.

57005 Freightliner Excellence passes Baschurch (between Wrexham and Shrewsbury) on 1 June 2003 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z56 14:58 Crewe to Crewe (via Hooton) 'Crewe Invader' railtour. 56038 Pathfinder Railtours 30 Years of Railtouring 1973 - 2003 is bringing up the rear, and would later take over when the train reversed at Shrewsbury.

56038 Pathfinder Railtours 30 Years of Railtouring 1973 - 2003 brings up the rear of the Pathfinder Tours 1Z56 14:58 Crewe to Crewe (via Hooton) 'Crewe Invader' railtour at Baschurch on 1 June 2003. 57005 Freightliner Excellence was leading the tour at this point. Earlier in the day 37503 & 37674 had been used to bring the tour from Bristol, and later 37695 & 37517 would be used to take the train back from Crewe to Bristol.

A trio of DRS locomotives pass underneath the A513 road bridge at Alrewas on 25 May 2001. 20903, 20906 & 33207 head south towards Birmingham, with a light engine working, the details of which I seem to have mislaid! Both 20903 & 20906 were formerly Hunslet Barclay locomotives.

Hybrid Class 101/116 unit L210 (54381 & 53083) accelerates away from Radley station on 15 May 1992 with the 2C64 17:21 Reading to Oxford Network SouthEast service. With the introduction of the new Class 165s in full swing, both vehicles forming L210 would be withdrawn just four months later. When this picture was taken, the tall radio mast had just been installed, which was stage one of spoiling this as a photographic location. Stage two was the growth of the roadside trees that completely blocked the view!

1501 Gateshead & 50033 Glorious approach Bury Bolton Street on 11 July 1998 with the 16:15 Rawtenstall to Bury service, during the East Lancashire Railway's Diesel Gala. The 50 had worked the train from Rawtenstall, with the 47 being added at Ramsbotton. The line up of locos on the left comprises: Class 44 4 Great Gable, Class 42 D821 (Masquerading as D808 Centaur & D810 Cockade), Class 45 45133 & Class 42 832 Onslaught.

37714 catches the last of the golden afternoon light at Portway on 22 January 1992, as it heads north with the 6E73 13:35 Round Oak to Boston Docks steel for export. This view from the bridge in the fields near Harlaston has been popular with generations of railway photographers, as it offers reasonably unobstructed views in both directions.

37899 County Of West Glamorgan / Sir Gorllewin Morgannwg & 37698 Coedbach bring up the rear of the Hereford Rail Day 1Z31 15:25 Abergavenny to Hereford special at St Devereux on 5 May 1991. 56053 Sir Morgannwg Ganol / County of Mid Glamorgan is at the front of the train.

Number confusion at Moreton-in-Marsh on 4 October 2003. Despite the large number below the cab window, this is obviously not Class 73 electro-diesel 73102, but is in fact Plasser & Theurer 09-32 RT Tamper / Liner DR73102. This scene could not be replicated today, as the siding the vehicle is standing on has been lifted, and 73102 has been exported to Sweden!

319040 speeds past Ampthill (Millbrook) on 29 May 1988 with the 10:07 Bedford to Sevenoaks service. This was one of Network SouthEast's Thameslink trains, which had been introduced, with much publicity, a couple of week earlier. The well known local landmark of the Stewartby Brickworks chimneys can be seen in the background. The works closed in 2008, and all the chimneys have now been demolished.

D6593 approaches Barnes through the shadows on 8 January 2000 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z96 08:55 Finsbury Park to Cannon Street 'Buffer Puffer' railtour. The train has come from Acton, and is coming off the Hounslow loop line. The tracks on left are from Mortlake and Richmond. The brick built building in the V of the junction is a Southern Railway electricity substation.

43086 heads north at Cossington on 1 June 1985 with the 16:40 St Pancras to Derby service. Not only is there much less lineside vegetation in this view than now, but also there are now more bushes and trees in the background. In 1985 Syston church could still be seen in the distance, on the left.

45104 The Royal Warwickshire Fusiliers passes Dunhampstead on 20 March 1982 with the 1V75 07:00 Newcastle to Bristol Temple Meads service. The cutting takes the railway through a small ridge of high ground, but the adjacent Worcester & Birmingham Canal (built 25 years before the railway) goes through the ridge in a tunnel.

31272 passes Hinksey Yard on 4 July 1985 with what is presumably a couple of vans off the 6V19 06:05 Bescot to Didcot Speedlink. The rest of the train followed over an hour later, after 47202 had headed north light engine to collect it. I assume the 31 had brought the entire train down from Bescot.

D6851 (37667) Flopsie passes Chilson on 2 October 2025 with the 1Q23 06:43 Bristol Kingsland Road to Derby RTC Network Rail test train. The uncontrolled lineside vegetation is getting so bad here (and everywhere else!), that 37610 on the rear of the train is almost hidden from view.

37610 brings up the rear of the 1Q23 06:43 Bristol Kingsland Road to Derby RTC Network Rail test train at Chilson on 2 October 2025. The leading loco is D6851 (37667) Flopsie, hired to Colas from Locomotive Services Ltd.

D6851 (37667) Flopsie passes Daylesford on 1 October 2025 with the 1Q22 07:17 Derby RTC to Bristol Kingsland Road Network Rail test train. 37610 is brining up the rear. Like a lot of locations on the Cotswold Line, this is getting very overgrown, with the lineside bushes being hit by the trains in several places!

37610 brings up the rear of the 1Q22 07:17 Derby RTC to Bristol Kingsland Road Network Rail test train at Daylesford on 1 October 2025. D6851 (37667) Flopsie is leading. This was just before the sun came out from behind some thin cloud. This was fortunate, as in full sun this would have been extremely backlit.

47739 approaches Kemble on 1 October 2025 with the 5Q79 12:34 Long Marston to Wimbledon Park Depot Sidings, taking EMU 701059 back from its second period in storage. This had left Long Marston nearly two hours late, but was only 81 minutes late here. I had intended to go to Standish Junction, but a quicker than expected reversal at Worcester didn't quite give me enough time to get there, so a quick change of plan was required.

In golden early morning light, just 25 minutes after sunrise, 66734 Platinum Jubilee passes Uffington on 29 September 2025 with the 6A66 04:30 Tytherington to Quainton Railhead HS2 stone train. Hidden by the bushes on the rear of the train is 66767 King's Cross PSB 1971 - 2021. This was running six minutes late, which made a tremendous difference in how much of the track was lit.

The Saphos Trains 1Z46 05:56 Worcester Shrub Hill to Canterbury West 'Golden Arrow' railtour passes Uffington on 29 September 2025 with D1924 (47810) Crewe Diesel Depot leading, and D1935 (47805) Roger Hosking MA 1925 - 2013 bringing up the rear.

66508 City of Doncaster passes Uffington on 29 September 2025 with the 6A16 07:43 Whatley Quarry to Oxford Banbury Road stone train. With just 18 wagons in the train, the whole length is just about visible, in what is becoming an increasingly overgrown location.

153385 & 153384 pass Uffington on 29 September 2025 with the 2Q23 07:20 Sharpness Docks to Manningtree Down Siding Network Rail inspection train, which in the event was terminated at Reading. The previous day the two units had successfully completed the mammoth 2Q13 13:08 Inverness Millburn to Sharpness Docks journey. It's a good job that I decided to photograph this from the footbridge, and not the field on the left, as 800316 with the 1B10 10:15 Paddington to Cardiff Central GWR service would clearly have completely blocked my view!

66594 NYK Spirit of Kyoto & 66513 pass Uffington on 29 September 2025, running as the 0V68 06:18 Hoo Junction Up Yard to Stoke Gifford light engines. Note the compound on the right which was created by Network Rail a few years ago, hardly used, and now is starting to be overtaken by buddleia bushes.

Another pair of Class 455 EMUs head to the scrapman. 37800 Cassiopeia passes Uffington on 29 September 2025 with the 5Q76 10:35 Wimbledon Park Depot Sidings to Newport Docks (Sims Group), towing 455733 & (hidden by the bushes) 455914.

156469 and an unidentified classmate pass Nursling on 17 June 1989 with the 2O97 05:43 Milford Haven to Brighton Regional Railways service. The units would split at Fareham, with one going to Portsmouth Harbour, and the other carrying on to Brighton. This is the site of Nursling station (closed in 1957). The large white building is the former station master's house.

Chester Depot's set CH256 (54231 & 51901) passes Elmesthorpe on 11 June 1989 with the 09:57 Birmingham New Street to Leicester Regional Railways service. This was a surprise, as it was supposed to be a Sprinter. Another indication that this unit is away from its normal area is the Alderley Edge destination blind. Cheshire is a long way from Leicestershire! The bridge in the background is the M69 Leicester to Coventry motorway.

56069 Wolverhampton Steel Terminal approaches Potters Grange Junction, Goole, on 17 April 2003, as it nears its destination with the early running 6D94 07:35 Doncaster to Goole steel for export. Taking shape in the background is the Guardian Industries float glass factory, and on the left the lineside field is being turned into an industrial estate. A similar fate overtook the field behind the train two decades later. This view has now completely disappeared in a forest of trees and bushes.

Six wagons of rails, and a single ballast wagon is the miniscule load for 70807, as it heads south at Culham on 26 September 2025 with the 6O24 09:25 Hinksey to Eastleigh East Yard engineer's working. The train is passing the site of a former public footpath crossing. This has quite rightly been closed, as the curving track severely restricted visibility, and in any case there is a much easier crossing over the bridge from which this picture was taken.

70005 passes Culham on 26 September 2025 with the 4M50 07:20 Southampton Maritime to Trafford Park freightliner. Just before this arrived, three Network Rail workers turned up, spent five minutes half heartedly trimming the hedge, ignored the large bush, and then packed up and drove away!

A hot air balloon drifts by in the background, as 165124 accelerates away from Culham station (just out of sight behind the bushes) on 26 September 2025 with the 2L20 09:38 Didcot Parkway to Oxford GWR service.

68020 passes Culham on 26 September 2025 with the 5Q69 09:21 Eastleigh to Banbury Chiltern Railways crew trainer. This happened to correspond with a couple of minutes of unexpected sunshine. I'm not sure if this was a good thing, as I hadn't expected it, and it is severely backlit. The rest of the day's runs were: 5Q70 12:00 Banbury to Didcot Parkway, 5Q71 12:54 Didcot Parkway to Leamington Spa, and 5Q86 14:08 Leamington Spa to Eastleigh.

66734 Platinum Jubilee passes Badgeworth on 25 September 2025 with the 4M54 07:10 Cardiff Docks to Burton West Yard scrap empties. This was running 32 minutes early, after missing out its booked stop at Barnwood Junction.

My first picture of a Class 197 DMU working a passenger train. 197017 passes Badgeworth on 25 September 2025 with the 2G52 08:10 Cardiff Central to Cheltenham Spa Transport for Wales service. One of the new breed of British trains that doesn't have any yellow on the front end.

168107 passes Claydon on 25 September 2025 with the 1H33 10:45 Birmingham Moor Street to Marylebone Chiltern Railways service. Just visible in the background is one of the abutments of the bridge that once carried the Stratford-upon-Avon & Midland Junction Railway's Stratford to Towcester line over the mainline.

168002 passes the duplicate 93½ mileposts at Wormleighton Crossing on 25 September 2025, as it heads south with the 1H43 12:11 Birmingham Snow Hill to Marylebone Chiltern Railways service. The footpath crossing here can be surprisingly busy, as it gives access to the nearby Oxford Canal.

The new Chiltern Railways livery made its mainline debut on 25 September 2025, when 68020 and a Mk5a set made a series of test runs from along the Cherwell Valley, after travelling up from Eastleigh. The early running 5Q71 12:54 Didcot Parkway to Leamington Spa is pictured passing Wormleighton Crossing. The dark blue livery on this end of the loco looks almost black in this severe backlighting. Driving trailer 12805 is bringing up the rear.

Looking smart in its brand new Chiltern Railways livery, the early running 5Q71 12:54 Didcot Parkway to Leamington Spa crew training run passes Wormleighton Crossing on 25 September 2025, with Mk5a driving trailer 12805 bringing up the rear, and 68020 leading.

Mk5a driving trailer 12805 leads the 5Q72 14:08 Leamington Spa to Oxford crew train run past Claydon on 25 September 2025. 68020 is providing the power at the rear. This was the first day of a train in the new Chiltern Railways livery being used on the mainline. Both the locos and the coaches were formerly employed on TransPennine services between Manchester and Scarborough.

Tyseley's set TS 613 (53863, 59594 & 53916) stands underneath the station footbridge at Moreton-in-Marsh on 26 May 1986, having just arrived with the 2B20 16:40 Reading to Moreton-in-Marsh service. It would later head back south as the 2A62 19:18 Moreton-in-Marsh to Oxford. Class 117s and 119s were the most common type of DMUs on the Cotswold Line at this time, but occasionally Birmingham units added some variety. The West Midlands logo on the front and side clearly shows that this unit is some way from its home territory.

D9539 leaves Winchcombe on 9 November 1996, en-route from Toddington to Far Stanley, during the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway's Diesel Gala. Along with classmate D9537, this loco was acquired from British Steel at Corby in 1983. It moved to the Ribble Steam Railway in 2005.

King Class 4-6-0 6024 King Edward I approaches Hatton on 6 May 1991 with the Pathfinder Tours 07:47 Paddington to Stratford-upon-Avon 'Royal Shakespeare Shuttle' railtour. The train was diesel hauled between London and Didcot. The distinctive Hatton Psychiatric Hospital water tower can just be seen in the background.

With an ominously dark sky in the background, L420 (51400, 59510 & 51358) leaves Oxford station on 21 October 1988 with the 2C25 11:30 Network SouthEast service to Reading. The 1S39 09:00 Poole to Edinburgh 'Wessex Scot'; has just arrived at the other platform.

37239 approaches Oxford on 21 October 1988 with 6M19 14:10 Didcot to Washwood Heath Speedlink Coal, which on this occasion included both HAA and HEA empty wagons. By this date a few lineside bushes were beginning to make photography difficult here, but now a line of full grown trees right next to the line make it almost impossible!

50031 Hood leaves Merthyr Tydfil on 9 August 1998 with the 1Z12 14:38 Merthyr Tydfil to Rhymney special, one of a series organised by the Cardiff Railway Company. Note the very appropriate Hoover (Major Appliance Division) factory in the background.

43098 passes Flax Bourton on 11 August 2007 with the late running 1C10 10:30 Paddington to Weston-super-Mare First Great Western service. The rusty disused refuge siding on the left was lifted a few years later. Behind the embankment on the left are the remains of Tyntesfield Sidings, a former MoD fuel storage depot, that closed in 1990.

43189 Railway Heritage Trust speeds past Waltham St Lawrence on 27 July 2007 with the 1L38 07:29 Swansea to Paddington First Great Western service. This was one of a number of excellent photographic locations between Reading and Maidenhead, all now sadly lost under a sea of wires.

The Hastings Diesels Ltd 1Z40 07:02 Hastings to Birmingham Moor Street '100 Not Out' railtour passes through Tackley station on 20 September 2025. As the name implies, this is the preserved Thumper unit's 100th mainline railtour. 1013, with S60119 leading and S60118 Tunbridge Wells at the far end, also has the addition of S60116 Mountfield, from 201001, at the rear.

S60016 Mountfield brings up the rear of the Hastings Diesels Ltd 1Z40 07:02 Hastings to Birmingham Moor Street '100 Not Out' railtour at Tackley on 20 September 2025. The other six vehicles in the train are unit 1013, with S60119 leading. The 201001 set number painted on S60116's front end is misleading, as it is actually a Class 202 vehicle.

The Hastings Diesels Ltd 1Z41 15:00 Birmingham Moor Street to Hastings '100 Not Out' railtour passes Yarnton on 20 September 2025, with S60116 Mountfield, from set 201001, leading 1013. With two power cars at the front, and one at the rear, the seven coach train has plenty of power. Directly behind the train is Yarnton Lane level crossing, and in the distance is Sandy Lane level crossing, both of which have at various times been threatened with closure.

Gloucestershire & Warwickshire Railway steam and diesel power at Toddington on 18 September 2025. 28xx 2-8-0 2807 stands at the head of the 10:00 train to Cheltenham Racecourse, next to 47105, which was booked to work the 10:20 service to Broadway. Unfortunately, when the 47 started to run round its coaches, the loco couldn't create enough vacuum to fully release the brakes, so there was a delay while it was put back on shed, and the driver replaced it with 47376 Freightliner 1995.

The Minehead signalman hands over the Minehead to Blue Anchor token to the crew of 2-6-0 9351 on 17 September 2025, prior to it working the 12:20 service to Bishops Lydeard. 9351 started life as 5101 Class 2-6-2T 5193. It was withdrawn in 1962, and was rescued from Barry scrapyard in 1979. When the loco arrived at the West Somerset Railway in 1998, the decision was taken to convert it to a tender engine, as the side tanks were so heavily corroded that conversion was the cheaper option. Apart from the slightly smaller boiler, the loco is now a 43xx Class 2-6-0.

D6575 approaches Stogumber station on 17 September 2025 with the 14:20 Minehead to Bishops Lydeard West Somerset Railway service. Note the marker stones in the ballast indicating where a seven coach train should stop. Although it was sunny near the coast, on this day it was mostly cloudy inland, so I did well to get this in some weak sunshine.

D6575 waits at the almost deserted Bishops Lydeard station on 17 September 2025, prior to working the 16:40 train to Minehead. This would be the West Somerset Railway's final northbound train of the day, and as there would be no way of getting back from Minehead, this explains the lack of passengers.

Former South African Railways Class NG15 2-8-2 No.2685 looks in a very sorry state, when pictured at the Exmoor Steam Railway's site at Bratton Fleming on 16 September 2025. The loco was built by Societe Anglo Franco Belge in 1955.

The Lynton & Barnstable Railway's Bagnall 4-4-0T 2819 Sir George Newnes arrives back at Woody Bay station on 16 September 2025 with the 12:30 train from Killington Lane. The loco was built in 1946 for the Tongaat Sugar Company of South Africa. The track workers in the background are preparing a new siding for a proposed carriage shed.

Looking immaculate after a recent fresh coat of paint, 1952 built Baguley Drewry 0-6-0 D2393 Pilton is pictured at Woody Bay station, on the Lynton & Barnstable Railway, on 16 September 2025. The loco spent its early working life in Australia.

The Lynton & Barnstable Railway's Bagnall 4-4-0T 2819 Sir George Newnes stands at Woody Bay station on 16 September 2025, having just arrived with the 14:30 service from Killington Lane. Waiting on the platform is Henry the railway collecting dog, with his owner John Bond. They are hoping that the passengers getting off the train would put a few coins in the box on Henry's back. Railway collecting dogs were a feature of Waterloo station in the Victorian and Edwardian periods.

31178 passes Stenson Junction on 2 June 1984 with the 4M78 11:09 Leeds to Rugby freightliner. Just a single freightliner five wagon set here, but another would be added at Bescot, and once the train reached Rugby, it would connect with a service from Manchester, and then proceed on to Tilbury. This was an ideal train for photographers, as it was a Saturday working, and ran at a convenient time. It was usually Class 31 hauled, although 45s and 47s did sometimes appear.

85026 passes Basford Hall Junction on 3 July 1985 with an unidentified southbound working. Due to the Crewe station remodelling, all trains were being diverted over the avoiding lines. The train is just rejoining the mainline, after bypassing the station. At this time the Class 85s were nearing the end of their working lives, and a failure whilst hauling a parcels train in May 1990 was enough to see 85026 withdrawn. It was cut up three years later.

Livery transition time at Fairwood on 11 September 2007. 43151 is in the then new version of First Great Western's blue colour scheme, while the coaches are still in the previous version of the livery. The train is the 1C82 11:05 Paddington to Plymouth service, which at the time was branded in the timetable as 'The Mayflower'. The Westbury White is clearly visible in the background.

56047 passes Hay Lane, on the western edge of Swindon, with the 6V38 11:52 Wolverton to Stoke Gifford ARC stone empties on 16 June 1983. The brick arch bridge which formerly carried a minor road, had been bypassed when the road was realigned during the building of the nearby M4 motorway in the early 1970s. It was demolished when the line was electrified in 2016.

47148 passes Hay Lane, near Swindon, on 16 June 1983 with a westbound engineer's train. Just visible in the misty background on the left is the Anchor butter factory. This was a major Swindon employer, until its closure in 2002. 47148 was withdrawn in July 1987, and after periods in store at Tinsley, March, Wigan Springs Branch and Mossend, it was finally cut up at MC Metals, Springburn in October 1989.

60021 Pen-y-Ghent runs alongside the Stainforth & Keadby Canal at Crowle on 12 March 1998 with the 6D78 12:14 Redcar to Scunthorpe, conveying coke in HEA hoppers. Note the first signs of development in the field on the right. First of all a caravan park, and later a housing estate appeared, changing the view forever.

On the final day of Class 33 operations on the route, 33211 passes Heytesbury on 14 May 1988 with the 1V54 10:10 Portsmouth Harbour to Swansea service, which it worked between Portsmouth Harbour and Bristol Temple Meads.

The 'Tamworth Terminator'! D306 Atlantic Conveyor & 47510 pass Castor on 1 March 2008 with 1M50 14:30 Peterborough to Wansford service, during the Nene Valley Railway's Diesel Gala. Both locos are in green livery, the Class 40 in BR green, and the 37 partly in green primer!

158771 approaches Wickwar on 30 January 2008 with the 2O76 10:42 Gloucester to Weymouth First Great Western service. Behind the unit is a little used farm occupation bridge, with the houses of Charfield in the distance.

221131 approaches Goring on 12 April 2008 with the 05:45 Crewe to Bournemouth CrossCountry service. Before electfrication this was an excellent location for southbound trains in the morning, but only if they were on the fast line, as here!

221115 passes Bishop's Itchington on 15 April 2008 with the 06:44 Newcastle to Bournemouth service. CrossCountry had just taken over the franchise from Virgin, and although the Virgin logos have been removed, this unit has yet to have the new operator's graphics applied, so it is seen here minus any form of branding.

Superb late afternoon light at Tredington on 10 October 2008. 170105 heads south with the 1V34 14:00 Nottingham to Cardiff Central CrossCountry service. This is the view from the level crossing on the very quiet minor road from Gotherington to Tredington.

170101 passes Ashchurch on 23 August 2008 with the 1V04 06:58 Nottingham to Cardiff Central CrossCountry service. Disappearing into the heat haze in the background is the 1M92 07:45 Cardiff Central to Nottingham train. The long lens has compressed the perspective. The bridge behind the DMU in the distance is actually nearly two miles away.

Still wearing Central Trains livery, but now operated by CrossCountry, 170639 passes Severn Tunnel Junction on 20 September 2008 with the 1M60 09:45 Cardiff Central to Nottingham service. This was always a pleasant spot to spend a few hours, on the virtually traffic free road bridge to nowhere. The replacement high sided bridge and the electfrication of the route means it is no longer a spot worth visiting!

37042 & 37372 pass Winterbourne on 8 June 2002 with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z37 07:03 Crewe to Portbury Automotive Terminal 'Post Festive Freighter' railtour. A location that I only visited once, and which involved climbing through a jungle of trees in an old quarry. The growth of the trees and the electrification of the route means that this view is no longer possible.