Fresh off the previous day’s enjoyable Ten Counties tour (linked here) i was down at the local station once more around 7am. One of the friendlier station Berts giving me my cheap day to Coventry, despite him saying there’s no Brum train till 0900!
I waited at a deserted platform 1 at Leighton with 310084 terminating at Bletchley as per the “STN Gen” we had gleaned a few days earlier. A Tyseley 3 car set was joined at Bletchley with a few other passengers for a Keynes bail..
At a deserted Milton Keynes we waited on the DF platform for the “Flower power” the famous 1F90 0700 Euston – Liverpool Relief. a motley collection of Mk I’s that run on Summer Sundays for the Liverpool Garden Festtival. According to the STN 1F90 was to be dragged form Bletchley to Coventry but on approach the big yellow front of a “roarer” perhaps meant the isolation had finished early.
We joined the relief up front, Dave Jackson already aboard advising the drag loco “should” go on at Northampton. On arrival at Northampton the pan on 85008 dropped with an atmospheric clunk and local beast 25313 was attached up front!
A noisy very enjoyable small Sulzer thrash from 25313 on load 11 and dead “roarer” , well worth the early start. We bailed at Rugby hoping the LNER Tour was running and when confirmed a runner by the station staff, we happily admired 25313 and train thrashing North!
A short wait and “its a pair” claim from Mr Evans as we watched 25072/25207 dragging a dead can on a very lightly loaded Euston – Holyhead LNER Charter.
We bagged a front coach compo for rat thrash climbing wrong line over Rugby flyover and then the tour steward gripped us. Unlike RESL tours of 1984 or UK Rail Tours today there was no huge excess, in fact no excess, just a “stay on board on long as you want, lads ,theres a buffet further back”..LNER tours were very sociable as we’d found doing them to Aberystwyth for class 25 action, sadly they finished around 1986 as rolling stock hire costs went through the roof.
We bailed at Coventry anyway, as the rats came off here anyway and for me it was a quick return home for domestic chores! A pair of 110 DMU’s Rugby – Bletchley though were a rateable end to an enjoyable Sunday morning run “Rat bash”..
The Gen
13/5/84 Su
084 0630 Euston-Bletchley LB-BY
53331}
59125} 0742 Bletchley-Birmingham BY-MK
53338}
85008 0700 Euston-Liverpool Relief MK-NO
25313} 0700 Euston-Liverpool Relief NO-RU
85008(d)}
25072}
25207} 0715 Euston-Holyhead Charter (LNER) RU-CO (WL over Rugby fly)
86218 (d)}
86319 0900 Wolverhampton-Euston CO-RU
54181}
53539} 1020 Rugby-Bletchley RU-BL
54182}
53540}
063 1110 Bletchley-Euston BL-LB
The phots
The magic of the “Flower power”, 25313 dragging 85008 on 1F90 0700 Euston – Liverpool Garden Festival Relief at Rugby on May 13th 1984
I walked back on leaving Rugby to get this rare view of the rats dragging the can crossing Rugby Flyover wrong line on the 0715 Euston – Holyhead LNER tour on May 13th 1984
25072 and 25207 dragging 86218 at Coventry with the LNER Tour , the pan is now back up on the can and the rats are being uncoupled on May 13th 1984
As the can leaves Coventry with the tour on May 13th 1984, 25207 and 25072 return to Bletchley light engine, drag duties over
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Leighton Lists 