Birmingham - Bristol 'Britannias' 

Birmingham - Bristol 'Britannias'

The BR class '7''Britannia' Pacifics, totalling 55 locos built at Crewe from 1951 to1954, were initially spread around the BR Regions with fifteen -70015 to 70029 - allocated to the Western Region at Old Oak Common, Plymouth and Cardiff Canton, so would have been seen in the Bristol area.

Probably most if not all the WR allocation appeared at Gloucester Central from August 1951 on running-in turns after inspection at Swindon Works, numerous sightings were recorded in magazines of the time.

In early 1957 all the WR 'Brits' were at Cardiff Canton, but by the end of 1963 the whole class was shedded on the London Midland Region.

'Brits' were only seen irregularly in Cheltenham until summer 1965 when three were allocated to Oxley, Wolverhampton, shed which had engine diagrams for Saturday trains from Wolverhampton and Birmingham to Bristol via the Honeybourne line. 

Here are individual sightings of 'Brits' in the area (some second/third etc sightings have not been listed):

70000 of 5A Crewe North was seen at Abbotswood on a Briton Ferry - Oldbury working on 5 December 1964. It was also at Gloucester on 22 Dec 1964, no further details, and on Bristol Barrow Road shed next day.

70003 of 12A Carlisle Kingmoor was reported to have worked a Bordesley - Stoke Gifford freight on 19 June 1966 - by which date there were very few steam workings between Birmingham and Bristol. (I did see some steam freights that day at Cheltenham with 8F,9F and Black Fives, but sadly missed 70003)

70004 of 1A Willesden was reported on a down fitted freight on 14 August 1964.

70006 of 31B March had a down extra passenger on 24 April 1963, a relief to heavily delayed regular express 1V45 12.15pm Newcastle – Bristol. Possibly this was 70006's first appearance in the area, having been an East Anglia based loco since new. It was noted in store at March depot in February 1963.

70007 from 12A  appeared at Cheltenham on 21 December 1963 heading 1V43,11.50am York – Bristol.  But it was not doing too well, being 101 minutes late! The loco came off the train at Gloucester, and went to  Barnwood shed for attention, with 1V43 taken to its destination by'Black Five' 44962.

70007's repairs report stated the rocker grate was not working and the reversing lever was stiff. It returned north on Christmas Eve with 1E10, 6.45am Gloucester– Sheffield.

(70007 has the dubious distinction of being the first 'Brit' withdrawn, in June 1965).

70008 of 12A was seen on an up freight at Gloucester Central on 16 June 1965.

70010 of 1A worked a Washwood Heath - Stoke Gifford coal train on 29 September 1964, returning north on another freight. It was still around on 2 October, working 3V14 Derby – Bristol parcels, heading north light engine next day.

70012 of 1A had the 7.50am  Worcester – Gloucester stopper on 28 December 1963  and  carried on with the 9.30am  Gloucester – Bristol  working. It returned that evening with 3N10 8.15pm Bristol – Leeds parcels.

70013 of 12A was around on 28 December 1964 hauling a down express, 1V44, a  relief  to the regular 1V45 Newcastle – Bristol.

70014 of 1A had a down express on 14 September 1964, 1V31 Nottingham –Bristol, taking over from a failed diesel at Birmingham, returning later with an up parcels train.

70015 of 26A Newton Heath,  Manchester had a short spell on the  Birmingham – Bristol line. It was on the overnight 7.5pm train from Newcastle in the early hours of 24 November 1960, going north from Bristol  on the 10.30am Newcastle express that day, returning next day as rostered on the 12.48pm  York– Bristol.  On 26 November it left Bristol on the 1.10am mails to Sheffield. It was transferred from the Western to the London Midland Region in July 1958.

70016 spent time at Gloucester Horton Road shed for attention with its centre driving wheels removed, noted in March 1960.  Locos which sustained hot boxes in an  area encompassing Swindon, Bristol, Bromsgrove  and  South Wales could end up at Gloucester for repairs at both Horton Road and Barnwood depots.

70017 was one of the1951 built 'Brits' allocated to 81A  Old Oak Common  in June and was seen at Gloucester on passenger workings on 21 August 1951. 70017 was also transferred from the Western to the London Midland Region in July 1958.

70018 of 5A had a down passenger on 1 February 1963 when the whole country was frozen in the harsh winter and was photographed on Barnwood shed on 3 February. It was back in better conditions on 19 June 1963 with a down special passenger. When 70018 was new, it appeared at Gloucester on 20 and 22 August 1951 with the 10.45am Paddington – Gloucester and 4.10pm return.

70019 was the first'Brit' to visit Gloucester, on 11 August 1951, with the 2.40pm passenger to Swindon. It was said to be the first 'Pacific' loco seen here. Years later it was noted on an up  fitted freight on 2 November 1964 when shedded at 5A and parcels train 3V14 on 4 November.

70020  from  86C  Cardiff Canton shed had the pleasant duty on 12 April 1961 of taking day trippers away from the seaside at Porthcawl for a visit to the Cadbury Bournville factory outside Birmingham. Excursions to this destination, including ones specially for trade visitors, were quite popular!

70021 of 1A had a mundane but essential down coal train on 7 October 1964.

70022 of 21D Aston headed an up fitted freight on 30 May 1963 and again on 25 February 1964 with 5M25 5.20pm Bristol – Water Orton.

70023 of 5A had an up fitted freight on 9 September 1964. Ian Krause took a photo of 70023 passing Horton Road shed on a van freight, possible the same occasion. 

70025 of 86C worked theSaturdays 9.35am Swansea – Birmingham Snow Hill via  the  Honeybourne route on 1 August 1959. South Wales – Birmingham services were diesel multiple units during the week, but were often replaced by steam on summer Saturdays. 70025 was also seen on 25 January 1963 on a down express by which date it was shedded at 21D Aston.  70025 returned north next day on empty coaching stock.

70026 of 9B Stockport Edgeley was on Horton Road shed on Tuesday 7 December 1965, seen by Mike Davis.

70029 of 21D  had a Walsall - Bristol football excursion on 5 January 1963 and worked  an up  fitted freight on 17 January 1963. A week later, on 25 January it had 1E64  8.40am Bristol – Sheffield passenger.

70030 of 5B Crewe South was loco for 1V52 6.55am Wolverhampton - Penzance on 19 June 1965 via the Honeybourne line. Possibly this was the only date 70030 worked these summer Saturday trains. It returned on 1M39, 12.30 Penzance –Wolverhampton.

70032 of 9A Longsight worked a passenger train from Birmingham to Bristol on 7 April 1956, said to be the first time a 'Brit' had travelled the Lickey Incline. The train it worked is a bit of a mystery according to 'TrainsIllustrated' magazine published by Ian Allan who commented: 'of thetrain it hauled we have no information, but it was not a 'TrainsIllustrated' excursion, despite the fact that No.70032 apparently still had our headboard  in position (from working TI specials elsewhere on 5 and 13 April)'. This also seems to have fooled the Gloucestershire  Railway  Society  who recorded 70032 at Gloucester Eastgate and claimed it was on an Ian Allan excursion!

70033 of 5A was on a down pigeon special on 16 May 1964.

70034 of 5A was on an up freight on 2 April 1965. It had a down pigeon special on 1 May 1965 and was  photographed that day at Bath Green Park - probably the destination of most pigeon specials through Cheltenham.

70035 of 12A had a down fitted freight on 1 January 1964, 4V56 5.20pm Washwood Heath - Westerleigh.

70038 of 12A worked a down tank train through Cheltenham on the evening of 28 May 1964.

70042 of 5A took an up pigeon special on 24 May 1964. I stayed at Lansdown station to see it go north at 12.23am, having been due nearly three hours earlier!

70044 of 9A had an express passenger working on 30 July 1961, no further details. But on 21 August 1961 it was observed on the Bristol - York express. 

70045 of 2B Oxley was regularly seen on summer Saturdays in 1965, such as 26 June with 1V53 08.00 Wolverhampton – Ilfracombe, returning in the afternoon with1M35, 11.10 Ilfracombe – Woverhampton. On 7 August I travelled on the 11-coach 1V53 from Cheltenham  Malvern Road to Bristol Temple Meads when the loco was again 70045. With an easy schedule, the train left Malvern Road four minutes late and arrived in Temple Meads ten minutes early.

70047 was seen on 15 June 1963  on an up  fitted freight when shedded at 21D  Aston, Birmingham.  On 14 August 1963  it had the down evening parcels, 3V20, photo  below at Gloucester Eastgate by  Ben Brooksbank. It became one of the three 'Brits' shedded at Oxley in summer 1965 and worked 1V53 on 19 June, but was subsequently much more elusive than the other two, 70045 and 70053. I personally don't have another sighting of it on these summer Saturday workings, though I don't have a full record.

70049 of 16D  Annesley was at Gloucester Barnwood shed for repair on 3 July 1962.

70050 of 5A had an up freight on 18 February 1963. Earlier that day it worked 1V86 Manchester – Plymouth down the north and west route via Crewe and Hereford to Bristol.

70050 was reported on 16 October 1964 doubleheading with ex-Crosti 9F 92029 on what was claimed as a 113 wagon freight!  Was it two  freights coupled together for some reason? Surely it would have been too  long to go  into loops for faster trains to pass by.....

70051 of 5A had a Margam - Frodingham fitted freight on 19 December 1964 (seen by my brother Paul). It  was on a down Christmas parcels at Cheltenham four days later on 23 December, returning north same day with a ten coach Bristol - Sheffield relief to the up evening Mail. (70000 was at Bristol on the same day.)

70052 of 5A worked a pigeon special from Preston on 15 August 1964, later in the year it headed an up parcels on 6 October 1964.

70053 was the third 'Brit' at Oxley in summer 1965 and was on 1V52 06.55 Wolverhampton –Penzance on 12 June. I caught this train from Cheltenham  Malvern Road to Gloucester Eastgate, where I detrained to go on a WarwickshireRailway Society special over the Somerset & Dorset line. 1V52 was the only down train on the Honeybourne route services that called at Gloucester, the others took the avoiding line via Gloucester South. They all travelled into Bristol via Stoke Gifford instead of  the ex-Midland line through Mangotsfield.

The WRS special  with'Black Five' 44777 also traversed the Honeybourne line from Birmingham Snow Hill, but I couldn't get on at Malvern Road as it didn't stop there!

70053 had a different duty a week later on 19 June 1965 when it worked an up tanker train through Lansdown station around 09.20. This was the second of three 'Brits' seen in an hour that morning – 70030 was through ten minutes earlier on 1V52, then fifty minutes later 70047 was on 1V53.

After the summer timetable ended, the three Oxley 'Brits' were reallocated to 2D Banbury.

70054 of 55A Leeds Holbeck was on a down express on 1 April 1962 and had the York- Bristol on 5 April 1962.  Mike Davis noted it on Horton Road shed on 10 August 1965 when it was a 5B Crewe South engine. 70054 was the last 'Brit' into service, in September 1954.

That's 37 of the 55'Brits' noted in the area.

'Brits' also worked to Bristol from Crewe via Shrewsbury and Hereford.  Patrick O'Brien has kindly provided the following information:

Brits worked through to Bristol  late in 1965, but via the north to west route, on 1V93 Liverpool - Plymouth, the only train to avoid Newport and reversal.

Noted were 70032 on Sep 28, 70020 on October 13 and 70011 on November 16, the last week of steam at Barrow Road.  If any of them returned north on 3M00 23.25 Crewe parcels, they would have gone through Cheltenham.

The 17 not noted at Cheltenham/Gloucester are:

70001/ 70002/ 70005/ 70009/ 70011/ 70024/ 70027/ 70028/ 70031/70036/70037/70039/ 70040/70041/70043/70046/70048.

As stated earlier the ex-WR ones - 70024/70026/70027/70028 -  would probably have got to Gloucester in the early 1950s. Any sightings in the area gratefully received.