I spent a lot of time by the Great Western Main Line in the 1970s and 1980s, mainly because I lived close to it during those years, and it was the quickest to get to. The following photographs are a mixture of my own and some purchased at auctions over the past decades. I will try to portray them as a journey from Paddington westwards.
Paddington in 1977 and parcels unit 55991 is seen at platform 10 while Royal Mail staff load mailbags onto the train. There were half a dozen of these particular single units with gangway connectors, class 128.
In steam days, the GW 61xx tanks performed the bulk of suburban duties while 0-6-0 pannier tanks moved ECS around the station and to/from Old Oak Common sidings. Here in 1964, 6163 and 8487 are working target duties 4 and 2, as indicated by the number above the buffer beam. Sadly, this slide is suffering from the dreaded blue dot deterioration.
BR had dedicated 3-car DMUs for suburban work, built by Pressed Steel Ltd and classed 117 under TOPS. Here L416 arrives at Paddington with a service from the Thames Valley in 1988. The units tended to remain in sets, and L416 was W51353, W59505, W51395.
In the mid-1960s, BR attempted to speed up London to Bristol services using pairs of English Electric Type 3s (later class 37) geared for 100mph running. In this shot we see D6881 and D6882 ready to work 1B06 on July 26th 1966. The experiment was not a great success due to excessive wear on components, and was abandoned in 1967.
During the all blue era of the 1970s we see D1010 ‘Western Campaigner’ dragging L423 out to Old Oak. I had arrived on this unit from Slough on 30th September 1976, and we had prolonged stops at a couple of stations while the guard and driver discussed the state of the diesel engines. However, the train struggled on and seems to have only then been declared a failure.
An unidentified GWR 4-6-0 leaves Paddington with a passenger service in the early 1960s.
Steam was replaced mainly by diesel hydraulic traction in the early to mid 1960s and these locomotives survived for about 15 years before BR ditched the hydraulics in favour of their standard electric transmission locomotives. Here Hymek D7029 is waiting to depart circa 1973/4.
D1070 ‘Western Gauntlet’ is at Paddington in October 1976. With higher power output, these locomotives were used on the majority of expresses until usurped by the class 50s and HSTs – examples of which can be seen on the right.
With a power output between the Hymeks and the Westerns, the Warships were the third of the mainline WR hydraulic locomotive for passenger services westwards from Paddington. D818 ‘Glory’ reverses onto its train in March 1967.
By the end of the 20th century, electrification had been completed as far as Heathrow Airport. 332008 is one of the units constructed for the Heathrow Express service, and is seen at Paddington in 1999.
D1010 ‘Western Campaigner’ is seen at Paddington during 1976, and judging by the spotters on the left by the signal box, the photo was taken on one of the hotter days of that long summer.
Some of the photos I have purchased over the years, have been from the collections of ex-BR employees, who had access to far more locations than enthusiasts. Here is one taken near Westbourne Park in 1988. 50024 ‘Vanguard’ heads away from the capital with a train for the West Country, while 50032 ‘Courageous’ waits for the green signal on its way to Paddington.
For decades, locomotives have shuttled back and forth between Paddington and Old Oak Common depot. Here 5003 ‘Lulworth Castle’ is seen doing just that in 1960. In more modern times, with most services operated by multiple unit trains with driving cabs at both ends, these regular movements are not needed.
Inside the running shed at Old Oak Common in late September 1962 D1040 ‘Western Queen’ is brand new, having been delivered from Crewe Works on the 20th of that month. The initial idea was to have the buffer beam yellow panel, but this was quickly superseded by a warning panel which covered the headcode box area, as can be seen on a classmate to the right.
15 years later and all the hydraulics had come and gone. Many services were now in the hands of HSTs; but class 50s worked with class 47s on most of the rest of the long distance trains from Paddington. 50025 is outside Old Oak Common on May 6th 1978. Just one month later, this locomotive would be named ‘Invincible’. Sadly, in 1989 after vandals were thought to have placed an object on the track near West Ealing, ‘Invincible’ was derailed whilst working an Oxford to Paddington service; the locomotive being cut-up soon after. The miracle was that no one was seriously injured in the crash.
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Trainspotting data from 1947 until 1980 