#br class 87

[the-time-lord-oracle]

87014 Knight of the Thistle heads south through the Lune Gorge with a Euston-bound express in May 1995. Usually the locomotive would be pushing the train south, with the driver controlling the train from the Driving Van Trailer, though on this occasion, something has happened to prevent that, so the locomotive is pulling the train south.

[the-time-lord-oracle]

87016 Willesden Intercity Depot approaching Crewe from the south in the early 1990's.

[the-time-lord-oracle]

Intercity Swallow appreciation

Intercity Swallow livery, as carried by HST, class 47s, 73s, 86s, 87s, the 89, 90s and 91s in the early 1990's. A very smart colour scheme which suited all of these classes and is leagues above most modern rail company liveries!

[the-time-lord-oracle]

87010 King Arthur speeds through Cheddington with a northbound express in February 1997, just one month before Virgin took over the Intercity West Coast franchise.

[the-time-lord-oracle]

87035 Robert Burns at Birmingham International in 1997. Note that someone has left the door open on the driver's side of the No. 1 end cab. This means that the cab's gonna get draughty on the 100mph push to London!

[the-time-lord-oracle]

86247 Abraham Darby and two class 87s await their next duties at Oxley sidings, Wolverhampton, in 2000.

[the-time-lord-oracle]

Looking back at the early days of Virgin Trains, when they still used proper trains!

[the-time-lord-oracle]

Something I've noticed about the three preserved class 87s is that their current liveries effectively cover the life-span of the class. 87001 Stephenson/Royal Scot wears rail blue, representing the corporate period of the 1970's and early 80's, while 87002 Royal Sovereign wears Intercity Swallow livery, representing the sectorisation period of the late 80's and early 90's, and 87035 Robert Burns wears Virgin Trains colours, representing the privatised period of the late 90's and early 2000's.