4965 Kings Sutton 18 December 2005

Sunday 18 December 2005 dawned clear and bright with the prospect of two Great Western locos on the main line near Banbury within an hour or so of each other. Needless to say things didn't go as planned, with 6024 King Edward I leaving Paddington two hours late with a special to Stratford-upon-Avon! On hearing this news, I left my selected spot near Aynho and went to the footpath crossing near Kings Sutton to see Hall Class 4-6-0 4965 Rood Ashton Hall on the 1Z65 11:30 Solihull to Didcot Christmas Lunch Special. This is one of the few locations that would be completely clear of shadows at this time of year, so naturally the clouds rolled in from the west and by the time the train came the lighting was really miserable! Note the long suffering photographers on the bridge in the distance still waiting for 6024.