43080 passes Defford with the 14:40 Newquay to Leeds 'InterCity Holidaymaker' on 21 July 1990. It was one of those balmy summer evenings where the sun just fades out into hazy high cloud and as can be seen here at only 19:10 there is only a hint of shadows remaining. This is the first picture I took of this particular power car, not having seen it prior to it having buffers fitted.

43081 takes the west curve at Didcot North Junction on 6 May 1990 with the Hertfordshire Railtours 07:15 Derby to Paignton 'Torbay Express' railtour. HSTs are of course no strangers to the Didcot area, but do not normally traverse the west curve. In 1990 this location was still fairly rural, but even in those days some of Didcot's rubbish seems to be lining the tracks! A pair of thumper units had passed by in the opposite direction a little while before with the Kingfisher Railtours 'Bescot Pioneer' railtour.

43081 Midland Valenta rounds the curve at Kirkham Abbey with the East Midlands Trains 1Z43 15:15 Scarborough to Leicester 'Valenta Venturer' railtour on 26 July 2008. 43064 125 Group can just be seen on the rear of the train. Both these power cars were named the previous day, especially for this railtour. Given the fact that this is the classic location on the Scarborough line and the weather was good (although we almost lost the sun at the critical moment here), I was surprised that only two other photographers were with me in the field to see this piece of history. I suppose I shouldn't really be that surprised, as some railway photographers have a very narrow outlook and even now many ignore HSTs completely. I find this attitude very odd, especially as the HST with its classic streamlined shape is far more photogenic than the intrinsically ugly Class 66s that dominate the freight scene, which some seem to consider the only thing worth photographing.

43082 Derbyshire First passes Kilnhurst on 27 December 2003 with a Neville Hill to Sheffield ECS working. Note the inclusion of a single coach in the then new livery. The power car could certainly do with a repaint, or at the very least a wash! This was one of those annoying situations when the sun was disappearing in and out of the clouds, so only very weak sun for this picture!

Still in Midland Mainline livery (albeit devoid of all branding), 43082 leads the 11:27 Sheffield to St Pancras East Midlands Trains service past Cossington on 28 January 2008. East Midlands Trains had taken over the franchise from Midland Mainline in November 2007, so pending the application of a new livery, all trace of the previous owner's identity had to be removed.

43083 speeds past Harrowden Junction on 10 April 1994 with the 08:54 Sheffield to St Pancras service. Note the course of the former relief lines on the right. In 2009 a bi-directional line was reinstated here easing the bottleneck between Kettering and Wellingborough.

Long before its days of racing up and down the East Coast Mainline in a smart black livery, working for Grand Central Railways, 43084 County of Derbyshire is pictured leaving Kidderminster on 12 January 1991 with the Hertfordshire Railtours 'Severn Valley Circular' railtour. This had traveled from St Pancras via Kettering, Sutton Park and Dudley to reach Kidderminster, returning via Oxford. A dull and misty day, but the chance to get a picture of a buffer fitted HST at the unlikely location of Kidderminster was not going to missed!

43084 County of Derbyshire speeds through Radley on 12 June 1994 with the 12:17 Manchester Piccadilly to Reading service, which had just traversed the Cotswold Line rather than its customary route via Banbury. This was a regular timetabled event on Sundays at the time, bringing a whole new range of destinations to Cotswold Line passengers. The people on the down platform are waiting to see GWR 4-6-0 5029 Nunney Castle with a special train to mark the 150th anniversary of the Didcot to Oxford line.

43084 County of Derbyshire leads the 16:16 Bournemouth to Manchester Piccadilly service past Cholsey on 22 July 1994. 43084 is one of the eight HST power cars fitted with buffers in 1987 in connection with DVT trials on the East Coast Main Line. It is a busy moment at Cholsey station in the background, as both the 18:19 Didcot to Paddington and the 17:23 Paddington to Oxford services can just be seen calling at the station.

43084 County of Derbyshire finds a lucky patch of sun as it passes Acton Turville with the 1B36 15:00 Paddington to Swansea on 29 March 1996. Probably one of my most photographed HST power cars, as it seems to follow me around everywhere!

After many setbacks, Grand Central Railways began operations between Sunderland and London in December 2007, using refurbished HST sets. On 25 January 2008, 43084 leads the 14:10 York to Kings Cross service past Grassthorpe. This service is temporarily starting from York, but when the full timetable is implemented will start from Sunderland at 12:30.

43084 leads the 1A60 06:46 Sunderland to Kings Cross Grand Central 'Zephyr' service through Great Heck on 14 March 2008, unusually running a few minutes late. Although still sunny, a bank of thin cloud had just started to drift up from the south taking the edge of the light. The siding on the right leads to the Plasmor block works, which dispatches a daily train of building blocks to Bow.

43084 leads the 1A60 06:46 Sunderland to Kings Cross Grand Central 'Zephyr' service past Langford on 12 May 2008. 43166 in the obsolete Midland Mainline livery can just be seen on the rear of the train. Langford (between Biggleswade and Hitchin) is one of the relatively few unobstructed photographic locations on the southern end of the East Coast Mainline.

43084 passes Bishop Wood (between Doncaster and York) with the 1N28 16:50 Kings Cross to Sunderland Grand Central service on 26 July 2008. I seem to be photographing this particular Grand Central power car on a roughly two monthly basis. Eventually I will get a decent picture of one of the others! After a largely sunny day, the sun was just starting to melt away into high cloud.

43086 passes Milton Ernest on 4 May 1987 with the late running 07:50 Barnsley to St Pancras service. A typical formation of the period (although the coaches especially are unusually clean). Two InterCity Executive (as it was called then) liveried power cards, with a complete rake of original blue and grey stock. The repainting of the power cards was always ahead of the coaches.

43087 brings up the rear of the Heartland Rail 1Z27 08:00 Gloucester to Penzance railtour on 15 April 2006, as it passes the site of Stonehouse station. This has got to be one of the oddest liveries applied to a loco in this country, but you certainly can't miss it! A slightly more conventional Cotswold Rail silver liveried 43070 was on the front of the train. Despite the fact that HSTs look the same going either way (ignoring the red tail lights), I don't normally bother with going away shots, but this one just had to be done, especially as I would not see it again in this livery.

43088 passes Compton Beauchamp on 7 November 2009 with what is presumably the late running 1A14 11:00 Bristol Temple Meads to Paddington First Great Western service. Obviously there was some problem further west, as it was quickly followed by a further two HSTs. I had expected a little more autumn colour on the trees at this location, but presumably the recent high winds have added to the Rail Head Treatment Train's work, by blowing them onto the track.

43089 Hayabusa leads Network Rail's New Measurement Train through Kemble on 5 June 2008 with the 1Z22 06:48 Derby to Cheltenham (via Hereford and Swindon) test train, with 43014 bringing up the rear. At this point it was running 40 minutes early and consequently was following right behind the 12:31 Cheltenham to Paddington HST. In fact it had a very brief signal check in the station, just enough to result in the sun disappearing! It is pictured just about to enter the single track section to Swindon and also the 415 yard long Kemble Tunnel.

43091 Edinburgh Military Tattoo crosses the River Avon at Eckington on 28 February 1998 with the 1V39 06:05 Leeds to Plymouth 'Armada' Virgin CrossCountry service. The Malvern Hills can be seen in the background (approximately ten miles away).

An historic moment at Combe station on 8 July 2010, as 43091 calls with the 1W00 08:22 Paddington to Hereford First Great Western service. Normally only one Turbo unit in each direction stops at this remote station for the handful of loyal regular passengers. However, to mark the 75th anniversary of the opening of the station by the Great Western Railway, a special stop order was granted for this HST service to call and pick up a party of local schoolchildren heading for a day trip to Worcester. Proceedings are watched over by FGW's station manager and interested locals.

This 5 March 2011 view shows the newly reinstated up line at Dorn (near Moreton-in-Marsh), part of the Cotswold Line upgrade. 43091 passes by with the 1P37 08:43 Great Malvern to Paddington First Great Western service. Considerable embankment strengthening work has been carried out since I was last here six months before. Of course this location is much more photogenic with the up trains apparently running 'wrong line', as it gives a wider viewpoint, and will certainly be a very unusual occurrence one the new track is commissioned.

Spring is here! A field of oilseed rape brightens up the foreground as 43092 leads the 1A09 06:45 Exeter St Davids to Paddington (via Bristol) First Great Western service towards the site of Uffington station (closed in 1964). The out of use signal formerly controlled the exit from Uffington's down loop, which was removed when the relief lines were installed between Challow and Wantage Road. This picture was taken on 14 April 2008, a day that started bright and clear, but like numerous other spring days in 2008 had become largely cloudy by mid-morning.

43092 speeds past the site of Challow station on 12 May 2009 with the 1B40 13:45 Paddington to Swansea First Great Western service. Look what's peeking out from behind the roadbridge, yes, its light blue liveried 60074 Teenage Spirit working the 6B33 13:42 Theale to Robeston Murco oil empties. Normally this train waits in the loop for a couple of HSTs to pass, however today it had to wait for thirty minutes while four HSTs sped by.

In fine early morning lighting, which certainly highlights the Virgin Cross Country red livery, 43093 (appropriately named Lady In Red) climbs the 1 in 37 Lickey Incline with the 1E28 07:04 Bristol Temple Meads to Newcastle service on 24 May 1997. The location is Pikes Pool, approximately half way up the formidable gradient that was once such an operational problem in the days of steam. No such problems with a HST however, which not only has plenty of power but its own banker as well!

43093 in the new version of First Great Western's livery is matched with a set of stock in the old livery as it passes Acton Turville on 27 March 2007 with the late running 1B42 14:15 Paddington to Cardiff Central train. The sun, which although reasonably bright early on had always been hazy, was now starting to fade away, despite it only being mid afternoon.

43094 catches the very last rays of the setting sun near Kingston Lisle (between Didcot and Swindon) on 6 January 2009 as it works the 14:30 Paddington to Weston-super-Mare First Great Western service. After a day when the temperatures barely got above freezing, the ice remains undisturbed on this rarely visited farm track remote from any road. The converging lines of the fence posts lit up by the low sun make for an ideal photographic composition, but timing was critical, as just a few minutes later the rapidly sinking sun meant that the whole of the foreground area was in shadow.

43095 heads south through the rain at Usan on 4 May 2008 with the 13:50 Aberdeen to Kings Cross National Express East Coast service. Despite the awful weather conditions, I am really pleased with this picture, as it vividly portrays the often typical Scottish weather. With Usan signalbox in the background and the train perfectly framed between the two semaphore signals it is certainly atmospheric. However, the leaden skies and rain does hide what would be a view of part of Montrose in the background! Usan signalbox controls the entrance to the short single track section of line to Montrose, this can just be seen in front of the box in the background.

43097 Environment Agency rounds the curve at Crofton on 30 September 2011, and passes Crofton Lock No. 60 on the Kennet & Avon Canal. It is working the 1C77 10:06 Paddington to Penzance First Great Western service. This train is the 'Cornish Riveira', but without a headboard it just looks like any other train, which indeed is was it is nowadays. The name has been slightly devalued from the heydays of the Great Western Railway.

43098 arrives at Charlbury station with the 1W47 15:51 Paddington to Worcester Shrub Hill First Great Western service on 9 June 2008, with 43016 on the rear. This fine uninterrupted view of the station has since been lost due to the construction of a second platform and footbridge, which although obviously a good thing as far as passengers are concerned, has made photography at this iconic station much more difficult.

43098 skirts the edge of Cornbury Park, on the approach to Charlbury station with the 1W02 10:22 Paddington to Hereford First Great Western service on 15 January 2009. Recent tree clearance at this location has not only opened up the view slightly, but completely transformed the road that leads towards Cornbury Park and over the railway.

On 21 April 2011, work is well underway at Cornbury Park, just to the south of Charlbury station to reinstate the double track that was removed in 1971. This is the point where the redoubling will end, leaving the section to Wolvercote Junction as single track. 43098 passes by the work site with the 1P56 13:11 Hereford to Paddington First Great Western service. I had just watched the digger at the bottom of the cutting descend from the top using its arm as a stabiliser. I suppose it was safe, but I wouldn't like to do it!

With the harvest well under way in the background, 43099 approaches Goring on 28 August 1991 with the 06:55 Aberdeen to Poole 'Dorset Scot' service. This had only just gone over to HST operation with a consequent dramatic improvement in timing, although to travel from one end of the country to the other still took over twelve hours.

43099 leads the 1S71 07:15 Penzance to Edinburgh 'Cornish Scot' Virgin CrossCountry service past the flooded fields at Holme on 25 April 1998. There had recently been a long spell of particularly heavy rain, causing widespread flooding throughout the country. This flood has been caused by the River Bela bursting its banks.

A side view of 43099 as it passes Hinksey Yard (near Oxford) on 1 September 1999 with the 1E42 16:20 Bournemouth to Leeds Virgin CrossCountry service. Note the London Midland Region electrification vehicles in the foreground, which were stored in the yard for a number of years in the 1990s. The flat walkway on the roof provides access to the overhead line for wiring gangs.

43101 The Irish Mail passes Didcot North Junction on 31 July 1999 with the 1O13 11:06 Newcastle to Bournemouth Virgin CrossCountry service. This power car was immediately recognisable whilst in Richard Branson's ownership due to the extremely large painted on 'nameplate'. Note that over two years after acquiring the franchise, it is still difficult to find a complete rake of stock in the then new livery. Plenty of power cars (and Class 47s) had been repainted by this time.

No mistaking the identity of this HST power car! 43106 leads the 08:40 Poole to Edinburgh 'Dorset Scot' past Worting Junction on 29 July 1991, just a few days after this service had been diagrammed for HSTs in place of the previous Class 47 haulage. Worting Junction is where the non-electrified Salisbury line joins the Southampton route. This excellent view of the complicated trackwork and vintage corrugated iron PW hut is from a farm occupation bridge.

43107 leads the diverted 1E12 09:55 Aberdeen to Kings Cross GNER 'Northern Lights' service past Stockton on 3 April 1999. Due to engineering work on the Darlington line over the Easter weekend, most services were diverted via Sunderland, Hartlepool and Stockton. This view shows the typical poor state of most railways in an urban location, with all kinds of rubbish strewn all over the track, not helped by the fact that large areas of former railway land (such as that on the left) are now semi-derelict.

Due to the inadequacy of the Voyager fleet, Virgin Cross Country has to hire GNER HST sets for some Saturday services to the West of England during the summer peak. On 11 August 2007, 43107 Tayside leads the 1E46 10:32 Paignton to Newcastle Central service past Flax Bourton. This location is a footpath bridge in the middle of nowhere, and I fully expected to be on my own. However, I hadn't been there long when large groups of cyclists started appearing, until eventually the bridge was packed! It turned out that it was the opening of the route as part of the Sustrans national cycle network.

43107 Tayside speeds past Offord Cluny on 16 August 2007 with the 1N06 11:30 Kings Cross to Newcastle GNER service. The franchise (owned by Sea Containers) would soon be terminated and replaced by National Express East Coast, which turned out to be a complete disaster!

There is certainly no mistaking this location! Prominent nameboards at both ends of the station announce the faded splendour of Gleneagles as 43108 rolls in with the 1S15 12:00 Kings Cross to Inverness 'Highland Chieftain' GNER service on 28 April 1998. The elaborate station buildings are certainly out of all proportion to the small number of passengers that now use this station, and as can be seen here the buildings are mostly boarded up and out of use.

43109 leads the 1E12 07:55 Inverness to Kings Cross GNER 'Highland Chieftain' past Bardrill (near Gleneagles) on 23 April 2003. This power car has subsequently be renumbered to 43309 in line with GNER's policy of adding 200 to the numbers of their re-engined power cars. This seems a strange numbering procedure, especially in view of the fact that other franchise operators have retained the original number after refurbishment.

43111 speeds past Abbots Ripton on 16 August 1988 with the 07:18 Peterborough to Kings Cross InterCity service. In addition to long distance work on the ECML, HSTs were employed on early morning commuter trains such as this, taking just under an hour to get to the capital. The large numbers under the windscreen were carried by most ECML power cars at this time, which was a welcome aid to identification, because the other application of the number was in a tiny font near the guard's compartment, and not at all easy to read at 125mph!

43111 speeds past Aynho on 29 June 1993 with the 17:16 Bournemouth to Manchester Piccadilly InterCity service. At this time the majority of these cross country services were in the hands of Class 47s, with just a few trains diagrammed for HSTs. The train is approaching the site of Aynho station and the junction with the Chiltern Line.

A profusion of gorse bushes in full bloom at Houndwood on 3 May 2008, as 43111 heads south with a rake of reliveried National Express East Coast coaches on the 08:35 Edinburgh to Kings Cross service on 3 May 2008. 43111 is in the transitional livery, with rebranding on the former GNER colour scheme.

With foam on the windscreen from the windscreen washers, 43115 Yorkshire Cricket Academy rounds the curve at Shaldon Bridge next to the River Teign as it pulls away from the Teignmouth stop with the 09:20 Paddington to Plymouth service on 15 September 1991.

43116 emerges from Kingswood Tunnel with the 1E12 07:55 Inverness to King's Cross GNER service on 11 June 2007. This is the only daily GNER HST from Inverness, the remainder of the service being provided by First ScotRail units. I had planned to photograph the following Pathfinder railtour at this spot, but although an HST power car is OK, a pair of Class 37s would be partly obscured by the overhanging bushes, so I sought an alternative location.

The hills are shrouded in clouds as 43118 City of Kingston upon Hull crosses Slochd Viaduct with the 1E12 07:55 Inverness to Kings Cross 'Highland Chieftain' GNER service on 16 June 2006. The following year 43118 would become 43318 with the replacement of its original Paxman Valenta engine with an MTU unit.

Miserably dull conditions, and with the infamous Scottish midges biting at Culloden Viaduct on 28 August 2005. 43120 London 2012 Candidate City accelerates off the viaduct with the 1E16 09:40 Inverness to Kings Cross GNER service, which today be terminating at Stevenage due to engineering work.

43121 passes the desolate remains of Severn Tunnel Junction Yard on 15 April 1991, as it prepares to descend into the tunnel with the 1A51 11:32 Swansea to Paddington 'St. David Pullman', on this occasion not quite living up to its premium service name by running ten minutes late. The former depot's fueling point is one of the few surviving indications in this picture of the importance of the once busy freight centre.

43122 leads the 1P57 13:23 Hereford to Paddington First Great Western service off the Cotswold Line at Wolvercote Junction on 11 February 2008. All except one vehicle are former Midland Mainline coaches, temporarily on hire to First Great Western . 43145 can be seen bringing up the rear. There is certainly a noticeable shift in the camber (or superelevation) of the line as it joins the main Banbury to Oxford line.

The hawthorn in the hedges is just coming out at Charlbury on 9 May 2009 as 43122 slows for the station stop with the late running 1P26 06:35 Great Malvern to Paddington First Great Western service. Note the vegetation clearance work visible on the side of the cutting on the left. This is connection with the forthcoming redoubling of the line.

43122 passes Daylesford on 1 November 2010 with the 1W29 11:22 Paddington to Great Malvern First Great Western service. I was revisiting this location after a number of years absence, and whilst the view is nothing like as clear as it was in the good old days, a northbound shot is still just about possible. It only occurred to me at the last minute that 1P47 was booked to pass this spot at virtually the same time. In the event they were just over a minute apart.

43123 passes Gateforth on 17 June 2010 with the 1A62 12:30 Sunderland to Kings Cross Grand Central service. Note the common HST problem of a broken horn grille. They just aren't strong enough to survive the impact with a pigeon (or anything else)!

43124 speeds past South Marston (near Swindon) on 2 May 1982 with the 07:55 Swansea to Paddington service. Much has changed in this picture in the intervening years. There are of course unfortunately no HSTs remaining in the original livery and all the dead elm trees have since fallen down. However, the major change has been the removal of the side of the cutting behind 43124 to make way for the siding serving the giant Honda car plant which was built in the fields to the right of this view.

43125 climbs Dauntsey Bank and passes Tockenham Wick on 29 October 1983 with the 12:58 Weston-super-Mare to Paddington service. Being one of the early recipients of the Executive livery the unit still carries the soon to be abandoned set numbers. At this time there were only two complete new liveried HSTs sets and 43125 had been one of the first power cars released in the new colours (along with 43126) only a few weeks before this picture was taken. Initially these two power cars worked with standard blue and grey coaches.

43125 speeds past Norton Fitzwarren on 30 October 1991 with the 10:15 Liverpool Lime Street to Plymouth service. Taunton Cider was obviously doing good business in the 1990s. Unfortunately the factory has since closed and all the signs of industry visible here have been swept away.

43125 accelerates away from Swindon with the 09:29 Swansea to Paddington First Great Western service on 31 October 2008. This high embankment which carries the line over the A420 Swindon to Oxford road has been the scene of several landslips in the past, but dumping of ballast and other strengthening work has largely now cured the problem. However, there appears to be some unevenness in the track with a noticeable hump by the four and fifth coaches, although possibly accentuated by the long lens used here.

An appropriate number for one of the power cars that were originally launched as the InterCity 125. 43125 passes Shorthampton on 6 November 2011 with the 1W03 12:42 Paddington to Hereford First Great Western service. Following just seven minutes behind this (a feat that could not have happened before the recent reinstatement of double track) were a pair of 37s on a railtour.

43126 passes Baulking in the rain (note the windscreen wiper) with the 1G29 11:48 Paddington to Cheltenham First Great Western service on 30 April 2009. Although it was drizzling slightly, by the look of the dark clouds in the background the Oxford area was getting a lot more rain! This picture also demonstrates the exceedingly high quality of the Canon EF-S 60mm macro lens. Although taken with the lens wide open, the original high-res version shows that it is absolutely pin sharp all over, something which you would not find with virtually any other lens. Technical details for those interested - Canon 50D, 60mm f2.8 EF-S macro lens, 1/2000sec f2.8 ISO400.

43127 Sir Peter Parker 1924 - 2002 Cotswold Line 150 kicks up a trail of dust as it passes Acton Turville on 27 March 2007 with the 1L65 13:55 Cardiff Central to Paddington First Great Western service. At this time the sight of a complete train in the original FGW livery was getting rarer as more vehicles wee outshopped in the new a blander version of the colour scheme.

The newly reinstated, but not yet commissioned up line at Dorn (near Moreton-in-Marsh) gives the impression that 43127 is running 'wrong line' with the1P56 13:14 Hereford to Paddington First Great Western service on 1 August 2011. A somewhat tight location for photography, which will obviously improve once the correct line comes into use. However, this picture is included for its soon to be historic interest.

With the tower of St Mary's church, Charlbury visible in the distance, 43128 leads the 13:12 Great Malvern to Paddington ''Cotswold & Malvern Express' past Cornbury Park on 4 July 1985. At the time this and the balancing down working (the 10:10 Paddington to Great Malvern) were the only HST worked services on the Cotswold Line. At around this time there were reports in the local press of a wallaby being seen on the line in this area, although no local zoo or private animal collection admitted to losing any animals!

With a complete rake of matching Great Western Trains stock, 43128 passes Dawlish on 3 May 1999 with the 1C14 08:33 Paddington to Plymouth 'Mayflower' Great Western Trains service. A graphic illustration of how quickly the tide recedes can be seen when comparing this view with the same location exactly an hour later when 43155 passed with 1V38.

43128 approaches Culham with the 1B58 18:27 Paddington to Hereford First Great Western service on 15 June 1999, with consecutively numbered power car 43129 bringing up the rear. The whole train is in the revised Great Western livery which was not welcomed at the time, but retrospectively seems quite restrained and certainly blends in well with the summer foliage in this view. This location has subsequently become much more difficult due to the growth of the bushes along the edge of the field.

For the Npower League 2 football match between Oxford and Swindon on 21 August 2011, First Great Western ran a special train between the two places, using the normally freight only West Curve at Didcot. Although I doubt whether any of those on board have appreciated the rare passenger mileage, 43128 is pictured at Foxhall Junction in the drizzle leading the 11:23 Oxford to Swindon special off the curve onto the bi-directional relief line, with the rear power car (43160) still just coming off the curve. Oxford won the game 2-1.

Re-engined 43129 passes Kintbury with the 13:05 Paddington to Plymouth First Great Western service on 2 April 2007. One of the few occasions when a 1/2000sec shutter speed was essential! Numerous different views can be had along the line to the west of Kintbury, as the canal towpath runs close to the railway for a considerable distance.

Combe station, on the Cotswold Line was opened by the Great Western Railway (as Combe Halt) on 8 July 1935. This explains the balloons and flags decorating the station exactly 75 years later on 8 July 2010, as 43129 speeds through with the 1P26 06:43 Hereford to Paddington First Great Western service. Normally only one train in each direction calls at this station, but today was different, with a specially arranged stop being made by the 08:22 Paddington to Hereford train.

43130 speeds past the site of Wantage Road station on 3 September 1984 with the 06:30 Taunton to Paddington service. Although in the then brand new Executive livery, 43130 not only carries the obsolete set number 253030, but also still has the W prefix to the power car number. Note the wide track formation at this point, a legacy of the former freight loops which would be reinstated a few years after this picture was taken.

43130 passes Chilson on 6 May 2011 with the 1W47 15:51 Paddington to Worcester Shrub Hill First Great Western service. The telephoto lens has certainly accentuated the wobbly new track on the left, which is part of the Cotswold Line redoubling programme. Obviously there is still much work to do, including tamping and final alignment. Other signs of work include the sheeted over equipment on the trackside and Ascott-under-Wychwood's newly installed down distant signal, which can just be seen in the distance.

43131 speeds past Bremell Sidings (near Swindon) with the 1B46 17:03 Paddington to Cheltenham service on 19 July 1990. The early repaints into the Intercity 'swallow' livery had tiny numbers which made identification at speed extremley difficult. The minute number can just be seen on the off white panel behind the radiator grilles. Surprisingly, given the seemingly non-stop march of Swindon's expansion, the houses on the horizon still mark the limit of the town's development two decades later.

The horse in the lineside field is more interested in its pile of hay, rather than 43131 passing by just a few feet away with the 1C12 11:30 Paddington to Bristol First Great Western service. The location is Circourt Bridge, Denchworth, and the date 30 January 2010.

43131 passes Compton Beauchamp on 17 April 2011 with the 1B46 14:37 Paddington to Swansea First Great Western service. Although not as good as the eastbound view from this bridge, and certainly no good in the winter when mostly in deep shade, I thought I would record this for posterity before the wires go up and ruin the location for ever. I don't normally use a standard lens for open locations such as this, and this along with the 125mph train has required a shutter speed of 1/4000sec. Oh, and of course quick reactions!

Amidst a sea of buddleia bushes, 43132 takes the Severn Tunnel line at Severn Tunnel Junction on 14 August 2004 with the 08:15 Cardiff Central to Paddington First Great Western service. The palisade fenced enclosures mark the site of the former Severn Tunnel Junction loco depot, while the overgrown are on the extreme left of the picture is the site of the former freight yard.

The golden light of the setting sun gives a superb glint effect to the 1A84 17:32 Swansea to Paddington Great Western Trains service as it passes Bourton on 11 August 1998. 43132 is leading a complete rake of Great Western 'Merlin' liveried stock, although the rear power car is still in InterCity livery.

43132 leads the 15:30 Swansea to Paddington First Great Western service through Briton Ferry on 14 April 2007. In the background 37422 & 37410 can be seen waiting to join the main line at Flying Loop Junction with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z74 13:33 Onllwyn to Birmingham International 'Principality Freighter' railtour. The tour had just passed under the main line after a reversal at Jersey Marine Junction.

43133 pulls slowly away from Hereford station on 2 June 2009 with the 1P65 15:11 First Great Western service to Paddington. After many years of taking pictures of trains on the Cotswold Line (originally Class 47 & 50 hauled, but latterly with HSTs), this is probably the first time I have photographed an up train at the very start of its journey!

HSTs have been commonplace on the Cotswold Line for many years, but this is a picture of the first one! 43134 rolls into Evesham station with the 10:25 Paddington to Great Malvern service on 14 May 1984, the first day of the new timetable. This was the first ever scheduled InterCity 125 passenger train on the Cotswold Line, made possible by utilising extra capacity available during the middle of the day. Later of course the trains would take over from the long distance loco-hauled services on the route.

Admittedly an impressive picture with all the lineside bushes coated by a heavy frost, and the train nicely lit by a low winter sun, but this picture is noteworthy for another reason. This is the 08:30 Paddington to Cardiff Central service passing Circourt Bridge, Denchworth on 7 December 1991, with 43134 leading and 43158 on the rear. Less than 50 minutes after this picture was taken it was involved in the first ever accident inside the Severn Tunnel. Emergency signalling was in force in the tunnel, and this train was over half way through the tunnel proceeding at caution and traveling at approximately 20 mph when it was hit in the rear by 'Sprinter' 155306, which was working the late running 07:00 Portsmouth to Cardiff train, and presumably not preceding with enough caution! Thankfully there were few serious injuries, although over a hundred passengers required hospital treatment. The rescue operation was protracted because of the difficult location.43071

Still wearing the 'fag packet' First livery, while the rest of the train is in First Great Western purple, 43134 County of Somerset is in its namesake county as it leads the late running 07:35 Paddington to Penzance First Great Western service past Upton Noble on 24 July 2004.

43135 passes Circourt Bridge, Denchworth on 21 November 1996 with the 12:15 Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads Great Western Trains service. A complete train in the new livery was not that common at the time, and in retrospect I should have put more effort into getting pictures while they were still clean. Any livery incorporating this much white doesn't tend to stay pristine for long! Of course it wasn't long before Great western Trains became First Great Western and the livery changed yet again.

Just a trace of hazy sun illuminates 43135 as it speeds past Baulking with the 1C19 15:00 Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads First Great Western service on 28 March 2007. Note that 43135 is in the latest version of FGW's livery, while the rest of the train still retains the previous version of the livery.