The Red Dragon (train)

The Red Dragon
Overview
Service typePassenger train
First service5 June 1950
Current operator(s)Great Western Railway
Former operator(s)Western Region of British Railways
Route
TerminiCarmarthen
London Paddington
Service frequencyDaily
Train number(s)1L12 / 1B27
Line(s) usedGreat Western
South Wales
West Wales
Technical
Rolling stockGWR 4073 Castle, BR Standard Class 7 Britannia (1950-1965)
Intercity 125 (1983-2018)
800/3 (2019-present)

The Red Dragon is a named passenger train service operated by Great Western Railway in the United Kingdom from Carmarthen to London Paddington.

History

The Red Dragon passing through Reading in 1958, hauled by Castle class 5078 Beaufort

The Red Dragon was introduced by the Western Region of British Railways on 5 June 1950, departing Carmarthen at 07:30 for London Paddington, returning at 17:55. However in practice the main train started and terminated at Swansea with only a through portion working west of there to Carmarthen. Haulage was by Castle class locomotives at first, then by BR Standard Class 7 Britannias.[1] Both were supplied by Cardiff Canton MPD.

It was withdrawn on 12 June 1965.[1] It was resurrected in 1983/84 as The Red Dragon Executive' with InterCity 125s, becoming The Red Dragon Pullman in 1988.[2][3][4] It was withdrawn again, before being reintroduced by First Great Western on 13 December 2009.[5]

As at July 2019, the name was carried by the 07:30 from Carmarthen and the 17:45 return operated by Class 800s.[4]

Headboards

Close-up of the dragon crest, third headboard

The Red Dragon carried a variety of headboards, mostly of two designs.[1]

  • The first design was a BR Type 3 headboard, in black or red with polished aluminium lettering. This was introduced in the Summer of 1951. As for other headboards of the time, in the Coronation year of 1953 a crown crest was used temporarily.
  • In 1956, a reversed style of painting was briefly used, with dark painted letters on a light background, still using the Type 3 design.
  • The third style was the best known. Introduced in 1956 and used until 1962, it was one of the Western Region designs to recreate a sense of regional identity. The shape was a curved rectangle, without the cutouts to the upper corners. It was painted overall, cream with brown letters. In the upper centre a disc protruding above the main headboard carried a moulded figure of a red dragon.
  • A final design was used experimentally in late 1961. This was one of the rectangular fibreglass lightweight plates, intended for diesel haulage.

References

  1. ^ a b c Peel, Dave (2006). Locomotive Headboards. Sutton Publishing. pp. 14–15. ISBN 0-7509-4462-5.
  2. ^ "Bradshaw's British Railways Official Guide No. 1507". London: Henry Blacklock. 4 January 1960: 32. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  3. ^ Bonavia, Michael (1979). The Birth of British Rail. London: Allen & Unwin. OCLC 59803166.
  4. ^ a b The Encyclopedia of Titled Trains The Railway Magazine issue 1422 September 2019 page 79
  5. ^ Named trains back on the Great Western The Railway Magazine issue 1305 January 2010 page 11

Media related to The Red Dragon at Wikimedia Commons