DIESEL VARIETY AT SKEGNESS

Part Two : Classes 40 - 66

 

 

40086 pushes its rake of Mk1 carriages into the sidings to run round before backing into the station and doing the return Saturday run to Manchester Piccadilly.
40's were regulars on the Saturday Manchester Piccadilly runs, but on this occasion 40091 was at the head of an excursion from Blackpool North.
As the 40's were nearing the end of their careers on British Rail, many enthusiasts took the opportunity to ride on the Saturday Manchester Piccadilly to Skegness runs, and several locomotives wore headboards. 40086 wears one displaying "Vulcan Voyager" and, having run round its train, reverses out of the sidings and backs into the platform,
Green liveried 40122 backs from the sidings to platform 5 before working the Saturday Manchester run.
On a rather wet Saturday, 40044 backs out of platform 5 into the sidings.

 

The first and (so far) only HST set to visit Skegness was on February 22nd, 1992, on a Hertfordshire Railtours excursion from St. Pancras. Here we see the set with 43051 leading approaching the station.
Another view of the HST shortly after arrival on platform 5.

 

45117 at the head of a rake of Mk2 air conditioned carriages.
Another view of 45117 as it departs from Skegness in the evening.
Having run round in the sidings, 45049 reverses back into the station. There were once 24 sidings at Skegness (twelve either side of the main line). Only three remain but nowadays, with only the occasional appearance of a locomotive (usually on an engineering train), are now very rarely used and overgrown.
Two members of the class at Skegness. 45056 on platform 4 on the left and 45026 on platform 7 on the right.
The failure of 45020 resulted in it being dragged with its train by a class 31.

 

The appearance of class 46's was relatively rare compared to the 45's. 46018 is seen here using the crossover between platforms 4 and 5 running around the train before departing in summer 1981 with 1A38 the 0954 Saturday run to King's Cross.
Another class 46 (46004) seen in the sidings.

 

47573 made a colourful change to the standard BR blue 47's which normally visited Skegness. On this occasion it was at the head of the erstwhile Sunday service from Cambridge.
47111 speeds away from Skegness hauling a rake of Mk1s.
47484 "Isambard Kingdon Brunel", one of the many named locomotives to visit Skegness, stands in platform 4.
47459 with its rake of air conditioned Mk2 carriages looks more like a main line express than an excursion train.
Scotrail liveried 47642 on on on platform 5.

 

55015 "Tulyar" was the first ever Deltic to reach Skegness on an excursion from King's Cross on August 13th, 1978. It is seen here approaching the Skegness terminus.
55011 is seen reversing from the sidings into the station before returning on the summer Saturday only service to King's Cross.

 

On only one occasion has a class 56 appeared at Skegness on August 17th, 1988, hauling the 1M47 1829 Skegness - Derby. The locomotive concerned, 56005, is pictured stood at platform 7 at Skegness prior to departure that evening.

Many thanks to Jonathan Starkey of the Class 56 Group for finding the additional details of this run.

 

Another first appearance was a class 58 on September 20th, 1986, when 58039 "Rugeley Power Station" hauled a very impressive rake of brown and cream pullman carriages on The Lincolnshire Coast Pullman which came from King's Cross visited both Skegness and Cleethorpes on the same day. A further picture of the excursion can be found at the Class 58 Website. Other members of the class have since visited the terminus on ballast trains icluding 58020 and 58032 in 1997.

Many thanks to Jason Warner of the Class 58 Website for providing additional details.

 

On June 19th, 1999, 66023 became the first ever (and so far, only) class 66 to reach Skegness at the head of a ballast train.

Another view of the first class 66 just before departure after the last scheduled passenger train of the day.

 

 

 

Part Three

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