D1048 Western Lady - Western Lament

'Western Lament' railtour - 24th February 1977 - penultimate railtour of the diesel-hydraulic era by Andy Collett

This is a short film about the ‘Western Lament’ railtour on 24th February 1977, the penultimate railtour of the diesel-hydraulic era on British Railways. The locomotive used was Class 52 D1048 ‘Western Lady’ which meant that this was the final time a Crewe-built Western would leave Paddington before total withdrawal of the class. Two days later, the official ‘Western Tribute’ railtour would take place, after which every member of the class was withdrawn from service. I recall ‘Western Lament’ being organised at very short notice by John Vaughan, who had organised a number of Western-hauled specials over the previous months. It’s quite amazing how we all got to hear about the tour being planned, given that there was no internet, no email, no social media and no mobile phones! But somehow the jungle telegraph worked its magic and we all gathered to share in the experience that Thursday in February 1977. I was able to take some Super8 silent cine film and 35mm colour slides that day. The quality of the movie film is way off modern day standards. However, I’ve done my best to improve the stability, brightness, contrast and colour saturation. Also, I feel that the addition of sound has done much to improve the experience. I really hope you enjoy ten minutes of nostalgia - if you were there. If you weren’t there, I hope it gives you a taste of what the day was like for those of us who were fortunate enough to experience it first hand. Andy Collett

'Western Lament' railtour - 24th February 1977 - penultimate railtour of the diesel-hydraulic era (youtube.com)