Back to the future
Rail Express|August 2020
British Railways introduced the stylish Blue Pullman trainsets 60 years ago and, while ultimately short-lived, they heralded a move out of the steam age into a diesel-powered future.
Back to the future
JULY 4, 1960 saw the first ‘BluePullman’ sets enter service with British Railways and, as these publicity shots from the time show, what a vision of the future they must have been in a world still dominated by steam.

The trains came out of the 1955 Modernisation Plan and the need for luxury express services. They were formed in fixed formations of two power cars sandwiching a rake of stock, much like the HSTs of the following decade that are now arguably Britain’s most successful train.

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Denne historien er fra August 2020-utgaven av Rail Express.

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