I am currently looking through my late great uncle’s collection of The Railway Magazine, and in the February 1958 edition, in the picture section is an image with the following caption:
“Train of Eastern Region stock from Loughton to Worthing Central, via Liverpool Street, passing Lancing on September 15 [presumably 1957] headed by Southern Region U1 class 2-6-0 locomotive No. 31899”.
This came as a bit of a surprise as I was not aware of such seaside excursions running along the LU Central Line. This section of the Central Line was transferred from British Railways in 1948, although I am aware that some very early morning DMU services ran well into LU days.
Did this really happen? And if so, was this something that occurred every year at the time?
“Train of Eastern Region stock from Loughton to Worthing Central, via Liverpool Street, passing Lancing on September 15 [presumably 1957] headed by Southern Region U1 class 2-6-0 locomotive No. 31899”.
This came as a bit of a surprise as I was not aware of such seaside excursions running along the LU Central Line. This section of the Central Line was transferred from British Railways in 1948, although I am aware that some very early morning DMU services ran well into LU days.
Did this really happen? And if so, was this something that occurred every year at the time?