Trivia: Most out of date livery

[SuspectUsual]

When did the green 40 (can’t remember its number but I don’t mean 40122) get its green repaint? Up till then it was a survivor - after that it was probably the first “heritage livery”!

40106

Autumn 1978 I think. From memory it was only blue for a couple of months

 

[XCTurbostar]

We have a new entrant? 465908 in NSE.

 

[TheGuy77]

Sorry, thought the 376s weren't discussed before I posted this message.

 

[Iskra]

170272 kept its original Anglia livery from 2002 all the way to 2018. Lasted for 14 years after Anglia Railways vanished!

47714 is just being repainted out of Anglia livery now at the Wensleydale railway after coming off the mainline last year.

 

[Class15]

We have a new entrant? 465908 in NSE.

The OP explicitly mentioned no heritage liveries.

 

[185]

East Midlands tatty stagecoach liveries look very dated, as does the replacement... Which looks worse imo.

The most past it's sell by date livery is Avanti West Coast which needed removing in 2020

 

[3141]

Chiltern's class 165s kept their NSE livery for a long time, though I don't recall for how long. For the first eight years that was on account of the paint guarantee.

Some of SWR's class 159s still have SWT livery. That's because they were having a refurb at the time the franchise changed in 2017, and it wasn't sensible to repaint them again. Some of them also have the SWR seat moquette.

 

[jus363]

I think there is still a 150 running around in First Great Western Blue livery.

 

[renegademaster]

How much FGW branded stuff is there left?
When I was in the west country in 2023 noticed a lot dotted about. The last time I went on the north downs line, the trains had GWR liveries but FGW posters on the inside

 

[Strathclyder]

As far as PTE liveries go, both of the main Strathclyde liveries lasted for 23 years (1983-2006 for Orange/Black and 1996-2019 for Carmine/Cream), each lasting a decade or more after their successors appeared. The last class to carry both was the 314.

Actually, come to think of it, 314202 holds the distinction of being one of the last units on the national network to carry both liveries, sharing the latter with 314205, it's partner during the farewell tour in December '19 (it held onto Orange/Black for nearly a year after the second-to-last unit was repainted in 2005).

The Regional Railways variant of ScotRail livery lasted until January 2002, with the final Class 305 withdrawal.

 

[12C]

I remember in the last couple of years of Mk2/3 stock on the Caledonian Sleeper, circa 2017/18, an Intercity livery Mk2 BSO was hired in for the West Highland portion. As far as I could tell the livery was original (it certainly looked very weather beaten).

If it was, that would have been over 20 years obsolete and over 30 years since the livery was introduced.

 

[renegademaster]

Mk2/3 stock on the Caledonian Sleeper, circa 2017/18, an Intercity livery

Could be something Rivera or LSL, not sure if the intercity liveries on them are actually original though

 

[12C]

Could be something Rivera or LSL, not sure if the intercity liveries on them are actually original though

Photo below showing the Mk2 coach in question from a Press and Journal article dated May 2016. Can’t say for certain, but the livery looked like the real deal!

 

[py_megapixel]

How much FGW branded stuff is there left?
When I was in the west country in 2023 noticed a lot dotted about. The last time I went on the north downs line, the trains had GWR liveries but FGW posters on the inside

FGW/GWR is an interesting one because of the rather unusual - perhaps unique? - fact that franchise completely rebranded but with no change of owners or the scope of the franchise to enforce any sort of urgency to get rid of the old brand.

I suspect there are quite a lot of FGW names remaining in various places, and even more signage etc. done in FGW style even if the name itself has been covered up with new GWR branding.

 

[Western 52]

There was a green class 47 around in the early 1980s. It was plain green. 47256 maybe?

 

[61653 HTAFC]

As far as PTE liveries go, both of the main Strathclyde liveries lasted for 23 years (1983-2006 for Orange/Black and 1996-2019 for Carmine/Cream), each lasting a decade or more after their successors appeared. The last class to carry both was the 314.

Actually, come to think of it, 314202 holds the distinction of being one of the last units on the national network to carry both liveries, sharing the latter with 314205, it's partner during the farewell tour in December '19 (it held onto Orange/Black for nearly a year after the second-to-last unit was repainted in 2005).

The Regional Railways variant of ScotRail livery lasted until January 2002, with the final Class 305 withdrawal.

On PTE liveries, the last unit on the mainline in the original version of West Yorkshire Metro's "Raspberry Ripple" colours would have been one of the 158/9s as some survived in that livery until the Serco/Abellio Northern era. The 141s which went to Iran also retained it for a good while before being repainted in a green and silver local livery. Of the ones that weren't exported, the one at Butterley is still in Raspberry Ripple almost 30 years on from withdrawal.

 

[Western 52]

Some of the class 15 locos retained for carriage heating were in original green livery into the early 1980s.

 

[NSE]

Just a shame they changed the matching shade of green in the logo to a paler, clashing shade over COVID. I have no idea why they did that but it ruins the harmony of the train’s livery and branding.

Image - top, original Southern logo, below, newer Southern logo introduced in the last few years and now on all 377s.

View attachment 174113

There are a couple of original logos still floating about. A /6 series definitely has one and I think a couple of /1, /2 or /4. It’s sometimes just one coach per train, but a couple of original ones are still knocking about.

Pretty certain a 171 has one too.

 

[thenorthern]

FGW/GWR is an interesting one because of the rather unusual - perhaps unique? - fact that franchise completely rebranded but with no change of owners or the scope of the franchise to enforce any sort of urgency to get rid of the old brand.

I suspect there are quite a lot of FGW names remaining in various places, and even more signage etc. done in FGW style even if the name itself has been covered up with new GWR branding.

Only other example I can think of is ONE becoming National Express East Anglia in 2008.

In regards the colour scheme I was thinking back in 2004 when Arriva Trains Northern became Northern Rail there were quite big changes to the colour scheme and livery. When Northern Rail became Northern by Arriva in 2016 though they retained the purple colour scheme and having a large N for a logo. Then in 2020 when the current Northern Railway took over they retained exactly the same livery and logos only dropping the "by Arriva" branding.

 

[BurtonM]

Then in 2020 when the current Northern Railway took over they retained exactly the same livery and logos only dropping the "by Arriva" branding.

It's probably because Northern was taken over by the DfT rather than a private company that might have more of a budget for that, as well as potential for the DfT to be criticised for vanity projects: even if people did in fact want a distict rebranding of Northern as a symbolic gesture, someone would do this, or ask why the 150s had been repainted twice in five years rather than replaced. Arriva had only just let someone loose to "refurbish" the 150s with a load of beach towels and trade white emulsion they found in a cupboard - and then had to recover the seats again a second time... it could also be that the London-centric government simply weren't interested because it's the grim north - it's only been the somewhat flagship capital to capital ECML that's ever been branded by DOR or the DfT, and even then the liveries are basic. But there's also the fact that when DfT kicked Abellio out, we didn't know that re-nationalisation was going to happen, and DfT could have put Northern back out to tender - if that happened then any rebranding would be perceived as being in particularly poor taste.
Also, a rebranding but then a failure to deliver change and improvement would make the DfT look stupid - so not rebranding is pretty wise - look at Northern's RDW arrangements, or TPE in general. There are probably a lot of people still slating First for TPE's performance...
But hey! The Northern contract expires in a couple of weeks, maybe we can hope that the drab purple and appliance white is finally being put out to pasture. Shadow GBR have got to have something in the works, right?

 

[The exile]

There was a green class 47 around in the early 1980s. It was plain green. 47256 maybe?

Plain green on a 47 wouldn’t have been “original” as that was two-tone.

 

[156444]

I think there is still a 150 running around in First Great Western Blue livery.

150219 and 150238

 

[CR165022]

150219 and 150238

150219 is at Wolverton being repainted currently, so there's just 238 left.

 

[Rick1984]

47714 is just being repainted out of Anglia livery now at the Wensleydale railway after coming off the mainline last year.

View attachment 174124

Shane it's not been redone in same livery. Be great to see some more modern liveries in preservation

 

[Taunton]

The two class 01s at Holyhead breakwater kept their black livery until withdrawal in 1979 and 1981 respectively, still with the older lion and unicycle logo - albeit with the addition of wasp stripes. .

They were quite isolated from the main BR network, having been taken over by road in 1967 when the black livery was already outmoded twice, having by then gone through green and then blue. For the rest of their time they were maintained locally, the fitters touching up the paintwork as needed with spray paint cans. They did have their numbers changed to TOPS ones when that scheme came along, their second renumbering. They were just new in 1956 when the shunter livery was changed from black to green, and lasted in the defunct livery for 25 years afterwards.

 

[12LDA28C]

Autumn 1978 I think. From memory it was only blue for a couple of months

40106 was never blue. It was repainted from BR green into BR green.

There was a green class 47 around in the early 1980s. It was plain green. 47256 maybe?

All 47s received BR blue livery by the end of the 1970s, none survived into the 80s. 47367 was the last in two-tone green. 47256 was indeed in plain dark green but was blue by 1978.

 

[43096]

40106 was never blue. It was repainted from BR green into BR green.

There is strong evidence that it was painted into blue at Crewe Works before the instruction was issued to paint it green.

 

[SuspectUsual]

40106 was never blue. It was repainted from BR green into BR green.

Incorrect, according to the CFPS.

40106

Operating status: Operational (Currently on hire to The Severn Valley Railway) Steam Heat Boiler: Operational Livery: Dark Brunswick green, full yellow ends Running number: 40106 40106 was one of 2…

www.cfps.co.uk

Quote from above website:

During her last works overhaul at Crewe in September 1978, the loco was repainted into blue and yellow, but shortly afterwards, it was then decided to repaint the loco in Dark Brunswick green with full yellow ends.

 

[12LDA28C]

Incorrect, according to the CFPS.

40106

Operating status: Operational (Currently on hire to The Severn Valley Railway) Steam Heat Boiler: Operational Livery: Dark Brunswick green, full yellow ends Running number: 40106 40106 was one of 2…

www.cfps.co.uk

Quote from above website:

No photographic evidence has ever emerged of this being the case and other reports state that the loco was seen in works in blue undercoat but that was as far as its blue repaint got.

There is strong evidence that it was painted into blue at Crewe Works before the instruction was issued to paint it green.

What evidence is there? No photographs exist. See above.

 

[Class15]

Incorrect, according to the CFPS.

40106

Operating status: Operational (Currently on hire to The Severn Valley Railway) Steam Heat Boiler: Operational Livery: Dark Brunswick green, full yellow ends Running number: 40106 40106 was one of 2…

www.cfps.co.uk

Quote from above website:

That’s very interesting, thanks! Definitely looks like it was in Blue!