1968
SD7786 : The Fifteen Guinea Special heads for Carlisle behind 70013
taken 58 years ago, near to Stone House, Cumbria, England

The Fifteen Guinea Special heads for Carlisle behind 70013
The very last (standard gauge) steam-hauled train promoted by British Rail ran on Sunday 11th August 1968. Universally (but unofficially) known as the 'Fifteen Guinea Special' because of what was then regarded as an outrageous ticket price (equivalent to almost £340 in 2024), the train ran from Liverpool, to Manchester, and on to Carlisle over the Settle & Carlisle line. It returned by the same route. Remarkably, BR did not give this auspicious train a special name - the locos merely carried its reporting number of 'IT57'! See: Link
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The second leg of the trip, from Manchester Victoria to Carlisle over the Settle & Carlisle line, was headed by BR Britannia class 70013 'Oliver Cromwell'. Here 70013 has just left Arten Gill viaduct, see: SD7785 : The Fifteen Guinea Special crossing Arten Gill Viaduct. It still has about 8 miles to go before the summit of the line at Ais Gill.
70013 survived into the preservation era as part of the National Collection, see: Link
.
The second leg of the trip, from Manchester Victoria to Carlisle over the Settle & Carlisle line, was headed by BR Britannia class 70013 'Oliver Cromwell'. Here 70013 has just left Arten Gill viaduct, see: SD7785 : The Fifteen Guinea Special crossing Arten Gill Viaduct. It still has about 8 miles to go before the summit of the line at Ais Gill.
70013 survived into the preservation era as part of the National Collection, see: Link
Settle to Carlisle railway line
The Settle to Carlisle Line is a 73 mile long main railway line in northern England. It was constructed in the 1870s. It is generally recognised as one of the most attractive railway lines in the country as it crosses the Yorkshire Dales.
Wikipedia: Link![]()
