Image: Mike Cooper.

As high performance locomotives the Deltics were used on the most notable of Eastern Region services. Many of these services carrying names and prestigious headboards, one such name probably inspiring more schoolboys towards railways as a hobby, and later careers, than any other: "The Flying Scotsman".

The 10 o'clock "Flying Scotsman" departures from London King's Cross and Edinburgh Waverley, in opposing directions, were the stalwart of daytime Anglo-Scottish services and always powered by the most prestigious locomotives of each railway era. Their departures and arrivals met by Station managers and their timing schedules religiously adhered to wherever and when ever possible.

 Other daytime trains also ranked highly: the non-stop "Elizabethan", sadly short lived in the Deltic era due to the omission of corridor connections on the locomotives - relief crews having to ride the rear, uncomfortable and noisy cabs; "The Heart of Midlothian"; "The Queen of Scots Pullman"; "The Aberdonian" - at first an overnight service, later becoming both daytime and night-time services; "The Talisman". All evoking passion and pride in the operation and running of the railway.

Shorter hauled services included: "The Tees-Tyne Pullman"; "The White Rose Pullman"; "The West Riding"; and "The Yorkshire Pullman". In later years the Pullman services would give way to the "Executive" trains but the significance would remain and the Deltics would remain to maintain the importance of regular high speed timings and schedules.
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It is intended to add some history to each title, with photos and logs for each in the coming months. If activated the link will show yellow...

"The Aberdonian"
"The Car Sleeper Ltd"
"The Bradford Executive"
"The Elizabethan"
"The Flying Scotsman"
"The Harrogate Sunday Pullman"
"The Heart of Midlothian"
"The Hull Executive"
"The Hull Pullman"
"The Leeds Executive"
"The Newcastle Executive"
"The Night Aberdonian"
"The Night Capitals"
"The Night Scotsman"
"The Norseman"
"The Northumbrian"
"The Queen of Scots Pullman"
"The Silver Jubilee"
"The Talisman"
"The Tees-Tyne Pullman"
"The Tynesider"
"The West Riding"
"The White Rose Pullman"
"The Yorkshire Pullman"

The image to the left is a fold-out map from the 1963 "Named Trains of the ECML" brochure as pictured at the top of this page.