Wigan Album

Excellent, you don't see many colour photos from this period - and the link to the other site is very useful. Thanks for posting.

Brilliant pic, Mark - and a supreme example of why pics should be posted with as much background information as exists.

The 'black eight' looks in good nick for 1968. A nice contrast here; the irony being: the type four lurks in the background, seemingly doing local mundane tasks; whilst the dependable old steam locomotive takes centre stage. Even by this time, with the end still some five months away, the steam loco overshadows the dull diesel...Ah, what folly the 1955 modernisation plan turned out to be...Lovely photograph.

Jarvo, can you explain the difference between a black 5 and a black 8? I was a train spotter in the 50's but couldn't tell the difference.

Note the two pandora clips missing on the up fast,

the difference between the two was down to wheel size, the ones on a black five were a lot bigger.

Steam trains will always take centre stage than diesels. They live and breath.

Alan: Easy to spot: The 'black eight' had eight driving wheels; the 'black five' had six.

Look how rundown North Western station is. This seemed to epitomise the railways in the 60s away from the Euston to Manchester and Liverpool routes which were getting all the money at this time. I remember Wigan NW like this, waiting for the train to Blackpool on summer Saturdays in July. I was 5 and steam trains passing through frightened me to death!!!

What is the painted structure behind the locomotive?