What's Inside the InterCity 125? The HIGH-SPEED Diesel Design Icon | Curator with a Camera
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- čas přidán 3. 07. 2024
- Anthony Coulls, Senior Curator of Rail Transport and Technology, takes you on an in-depth tour of our Class 43 High Speed Train power car-more commonly known as the InterCity 125-and tells the story of this impactful locomotive.
Introduced in 1976, the InterCity 125 quickly formed the backbone of Britain's high-speed rail routes and revived interest in rail travel after years in the doldrums.
The loco's popularity was helped by both its eye-catching aerodynamic wedge-shaped design-penned by Sir Kenneth Grange-and its considerable speed advantage over what went before. The 148mph top speed recorded by a Class 43 remains the world's fastest speed achieved by a diesel-powered locomotive.
This particular 125, no. 43002, was both the first InterCity 125 to be produced and the last to operate a passenger service before it was retired in 2019.
To find out more about the National Railway Museum, visit our website: www.railwaymuseum.org.uk/
0:00 Introduction
0:24 History of the InterCity 125
1:25 Sir Kenneth Grange's design
1:57 Where are the buffers?
2:40 Engineering details
3:38 Inside the cab
5:20 Driving controls
7:22 The all-important horn
7:51 The big screen
8:58 Inside the engine room
10:38 A very noisy guards and luggage compartment
11:26 Emergency coupling
11:58 Summing up - Věda a technologie
I really do hope Curator with a Camera becomes a series showcasing other locos and coaches because this was great.
especially as we can't travel at the moment anyway....can't wait to get to york again....
So do I . This was brilliant and seems like a flash in the pan 😌
Never a day goes by I don't reflect on how lucky I am to drive these iconic trains....
The point you make about steam having only been gone for 8 years brings home how revolutionary these were.
And how long in the tooth steam was...
They were literally built to replace the failed APT. It’s just a fast diesel. The Japanese had the Zero series 7 years earlier
@@MrJimheeren the HST(class 43) was fastest diesel in the world at125mph in 70,s ,it did actually top over 140 mph on east coast main line on test on special test line section
I've been interested in the HST since childhood spotting days 40 years ago. I've read numerous books on the subject and how unions opposed having only one person in the cab and hence the central driving up position which lead to the offset driving position and need for a wider windscreen, but being less than a decade after steam had finished put this into context.
30 years ago the thought of having a Diesel or Electric powered unit in the national rail museum would have been considered sacrilege
I used to work in a pub in York in the late 70's and two very experienced ECML drivers used to call in. They were Deltic drivers and probably steam before that, they loved the new 125's. They commented on the fantastic ease of driving them, the speed in which they could pull away, and ( I always remember this fondly) 'they sound like a dog barking when you go under a bridge'. Great locos & two great characters.
It's such an icon of 70s design, the automotive equivalent would have to be something like a Lamborghini Countash! I will never forget the scream of the massive turbo on the valenta with the low throbbing of the massive engine in the background. The fact it was in service for so long is a testament to how good it was.
I worked on that power car when I worked at Old Oak Common HST Depot.
i remember building it at Crewe!!
@@gordonjohnson8432 you mean in 1975 ? :O
@Dave Jones great !!
InterCity 125 is built in Australian under licence as the XPT for N.S.W. rail and is also still running in service
I really hope 'Curator with a camera' becomes a thing and you do detailed walk arounds of the other locomotives in the collection. fantastic video.
Please do Western Fusilier.
Please keep this in running condition, the kids of today need to see the HST alive on the tracks now and again, i for one would donate to make that happen.
Google 125group
There are still HSTs operating in Scotland and on parts of the GWR.
@@neiloflongbeck5705 also East Midlands trains run some still
I love the hst. Still wish they ran lol
They still run as our interstate rail option in Australia
Excellent. ‘Curator with a camera’ would be a great idea for a weekly CZcams video release. Similar to the Tank museum....Workshop views...Stories on items in the national collection...(a way to raise more money) 💡💡💡
It makes me think of Behind the Wings and Curator on the lose from matthew Bruchette.
Here in America, the Lake Superior Railroad Museum in Duluth, Minnesota has a weekly show that they upload on CZcams that is exactly like this short, albeit focusing on the many American locomotives within their collection.
I remember the very loud scream of the Valenta engines. On one occasion we were travelling from Newcastle to Kings Cross and unusually went via Sunderland and by the time we reached Doncaster, we were informed we were running 40 minutes late. The remainder of the journey was straight through and it was very fast and thinking and felt we were doing much more than 125mph, it seemed exceptionally fast through Lincolnshire and the level rail crossing X. We arrived at Kings Cross several Munites early. and when we alighted we saw a few crew by the driver's door in a celebratory mood. It was I believe early 1980s, could this be possible?
Was the service changed to non-stop at Doncaster because of the diversion?
Depending on how many stops were scheduled, it may not be that remarkable.
Cutting out Retford, Newark, Grantham, Peterborough and perhaps even Stevenage, one could quite easily imaging the time being made up?
Doncaster -> King's Cross = 155 miles.
Non-stop, averaging 100mph would give you a journey time of around an hour and a half. Perhaps a reasonable assumption.
In order to beat that down to 50 minutes, the average speed would need to be over 180mph.
I did a milepost timing down Stoke Bank some time in the early 80's when I realised that the driver appeared to be in a hurry.
I calculated 138mph, but that was downhill and wasn't maintained.
Yes, it can be possible but only if the train's running schedule was very slack. Some services have a few minutes recovery time added to the schedule to allow for any delays but some services are scheduled to very tight timings and if you are late then you won't get that lost time back.
Still one of the best (and best looking) things BR ever did. And arguably a far more comfortable and refined travelling experience than today's intercity trains.
The ECML is just not the same without them and it will be a sad, sad day when the final units are withdrawn. The walkthrough was brilliant, and I wish the NRM would make more loco cabs and technical info viawable to visitors.
I think what surprised me the most about these when I first got on one was the smooth pull away and the ride quality of the MKIII carriages.
I'd be sat there having just boarded, transferring numbers from pad to 'Locoshed' and I'd be like 'Oh wow, we're moving'.
I drive these trains for Scotrail, absolutely iconic and amazing to drive. It is a privilege to drive these trains in their final years and is a childhood dream that has come true. The Indian summer of the HSTs for sure! 😊.
I was born in 1970. When I first saw one of these at Nottingham station, I fell in love. I always wanted a 125 Hornby train set in the yellow and blue BR Livery. Sadly, being a girl I wasn't bought one even though I asked every birthday and Christmas. I used to love watching the layout in the window of Beatties in Nottingham and I'd always look to see if they had a set for sale. Sadly by the time I was old enough to buy my own, neither Beatties or Toys R us stocked it. I'm now 50 and my own children are grown up but I have never got over not getting one of these. I also tried to get one in Midland Mainline livery but appeared to have missed those too. 😢
I live in N E Lincs, and like you , I too fell in love with this train. I was nine years old when I first saw three of them at Edinburgh station. That was 1980. I was lucky, and got the Hornby set that Xmas, which I still have to this day, still in its box.
I loved the sound they made with the old Valenta power units, they were truly iconic. Still a fantastic train after the new power units were fitted, but nothing beat the sound of a Valenta powered HST pulling out of Paddington station.
Like all high powered Diesel Engines, the Valenta had its problems and Exhaust Manifold cracking was an issue with steam coming out of the roof ports as cooling fluid leaked into the Exhaust. Still an iconic design and doesn’t look dated all these years later.
I remember the GNER HSTs from my childhood. I loved their first class interiors.
Yes, the Valentas. What a wonderful scream moving off from a station. If you can’t have a deltic, have a valenta.
I remember as a kid train spotting on Swindon station watching in disbelief as one of these came in from Bristol with huge flames and tons of smoke coming out of its exhausts, was quite scary to see as a 13 year old. Guess it was a blown turbo or something but it definitely left an impression.
Beautiful well used Museum piece, looks just like she's finished a run. And the scary thing is a train just like this in Australia called the XPT is what we class as 'High Speed' trains. Your Museum piece is out best and fastest train. Says much about the trouble with rail transport in Australia.
Yes the XPT is based on the Class 43. And as the man says there a still a few in service here too.
YOU ARE EVERYWHERE DUDE
i still remember a tv ad for the XPT saying "take the fast train". Yeah right its like 16 hours from sydney to brisbane. Its probably half that to just get on the pacific highway and drive it these days. Modern day tilting diesel trains might make a difference on our 1800's tracks, or full electrification, maybe. The east coast run is never going high speed. Only chance of anything ever down under would be a sydney to melbourne run to compete with the air traffic
It’s a shame for NSW XPTs such a awesome train on average tracks
@@danielreynolds6498 Whats eves sader is 80 years ago we could build incredible High Speed Trains. Look at 3801, that would give the XPT a run for its money. Yet today the government can't do anything to make things right in the rail sector.
What a wonderful design and engine she was and is! In the mid-80s I travelled many times to and from Hull University on trains drawn by these iconic engines. The Inter-City 125 Service was so efficient and fast, I loved it!
Fantastic trains. For those of you that are wondering, GWR, CrossCountry, Scotrail and EMR are still operating these trains today. EMR have a planned date for retiring them but Scotrail, GWR and CrossCountry have no plans currently for retirement. The 125 Group also have 2 (I think) ex-EMR trains with VP185 engines. They are planning to fit one of them with a Paxman Valenta engine like they did with the prototype HST. (Also, 43102, which is the HST that holds the world record, is going to be coming to the NRM sometime in the future in Intercity Swallow livery).
I thought GWR had stopped running their HST sets, or have they brought some back into use?
@@pepperstmm GWR are still running HSTs in 2+4 formation between Penzance and Cardiff. Whatever GWR didn't hold on to either went to Scotrail or went to storage. (The sets they did hold on to first went to Wabtec to be fitted with sliding doors to replace the slam doors)
@@donutdisturb69 & retention tanks for any toilets,
does not hold the world record anymore ,the GWR HST,s are owned by ANGEL trains and run out from Plymouth Laira depot
@@terry-wc9sw 43102 still holds the world record for being the fastest diesel locomotive or something like that.
I never thought one of these would end up in the NRM when they appeared in 1977. But then again the Sex Pistols got old since then too...
They still look pretty modern even today and this was the best livery they ever carried.
It was a great honour for me to drive these magnificent trains many years ago.
I remember my first experience of the 125 in person, and I didn't even see it. They had just entered service on the ECML, I would have been about 12, I was with my mum in the booking hall of Stevenage station, and a 125 set went through at speed, it was an amazing sound, but what made it memorable was the middle aged guy across the room who ducked.
This just makes her retirement waaay to real. Really sad to see them go. They were iconic and one of my favourite lococs along with deltics and pacers.
At least there are still companies that use them. Check out the new Scotrail livery for the HST, looks really nice.
The InterCity XPT in NSW is very similar and worse. We have a cut price top speed of not even 100mph
Brave man to say "Pacer", but I totally agree with you. (And Deltic and HST too.)
Survived for about four times their intended life. Probably saved more threatened lines than anything eise ever, still in service as driver training units and if it wasn't for bad press, probably would be still in normal service.
Yes I know they would have needed to be made accessible, but that was addressed in one unit, but sadly not carried on.
And unlike a brand new 195 I was on recently, I have NEVER been on a Pacer that has broken down
Pacers were Awesome!
@@dancedecker Like the HST, the Pacers saved British Rail but doubt Pacers will receive the credit they deserve due to how much some people (and the media) hate them.
@@Garylpool1 Sadly, I totally agree. And mostly undeserved for what they contributed etc
Yes they bounced, sometimes quite spectacularly, but only on jointed track. On welded rail they were smooth as silk
Still one's in the NRM, so the right people know their worth.
In time I think others will too. We will see.
Hello from Canada! Fantastic video, thank you. I was in England in 2015 and was on a set pulled by Sir Kenneth from Birmingham to Paddington. I didn't realize how special an engine it was at the time, but took some pictures anyway. Happy to see it in a museum now. Will visit again when travel restrictions are lifted!
was that a charter? no Birmingham to Paddington National Rail service.
Great video.
Around about 1977, Bristol Temple Meads, platform 3. I remember an excited driver allowing a lot of transpotters not only into the cab, but walk through the engine room to the guards' compartment with the engine running. Later having joined BR, I was on duty when this same loco did the fastest run from Paddington the Temple Meads where it was named Top of the Pops. Howard Jones played on platform 3! And I once had a cab ride where the train only got to 124mph. Driver did try for 125, but we would have not been able to stop in Reading... Very heavy braking through Tilehurst was the result. In the days when the brakes used to stink.
Thanks for the detailed explanation :) loved it !
I grew up right by Box Tunnel, used to sit on the high walls at Corsham end and wait for the 125s to come through. The driver would usually open the taps on clearing the tunnel- there is nothing to match the sound of a 125 giving it the beans!
I was born in early 1970s and these trains still seem modern to me . . .
And I regularly work the set with the oldest power car still in passenger service. 43003 still regularly plying the routes from Glasgow and Edinburgh up to Aberdeen and Inverness.
I traveled on a 125 at the end of 2019 up to Edinburgh and came back on the new Azuma. The 125 felt solid, safe and it was quiet. The Azuma felt cheap, rattled a lot with all its PVC and had no character.
The flip side of that coin is I can vaguely remember similar things being said about the 125s when they replaced Deltics on the ECML
@@TheWeatherOutlookTWO I get what you’re saying - I had never been on a 125 or Azuma class before in my life so none of my opinions are driven by nostalgia etc which can be very powerful. I was actually really looking forward to the Azuma and felt gutted I had to travel on a really old train going up. Turned out to be the exact opposite, I loved the 125!
That’s about the same as with the new Siemens Eurostar trains compared to the French original. That was just solid. And proper soundproofing.
Cool story bro, everyone really cares alot
@@bobbyrayofthefamilysmith24 😂 take it easy, ‘bro’
Years ahead of its time ......Concorde on rails absolutely beautiful. Quality content and quality narration on truly iconic locomotive/Train ,well done guys for sharing 👍😎
Wasn’t really ahead of its time. It was a culmination of proven existing technologies to produce something new.
My fave steam loco's are the mallard and the flying scotsman, i remember coming to this museum as a kid and i still have my 2 little national railway museum coins that you can buy from the little machine. Thats when i was around 12 and im 19 in april, my grandad drove and was the fireman on steam locos and he got me to like them lol, he still loves them and still plays train games, i play train sim world 2 and my fave freight train is the class 66 diesel locomotive.
Got to love the old whistling Valenta engines.
Brilliant video! Would love to see more like it on your other locos.
Thanks very much for putting this together! Can’t wait to visit for the first time once the pandemic is under control.
More videos like this! It was fun watching and I enjoyed it!
Please make more of these videos. This one was fantastic!
Regular updates on this channel could really make a difference to the museum.
Thank you so much for this! It’s gripping from start to finish!
I've seen these power cars in all their glory as I used to be a Train Manager on MML from 1998-2005. I had my fair share of breakdowns and technical problems with my drivers on these but we always managed to limp home to Derby Etches Park. R.I.P. HST I WILL ALWAYS LOVE YOU CLASS 43s❤
Thanks for the fantastic video.
Loved this! Reminds me of how much I miss that hallowed place, too!
Please Anthony do more of these tours of the loco's. It was refreshing to just see the trains in detail in all their glory with your commentary that showed insight into its history. Thank you.
Me & my 4 year old boy still look out for these going through Chesterfield. Still an amazing train. The blue & white Pullman is stunning.
When I was 10 I was playing on the field beside the railway with my friends. I'll never forget that day. I had always loved trains but when this thing appeared at speed (with that sound) I was blown away. It was the kind of excitement that you wish you could bottle and give to someone who didn't understand. TBF I think my friends were pretty impressed too. Couldn't know back then just how iconic it would become.
Great stuff, hope there's more like this on the rest of the collection!
Amazing video! Thank you Anthony and Lee the camera man! Exceptionally informative. I always wanted to see inside the cab of one of these. Dad had me hooked on trains from an early age and as a railwayman knew how much fun they can be! Please don't stop doing these videos.....Love 'em
Awesome, keep em comming
Great video and Mr Coulls is one of the genuine people in the preservation sector 👏
10:09 the Valentas weren't "all replaced with MTU engines in the late 90s/early 2000s". They were replaced with the MTUs between 2003 or 2005 and 2010, except for the East Midlands power cars which didn't even get MTUs, instead getting Paxman VP185s. I think I did read that there had been engine replacement *trials* in the 90s, including (I believe) Mirrlees Blackstone engines who I think made the engines in the Class 60 freight locomotives.
Really excellent. Thank you. Most enjoyable
Interesting video - shame Terry Miller wasn't mentioned
The HST power cars and Mk III coaches were designed by a team based in the Railway Technical Centre in Derby under the leadership of TCB Miller, British Rail's Chief Engineer (Traction & Rolling Stock); Kenneth Grange designed the distinctive nose shape, but the actual design drawings for it were produced in Trent House in the Railway Technical Centre, and although the power cars were made at Crewe, the fibre glass moulding for the nose was produced in the Derby C&W Works in Litchurch Lane (now Alstom)
Gorgeous train! I'd love longer videos, with external overviews as well, trains are just beautiful! Thanks!
The 125 was a constant of my uni days going between London and Liverpool ('81-'84) rarely without much delay or disruption.
Remember as a youngster about 13 going from Leeds to Newcastle to my sisters house,one of these pulled in to the platform,I was so excited and the way the train was kitted out thrilled me automatic doors between carriages,a light up sign saying toilets were engaged or vacant,loveley smooth ride,all those years ago and only just seen inside the cab....brilliant.
Great video thanks!
My Absolute favourite Loco of all time (: Thank you(:
Wonderful video; really enjoyed this. Was always my childhood ambition to drive one of these beautiful machines (and I’m sure I wasn’t alone in that dream).
Really enjoyed this.
I love the HST. Such fond memories of my daily commute from Reading back in 05/06.
Thank you for the fascinating video, really enjoyable!
What a great idea, looking forward to seeing more.
Great video and thank you for sharing.
This was excellent, hoping for more!
A view that I will never get? Well I remember many years ago when I was a kid the driver let me sit in the cab at Bristol Parkway and he showed me operations of the brake. A moment I will never forget.
Brilliant, it would be great to see some more videos exactly like this of the other locomotives in the museum.
Awesome video. More like this please
Fantastic video, thank you.
Thanks that was great hope you do more videos.
a wonderful museum and an amazing locomotive
Really enjoyed this. Very informative, brilliantly presented.
Thoroughly enjoyed watching this, would love to see more videos of other things from the collection.
A brilliant film looking at parts of the iconic Inter City 125 you wouldn’t normally see. Let’s hope other exhibits get similar films. Thank NRM
What a lovely film. Thank you. Please do more.
Hi there I'm new to the channel and this is the first video I have seen and boy as a first one its just brought back a load of amazing memories from when I was younger, my mum god bless her (RIP) was from Northumberland and I was born and raised in London and I remember the excitement every summer of going to Kings Cross Station to get the intercity 125 to Newcastle and I'm talking about the early 90s late 80s and I remember this one time that the driver actually let me get up into the drivers cab and I remember just thinking how amazing this super fast train could get us 350 miles or so in less than 3 hours on the fast journey...
My Dad was shift Manager at Canton Depot until 2000.on the 125's Ike Wedlake
You got every important loco ever in the national collection
Fascinating piece!
My one and only train set as a kid in the 80's was the Intercity 125. I wasn't really into trains and train sets then but now I am, the railway museum is on my list of places to visit.
What a brill video, thank you mate.
Great to see videos from the NRM again - I managed to visit NRM in October 2019 before everything went crazy, and hope to return once all restrictions have been lifted.
Excellent presentation!
I’m a big Jago / Geoff Marshall fan and I found this easy to watch and understand.
Thank you 😊
Probably the last iconic British locomotive to ever go into the museum
no,the DELTIC was more iconic
There is a class 91 going in too at some point. 91110 I beleive.
Very informative and well presented video - more please!
Great video - I look forward to seeing more in the future!
Amazing please do more of these episodes
I absolutely love the 125’s 😍😍😍
When the HSTs were introduced the resident cartoonist of Railnews (BR's in house magazine) depicted an HST driver pointing at an oncoming HST and saying to his co-driver, "I knew it would happen with these accelerated schedules, that's us coming back."
Brought back so many memories of childhood in Doncaster
Love it!, nicely done!
Excellent video Anth.
I absolutely loved this please make more 😊😊😊😊😊
It´s wonderful to see the inside of a 125 loco. I had the chance in 1986 to climb on the cab and had a photo taken on a fully operational 125. I will never forget it. I still keep an electric operated Hornby model train of it.
In the 1980s I lived close to a branch line (Blyth and Tyne) and would see heavy freight only. Following a major rail crash at Morpeth a diversion was created through the B&T for ECML passenger traffic. These beauties would slowly whistle their way past my village and it was a sight to see. Stunning modern design instead of heavy industrial.
In later years I would commute to London from my old village in the North East on exactly these units. Aside from the amazement that I was now being carried by one, I remember well the comfort and speed - my eyes must have been the size of plates the first time I watched those fields flying past as we rolled rapidly to the capital.
A good video. Thanks for sharing.
Excellent video for anybody that has an interest in this icon of British engineering .
Awesome video!
G,day Anthony from Peter Stowell here in Menzies Creek Victoria OZ. I thoroughly enjoyed your "Curator with a Camera" video on the 125. Well done. Whenever I am in Britain on my annual visit, except 2020, I plan my railway journeys to include at least one lengthy journey in an HST. My last visit was in 2019 which included three such journeys, two in the GWR shortened sets travelling down from Bristol T.M. (changed at Plymouth) to Bodmin Parkway and one from York to King's Cross. The 125's have always been my favourite non-Loco hauled trains. All the best wishes to the NRM and a safe recovery from the Pandemic. Peter
Look at all them beautiful trains
Great video! I always wanted a look inside the 125
Great documentary, very informative!