12th August 1987

The one and only time I ever saw "The Badger" (as its nickname was given) in service on the mainline. Here prototype Co-Co Class 89 no. 89001 arrives from the south on a test train. It remained the one-and-only member of the class, and although it gave service on the WCML for a few years, it eventually was withdrawn, preserved, only to later return in the early 2000s working for GNER on the East Coast Main Line for a while. Returned to preservation at Barrow Hill, apparently (in 2020) it is suggested that it may yet return to the mainline. We'll see.