The loco was due to work London – Bristol – London on Saturday, and this was a positioning move to get stock & loco down to the London area. I didn’t realise when taking the photos that the maroon vehicle is converted to carry extra water for the loco, which would be needed for the non stop runs between London & Bristol.
I wasn’t expecting such an impressive performance at this location, but it literally stormed past on the way to the first stop at Solihull.
You can see the water carrier in this shot
