What it was like to ride the last steam train in Britain, by the passengers of the 'Fifteen Guinea Special'
It's exactly 50 years since the last passenger steam train in Britain made its way from Liverpool to Carlisle and back. Daniel Puddicombe spoke to some of those lucky few who were on board 1T57 back in 1968.

A shrill whistle sounds and we’re powering towards the Cumbrian hills. Black clouds of smoke and steam drift past the windows and the beat from the locomotive’s three cylinders is clearly audible as we build up speed in order to take on the fearsome Shap Summit on the West Coast Main Line.
The date of August 11, 1968 – the day of the last steam passenger train in Britain – is to rail enthusiasts what October 24, 2003 – when Concorde touched down for the final time – is to aviation fans. These events have similarities: thousands flocked to Heathrow to see Concorde come in from the USA, thousands lined the route of the final steam run and tickets to travel on both occasions were vastly inflated compared with a normal trip.
The final run was called the Fifteen Guinea Special and was named after the price of tickets. At the time, there was uproar; adjusting for inflation, tickets cost about £230 in today’s currency.
‘There was a lot of indignation – what a nerve British Rail had for charging such a steep price and taking our steam locomotives away from us,’ remembers Richard Newman, who was on board.
‘1T57’ – the reporting code given to the train – ran from Liverpool Lime Street via Manchester to Carlisle and back, via the picturesque Settle & Carlisle Railway. Four locomotives were used in turn throughout the day, three of which survive in operational order to this day.
Another person on the train that day was Sir Peter Hendy, Network Rail’s current chairman.
‘I remember it like it was yesterday. I’d never been on any of the previous enthusiast tours before, because they were all in the north-west of England,’ he admits.
Exquisite houses, the beauty of Nature, and how to get the most from your life, straight to your inbox.
‘Then, they advertised the Fifteen Guinea Special and I thought “that might be something to go on and tell your kids about”. I didn’t know much, but it was brilliant. The staff had a good time and I was caked in soot because everything was dirty then.’
Fast-forward 50 years and steam on the mainline is as popular as it ever was. Tens of thousands were lined up to witness the Flying Scotsman’s return to steam in 2016 and about 500 steam-hauled charters run on the national network each year.
Fittingly, three separate charters ran over the Settle & Carlisle Railway 50 years to the day since steam came to an end. There’s nothing quite like riding behind it on the mainline. Sitting in the comfortable BR Mk1 carriages from the 1950s and 1960s, you experience a sensory overload, from the clitter-clack of the wheels on the rails to the sound of the locomotive. On steep gradients, there are distinct barks as it thunders its way over the crest, the fireman working extra hard to shovel coal quickly enough.
Travelling by steam is like deciding to commute to work in a Jaguar E-type: yes, you could drive to work in a modern car, but where’s the joy in that? The ‘re-creation’ I experienced wasn’t an exact replica – the route wasn’t identical, starting in London rather than Liverpool, and the 1T57 locomotives weren’t available – but some things were consistent, not least the magic of the experience for those in attendance.
‘You knew you were taking part in railway history as the full expectation was that it would be the end,’ says Bill Owen, who was on board both trips, when remembering that day half a century apart.
‘It was magic,’ agrees Mr Newman. ‘The crowds on the platform at Manchester were massive. People were all over the tracks. The signalmen didn’t seem to mind, the police weren’t called and nobody got themselves run over.’
Phil Braithwaite photographed and travelled on the final steam-hauled trips in the North-West and sums up the joy of those days. ‘It’s the soot in your hair as you stick your head out of the window,’ he believes. ‘I’m a bit old now, but I used to do it all the time with my long-focus lens, to get photos of the locomotive at the front. When I look back on it, they weren’t that great, but they painted a record.’
A fireman during the days of steam, Les Perry later became a driver on diesel trains and has been working with West Coast Railways, which provides the crews and rolling stock for the majority of charters in the preservation era, for the past 10 years.
The joy of firing, he explains, was that it was only the driver and firemen in control of the locomotive: ‘Now, you have a support crew to help you out and it isn’t the same at all.’
For him, the Fifteen Guinea Special marked the end of a very special time. ‘Those were the best years of my life. I would have gone to work for free, as I loved it.’
It’s clear that, as in any sphere, much has changed over the past 50 years. However, one thing hasn’t and is unlikely ever to do so – that’s the thrill of steam and its intoxicating effect on those that encounter it, from the small child to the casual bystander. And, of course, the dedicated rail enthusiast.
Credit: Alamy
Britain's most beautiful narrow-gauge railways, from Norfolk to Wales
Britain's 100 best Railway Stations: Simon Jenkins on the gateways to our railways
Britain’s most scenic train journeys
Country Life lists the most scenic journeys by train in Britain, from The Highlands to Northern Ireland
-
25 design books that will transform your ideas, as recommended by Britain's best designers and designers
Giles Kime spoke to some of the best designers and gardeners to get their recommendations on the books that constantly prove a source of inspiration in their work.
-
Sophia Money-Coutts: Is there even any point in setting an out of office, these days?
Setting an out of office email only to reply anyway is a vicious cycle, writes our columnist.
-
The teeny tiny car that you absolutely don’t need, but will absolutely want this summer — and it has an inbuilt shower
The Fiat Topolino has been reimagined by French swimwear brand Vilebrequin just in time for the summer holidays.
-
Small engines, big batteries: The quiet revolution of car design
More and more cars on the road are electric, and some unusual shapes and sizes glide past silently. But what does it all mean for design?
-
You can’t always rely on the Great British summer — but you can rely on its watches
British watchmakers have excelled themselves in recent months — releasing bright and beautiful timepieces that you'll want on your wrist through summer, and beyond.
-
No strings attached: A brief history of swimwear, from heavy skirts of linen linked to women's drownings, to the skimpy two-piece named after a nuclear weapons site
From knee-length numbers to a scandalous suit denounced by the Pope, the colourful history of swimwear has been brought to life by a glamorous London exhibition.
-
Downtown Abbey is about to finish forever, and you're about to get a chance to see — and to buy — the costumes from the show
Downton Abbey's exquisite costumes and props are going on show at a free exhibition ahead of a sale being held by Bonhams later this summer.
-
‘One of the most effective pieces of propaganda ever made’: the Bayeux Tapestry heads to Britain for the first time in almost a millennium
A historic agreement between this country and France sees the 225ft-long tableau — which may have been made in Britain but has been in France since 1077 — arrive at the British Museum in Autumn 2026.
-
‘They remain, really, the property of all of those who love them, know them, and tell them. They are our stories, the inheritance of the people of Scotland’: The Anthology of Scottish Folk Tales
-
Canine muses: Lucian Freud's etchings of Pluto the whippet are among his most popular and expensive work
In the third edition of our limited series, we meet the dogs who've inspired some of our greatest artists.