27th May 1984

L.N.E.R. Society Railtours
The Isle of Wight Express

Locos Used 33027, 33115 & 45135 '3rd Carabinier'

Route : 1Z69 throughout

Loco(s) Route
45135 Kettering - (via MML) - Brent Curve Jn
33115 Brent Curve Jn - Acton Wells Jn - South Acton Jn - Old Kew Jn - Hounslow - Staines - Virginia Water - Chertsey - Woking - Basingstoke - Eastleigh - Fareham - Cosham - Hilsea - Portsmouth Harbour
33027 + 33115 Portsmouth Harbour - Hilsea - Havant - Haslemere - Guildford - Woking - (reverse of outward route) - Brent Curve Jn
45135 Brent Curve Jn - (reverse of outward route) - Kettering

Sources : Gary Thornton (joined/left train at Wellingborough) & Gary Stratford

Tour Review
(by Gary Thornton)

A busy Bank Holiday weekend with tours on both days! Day one saw me a passenger on an LNER Society Railtours outing to Portsmouth for a trip over to the Isle of Wight - required track! 45135 took me down the Midland Line from Wellingborough as far as Brent Curve Jn where a solitary 33, 33115, awaited us.

I made a round trip on the Isle of Wight, taking time out to photograph both redundant 97803 (ex-05001) and also 03079 which had recently arrived on the island to take over from the class 05. In fact, 03079 was still to have the cab cut-down, a requirement if it wasn't to get wedged in the tunnel at Ryde!

Back at Portsmouth Harbour and our return traction was double the horsepower as 33027 had been paired with 33115.


33027 & 33115 on the train prior to departure from Portsmouth Harbour.

We headed back to Brent Curve Jn by a different route and, once there, I was a tad disappointed to discover 45135 was our replacement engine for the journey homewards - assuming it had retired to the nearby Cricklewood depot I was hoping a different loco would be used on the way back, alas, not to be.

Gary Thornton.

Timings (Booked Only)
(from Gary Stratford)

Location Booked (out) Booked (rtn)
Kettering 06.45d ??.??a
Brent Curve Jn 08L27 ~ 08L47 21L08 ~ 21L28
Portsmouth Harbour ??.??a ??.??d


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