KNOW YOUR… LIVERIES
PART 22: Class 47s in the Rail blue era
Paul Chancellor presents a diverse array of Brush Type 4s during the BR blue years, showcasing what was meant to be a standardised ‘corporate’ livery.
Appearing in 1964, D1733 sported a special ‘XP64’ livery, consisting of a medium shade of blue, small yellow warning panels and BR’s new ‘double arrow’ logos applied onto a red backing. The ‘XP64’ exhibition train was also a chance for BR to show off its new range of coaching stock – the precursor to the Mk 2 carriages. This was not the first diesel to be painted blue, however. That honour goes to Class 31 D5578, a few years earlier.
COLOUR RAIL
The twists and turns of the liveries carried by the Class 47s, also known as Brush Type 4s, could probably fill an entire magazine. On this occasion, however, we’ll concentrate on British Rail’s ‘standard’ blue livery, in the years before the appearance of the ‘large logo’ version.