Journey on the Coronation Scot

From the collection of

Screen Archive South East at the University of Brighton
Screen Archive South East at the University of Brighton collects, preserves, catalogues and provides public access to its collection of films and magic lantern slides. The collection charts the rise of screen culture in the region and the nation and captures many aspects of life, work and creativity in the South East from the late 19th century to the present day. It is available for research, screenings, creative re-use and commercial access.

Journey on the Coronation Scot


Princess Alice' hauls her passengers to Scotland aboard the streamlined Coronation Scot in this dazzling film from the late 1930s

One of the London Midland & Scottish railway's crack streamliners, 6223 'Princess Alice' backs onto her train at Euston Station before departing with the 1.30pm Coronation Scot. Comprised of specially designed streamlined stock, the train would make only one stop at Carlisle before arriving in Glasgow at 8pm. Some remarkable, and risky, shots taken from the rear of the train, capture the thrill of 1930s high-speed rail travel as we charge through the passing landscape.

Hubert Davies, who made this remarkable film, was a professional photographer. His journey on the Coronation Scot gives us a valuable glimpse, from a passenger's point-of-view, of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway's high-speed train service to Glasgow, on the West Coast mainline. The 1.30pm Coronation Scot, was a response to the London and North Eastern Railway's rival service to Edinburgh called The Coronation, which left Kings Cross at 4pm. It ran on the East Coast mainline and was also hauled by newly introduced streamlined locomotives called A4s. High speed running on both lines was curtailed a few years after this film was made when, as a wartime safety measure, rail speeds were reduced.


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