47 790 Follow Up post

My post on the varied history of Class 47 locomotive 47 790 certainly has had the tongues wagging over on Railforums, with the subject now having had well over 1,400 views, thanks to Tim who linked the post there, with 20 replies (see here for original post). Tim has been sending me some of the replies, and one of them not only fills in the gaps in the original post, but lovingly glazes them with honey and then adds chocolate buttons for good measure. Everything you wanted to know about 47 790 in a nutshell!

Posted by: sprinterguy
On: 6th April 2015 23:52

If any additional dates are required, these have been quoted from "The
Allocation History of BR Diesels and Electrics - Part 3", compiled by Roger
Harris, which takes the loco up to the end of its active service with EWS:

*Numbers:*
D1973: 11/1965 - 09/1974
47272: 09/1974 - 09/08/83
47593: 09/08/83 - 03/08/91 Renumbered as fitted with electric train supply
47673: 03/08/91 - 16/12/94 Renumbered as one of 7 locos (47671 - 677) fitted
with, as mentioned, increased ETS of 75 for working sleeper trains on the
Highland main line
47790: 16/12/94 - Present

*Depots:*
Haymarket: 11/65 - 09/83 (Spent a year working from Gateshead in 1968/69)
Eastfield: 09/83 - 03/91
Inverness: 03/91 - 04/94
Crewe Diesel: 04/94 - 11/97 (Also seems to have spent some time at Bristol Bath
Road during 1993)
Motherwell: 11/97 - 06/02
Crewe Diesel: 06/02 - 01/04.
Stored at Healey Mills on 01/04/2004.

*Names:*
"Galloway Princess": 16/09/83 - 03/1994 (Named in a ceremony at Stranrear
station, name removed at Bounds Green TMD)
"York Intercity Control": 22/03/94 - 09/1994 (Named in a ceremony at York
Station, name removed at Crewe Diesel)
"Saint David/Dewi Sant": 01/03/95 - 12/2002 (Named in a ceremony at Swansea
station, name removed at Crewe Diesel)

I think that the renumbering back to 47593 for the (re)naming ceremony was
temporary and purely sentimental: The main difference between the Railnet
dedicated 47/7s and (most of) the 47/4s was that the latter were fitted with RCH
jumper cables, for working with propelling control vehicles, and twin fuel tanks
(The later 47/4s, and scattered other examples, also featured twin fuel tanks,
which gave rise to the "47/8" sub-class).

I would suggest that the following webpage would be of considerable value:
http://www.class47.co.uk/c47_numbers.php?index=4&jndex=1&kndex=69&s_loco=47790

Now that it what I call informative, and particularly pleased the mystery about the return to 47593 has been resolved. Many thanks to sprinterguy on railforums and for Tim for forwarding the reply to me. I think that calls for a pic of 47 790 in her current glory pulling the train she is liveried up for - the Northern Belle. Here she is at Kemp Eye on a Swansea - Chester run in May 2013. The pic is by Phil Martin whose Flickr page you can access here.

The Northern Belle, headed by 47 790 in May 2013.      pic by Phil Martin