A new photograph from Trevor Ermel
Class 55 Deltic 55018 ‘Ballymoss’ stands at York on 3rd August, 1981, having arrived with the 12.05 1L42 service from London King’s Cross. Within a few hours it would be off again, working the 15.50 1A26 back down to King’s Cross. On the platform, a lone trainspotter looks on.
There is nothing to do at a moment like that but take it in: the clatter and howl of the twin Napier engines idling under load, the diesel fumes drifting along the platform, the sheer presence of a locomotive resting between duties rather than flashing past at speed. A Deltic that had come up from King’s Cross and was booked out again within the day gave a trainspotter something an express passing through never could, which was time. Time enough to stand close, to listen properly, to let the engine note settle into memory rather than catch it for a second and lose it.
By August 1981, a Deltic working a King’s Cross to York diagram was already something of a survival. The class had been introduced from 1961 to haul the principal East Coast Main Line expresses, but by the turn of the decade the InterCity 125 High Speed Trains had taken over the flagship services, and the Deltics still in traffic were increasingly found on turns like this one: solid, workmanlike duties rather than the headline runs they had once defined. A working such as the 12.05 up from King’s Cross and the 15.50 back down was exactly the kind of diagram a Deltic still did well.
55018 itself had entered service on 24 November 1961. It was withdrawn on 12 October 1981 and scrapped by January 1982. Ballymoss did not survive as a working Class 55, but the class as a whole did not disappear from the railway either. Newcastle-based photographer Trevor Ermel has kindly allowed Memories of Motion the rights to this photograph, so that every print and framed print sold can help the Deltic Preservation Society keep their three operational Deltics running today.
Why this photograph?
What stays with you is the ordinariness of the moment: one enthusiast, one locomotive, and the length of a turnaround between one working and the next. There is no drama in it, only the chance to stand beside a Deltic at rest and listen to it properly, which is exactly the kind of moment a camera holds onto after everything else about an afternoon at York has faded. It is what Trevor Ermel caught that day, and it is why the photograph is still worth looking at now.
Available as Prints and Frames
| Format | Sizes | Finishes | From |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12 x 9″, 16 x 12″, 24 x 18″ | Lustre, Gloss, Velvet, Photo Rag | £15 | |
| Matted Print | 14 x 11″ mount (12 x 9″ image), 20 x 16″ mount (16 x 12″ image) | Lustre, Gloss, Fine Art Pearl, Photo Rag | £32 |
| Sanctuary Framed Print | 14 x 11″ frame (12 x 9″ image), 20 x 16″ frame (16 x 12″ image) | Lustre, Gloss, Fine Art Pearl, Photo Rag | £109 |
| Fine Art Tray Frame | 16 x 12″, 24 x 18″ | Fine Art Pearl | £150 |
| Limited Edition Fine Art Float Frame | 20 x 16″ frame (16 x 12″ image) | Fine Art Cotton Smooth | £200 |
Browse the Ballymoss at York print and framed editions, or see more of our Deltics Class 55 photography.
The photograph
- Locomotive: Class 55 Deltic 55018 ‘Ballymoss’
- Location: York
- Date: 3rd August, 1981
- Working: 12.05 1L42 London King’s Cross to York (arrival); 15.50 1A26 York to London King’s Cross (return working)
- Also in frame: A lone trainspotter
- Photographer: Trevor Ermel
Copyright Notice
This photograph is the copyright of Trevor Ermel. It is reproduced here by permission and offered as fine art prints and framed editions by Memories of Motion.
The image may not be copied, reproduced, redistributed, transmitted or used in any form, in print or digitally, without the prior written consent of the copyright holder. All rights reserved.
