Class 68 is a derivative of the Vossloh Eurolight and is known by the trade name UKLIGHT. They are built in Spain by Vossloh Espana. The first examples were delivered to DRS and feature their attractive new "Compass" livery. Chiltern Railways have arranged a sub-lease with DRS for 6 locomotives which are to be used on their London Marylebone to Birmingham trains and these, of course, appeared in Chiltern's house colours similar to the class 67s currently in use.

	Another train of TPE stock for storage at Long Marston ran from Longsight on Thursday 1 February 2024. This time the locomotive was 68027 and with some decent light looking probable it was a worth a drive to Evesham, one of relatively few locations at this time of the eyear with a largely shadow free shot. I looked at both the station footbridge and roadbridge at the south end of the station but there still were intrusive shadows from various bits of infrastructure so went to Briar Close. Quite a few other photographers also turned up and it was unfortunate that the sun passed behind cloud a few minutes before the train, running as 5Q94, was due.
	It seems that most TPE locomotive-hauled coaching sets are being taken from Longsight to Long Marston for storage. On Monday 29 January 2024 68021 took more stock to the site and I thought that a picture as it passed through Evesham station would make a decent shot showing it in a location obviously away from its usual haunt. After a bit of an off-route diversion just after leaving Longsight 5Q97 ran close to time and passed Evesham a few minutes early in increasingly gloomy light. There was a set booked to leave Long Marston going TO Longsight but this was unsurprisingly cancelled with 68021 returning nothwards as a light engine.
	Another set of Trans-Pennine Express stock was taken from Longsight to Long Marston on Thursday 25 January 2024. Unlike an attempt to shift a set the previous week when the locomotive failed at Stockport resulting in the train being dragged to Crewe by a class 57 where it was cancelled, 5Q94 ran close to time throughout and passed Evesham in some quite odd lighting conditions just 2 minutes late. This picture was taken from a footbridge south of there as 5Q94 with 68026 climbed through the cutting towards Honeybourne. I took a short video clip on my 'phone but the wind had picked up a bit and the noise from it became a bit intrusive.
	A third set of TPE stock, TP12, was moved from Longsight to Long Marston on Thurday 11 January 2024. This time it worked with a class 68 loocmotive, 68021, as was used when the stock was in normal service. It may be heretical but I was pleased to see an "unadulterated" set on this occasion rather than one being dragged by an ROG class 37; not that I was remotely unhappy to have taken this shot a couple of days earlier. I was mostly interested in getting a shot or two at Long Marston itself and it was fortunate that 5Q94 ran a bit late from Worcester as 2 sets of roadworks necessitated quite lengthy diversions around separate bits of Warwickshire. There was no chance of any sun, a good job here at around 12.45, when 68021 with the short train appeared in the distance and crawled along the last few hundred yards of the branch from Honeybourne.
	It took quite a while on 11 January 2024 for the token to be installed in the groundframe and getting the points switched to allow 68021 with 5Q94 to run onto road 2 of the exchange sidings. The light was getting worse but it was worth getting a shot of the stylish DVT as the train moved away from the roadbridge.
	There was time to switch to a long lens at Long Marston on 11 January 2024 before 5Q94 led by 68021 moved at less than walking pace into the exchange sidings. This image shows the large number of SWT class 701s currently stored here along with a few other bits and pieces of stock including another TPE set and class 68. Rather than being dumped here as was the case with the other 2 sets brought here 68021 later left light engine and was taken to Crewe, possibly for another similar trip next week. A concrete pad has been constructed in the distance on part of the trackbed once the main GWR line to Stratford-upon-Avon and appears to have some railway-related stuff, looking like wheelsets, stored there.
	Chiltern Trains' 68014 has recently received new vinyls to mark that is fuelled with recycled vegetable oil rather than diesel oil from fossil fuel sources. I've kept an eye on its daily allocations and saw that on 11 May 2023 that is was on a diagram including 1R91, the 101.10 from London Marylebone to Birmingham Moor Street. This service is due to pass Hatton shortly after after 11.30 and on a cloudy but brightish day there is the chance of a decent shot from the footbridge at Hatton station. The white and gree colour scheme shows up well amongst the various different blossoms on the nearby bushes.
	By the time that my target train, 6Z20 from Carlisle Kingmoor to Kineton MOD, was showing on the Railcams map as approaching Dorridge on 20 January 2023 the sun was right of edge of some wispy cloud. By the time I heard 68016 at Hatton North Junction the sky was completely clear and it was gratifying to take this very rare shot of a nuclear flask on the GWR Birmingham to Leamington Spa line in sunshine. I knew that there would be some shadow and that the station at Leamington would probably have been a better picture in some respects but there were almost certainly a lot of other photographers there whereas there were no others here and I have taken quite a few shots on Leamington recently. A closer view of escort vehicles and flask was worth a frame and it was a shame that the newly liveried 68006 was on the back of the formation. There was no chance of a going-away shot as Hatton station on the other side of the bridge was in shadow. A short 'phone video can be found on my YouTube Channel.
	There was a rare DRS working on the GWR line from Leamington Spa to Birmingham on Saturday 14 January 2023 which I was keen to photograph. I arrived at Hatton just as rain began to fall and by the time 68011 working the 11.00 London Marylebone to Birmingham Moor Street, 1R24, became audible it was absolutely lashing down. Never one to turn a challenge I took a shot as it passed but by trying to keep my camera dry until the last moment rather messed up the composition which had to result in a bit of cropping being done.
	Chiltern Railways did not run any services north of Banbury for several weeks over the Christmas holiday period. On Monday 9 January 2023 the trains recommenced and while I was at Leamington Spa for something else the chance came along to photograph 2 Chilterns side by side. On the right is 68012 with 1R91, the 1010 London Marylebone to Birmingham Moor Street with 165021 waiting to leave with the 1132 Leamington Spa to Stratford-upon-Avon, 2D23. The class 68 was audible all the way to Warwick thanks to a gentle wind blowing from the north-east, a rare treat in the days of much quieter locomotives than in earlier times.
	The morning cloud on the morning of Monday 7 March 2022 cleared nicely and with a couple of decent workings on the GWR line from Leamington Spa to Birmingham I made a trip to Hatton North JUnction. First along was 68014 propelling 1H53, the 14.55 from Birmingham Moor Street to London Marylebone. There is some talk that these locomotive-hauled trains will soon cease so it was worth taking a going-away shot as this one went around the curve towards Hatton station.
	I understand that Chiltern Railways' class 68 locomotives are losing their few remaining diagrams in December 2021 which is the only reason that I took this shot of 68010 propelling 1H48, the 13.55 Birmingham Moor Street to London Marylebone service of Monday 2 September 2021. I much prefer my shots to show trains coming towards me but as there so few opportunites for images of locomotive-hauled trains on this line I include this rather dull one of 68010 at Hatton North Junction.
	There was another and quite unexpected first for the Long Marston branch on Monday 3 August 2020 when DRS sent TPE liveried 68026 along with 66422 from Crewe Gresty Bridge to collect 20 JNA box wagons and deliver them to Stowmarket DGL. Although 2 even more unlikely visits have been made by class 88 these were no more than exhibits at Rail Live events and so didn't really tick my box for a "proper" working. When I arived at Honeybourne station, chosen because it marks the start of the branch, there was heavy cloud all around but just as 0Z68 appeared in the background a clear patch reached the sun so a sunny shot, albeit only of light engines, was taken. Note how the buddleia has flourished in the couple of years since the linked image of 88004 was taken.
	There was no rush to get to Long Marston on 3 August 2020 because the sun would have been straight into the lens at this time of day. This was a good job as a set of temporary lights and then a large gully cleaning truck which could barely fit under the railway bridges made for a journey in a record slow time. On arrival some shuffling around of the locomotives was taking place with eventually culminated, after an apparent change of mind, in 68026 being coupled to the front of the JNAs with 66422 being sent along road no2 to be attached to the other end, presumably to make the entrance into Stowmarket loop easier.
	The sun came out during the shuffling around on 3 August 2020 and so I took this view of 6Z68 standing with 68026 at the head of the JNAs just as 66422 was about to join the train at the far end of the exchange sidings. This shot really needs to be taken in the mid-afternoon when the sun is further round but I took this as I can't imagine a repeat any time soon.
	While waiting for the train to be prepared for departure I put on a long lens for this image of two D Stock cars in the process of being converted into class 484 for the Isle of Wight. These cars are in addition to the pair I recently photographed on my 'phone and it's unfortunate that a clear shot isn't possible either because of vegetation or general railway yard clutter.
	There seemed to be little chance of any light at Long Marston on 3 August 2020 so I went back to Honeybourne to await 6Z68's arrival. It was only a few minutes ahead of the booked time when it came towards the hut in which the single line token is kept and following a brief rain shower the light did brighten up a little as 68026 brought its uniform rake of JNAs towards the station. There was going to be some delay for any further movement as the signal for the down main line had just been been cleared for an arrival from Paddington at 13.41, some 25 minutes away. I considered going to the other side of Evesham but the sky didn't look great in that direction and my primary aim of getting a 68 on the Long Marston branch had been achieved so it was home for me.
	I had a message during the early afternoon of 21 June 2020 saying that a pair of Chiltern class 68s were running light engine from Wembley to Wembley via Stratford-upon-Avon, Hatton North Junction, Dorridge and Leamington Spa in order to turn the locomotives. Quite why they needed to be turned and why they had to visit Stratford when Hatton West Junction would have sufficed is unclear but as I have photographed only one class 68 here the short walk was well worthwhile. As I arrived at the station I saw this row of seats suitably labelled for personal distancing during the Covid-19 pandemic. Stratford is well-kown for its brace of riverside parks and I did wonder why these people chose to have a picnic in the none-too-pretty surroundings of the station car park!
	The pair of class 68s visiting Stratford was due into platform 1, ideal for a photograph at 17.20 on a sunny afternoon. The passenger train 2S16 formed of 172338 that had come in a few minutes earlier was booked into platform 2 and the electronic signs confirmed this. There were several passengers waiting on platform 2 and there was a lot of confusion and panic when the unit ran into P1. It seems to me that a signaller who doesn't like photographers was on duty and wanted to mess up any pictures of 0Z68; this sort of thing has happened several times in the recent past when a locomotive movement has come into Stratford. On this occasion it nearly resulted in some passengers missing their train. Anyway, 68015 + 68013 were routed into P2 and this is the mediocre result.
	Chiltern's 68013 + 68015 sat at Stratford-upon-Avon for only a few minutes on 21 June 2020 before reversing and going off towards Hatton and Dorridge for another reversal. I took a lot of pictures as it stood in the platform in the hope of getting one with all 3 lights showing. The system used means that the lights flash very rapidly and it is a matter of luck to get one right. The station is overshadowed by a horribly designed and badly built development of retirement flats (all unnoccupied) which amusingly advertises them for for sale with this banner. Yeah right. On about 2 days each year if your vision is 20/20 and you balance on the roof!
	Another trip to the road bridge at Dark Lane, Hatton on 17 July 2019. This time there was an ECS working from Eastleigh to Tyseley with double-headed class 67s along with a couple of other trains within a few minutes. First to appear was a Freightliner 66 with 4E18 from Fairwood Yard but as this was under the bridge as I parked nearby... Within a few moments the distinctive sound of a class 68 announced the arrival of 1R33, the 13.10 from London Marylebone to Birmingham Moor Street with 68014 providing the power, the train running about 20 minutes late following some signalling problems at Banbury.
	A sunny afternoon and a class 67 hauled ECS was enough to tempt me out to Hatton North Junction on Wednesday 15 May 2019. On arrival at the access to the footpath in Shrewley village I was met with a sign indicating that the 47 acre site between the M40 and Grand Union canal, currently in use as a turf farm, is for sale by auction in June. This area is inside the Green Belt so hopefully, subject to no corruption on the part of the local council or a Government Inspector (ha!), it will not be available for development. The area around the footbridge habitually used by photographers has been cleared by the present owners and now offers the chance to take images without having to resort to steps or plastic crates in order to clear vegetation. A few seconds after I arrived the sound of 68012 climbing Hatton Bank with 1R33, the 13.10 London Marylebone to Birmingham Moor Street, was clearly audible and it wasn't long before the train appeared coming aroundhe curve from Hatton station.
	One of the few classes of locomotive not to have visited the terminus station of Stratford-upon-Avon was, until 4 November 2018, a 68. Some extensive engineering work resulting in single line working between Hatton and Tyseley made many timetable changes necessary and Chiltern Railways, with some admirably lateral thinking, took the opportunity to run one of their locomotive-hauled sets to Stratford. The ground breaking locomotive was 68010 which arrived with 1D27, the 11.40 from Marylebone, and this image shows the train ariving spot on time and as booked into platform 2. The weather was dull and slightly damp but the first, and probably last class 68 here unless a railtour comes this way, wasn't something I wanted to miss. The scene is lifted by the intense Autumnal colours around the station. I took a series of images on maximum speed "motorwind" in the hope that at least one would show all 3 lights illuminated; I was lucky on this occasion...
	The first class 68 to visit Stratford-upon-Avon didn't tempt out many photographers, only 3 of us being present at the station but there were reportedly over 60 cranks haulage enthusiasts on board and many of them wanted, naturally enough, to have a picture of the locomotive as it stood on the back of what was now 1H37, the 13.50 to Marylebone. That being so I waited until they were back on board before taking my record shot in rapidly failing light and in the shade of the canopy of platform 1.
	I don't usually go for the photo-journalism approach to railway photography as too many images of one train or location can be tedious but on this occasion I took several different views because this is quite possibly the only chance there will to record a class 68 at Stratford-upon-Avon. This one shows 68010 propelling 1H37 out of platform 2 and making quite a racket in the process; certainly enough to make the footbridge vibrate to some degree. The departure was 4 minutes late because there seemed to be some confusion about whether this train, or the late-running West Midlands class 172 in platform 1 should go first. Pragmatism won the day and 1H37 was sent off first probably on the basis that it would clear the section more quickly than the unit!
	A sunny afternoon on Wednesday 7 February 2018 and the prospect of a few freights saw me have a visit to Hatton North Junction. I arrived though just in time for a passenger train, 1R33, the 13.10 London Marylebone to Birmingham Show Hill which was running 5 minutes late; luckily for me or I should have watched it go past from the footpath leading from Shrewley.
	Chiltern Railways is marking Christmas 2017 by brightening up DVT 82302 with some festive vinyls. I had been told about this a few days ago so was pleased to receive a message from a friend at lunchtime on 5 December saying that it was to lead 1H45, the 12.55 from Birmingham Snow Hill to London Marylebone. The light was dire but I thought a quick drive to Hatton worthwhile in case another opportunity in better light doesn't present itself. The train, propelled by 68009, was on time but the fly in the ointment was 66416 on an early running 4E28 which was in the DGL at Hatton and looked likely to be released as soon as a northbound Chiltern unit had passed. The problem with this was 82302 was about halfway between Lapworth and Hatton and was a real candidate for being obscured by the Freightliner. In the event the liner, running on an STP to Hunslet Yard and without a single container in tow, managed to miss being a nuisance but only by the tightest of margins. I like the DVT's new coat of vinyl but I can almost hear the sniffs of disapproval from certain quarters...
	The return of the class 47 working shown above ran in the mid-afternoon of Saturday 26 August 2017. As far as I was concerned the only location worth the effort in the area was Hatton North JUnction where mI arrived with about 10 minutes to spare. Running just in front of 1R92 was a Chiltern locomotive-hauled service, 1R33, with 68013 in charge. It's been quite a while since 2 such trains ran so close together on this line so I was glad to have arrived in time. It is a matter of luck whether one can catch the 3 front lights illuminated; on this occasion the pulse width modulation control for the LEDs means that the shutter on my camera caught one of them in the "off" cycle.
	I do like to take the odd photograph of Chiltern Railway's class 68s on the Marylebone to Birmingham Snow Hill trains. The best bet for good light at Hatton North Junction is the 16.45 from London to Kidderminster, 1K45. The view from the field is largely obscured by undergrowth at this time of the year and I really can't be bothered to lug a heavy stepladder around when a perfectly adequate shot is available from the bridge - I don't take my hobby seriously enough to make life awkward. On 10 May 2017 68010 was allocated to 1K45 and it was right on time as it became4 audible climbing the middle section of Hatton Bank. A large number of flying insects have clearly met their end during the journey through the Chilterns judging by the appearance of the yellow panel.
	I don't often photograph the Bridgwater to Crewe nuclear flask train, 6M63, because I'm not espeically keen on very short trains but I was already at Defford on 31 May 2017 and as this was the first time that I had seen class 68, the new norm for nuclear flask workings, on such a train I was happy enough to take this image of 68005 + 68020 just after they had crossed the River Avon. It seems that the end of the line for class 37s owned by DRS may not be far off now as the majority of their core work has gone.
	A test train from Derby RTC to Reading Triangle Sidings, the former DMU depot, ran on Saturday 16 July 2016. The service code was 52495113 which indicated a Colas operated train, including the OHL inspection vehicle, but despite this 1Z16 was allocated DRS locomotives 68001 + 68005. Maybe something a bit newer and more reliable than class 37s was required for wherever the testing as to take place, presumably on the newly electrified GWML. The weather at home looked as if some clear blue patches would appear but on arrival at Hatton the cloud cover was complete although not desperately thick. I decided on a shot using a bridge-side ash tree as a frame but a few gusts of wind at just the wrong time blew the foliage a bit too far to the right. Bringing up the rear of the train was the overhead line inspection coach which had its lights operating despite there not being much in the way of OHL for it to inspect.
	A test train from Derby to Old Oak Common HSTD ran on 30 June 2016 and was booked via Birmingham, Hatton and Leamington Spa. This, 1Q16, is normally an HST turn but on this occasion was formed of the NMT replacement powered by 68004 and 68020, as far as I know, the first of the class to operate a NR service over the line. The passing time for Hatton was 17.38 and even though the weather was poor I went over for a shot ariving just as it was shown as passing Dorridge meaning that there was only about 5 minutes to wait. One of the problems here at that time of day is the frequent passage of northbound passenger train, in particular the locomotive-hauled 1K45 from London Marylebone to Kidderminster the booked time of which is uncomfortably close to the passing time of 1Q16. It was disconcerting to hear the unmistakeable sound of class 68s from both directions but the passenger train arrived first, just, and an obscured view was narrowly avoided.
	Chiltern Railways' timetable is slightly different in 2016 compared with the previous year in that a pair of locomotive-hauled trains used to run within 20 minutes each other whereas this year they are an hour apart. On 12 May 2016 68009 was allocated to 1K45, the 16.15 from London Marylebone to Kidderminster and on a perfectly lit evening a shot framed between new growth on the left and last year's buddleia stalks on the right seemed just the job. It won't be long before a lot more undergrowth will spring up and may make some shots from this part of the footpath out of the question. A large number of flying insects were flitting about in front of the camera more intent on procreation than keeping out of my photograph and several have been clone-stamped from this picture. I have left them in this picture of 172219 as it heads towards Stratford-upon-Avon on its journey from Stourbridge Junction a few minutes previously.
	My primary reason for being just to the south of Abbotswood Junction on 5 May 2016 was to take a shot of 6M63, the 11.58 nuclear flask train from Bridgwater to Crewe. For the first time, this working was worked by the unusual combination of 68011, in Chiltern Railways colours, and 57003 and it was fortunate that the 57 had apparently failed and was on the tail of 6M63 with 68011 doing the work, albeit not much of it on such a light load. I wanted a shot that was close to being a broadside view but with an attractive background so decided on this spot from the roadside on the Litleworth to Wadborough road. Despite the short train it was possible to hear it coming for quite a while and it was good to get a "first" in some warm sunshine. I'm sure that this class of locomotive will become the norm on flask trains when the next batch arrive from the manufacturers and DRS shed their older traction. I seem to remember that 68011 has been out of service for a while following a fire involving the exhaust system but stand to be corrected as I don't follow what's going on with individual locomotives especially closely.
	After photographing 960014 + 55020 in the loop at Hatton I went round to the station to take, hopefully, a better shot of the pair. While waiting for 5T00 three trains went north including 68010 with Chiltern's 1G25, the 10.45 from London Marylebone to Birmingham Moor Street. Despite this being a picture taken against the edge of the down platform I quite like the view here as it shows a decent background, always desirable, including on this occasion an LPG lorry delivering gas to the white house in the car park.
	There was a lot of disruption to rail traffic in the Leamington Spa area on 26 August 2015 following what appeared to be a complete failure of the Leamington Spa Signalling Centre. Many trains were heavily delayed or cancelled but by late afternoons things were getting back to normal and when the sky unexpectedly cleared around 16.30 I began to consider going to Hatton North for the 2 locomotive-hauled passenger trains from London Marylebone which run within 20 minutes of each other. The first along was 68014 with 1R55, the 16.47 to Birmingham Moor Street. It won't be long before the shadows start to impinge on the track by 18.00 so this will probably be my final visit for these trains this summer. There was still a bit of colour in the buddleia so I tried to include some of this into the picture before the flowers having faded completely. For those concerned about "verticals" the signal on the Hatton Curve does actually lean at the angle shown because the branch track is canted slightly and the signal appears truly vertical to the train driver.
	The second hauled train from London Marylebone during the evening rush hour is the 17.15 to Kidderminster and on 26 August it left 1 minute late, a deficit which it maintained at least as far as Hatton North Junction. The motive power was DRS liveried 68008 which I pictured coming out of the increasingly shadowed curve from Hatton station. Even during the 20 minutes since the previous train had passed the shadows had lengthened by quite a margin and although the the growth of lineside vegetation has slowed a little the locomotive only just fitted in the gap between various bushes.
	It's been a while since last I photographed a charter train, in fact nearly 7 months, with the sole exception of the Hastings DEMU which came to Stratford-upon-Avon station on 4th July 2015. So, as I had to drop my wife off somewhere first thing on the morning on Saturday 18 July I decided to go and have a shot of a Newport to Carlisle train, 1Z68, which was routed via Swindon, Oxford, Leamington Spa and Coventry. There are only a couple of even half-decent locations within a convenient distance of my home, neither of which I much like, so I plumped for Old Milverton on the single line from Leamington to Coventry in preference to the the occupation bridge at Whitnash just south of Leamington. At least at the former it is possible to hear the train coming whereas at the latter it is dropping down the gradient to the station so that the sound of brakes being applied is louder than the exhaust note! On arrival at Old Milverton it was apparent that there was a lot more shadow across the line than I remembered but with 20 minutes to go the situation would improve a little. The train, headed by 68004, was running to time and by the time it appeared there was just about a big enough gap between the shadows for the locomotive. I was lucky on this occasion that all 3 headlights were caught shining. The pulse width modulation control for the LEDs means that the shutter on a still camera can catch one or more of them in the "off" cycle; this is also seen on video images as flashing lights.
	The morning lists on Wednesday 15 July 2015 showed that 68009 in DRS colours was on Chiltern Railways' diagram 3 which includes the 16.47 from London Marylebone to Birmingham Snow Hill, 1R55. This is one of two locomotive-hauled services that pass Hatton just after 18.00 and for which the sun is favourable for the next few weeks. There didn't seem to be much chance of sun earlier in the day but by the time 5pm approached the skies had cleared so I drove over to Hatton North Junction in the hope of completing my set of class 68 colour schemes in decent light. Everything worked out perfectly and here is 68009 on the final few yards of Hatton Bank running just 2 minutes late and passing the first of the Buddleia, commonly known as the butterfly bush because of its abundant nectar, to come into flower at this location.
	I was in 2 minds about waiting for the 2nd class 68 hauled train at Hatton North on 15 July 2015 but with only 20 minutes to go and with 1K57 showing just to the south of Leamington Spa I did hang on. I went for a shot towards the bottom of the footbridge to emphasise the powerful-looking locomotive. This train was also running a couple of minutes late but there was no mistaking its imminent arrival as I heard it climbing Hatton Bank after the stop at Warwick Parkway. The sound with the train in the distance was reminiscent of a jet bomber heard from a long distance as it begins its take-off run. The volume didn't quite reach the same levels...
	Clear blue skies were forecast for the whole of Thursday 9 July 2015 and by and large this was the case. I have been interested in obtaining a sunny shot of a class 68 in DRS colours on one of the evening Chiltern services and hoped that this would be the day but on seeing the morning allocations saw that 68008 and 68009 were not on the appropriate diagrams. Still, given the beautiful light I had a trip across to Hatton North Junction to take a couple of shots from the footbridge rather than the field which I had done on previous occasions. The first train was 1R55, the 16.47 from London Marylebone to Birmingham Moor Street, and RTT showed it, hauled by 68010, running spot on time for much of its journey. I heard it pass Hatton station on the climb from Warwick and although they do make a decent sound on these very light trains I don't think that some of more extreme adjectives one sees applied to the exhaust note are completely accurate!
	The locomotive allocated to Diagram 4 on 9 July 2015 was 68013 and the train I was out to photograph was 1K57, the 17.15 to Kidderminster which runs just 20 minutes behind 1R55 as shown above. Just before it was due at Hatton North Junction a Stourbridge Junction to Stratford-upon-Avon train, 2D63, had just crossed over onto the branch and as soon as this had cleared the junction the road was reset for the main line and 1K57 came around the curve from Hatton at quite a leisurely pace; probably because it had been slightly checked by the passage of 172212 + 172222. Despite this, it was still running right on time. It's interesting to note how the light had changed in the 20 minutes since the picture of 68010 was taken. There was no cloud around but the sun was just that bit little lower in the sky and around 5 degrees further round to the west.
	The barriers protecting the road at Bentley Heath crossing stayed down after 66507 had gone south on 30 June 2015. This could only mean that 1R37, the 13.15 from London Marylebone to Birmingham Moor Street, was about to pass non-stop through Dorridge station. Sure enough I soon heard the sound of a class 68 approaching and within a few seconds 68011 came around the curve past the up and down loops.
	Another sunny afternoon on 23 April 2015 so I headed off with the intention of taking photographs at Budbrook of the 2 Chiltern Railways locomotive hauled trains which run up Hatton Bank within 20 minutes of each other. I left home with what I thought would be plenty of time but suffice it to say that the traffic between Hatton Country World and the road leading to Warwick Parkway, the M40 and therefore Budbrook was such that there would have been no chance of making it in time. After a quick turn round in a convenient driveway I was left with only the Hatton North Junction option where I arrived only about 3 minutes before 68013 with 1R55, the 16.47 from London Marylebone to Birmingham Moor Street, which luckily was running 2 minutes late, came around the curve from Hatton station.
	Chiltern Railways is now using class 68 on the majority of their locomotive hauled services between London and Birmingham although 67008 was still being diagrammed with one set on 22 April 2015 when I pictured 68010 accelerating noisily though Dorridge station with the 13.15 to Moor Street on 21 April 2015. There is presumably a speed restriction through the platform as the locomotive was heard to accelerate quite hard once its train was clear of the station at which it is not booked to call.
	My final image from Hatton North Junction on 14 April 2015 was of 68013 hauling 1K57, the 17.15 from London Marylebone to Kidderminster. The wind was blowing from the west and this, along with the incessant traffic drone from the nearby M40, made hearing trains climbing Hatton Bank a little less obvious than at other times but the exhaust note of class 68 does make itself heard for quite a while before the train appears on the bend from Hatton station. It seemed sensible to come over and take this shot before the trackside vegetation started to put on its growth spurt and began to restrict the wider view from the field-side footpath. If left to grow unrestricted the bushes nearest the Stratford-upon-Avon branch will become intrusive within a very short period of time.
	It looks as if class 68 has just about taken over the locomotive-hauled trains run by Chiltern Railways. From the beginning of April 2015 several of the trains previously allocated to class 67s have been in the hands of the new motive power and on Easter Sunday, 5th April, 68008 in DRS colours was in use on one of the diagrams. I didn't know how long this locomotive would remain on the services between London Marylebone and Birmingham Snow Hill so had a trip to Hatton North Junction for a shot of it on the 14.06 down service, 1R42. The light was up and down but managed to be firmly down when I heard the impressive sound of the new order climbing Hatton Bank. There were extra hauled services over the Easter weekend to cater for passengers displaced from the Euston Line by major engineering work but it wasn't possible to see how many were on board 1R42 because of the tinted windows used on the "Silver Set". I imagine that some passengers were enthusiasts getting some DRS liveried 68 mileage under their belts as this will be a lot more difficult than Chiltern branded examples without a trip to Scotland.
	There have been quite a few sunny days recently and 20 January 2015 was no exception, the sky having cleared almost completely during the late morning. By the time that 68012 came north through Hatton a few minutes late with 5J68 to Stourbridge Junction some cloud was beginning to build up from the East. Luckily though, it didn't look as if it would reach the sun for some time and so yet another shot of the blue & grey "Banbury" set with one of Chiltern's new locomotives was in the bag. Once crew training has finished this set of coaches will be a rare set on this stretch of line as it will appear only on occasional weekend specials.
	Chiltern Railways is still running its class 68 crew training train, 5R69, between Marylebone and Birmingham Moor Street sidings although now under a WTT rather than STP classification. Here is 68012 pulling away from a brief stop at Warwick Parkway on Friday 16 January 2105 and making quite a decent sound in the process even with its relatively lightweight train. Unusually for me I took a second shot as the train went away largely because there is a conveniently sized clear gap at the end of the field. It's a shame that there isn't a shot looking forwards to this gap but the topography of the land here means that one is looking up into too small an area. Just north of here was the original start of Hatton Goods Loop which was approximately twice its current length, no doubt necessary because of the much more intensive freight service in days gone by and the much slower pace of steam-hauled traffic.
	The second run of 5J68 from London Marylebone to Stourbridge Junction with 68012 took place on Tuesday 16 December 2014 and in contrast to the previous day the light was perfect. I make no apology for going again to Hatton North Junction because apart from Leamington Spa station this locatioin offers the best light angle on the line. On this occasion the booked short stop in Hatton Down Goods Loop was again missed out and 68012 hauling the blue and grey "Banbury Set" passed the footbridge some 14 minutes early. I imagine that Chiltern Railways branding will be applied to the locomotive and its classmates at some point in the not too distant future to complete the corporate image.
	The main, in fact only reason for being at Hatton North Junction on Monday 15December 2014 was to take an image of 68012 on the first loaded run over the line for its type. A light engine move had taken place the previous week but with a proper train imminent I didn't bother with that. The train pictured here is 5J68, the 09.30 from London Marylebone to Stourbridge Junction ECS which passed the group of 4 photographers about 7 minutes early by dint of missing out the booked trip along Hatton's Down Goods Loop. The locomotive wasn't being worked hard because of the light load but the sound is quite distinctive and although not much louder than a 67 has more of a throb to its exhaust note.
	As was sarcastically and rudely pointed out to me at Hatton on 5 August 2014, I "don't photograph light engines or short trains". Partially true, but when the first run of a brand new locomotive takes place over a line on which I have been photographing for well over 30 years I will, like it or not, make an exception. DRS's 68002 was used by Chiltern Railways to run as 0J68 from Wembley to Stourbridge Junction Depot where, I believe, noise tests were to be carried out before Chiltern start to use the class on their Marylebone services. In a way I pleased that a DRS example was used because as things stand at the present it seems unlikely that many DRS trains will run on the GWR Leamington Spa to Birmingham line. It was unclear from the schedule whether 0J68 would sit for its booked stop in the down goods loop to the south of the station or run into platform 3. I hoped for the latter as it may have given the opportunity to photograph a class 67 going by on a Moor Street service, but in the event the former happened. The weather was dire but it had at least stopped raining, as it had been when 66743 on 6M26 from Eastleigh to Stud Farm passed by. When 68002 pulled across from the loop and through platform 2 a small clue to the sound of the new locomotive class was given. Suffice it to say that I look forward to hearing one on a heavy train...