Class 87 Locomotives

When British Rail decided to electrify the West Coast Main Line north of Crewe towards Scotland, a new class of electric locomotive was needed to work these services. 36 members of the Class 87 were built at Crewe Works from 1973 onwards and were an instant success. The first 35 members were standard locomotives, however the final member was fitted with an experimental thyristor control system, which resulted in it becoming the 87/1 subclass. All were initially used on passenger work, but they could also be found on freight workings. The whole class stayed on West Coast workings throughout the BR era and into privatisation, with all members, except for 87101, passing to Virgin Trains. The sole Class 87/1 passed to the Railfreight sector of BR and would eventually find its way into EWS ownership; it was unfortunately scrapped in 2002. When their work on the West Coast was at an end, 21 found further use in Bulgaria and 3 would be preserved, with the balance being scrapped.