Intercity 125 (HST) retires - any fond memories or just me?

[ClingFilmAndGafferTape]

I've just found out that the Intercity 125 made it's last cross country journey today. It's made me a bit sad geek

I remember travelling in style to summer holidays in Devon when we started catching it instead of the clunky old diesel locomotive and later in life catching it home to see my parents while I was at university. The excitement of going on holiday or seeing my folks, then the sadness as it took me away from both.

I'm feeling strangely nostalgic tonight, that train was a big part of my life as a child and young adult.

I get it! It seemed almost space age at the time...

Not sure, all I can remember is the adverts that had Jimmy Saville in them

I think one or two other companies are still running them. But they have been an amazing success story - and to think they were designed as a stop gap.

I am glad I was able to make journeys in a reasonable time between Newcastle and London on them when younger, though compared with the trains now especially in France they seem of a bygone age. Made a significant difference to the fortunes of the railways too.

@Laughingravy

I think one or two other companies are still running them. But they have been an amazing success story - and to think they were designed as a stop gap.

Yes, they were supposed to only run for 10 years!

I have similar memories OP. Catching the train to Devon from Birmingham New Street and hoping it would be a HST coming round the corner rather than a diesel engine, lest not because if you ended up going via Gloucester you didn't have to wait ages for the engine to be turned round.

Saying that there was something nice about compartments, but having a table for the journey was amazing.

Uni I used to do the Chiltern line to London so was never a HST.

And there is something special about seeing the old ones in the pictures of the train line on the sea front in the Dawlish area.