Northern Belle (train)

The Northern Belle is a private luxury train that operates day and weekend journeys around Britain from many different departure points throughout the United Kingdom. It was launched on 31 May 2000 with a journey from Liverpool to Grantham after careful restoration by Venice-Simplon Orient Express.[1][2]

EWS Class 67 hauled Northern Belle in August 2010

Direct Rail Services Class 57 hauled Northern Belle in April 2012

Northern Belle visits places of interest throughout Britain such as castles, country houses, cities, sporting occasions and events including the Hampton Court Palace Flower Show and Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo. There are also weekend journeys to destinations including Inverness, with overnight hotel accommodation, and non-stop round trips with dining on board.

Northern Belle operates mainly throughout northern Britain, with destinations ranging from Edinburgh, Cardiff, Cheltenham, Chester and Harrogate to as far south as London and Bristol.[3]

Northern Belle consists of 13 coaches - seven converted Mark 2 coaches as crew and dining carriages, two Mark 3 staff sleepers, two Mark 1 service and kitchen cars, one Mark 1 baggage car, and a Mark 1 dining car Duart, which was added to the train in 2012. The carriages were re-engineered by LNWR at Crewe, in the style of Pullman coaches.

The Northern Belle was originally hauled by EWS Class 67s. In 2011, Direct Rail Services commenced a five-year contract to operate the service with Class 47s and later 57s.[4][5] In 2011, preparation of the carriages moved from Arriva TrainCare to the Severn Valley Railway.[6] In November 2017, the Northern Belle was sold to West Coast Railways proprietor David Smith and businessman David Pitts.[7] From April 2018, the train was hauled by West Coast Railways' Class 57s and carriage preparation transferred to Carnforth MPD.[8]

The service was named to recall the Belle trains of the 1930s, such as the weekly Northern Belle "land cruise" operated by the LNER every June from 1933 to 1939. The dining car interiors are decorated with artwork, mosaics and wooden panels with marquetry created by A Dunn and Son, a family firm that dates from 1895 and which created panels for carriages that ran on the original Belle services.[9]