FGW 57604 'Pendennis Castle' at Teignmouth

Working the Summer Saturday 2E75 special from Plymouth to Exeter St Davids is First Great Western Class 57, 57604 'Pendennis Castle', adorned in the legendary lined Brunswick Green of the Great Western Railway, and also hauled a selection of refurbished and un-refurbished stock from the Night Riviera Sleeper.

First Great Western was the first to introduce the modified Class 57's onto regular daytime and later nighttime passenger diagrams around 2000 by re-engineering its fleet of ageing Class 47's to be fitted with more modern engines and operational systems from EMD. Freightliner was the first to order these modified locomotives in 1997, these engines being externally unmodified, although internally rebuilt with EMD 645-E3 engines.

First Great Western placed an order with Porterbrook in 2000 to convert initially one locomotive, 47825, as a prototype, this becoming 57601. This new 57 sported rebuilt light clusters and a clean front end that removed the original headcode box. The locomotive began operations with FGW in June 2001, and worked a selection of daytime expresses from London Paddington to Devon and Cornwall. Proving a huge success, the company went on to re-engineer 4 other locomotives, 47337, 47349, 47209 and 47206, which respectively became 57602 to 57605.

Daytime operations of loco-hauled stock with First Great Western ceased in September 2002, and 57601 was returned to Porterbrook and now works with charter company West Coast Railways. The first of the newly converted Class 57/6's began delivery in December 2003, operating the Night Riviera sleeper and some of the final Motorail diagrams in the UK before this ceased in Summer 2005. Today the four remaining 57/6's continue to lead a charmed life with First Great Western operating the sleeper, but in order to boost capacity on Summer Saturdays, FGW introduced a daytime diagram from Par to Exeter St Davids using a Class 57 and Day Coaches from the Night Riviera, returning to its depot in Penzance in the evening.