The last Cross Country services to Brighton ran on Saturday 13th December. Through trains between Brighton, the Midlands and the North were revived in 1979 with two services daily to and from Manchester via Birmingham.

For the final day trains which would normally have stabled at Three Bridges overnight were cancelled, so the final workings were the 09:33 Birmingham New Street to Brighton and 14:22 return, formed of unit 220021. The southbound working was normally routed via Herne Hill and Tulse Hill but because of engineering work it wnet via Clapham Junction and Selhurst. The northbound working was routed via Crystal Palace and Clapham Junction.

Our photographic coverage will be from Reading to Brighton. It is 11:08 and 220021 is entering platform 9 at Reading for the last southbound working.

photograph by Colin Watts

11:28 and the DEMU has reached Kensington Olympia.

photograph by Ian Buck

Ready for the "off" to cross the Thames before its next stop.

photograph by Ian Buck

A major stop on this Inter-Regional route has always been Gatwick Airport, which the train has reached by 11:41.

photograph by Ian Buck

To mark the significance of this working, the driver poses with his family at the buffer stops at Brighton.

photograph by Colin Watts