DP1 Liveries

[morganb]

Hello All,
I noticed that Graham Farish has put out two models of the DP1 Deltic. 370-275 in the Merseyside Express set and the stand alone 372-920. They have slightly different liveries, the DP1 in the set has a yellow dividing stripe between the body and roof panel. I believe the DP1 in the set is the actual Main line livery whereas the stand alone issue is the persevered livery. Is that correct? I've looked at old photos and can't make out the dividing stripe.
Any information about the prototype liveries would be appreciated.     
Thanks

[tunneroner61]

Yes you are correct, the set livery is as it ran. The stand alone is as preserved. I understand the blues are different between the two models.

[Flange Squeal]

Here's a couple of colour videos which show DP1 as it was originally painted:

https://youtu.be/pCdeRfR7mRY
And more recently as preserved:

https://youtu.be/qMCW3DyBooI
At some point it lost its cream cantrail stripe and I believe the blue paintwork became a touch darker. I assume the repaint occurred sometime between withdrawal and its reappearance in the Science Museum.

[Richard Taylor]

Yes, "Deltic" was titivated-up by English Electric after a period out of service for presentation to the Science Museum. The fact that such a modern diesel locomotive was being presented to a museum after such a relatively short working life caused some sarky comments at the time, but of course such is the life of one-off prototypes.

Incidentally, and something I've said before, if anyone can furnish me with written evidence from contemporary sources that "Deltic" was ever officially referred to as "DP1" during the 1950s and 1960s I'll be very interested.  As far as I am aware "DP1" is a modeller/trainspotter nickname that arose sometime in the 1980s by a fake back-formation from "DP2". "DP2" was indeed named as such because it was EE's second diesel prototype ("Deltic" being the first), but I don't believe that EE called "Deltic" DP1 - at the time of its building, trials and preservation it was simply "the Deltic prototype" or "Deltic"

Richard

[Flange Squeal]

I agree that DP1 doesn't appear to have been an official name but it's certainly a simple way to differentiate between the prototype and production Deltics when discussing them nowadays.