Winston Churchill’s D-Day carriage returns to rails after 50 years

A historic railway carriage with ties to Sir Winston Churchill and General Dwight D Eisenhower is returning to the rails for the first time in more than five decades.

Pullman Car No 246 ‘Lydia’ was used during crucial wartime strategy meetings ahead of D-Day and later during Churchill’s state funeral in 1965.

A team at South Devon Railway have restored the carriage to its original specification.

Originally constructed in 1924 by the Midland Railway Carriage & Wagon Company, ‘Lydia’ embodies the golden age of luxury rail travel.

“Built for the prestigious Pullman Company, known globally for iconic trains such as the Orient Express, the carriage is a rare and tangible link to Britain’s wartime past and a symbol of enduring craftsmanship,” a South Devon Railway spokesman said.

The carriage will operate on journeys through the South Devon countryside between Buckfastleigh and Totnes this summer.

“With its Art Deco elegance and deep political and cultural resonance, the Pullman offers guests a journey into the heart of British history,” the spokesman said.

“The return of ‘Lydia’ to active service represents more than the restoration of a rail carriage, it is the revival of a legacy that shaped the course of the 20th century.

“The South Devon Railway’s recommissioning of ‘Lydia’ ensures that this unique piece of global history is not only preserved but reanimated for a new generation.”