No.D1036 Western Emperor on 24th May 1963 passing Handsworth & Smethwick station with the Royal Train, the very first time a ‘Western’ hauled the Royal Train in the West Midlands district. It left Paddington the previous day for Kings Sutton station near Banbury, and had been stabled overnight on the Adderbury branch. No.D1036 remained attached to the train while steam heating was provided overnight by two specially prepared ‘Manors’. The Queen was visiting Birmingham City Centre to view work on the redevelopment of the Bull Ring Shopping Centre and to open a section of the Inner Ring Road. On this day she had left the train at Birmingham and would rejoin it at Wolverhampton Low Level where the train would revert to 1X01, the code 1X00 being used when she was not on the train but her staff were still aboard. Western Emperor was the second of the Crewe built locomotives entering service in August 1962, and one of only three ‘Westerns’ never to carry maroon livery - it went straight from green into blue in November 1966. (Seven were originally in green). No.D1036 was unique because, from new, its numberplates were positioned higher, almost level with the cab door handle rather than in line with the nameplates. The sidings on the right lead to the Birmingham Railway Carriage & Wagon Company factory, the birthplace of the Lion prototype and over two hundred Type 2 and Type 3 diesels. Behind the photographer, the four lines became two where the line to Stourbridge Junction branched off at Handsworth Junction.