Peter Kerslake says "With her chimney sheeted over an an empty tender a folorn 62686 had been officially condemned in the month prior to this view, having been withdrawn in July of 1961, one of Sir Nigel Gresley's twenty four "Improved Directors" introduced for service north of the border in July of 1924 and following upon the earlier eleven of the class designed by John Robinson for the Great Central Railway in 1919.
For some reason the "Scottish Improved Directors" lacked the cast nameplates of their forerunners and their painted names suffered the ravages of use and lack of cleaning as is apparent in this view."