Carrying 86C shedplate.

In company with all Old Oak and Laira's "Britannias", when their work particularly on the West of England main line diminished in late 1956 this engine also joined Cardiff Canton's own initial batch of five of the class there, 70023 "Venus" going down to that Motive Power Depot in February1957, the year of this picture.
Now with a total of no less than fifteen "Britannias" Canton's Running Foremen had a splendid selection of the class to roster on top link workings as seen here, and use them well they most certainly did.
In this view "Venus" comes non stop up on the through road at Swindon, Paddington bound on the "Capitals United Express" from Cardiff with young "spotters" on several platforms enjoying the scene.
Displaced in turn themselves from Cardiff after just a few years these fine engines ended their days back on the Midland Region, their days on the Western being terminated.

John Hodge adds "The reason all the WR allocation of Britannias were allocated to Canton in January 1957 was not that their work elsewhere diminshed, it was because Old Oak, Laira and Newton had never learnt how to get the best out of the class as against Kings and Castles, whereas Canton were using their 5 (70025-29) to great advantage on Cardiff to Paddington and Shrewsbury services. Canton Shedmaster W.W. Wagstaff, agreed to have them all at Canton, but several turned up only fit for a Heavy General repair, such was the way they had been cared for by their previous owners. Canton got them all into good shape slowly and the period 1957-61 was a great one in South Wales, though they lost 3 (70015/17/21) to Trafford Park to work Manchester to St.Pancras services pretty soon. A great engine but you had to know how to drive them".

70023 " Venus " is now allocated to Cardiff Canton in this view, having been transferred there in company with nine others of its class from Old Oak, Newton Abbot and Laira in the February1957 .
This is a Paddington bound working, taking the through road at Swindon station with part of Swindon Works just visible on the extreme right .
These ten earlier Britannias " supplemented Canton's own five newer members of the class which had been sso well received by the Welsh footplate crews from their arrival in 1952, sharing, as seen here, the Top Link workings such as the " Red Dragon " and the " Capitals United " and running to Paddington and back home to Cardiff on a daily " Out and Back " basis, but many of the ten transferred " Britannias " were soon found to be in need of immediate overhaul following transfer to Canton, and never really matched the performance of the former " Canton Five " .
Reduced to working secondary duties, by late 1961 all fifteen of the class were transferred away to the Midland Region, with " Venus " going initially to Carlisle Kingmmor from where it ended its days in December1967