Great Western Railway Churchward 'Star' class 4-6-0 No. 4038 'Queen Berengaria'. Built at Swindon in Jan. 1911 and withdrawn in April 1952. Quality night photography was a rare achievement in the 1930s. Les Hanson tried it quite often (with varying degrees of success) at King's Cross, Birmingham New Street, Northampton and elsewhere. Here at Paddington in April 1938 he's produced a gem, capturing 'Queen Berengaria' in all her pristine glory. Berengaria of Navarre, France who died aged about 65 in 1230, was Queen to Richard Ist 'Lionheart'. Supposedly, she never set foot on English soil! Her fascinating story is worth a gander on Wikipedia.

© Les Hanson-David Hanson Archive