The Hornby Arnold Bright Belle models are exact scale 1:148, British N scale, finished in Pullman cream and chocolate livery with yellow lines, silver roof and fine, sharp lettering. The roof panels are formed from fine photo-etched metal plates and each carriage has correct and different chassis details.
All four axles of the motored cars are driven via cardan shafts and brass worm gears from a silent running 5-pole motor fitted with brass fly wheels. Internal wiring has been arranged such that only one decoder is required to control the entire train with a six-pin NEM 651 decoder socket in the motor unit.
The cabin interiors are illuminated according to the direction of travel and are highly detailed with opaque kitchen windows, curtains, white tablecloths and lit table lamps. Speaking about the table lamps, there are one in all carriages, thanks to one LED underneath each table with a jumper on the main PCB which can be pulled to switch off the table lamps permanently. There are also illuminated SR head code panels. The three-pole electrical couplers have close coupling mechanisms, are easy to couple and do not accidentally uncouple. A NEM coupler pocket is fitted at each end unit, so you can add a second unit to form a full ten-car train.
Minimum curve radius is 192 mm (7½in).
The ‘Brighton Belle’ Pullman service can be traced back to the introduction of the daily ‘Pullman Limited Express’ on the London Victoria to Brighton route in December 1881. This train became so popular that in November 1908 the LB&SCR launched a new Pullman service, the ‘Southern Belle’, heralded as “the most luxurious train in the world” by the company. Steam hauled until December 31, 1932, the Brighton route was electrified the following day as part of a £2 million investment by the Southern Railway, extending electrification from London to Brighton, Hove and Worthing.
The Southern Railway recognised that the future of the ‘Southern Belle’ would need to take account of these changes and produced the 5-PUL, new all-electric Pullman cars built in three sets of five cars by Metropolitan Cammell in Birmingham.
Each set consisted of a Driving Motor Brake Parlour Third (DMBPT) at either end, two Trailer Kitchen First cars (TPFK) cars and a Trailer Parlour Third (TPT). 335 feet long and weighing 249 tons, all five cars were of all-steel construction and in keeping with the ethos of Pullman, had a luxurious interior wood pattern of rare veneers and marquetry.
The inaugural trip of the new service took place on January 1, 1933, headed by Unit 2051 and became an immediate success. On June 29, 1934, the Southern Railway renamed the service as the ‘Brighton Belle’, the 5-BEL designation for the trains coming into effect sometime after 1935. The normal service called for just two of the three five-car sets, the other set being ‘spare’, but for Royal Parties, special charters and Glyndebourne ‘specials’, two of the sets would form a ten-car train, with the third five-car unit on the alternate diagram.
The ‘Brighton Belle’ was an operational success, with an uneventful history until the outbreak of war in 1939. Initially withdrawn from service on September 11th, the sets were returned to service a week later with blackout modifications, but this did not help Unit 3052 which suffered heavy damage during an air raid at Victoria Station on October 9, 1940. The remaining units were operated until May 22, when all Pullman cars were placed into storage until May 1946.
With only two 5-BEL units in service until Unit 3052 could be rebuilt, a 6-PUL unit ran as a surrogate ‘Brighton Belle’ until October 1947.
The heavy carriages were increasingly causing significant track damage, affecting the ride quality, so the bogie sets on all 5-BEL and 6-PUL units were replaced in 1955. In 1969, the umber and cream livery disappeared, along with the names and car numbers, being replaced with the new British Rail corporate livery of blue and grey. The vehicle interiors retained their 1930’s marquetry, but the seats now sported InterCity 70 blue moquette. Faced with competition on all fronts, the loss of the luxury reputation, as well as the gradual deterioration of the units, the last ever ‘Brighton Belle’ departed for Victoria on April 30, 1972, despite vociferous opposition from ordinary passengers and celebrities alike.