British Pullman

Ia Flamboyant Addition To The Golden Age Of Luxury Trains

t was on board the British Pullman, a veritable work of art on wheels, that a sumptuous rail odyssey began.

On 30 September 1972, the legendary Golden Arrow, the British counterpart of the Flèche d’or which ran between Calais and Paris, made its final journey. This luxury express train carried the more affluent Londoners first to Dover, then – after a short ferry crossing – to the French capital, in record time and in the height of comfort. It was in the same vein that James B. Sherwood, founder of the Belmond company, decided in 1982 to create a luxury line between London and Folkestone. This service would complement the Venice Simplon – Orient Express, which he'd launched on the continent, to create a link between London and Venice. This was the birth of the British Pullman.

An amazing time machine, the British Pullman carries its travellers on the first leg of their journey to La Serenissima in style. Its 11 carriages are, of course, a living example of the inimitable Art Deco style that characterised the luxury trains of the 1920s. To this primary inspiration was added the knowhow of recognised British craftsmen such as the marquetry-maker Albert Dunn, whose work had been so admired on the ill-fated liners Titanic and Lusitania His descendant, Bob Dunn, also participated in the renovation of British Pullman carriages.

In their impeccable uniforms, the stewards and stewardesses welcome the elegantly dressed passengers as they climb on board and thus recreate a special atmosphere.

Special is also the ideal term to describe the carriages that make up the British Pullman. Each of them has its own history and its own name proudly inscribed on its side, as well as a plaque recalling its service record. ‘Vera’, for example, was damaged in a 1940 bombing raid that hit Victoria station, where the Brighton Belle, of which it was a part, was parked. Restored, it transported several members of the royal family before ending up being used as a garden room. Repurchased in 1985, it was restored to its former use and became part of the convoy of the British Pullman in 1990. In 1965, ‘Perseus’ was part of Winston Churchill’s funeral cortege. ‘Phoenix’, destroyed in a fire in 1936, rose from the ashes in 1952 to become the preferred carriage of the late Queen Mother and to serve as a transport for foreign dignitaries such as General de Gaulle. More recently, ‘Cygnus’, which had already made its movie debut in 1979, having served as a backdrop for the film Agatha by Michael Apted, underwent a transformation that merits a closer look.

It was in fact the cult American director Wes Anderson who was offered the chance to decorate the interior of this carriage when it was being restored.