Gresley Open Brake Third (BTO) 43567

Built at York in 1935 to diagram 191, 43567 was one of 16 of the type to be built. It has an open saloon seating 32 passengers with a brake/luggage compartment taking up the other half of the vehicle it was originally fitted with the bucket seats as in the diagram 186 Open Thirds but these were later replaced with high backed seats. Allocated to east coast services and probably coupled in excursion sets with diagram 186 Open Thirds.

Research at the National Railway Museum revealed that this coach was used in ambulance trains during the second world war, for which it was extensively altered, with beds replacing the seats.

43567 was returned to passenger use at the end of the war and became 16547 in the 1943 renumbering and eventually BR no. E 16547E, repainted in carmine and cream during the 1950s. In 1960 it received the lined maroon livery and was withdrawn shortly afterwards. After storage at York it was moved to Tees Dock for use as a classroom for diesel shunter drivers and eventually as a mess room for the permanent way gang of the Tees & Hartlepool Port Authority.

It was donated to a group of NYMR members in 1974 and arrived by rail in July of that year. The Gresley BSO Group undertook some restoration work on the vehicle including recanvassing and external repainting. It appeared in Granada TVs Brideshead Revisited during 1980) along with Colin Sykes's Open Third 24109 and internally disguised to look like an a Southern Pullman Car.

During 1985 the coach was donated to the LNER Coach Association and was again externally tarted up to appear in a feature film A Month in the Country. 43567 became much needed storage space for the Association and little or no restoration work was done as the LNERCA had priorities elsewhere. The body is in a very poor condition and there is severe rust scaling between the body and underframe which will require the body lifting off. In its favour is the fact that it is mechanically and internally complete including the later style high backed chairs. 43567 is part of a successful bid by the LNERCA for heritage lottery funding to enable its restoration to be started early in 2001.