On 18 August 1956 railcar M79901 waits at Banbury Merton Street. She is brand new, having been released from Derby that same month. A group of what may be railway enthusiasts are in conversation on the platform. The destination blind has yet to be changed but the railcar will be heading for Buckingham. When drivers, trained on steam, began to work the then new diesel multiple units it was not unknown for them to forget the destination blinds. The door between the driving cab and passenger area is open and the driver appears to lounging in his seat chatting to passengers. Both he and his passengers were probably local people. From what can be seen, most passengers have seated themselves in the front section from which they will get a view of the line ahead; this was one of the attractions of the DMUs but in time the novelty wore off except for young children. Today, with the awful 'Sprinter' DMUs, people once again miss the view fore and aft from what we now call 'First Generation' units. The station clock, seen in the background here and in many other photographs, survived and in 2010 it turned up at an auction and allegedly sold for £3,000.
Photo by WA Camwell