First Group Livery
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First North Western's 156420 and 156423 at Liverpool Lime St. 19.June.2004

List of all 156s to carry First Group livery

Description of First Group livery

First Group's corporate colours were applied to ten First North Western class 156 units when they received C6 overhauls at Wabtec Doncaster.

The blue, white and magenta scheme, designed by Lawrence & Pierce, is commonly known as 'Barbie' livery.

The first trains to appear in these colours were the new class 175 units built for First North Western (FNW) from 1999.

An 'Inter-City' version of the livery with a gold stripe, was also devised and used on First Great Western trains.

Existing trains in the FNW fleet continued to be repainted in the old North Western Trains livery of blue with gold stars, however by the time the class 156 fleet was due for repaint the policy had changed.

In June 2003, 156.420 became the first of the class to be repainted in the 'Barbie' scheme.

To launch First Group's take over of ScotRail, 156.446 had 'Barbie' livery applied (by covering the bodysides with vinyl sheets), and was on display at Glasgow Central on the first day of the new franchise, October 17, 2004.

156.446 had several detail differences to the fully repainted units, and it retained purple roof and intermediate ends from its previous ScotRail livery.

At the end of May 2006, 156446 emerged from Derby Litchurch lane after a full repaint, the first in a programme to repaint 20 ScotRail units.

	First North Western's 156.441 at Preston. 25.September.2004. The full width of cab fronts are yellow, with window frames and light clusters in black. The roof dome above the orange warning line is dark grey.
	First ScotRail's 156.446 in the vinyl wrap, at Glasgow Central, 05.November.2004 On this version of the livery the body colour and waist stripes wrap onto the cab front. Cab window frames remained yellow as per original ScotRail livery. First logo on the cab front and condensed unit number are other differences.
	First ScotRail's 156.492 at Glasgow Central, 17.June.2006 An example of a Derby repaint. Again the body colour and waist stripes wrap onto the cab front. Cab window frames are black, roof is grey with a white band (taller than on FNW units) above the cant rail. Unit number is bold.
	Main colour is blue with magenta and white stripes. Doors are silver white. First logos and the 'willow leaf' upsweep are towards the cab ends. On the toilet side of the DMS(B) vehicle it completely covers the former window.
	The small windows of the parcels area, and those opposite the toilet have the upsweep continued over the glass in slatted form. 156.452 photographed on April 17, 2004. The high level white stripe above the cant rail is already looking work stained after 8 months.
	The middle of each bodyside carries 'North Western' branding in a break in the white and Magenta waist stripes. The magenta stripe above the windows fades out to white about a third down the carriage. Solebars are painted the same blue colour as the body.
	'ScotRail' branding on the vinyl covered 156.446. The high level white stripe is missing, and the roof colour is the orignal ScotRail purple. Solebars on this unit are black. These details were corrected when the unit was repainted at Derby in May 2006.
	A magenta First emblem is carried on the lower bodyside at the inner ends. White on the upper bodyside stops short of the GRP end panels, although the waist stripes wrap round the corners. The lower part of the doors have a white-blue fade pattern.
	Many of First North Western's sets have received all yellow replacement gangway covers. 156.428 is an example, seen at Manchester Piccadilly with a service to the Airport from Southport on April 17, 2004.
	In the weeks leading up to the start of the Northern franchise on 17th December 2004, First branding has been removed. 156.423, in the de-branded 'barbie' livery, photographed at Liverpool Lime Street on January 29, 2005.
	Northern Rail branding has been applied during the later half of 2005. 156.420 named La'al Ratty, was the first recipient in October 2005 and had the lettering sitting on the magenta stripe, under the first window. The gaps in the stripes at the centre and inner ends remain. 156420 at Manchester Piccadilly on 28.August.2006
	Later applications have the logo placed between the stripes and the upsweep. 156.423 photgraphed at York with 156464 on 27 March 2006.
	156421 was the last of the North Western 156s to be painted in 'barbie' livery in July 2004. However, it had lost its the stripes on the 52-car's cabside after only a few months and the stripes on the other cabsides had also started to peel off. The unit suffered graffiti damage on one side early in 2006. This further damaged the livery and resulted in the magenta stripes fading to white. 156421 at Manchester Piccadilly on 28.August.2006