The much travelled Lydia is a 1928 built Kitchen car who spent her early life in service with CIWL in Italy. She then served on the pre-war Golden Arrow and was part of Dwight D Eisenhower's train on D Day. She subsequently served on Sir Winston Churchill's funeral train in January 1965 before touring Canada and the USA with Flying Scotsman from 1969, where she is pictured here in the Canadian National Exhibition grounds in August 1972. She then settled at the US National Rail Museum in Green Bay, Wisconsin, until being repatriated to the UK in November 2000. Lydia is now (February 2001) being restored for use on the Swanage Railway's Wessex Belle dining train.

The railway companies of the south of England through to the Southern Region of British Railways were major users of Pullman cars either in complete Pullman trains or in portions of other services. Indeed on the Southern this did not stop at locomotive hauled cars for the SR operated the legendary Brighton Belle Pullman electrical multiple units (5 Bel) and also Pullman cars within EMU formations (6 Pul and 6 Cit). Perhaps the Southern's strong association with Pullman luxury operation was to emphasise the premium end of an otherwise largely commuter and short haul operation with the Pullman services being mostly associated with continental ferry travel, ocean liner travel and up market holiday resorts. However it has to be noted that the Brighton line Pullman services were more to do with well-healed commuters to and from that resort than holiday traffic! In 1958 seven Pullman cars were sold to the Southern Region, repainted green and used as buffets, mainly in Southampton boat trains, until withdrawn in 1963.

IBIS is also a 1928 built Kitchen car who spent her early life in service with CIWL in Italy. Upon her return to Britain she served, amongst other uses, on the Bournemouth Belle. She is part of the original VSOE fleet and is pictured here at Stewarts Lane on 10 April 1988.

The 1951 built former Golden Arrow Kitchen Car Orion now serves as a tea room at Pecorama, Beer, Devon, in which rather delicious cream teas can be bought. She is pictured here on 23 July 2000.

1928 built Parlour car Zena started her life on the GWR running in the short lived Torquay Pullman before soon coming to the SR where she ran mostly in Southampton Boat Trains. Zena was one of the Pullman cars to adopt Southern green for wartime service and was noted as still being in this livery during 1947. She is pictured here in Haworth yard on K&WVR in June 1971. Zena was also part of the original VSOE fleet.