British Rail Class 403

Southern Railway 5-BEL British Rail Class 403
3052 passing through Purley Oaks in 1964
In service	1932–1972
Manufacturer	Metropolitan Cammell Carriage, Wagon and Finance Company
Constructed	1932
Number built	Three sets (15 cars)
Number preserved	14 cars
Number scrapped	1 car
Formation	5-car set: DMBPT-TPFK-TPFK-TPT-DMBPT
Fleet numbers	Sets: 2051–2053 (later 3051–3053); Cars: 279–293
Capacity	40 First, 132 Third (DMBPT: 48, TPT: 56, TPFK: 20)
Operators	Southern Railway (1933–1941, 1946–1947); British Railways (1948–1972)
Line served	Brighton Main Line
Specifications
Car body construction	All steel
Maximum speed	75 mph (121 km/h)
Weight	Set: 249 long tons (253 t; 279 short tons)
Traction motors	Eight EE163[1] traction motors
Power output	8 x 225 hp (168 kW) 1,800 hp (1,342 kW) (total)
Electric system	660–750 V DC third rail
Current collection	contact shoe
Braking system	Automatic Air
Coupling system	Screw-link
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge

The Southern Railway (SR) gave the designation 5-BEL to the five-car all-Pullman electric multiple units which worked the prestigious Brighton Belle trains between London Victoria and Brighton. These units survived long enough in British Rail ownership to be allocated TOPS Class 403. Between 1933 and 1935 the units were designated 5-PUL (the 'PUL' code was then used for the 6-PUL units).

The SR electrified the London Victoria to Brighton line in the early 1930s, and full electric services commenced over the route from 1 January 1933. For the high-profile Southern Belle Pullman train three five-car units, consisting entirely of Pullman cars, were built. All 15 cars were built by Metropolitan Cammell. In June 1934 the Southern Railway renamed the Southern Belle as the Brighton Belle.^[2]

As they were Pullman cars, owned by the independent Pullman Car Company (UK), the individual carriages were numbered in its series, taking numbers 279 to 293, and the first class cars were given women's names while the third (from June 1956, second) class cars carried less-inspiring Car No xx designations, derived from the second and third digits of the Pullman Car Company's number. However, the units together were allocated numbers in the SR series, originally taking 2051-2053, which was revised in January 1937 to 3051-3053.

Three different car types were built - Driving Motor Brake Parlour Third (DMBPT), Trailer Parlour First with Kitchen (TPFK), and Trailer Parlour Third (TPT). Initial formations of these units were as follows:

The last Brighton Belle train ran on 30 April 1972, and the three 5BEL units were withdrawn. However all 15 cars were sold into private ownership, though no unit was kept together as a single entity. Instead they were split up and each vehicle was initially used as an individual Pullman car, the majority not in railway use. A number have been returned to service on the main line with the Belmond British Pullman (previously the Venice Simplon Orient Express or VSOE), as hauled cars forming part of the British Pullman charter train. A campaign^[3] to return the Brighton Belle to mainline service was launched by the 5BEL Trust [1] in 2008. By 2009, the trust had assembled a four-car set,^[4] having acquired cars from the North Norfolk Railway and VSOE. A fifth car, No.282 'Doris', was acquired from the Bluebell Railway in 2011 and a sixth, No.279 'Hazel' in 2012. After restoration, the Brighton Belle started testing in January 2025 from its base at Crewe.

The table below sets out the current position:

Hornby Railways produced OO gauge models of the 5-BEL from 2012, in both BR blue and grey and Pullman umber and cream liveries.^[5][6] N gauge models were introduced in 2013 at 1:143 scale, under Hornby's Arnold brand, in both umber and cream livery and BR blue and grey livery.^[7]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to British Rail Class 403.

• Marsden, Colin J. (1983). Southern Electric Multiple-Units 1898–1948. Shepperton, Surrey: Ian Allan Limited. pp. 33–37. ISBN 0-7110-1253-9.