'We had to be on board' last run of UK's longest train route

It is a route which has operated for more than 100 years, but for the UK's longest direct train service linking Aberdeen and Penzance it is finally the end of the line.

The connection - first established back in 1921 - is 775 miles (1,247km) long.

However, the packed train from the north east of Scotland on Friday morning was the last to run the route, and arrived in Cornwall more than 13 hours later at 21:40. Operator CrossCountry said the decision to end the service was aimed at a "more efficient timetable".

One passenger, Aimee Smith, 40, had made the journey to Aberdeen specifically so as she could join the final trip south and be part of rail history. "All good things do come to an end," she told BBC Scotland News.

Aimee, who lives in Derby, has loved trains since she was a child.

"When I was young, my granddad lived in Wigginton near Tamworth. I am one of 21 cousins and we used to meet up and obviously when you've got a load of under-12s hanging around they used to try and burn off some energy," she recalled.

"So we would go over to a train bridge and wave at the train drivers as they went on the line down to Tamworth. That was quite fun."

When she heard about the end of the Aberdeen to Penzance service, she knew she had to be involved.

"I saw it come up on my phone, because I get lots of rail-related stuff," Aimee said.

"I thought 'oh my gosh, that's amazing'."

Aimee travelled the reverse route to get to Aberdeen for the final journey.

"I am travelling up on the train and down on the train so I'll have seen a lot of the train line," she said.

Aimee added that her hope was to "meet some really nice people", have a nice chat, and "generally just enjoy it", while armed with a litre of orange juice.

She explained: "I've got my book, for when it's a bit quieter, hopefully some like-minded souls, talk trains and talk philosophy.

"I'm very excited about just being there and being part of the whole experience really. It is going to be sad. I'm sure I'll look out for other long train journeys."

Friends Danny, 24, Kieran, 22, and 18-year-old Liam could hardly contain their excitement before heading off.

Danny, from Edinburgh, said: "It's quite a cool journey to do within the rail enthusiast community as it's the longest."

Liam, from Elgin in Moray, added: "It's always been a bucket list thing for me, I am really excited.

"I have wanted to do this my whole life."

John Labrow, 66, from Manchester, got a special T-shirt printed to mark the special occasion.

"It's probably the longest journey I've ever done by train, it's the last of a great era, " he said. "It's a privilege."

He decided to get the T-shirt printed to tell the story of the journey from Aberdeen to Penzance, and have a memento of the day.

Luke Iden said he learned about a "buzz" about the route online and decided to book the journey.

The 20-year-old from Bournemouth works in rail maintenance and has always been into trains.

"I am just happy that I'm here in the moment and can always say I've done it now," he said.

The amateur film-maker said he would be shooting footage out the window to pass much of the time.

Train driver Martin Wallace was only assigned to the route in August last year.

He said he was delighted to be involved in the historic trip on Friday.

"It's very exciting, isn't it," he said, just before departing. "The last voyage."

A CrossCountry spokesperson said: "Amending our Aberdeen to Penzance service from May will mean a more efficient timetable for our train crews and a more convenient service for our customers, making a day trip from Bristol and the west of England to Penzance more viable.

"The new timetable will also deliver an additional service in each direction between Glasgow and the north east of England towards Birmingham."