Birmingham-born centenarian gets first-class railway day out
A centenarian was given a memorable day out as he took a first-class ride on the railway.
Christopher Anthony Price, who turned 100 in October, marked his milestone birthday with a first-class day trip on the CrossCountry network from Banbury to Manchester, accompanied by his family, on Thursday (December 11).
The trip was arranged by train operator CrossCountry, to help Mr Price, a long-time railway aficionado, celebrate his special birthday in style.
Mr Price is no stranger to the railway. Born in Birmingham on October 25, 1925, he attended Bromsgrove School before joining Pembroke College, Cambridge, for an engineering short course during the Second World War.
He later trained with the Royal Engineers and served in India and Malaya until 1948, and still recalls many memorable train journeys during his military service.
After returning to Cambridge to complete his MA, Mr Price worked as a Chartered Surveyor in London, Reading and Birmingham.
Throughout his career, he regularly travelled by train across the regional network, with his passion for rail inspiring him to write Empty to Abergavenny, a memoir of his journeys, named after a phrase he once saw on freight wagons abroad.
Mr Price continues to travel frequently by rail from his home in Bucknell in Shropshire, to Banbury and other destinations, changing at Shrewsbury and Wolverhampton and makes the journeys alone, relying only on occasional assistance from staff and fellow passengers.
Mr Price said: 'I moved home in my 80s and the number one objective was to live near a railway station and from my house, I can see the local station across the fields.
I have always enjoyed train travel, whether in India at the end of the Second World War, or in Europe since, or on the national network with CrossCountry and fellow providers.
“I find railway staff, and fellow passengers, invariably helpful in allowing me to pursue my love of trains by travelling frequently to see friends and relatives, and attend events.
"It is very apt for me to celebrate my centenary with another journey - and, I must say, CrossCountry sandwiches happen to be some of the best I've tried.”
With 2025 also marking 200 years since the opening of Britain’s first passenger railway between Stockton and Darlington in 1825, Mr Price is half as old as the word’s first railway itself.
Mark Anderson, CrossCountry’s customer and commercial cirector, said: “We’re delighted to help Mr Price celebrate such an incredible milestone.
"His advocacy for the railway and the opportunities it can give people is incredibly inspiring, and we’re proud to be part of his special day.”
