Liveries

These pages provide GWR livery details from the turn of the 20th century to nationalisation in 1948, together with some notes on the post-nationalisation 1948–64 era. Note that some periods and styles are currently unaccounted for, pending the availability of good quality illustrations.

For liveries of some of the constitutent pre-grouping companies, have a look at the features section.

Colours and insignia
	Details and illustrations of basic stock, building and uniform colours, as well as the main insignia used by the GWR	GWR Garter Crest GWR Coat of Arms GWR Roundel GWR loco colours GWR coach colours GWR building and structure colours GWR uniform colours
Loco liveries
	Details and illustrations of the main GWR loco liveries from 1900–1947, together with details of post-nationalisation BR(W) steam loco livery from 1948–64	GWR 1900–1906 loco livery GWR 1906–1934 loco livery GWR 1934–1942 loco livery GWR 1942–1947 loco livery BR(W) steam loco livery 1948–1964
	Good online references for loco liveries:	Ian Rathbone's comprehensive guide to loco painting, covering 1923 to 1955 Malcolm Mitchell's Painting Guide for Great Western Locomotives
Coach liveries
	Details and illustrations of the main GWR coach liveries from c 1880–1947, plus notes on the BR(W) livery for loco-hauled stock.	GWR 1880–1908 coach livery GWR 1908–1912 coach livery GWR 1912–1922 coach livery GWR 1922–1927 coach livery GWR 1927–1934 coach livery GWR 1934–1942 coach livery GWR 1942–1947 coach livery BR(W) loco-hauled coach livery 1948–1964
See also coach illustrations and livery graphics on the Great Western Railway Coaches site
A note on coach livery repainting intervals: In general, a coach livery pre-WWI was expected to last approximately 10–12 years before repainting was necessary. From 1922 onward, with the re-introduction of the brown and cream body colours, it seems less varnishing was applied, and the repainting interval for non-express stock dropped to approximately 7 years. For express stock, the pace of repainting seems to have accelerated during the mid- to late-1920s as a result of the GWR Board voting for extra funds to be made available to hasten the repainting program. As a consequence, it was rare to see a crimson lake corridor coach after 1927/8, and rare to find a fully-lined (pre-1927) corridor coach after c 1930. Assessing what livery a coach should be in a particular era, especially when the official livery was changing quite rapidly (throughout the 1920s, and post-1948) is therefore difficult, and some intelligent guesswork needs to be applied using the build date of a coach. As always, good contemporary pictures help considerably.
Goods and non-passenger-carrying coaching stock ('brown' vehicles) liveries
	Illustrates the standard goods stock grey and 'brown' liveries	GWR early red wagon livery GWR standard goods stock livery GWR non-passenger-carrying coaching stock ('brown' vehicles') livery
Name and number plates
	Details and illustrations of name and number plates for locos and wagons	GWR loco nameplates GWR loco numberplates GWR wagon plates