A train has been named after Allan Lewis, Herefordshire’s sole recipient of the Victoria Cross in World War One, in commemoration of the 2,545 Great Western Railway workers who died during the First World War.

The special Intercity Express Train was welcomed into London’s Paddington station by relatives of the railway workers who gave their lives in the war, of which Allan Lewis was one.

Before joining the army in 1915, Allan Lewis worked for Great Western Railway as a conductor and then he drove a bus on the Pontardawe route.

He was killed in action on September 21st, 1918, after getting his men under cover from heavy machine-gun fire.

Allan’s great niece, Dawn Lewis, said: “I am thrilled that his extraordinary valour is now commemorated in such an spectacular and moving way.”

The train has also been named after Flight Sub-Lieutenant Harold Day, DSC, the only railway man to become a flying ace and features the names of each of the 2,545 Great Western Railway workers who were killed, including detail of where they worked for the company, their rank, regiment, where they were killed and where they are either remembered or buried.