Flying Scotsman embarked from London Kings Cross railway station this morning on its inaugural run following a ten year refit costing £4.2 million.
Thousands of steam railway enthusiasts lined tracks and bridges along the route to catch a glimpse of the locomotive as it journeyed north, bound for the National Railway Museum (NRM) in York.
The Very Revd Michael Sadgrove, a railway enthusiastic, recalled: "I know that I have seen Flying Scotsman because it's underlined in my Ian Allan book and I never cheated but I have to confess my real memories of Flying Scotsman are long after it's regular running days were over.
"There's no doubt about it, Flying Scotsman is an emblematic locomotive, an incredibly beautiful locomotive."
Travelling on the train as part of filming for the BBC's Great British Railway Journeys documentary series, Michael Portillo described Flying Scotsman as "an engineering triumph".
He added: "This is certainly the most famous journey and most famous locomotive in Britain."
Around 60 steam enthusiasts stood on the track to take photographs of Flying Scotsman, forcing it to stop for ten minutes near St Neots in Cambridgeshire.
British Transport Police said no arrests were made, while Network Rail urged spectators to stay safe.
Before embarking on a tour around the country, Flying Scotsman will be kept at the NRM until Sunday March 6th.