Museum staff were left “heartbroken” after a newly donated train, famously ridden by Queen Elizabeth II, was covered in graffiti that could potentially cost thousands of pounds to put right.
The Tyne and Wear Metro unit had only been delivered to the North East Land, Sea and Air Museum in Washington, near Sunderland, on 30 June.
Known as car number 4020, the late queen travelled on the train when she officially opened the network in 1981 and the train was selected for preservation when the fleet was recently upgraded.
However, vandals gained access to the museum and sprayed the train with graffiti, damaging the original paint.
Museum chair David Charles said a full repaint is likely to be needed with the cost running into thousands.
“We’re very, very disappointed because we thought, as we are a heritage museum, we would be left alone. But clearly not.”