The first paying passengers set off on Virgin's new "tilting" trains on Monday.

The Pendolino service left Manchester Piccadilly at 0658 GMT for London Euston, calling at Stockport, Wilmslow and Watford Junction.

However, the much-heralded trains were not able to make use of their tilting mechanism, because a multi-million pound upgrade to the West Coast mainline is incomplete.

The lack of improvements to the line also mean the train would not be able to reach its top speed of 140mph.

On a trial run, the new service knocked just two minutes off the previous record for the journey - two hours and 12 minutes.

The average speed during the journey was 87.25 mph.

The current maximum speed for the trains is 110mph because of the condition of the track.

Pendolinos can travel at up to 140mph, but they will only be able to reach speeds of 125mph on the West Coast mainline.