The boss of the iconic Caledonian Sleeper has hinted at the possible next stops as the train begins journeys from Birmingham.

On Thursday evening, the Sleepercalled at Birmingham International for the first time, collecting passengers from the city at 10.44pm before transporting them to Scotland.

As the first sleeper service linking Birmingham to Scotland in three decades, it marked a significant milestone for Caledonian Sleeper. Prior to the service's launch, Managing Director Graham Kelly told the Mirror that additional stops were under consideration, though nothing had been finalised and talks remained at an early stage.

When questioned about whether the Sleeper might call at Manchester - the biggest city on the west coast currently not served by the train and situated directly on the London Euston to West Scotland line - he commented: "We need to look at that from a 'number of coaches' point of view. Manchester is an interesting option."

According to Mr Kelly, the primary obstacle to adding Manchester as a destination involves scheduling complexities.

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"It comes down to timings. Can you land a timing that works? From a timing perspective, would consumers board at that time? It's something we'd need to look at. I'd expect (the stop in Manchester) would be around 1am (going North) and maybe 4.30am coming down the other way."

Regarding additional destinations, Mr Kelly indicated that Scottish locations were most probable. "Do we look to expand with any other destinations in Scotland? It's very much in the early thoughts and planning stage and not something we're far enough down the line with. It's very much in our thoughts for the 2026/27 rail year, for 2030 onwards."

At present, Manchester has no sleeper train services arriving or departing. Should the Caledonian Sleeper extend to Manchester, it would provide an excellent overnight alternative for travellers heading to Scotland or London.

Thursday evening's Birmingham service featured a traditional Scottish performance by acclaimed Kintyre bagpiper Lorne MacDougall. Among the inaugural passengers was well-known railway enthusiast Francis Bourgeois, who was journeying to Inverness.

"It is the culmination of a huge amount of work and effort of the team at Sleeper, and across the industry," Mr Kelly remarked. Birmingham has been incorporated into the current timetable without requiring additional rolling stock.

"The UK rail network is a busy place. There's been a huge amount of work done on train paths, where trains go and when," Mr Kelly elaborated when discussing the complexities of introducing a new stop. "It's not as easy as saying 'I'm going a different way tonight'. Both at night and in the morning, we've had to work with Network Rail to retime services, to allow us to have this path going through Birmingham International each day."

Mr Kelly highlighted that the Sleeper emits seven times less CO2 than equivalent car and aviation routes.

In 2025, the rail service operated at 90% capacity. The addition of the new Birmingham stop is expected to push that figure closer to full capacity. Regarding ticket prices, Mr Kelly confirmed there were "no plans for an increase".

Addressing the contentious issue of the Sleeper's seat option, which requires passengers to sit upright in a non-reclinable seat for the entire journey, Mr Kelly explained that UK rail standards prohibit the use of reclining seats. However, he noted that cabin lights had recently been dimmed in response to customer feedback.