In the late-1970s, following a period where the policy of locomotive naming had been abandoned, BR was persuaded to name the class 50s after Royal Navy ships with notable records in World War I and II. As a result, the first locomotive naming occurred in January 1978, when 50035 was named "Ark Royal" by the captain and crew of then current aircraft carrier HMS "Ark Royal". The rest of the fleet was named during the course of the next few years.