Gordon Brown was Prime Minister, the Bank of England had bailed out Northern Rock and England had played their first match at the new Wembley Stadium.

The year was 2007 and on November 14, the final section of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link was completed connecting high speed services from Europe to the capital.

Completing the stretch of track between Ebbsfleet and London, the inauguration of High Speed One meant you could travel from St Pancras to Paris in two hours and 15 minutes and to Brussels in one hour and 51 minutes.

The first phase of high speed track had already been launched in 2003 with trains reaching top speeds of nearly 190mph from the Channel Tunnel to Fawkham Junction near Gravesend.

The final section of track into London cut journey times by a further 20 minutes.

At first, only Eurostar services ran on the line from St Pancras to Europe via Ashford International and Ebbsfleet International stations.

It was not until 2009 that full domestic services were launched on HS1.

These images show the launch of trains run by Southeastern throughout Kent, with its number one javelin named after Olympic hero Dame Kelly Holmes, who grew up in Hildenborough, near Tonbridge.

Since then, HS1 is thought to have provided £3.8 billion in economic and social benefits.

It is expected to increase the value of houses around stations by £1.6 billion over the next 50 years, according to the Volterra Report. Passenger numbers have more than doubled since 2010.

In 2016, the line carried about 10 million domestic and 10 million international passengers.

It has made an estimated £311 million contribution to the county’s visitor economy since the launch of domestic services.

It is also believed to have created and supported nearly 6,000 jobs in the last seven years.

Dyan Crowther, chief executive of HS1 Ltd, which owns and operates high speed services, said: “Over the past 10 years HS1 has raised the bar for the rail industry internationally.

“Driving significant reductions in journey times on both domestic and international routes, the line has been a catalyst for remarkable economic, cultural and social growth across Kent.

“We’re excited about what the next 10 years will bring as we ensure that HS1 continues to deliver for the region and the UK more widely.”