tokens: the literature value of 5.2 kpc, but consistent within the uncertainty, and so this star is still marginally consistent with being an LBV on the S Dor instability strip. The higher precision expected in future Gaia data releases is needed to say more. WS 1: WS 1 was classified as a bona-fide LBV by Kniazev, Gvaramadze Berdnikov ( 2015 ) based on observations of significant photometric and spectroscopic variability. The Gaia DR2 distance of 2.48 kpc is significantly lower than the baseline literature value of ∼11 kpc, although this object has a negative parallax and like the previous two, is dominated by the prior. However, the literature luminosity is also highly uncertain because it is not based on a measurement – it was derived by assuming that the star fell on the S Dor instability strip Gvaramadze et al. ( 2012 ), so perhaps a large revision is not so surprising. Gaia data suggests that the star is significantly lower in luminosity, although again DR3 data are needed for a confident result. MN48: MN48 was classified as a bona fide LBV by Kniazev et al. ( 2016 ) who identified spectroscopic and photometric variability typical of LBVs. There is large excess noise in the Gaia DR2 data for this star, and the resulting 68 per cent HDI spans 1.44–5.18 kpc. The upper end of this range is marginally consistent with the previous literature value of ∼5 kpc, although again, the literature value was highly uncertain as well. 3.2 Candidate LBVs HD 80077: This blue hypergiant was included as an LBV candidate by van Genderen ( 2001 ) based mainly on its high luminosity and spectrum. Its new Gaia DR2 distance is significantly closer than the baseline literature value, reducing its nominal luminosity by about 40 per cent, although its luminosity is still above the S Dor strip. The Gaia DR2 distance and the original cluster-fitting distance of Steemers van Genderen ( 1986 ) (2.8 ± 0.4) agree within their quoted errors. SBW1: As in the cases of Sher 25 and HD 168625, this blue supergiant is an LBV candidate because of its circumstellar nebula that bears a remarkable resemblance to the ring nebula around SN 1987A. In fact, it has been argued that SBW1 is in some respects the best Galactic analogue to the progenitor of SN 1987A, in terms of both its nebula and the properties of the weak-winded central star (Smith et al. 2013 , 2017 ). Based on various considerations, Smith et al. ( 2017 ) favoured a distance of about 7 (±1) kpc for SBW1. The Gaia DR2 parallax indicates a distance of 5.2 kpc (Table 3 ). This distance is closer, but the range of 4.0–6.8 kpc overlaps with the uncertainty of 7 (±1) kpc for the previous distance. This new distance corresponds to a somewhat lower effective single-star initial mass of 13–15 M ⊙ , as compared to ∼18 M ⊙ for the progenitor of SN 1987A (Arnett 1989 ). This confirms the notion that SBW1 is an analogue of the progenitor of SN 1987A and its nebula (Smith et al. 2013 ), although at somewhat lower initial mass.
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