Overview

The 1950s and 1960s was a time of profound cultural and technological transformation. With images and vivid recollections, we journey back to post-war southern England. We explore favourite routes and railway places, with many since changed beyond recognition. Trackside, at busy stations, and in and around depots, an evolving mood is revealed in pictures. In the 1950s, railway pride and optimism overcame staff shortages, returning locomotives to pre-war performance and introducing modern BR standard classes. By the 1960s, fiscal efficiency and the dawning diesel era turned pride to neglect. Sparkling steel, brass and tallow gave way to dust, rust and flaking paint. Soldiering bravely on, the creations of Maunsell and Bulleid ran on some of the last main-line steam routes in the United Kingdom. People, machines and landscapes are crystalised on film for future generations, reawakening memories for those who lived through this time of change and offering a fascinating insight for those who are too young to have been trackside during this intriguing period of railway history.

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9781398100084

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'It is an excellent compact volume and an ideal reference for the modeller.' -- Railway Modeller, October 2024

Author Information

As the curtain closed for mainline steam traction, Brian captured with film and vivid memories, the sights, sounds and smells; the last acts of great mechanical and human railway personalities. Close friends with railway workers, Brian was a member of Alan Peglar’s original Flying Scotsman support team, helped restore Bressingham’s Thundersley, and ran with the A4 Sir Nigel Gresley. Brought-up with lathes, mills, the smell of cutting oil and steam, Ian developed a passion for science and engineering. Designing an LNER B17 steam replica as a teenager, he pursued a career as a professional engineer. Ian retains an admiration for the generations of engineers whose imagination gave birth to modern industry and transportation.

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