What a glorious book to dive into!
Julian Holland’s love for the railways comes through strongly in his book “All Aboard!”, which celebrates Britain’s lost railways and locomotives, as well as those that are still operating thanks to rail enthusiasts. All parts of the United Kingdom and it’s surrounding islands are featured, from steam through to the diesel revolution.
Within its pages we get to know famous locomotives, men of the cloth who loved railways including the Rev W. Awdry, creator of Thomas the Tank Engine, (a personal hero of mine), some villains, namely Dr. Beeching who orchestrated the closure of several railway routes and stations in the early ‘60s, (Julian Holland is NOT a fan), heroes such as George Bradshaw who created the first railway timetable, and experimental locomotives. There are also sections on rail disasters, various railway innovations that never succeeded, railway hotels and much, much more.
Told in bite-size sections, this is a very accessible book, packed with immaculately researched detail. Author Julian Holland shares his memories of riding on steam locos in his childhood and his reminiscences of various train journeys are delightful, including a wonderful section on how he became a trainspotter.
There is a lot of technical Information about locomotive types (the author certainly knows his stuff) but the book is written in a pleasant, conversational tone making it accessible to all. It is richly illustrated with evocative photographs from many different eras, and memorabilia including on-board menus and trainspotting lists from the author’s own collection.
Not only a history of the railways but also of Britain’s changing social structure throughout the 20th century, this is a lovely book to dip in and out of and an immensely enjoyable way to spend a nostalgic couple of hours. It evokes a gentler, non-digital age. Highly recommended for railfans, social historians and those of a certain age who fondly recall day trips to Skegness via steam train.