Dimensions
172 x 248 x 13mm
This is the first of a trilogy tracing a love affair with the
coal-fired railway from love at first sight in 1945 to divorce in
1975. Adrian Vaughan, born in Reading in January 1941, fell in
love with the entire spectacle of the steam railway. It was the
Greatest Free Show on Earth. It had drama, it had wonderful peace
and relaxation, it was musical and it had poetry - to those lucky
enough to be able to appreciate it. It was educational, raising
so many questions in the mind of a boy. There was no oppression
on that railway - Adrian asked, and was allowed, to ride the
engines and enter the signal boxes. He asked the railwaymen
questions about their work and they kindly gave him the answers.
He was coached in engine driving and signal box work through the
1940s and 1950s; he was the first volunteer railwayman at the age
of twelve, unloading parcels, helping in the shunting yard. By
the time he actually went to work for British Railways as a
porter, he was well versed not only in the work but in the spirit
of the railwaymen and their commitment to what they called `The
Service'
