The London to Brighton Line was built to serve the leisure market rather than industry. It initially carried nineteenth-century pleasure-seekers from the capital to fashionable Brighton, and subsequent services such as the Brighton Belle, the Sunny South Express and the Gatwick Express continued in that tradition. However, it also became a commuter line with fast services that made it possible to work in the City but live in the expanding suburbs to the south of London, or, later, in Surre...

The London to Brighton Line was opened in 1841 by the London & Brighton Railway, providing a service between London Bridge Station and the fashionable South Coast. Although the railway started carrying day trippers, the rapid expansion of the suburbs south of London during the nineteenth century meant that the line (absorbed into the London, Brighton & South Coast Railway) was soon running plentiful commuter services as well. Extending to Victoria Station in 1860, the London to Brighton Li...

This fourth volume of illustrated Bradshaw's Guides takes the traveller from the London Bridge and Victoria stations via the former South Eastern Railway to the 'watering places' of the coast of Kent. Along the way the train calls in at a number of locations including Greenwich, Woolwich, Gravesend, Rochester, Chatham, Margate, Broadstairs, Ramsgate, Deal, Dover and Folkstone. The various branch lines also take in Tunbridge Wells, Battle and Hastings as well as the cathedral city of Canter...

The LBSCR was the main route connecting London with Brighton and the pleasures of the South Coast resorts. In this latest volume Bradshaw takes us on the journey and, via the numerous branch lines, also explores the coastal lines, westwards to Chichester and eastwards, on the Brighton and Lewes branch to Eastbourne, St Leonards and Hastings. The network of branch lines within Surrey and Sussex reaches a number of destinations including Croydon, Redhill, Reigate, Dorking, Guildford, Epsom, ...

Between 1835 and the 1850s, railway mania blossomed around Britain. Crime emerged as the railways developed, at first opportunistic crimes such as fare evasion and robberies, but gradually more inventive forms evolved, notably the minor clerk Redpath in the 1850s, whose shameless cooking of the books to live the high life exposed the lack of any kind of accountancy across the railway industry. The first train murder was not until the 1840s, and sparked great fear of foreig...

Fully updated essential guide to exploring Britain by train, Railway Day Trips is ideal for anyone planning or looking for inspiration for a rail journey. From bestselling railway author Julian Holland.This pocket companion is perfect for both casual and seasoned rail travellers. Plan adventures, follow the changing landscape through the train window and discover fascinating destinations.Each journey incorporates a location map and descriptive text on its history and geogra...

A facsimile edition of Bradshaw's Handbook of 1863, the book that inspired the BBC television series 'Great British Railway Journeys'.When Michael Portillo began the series 'Great British Railway Journeys', a well-thumbed 150-year-old book shot back to fame. The original Bradshaw's guides had been well known to Victorian travellers and were produced when the British railway network was at its peak and as tourism by rail became essential. It was the first n...

The acclaimed author of Dark Star Safari journeys across western Africa in this "thoroughly engrossing [and] at times tragic" travelogue ( Washington Post).Paul Theroux's best-selling Dark Star Safari chronicled his epic overland voyage from Cairo to Cape Town, providing an insider's look at modern Africa. Now, with The Last Train to Zona Verde, he returns to discover how both he and Africa have changed in the ensuing years. Trav...

A facsimile edition of Bradshaw's fascinating guide to Europe's rail network.Bradshaw's descriptive railway handbook of Europe was originally published in 1913 and was the inspiration behind Michael Portillo's BBC television series 'Great Continental Railway Journeys'.It is divided into three sections: timetables for services covering the continent; short guides to the best places to see and to stay in each city; and a wealth of advertisements and ephemeral...

Travels with NPR host David Greene along the Trans-Siberian Railroad capture an overlooked, idiosyncratic Russia in the age of Putin.Far away from the trendy cafés, designer boutiques, and political protests and crackdowns in Moscow, the real Russia exists.Midnight in Siberia chronicles David Greene’s journey on the Trans-Siberian Railway, a 6,000-mile cross-country trip from Moscow to the Pacific port of Vladivostok. In quadruple-bunked cabins and...

As Britain moved from austerity to prosperity in the 1950s and 1960s, it became clear that British Railways needed to modernise its equipment and rationalise its network if it was to hold its own in the face of growing competition from road and air transport.After attempting to maintain pre-war networks and technology in the 1950s, a reversal of policy in the 1960s brought line closures, new liveries and the last breath of steam, as Dr Beeching and his successors s...

Tired of airport security queues, delays and all those extra taxes and charges, Tom Chesshyre embarks on a series of high-speed adventures across the Continent on its fast trains instead. From shiny London St Pancras, Tom travels to places that wouldn’t feature on a standard holiday wish-list, and discovers the hidden delights of mysterious Luxembourg, super-trendy Rotterdam, much-maligned Frankfurt and lovely lakeside Lausanne, via a pop concert in Lille. It’s 186 mph all the way – well, ...