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Toton first saw railway yards built on the site in the 1850s to support the growing need to transport coal from the collieries of the Erewash Valley and, later, the Leen Valley area to towns and industry. Later, growth in wagonload traffic saw British Rail invest heavily in the yards, including mechanised hump shunting equipment and a modern diesel locomotive facility. However, wagonload traffic was soon to decline, and the transport of coal was revolutionised by the merry-go-round concept utilising new HAA wagons, sweeping away the numerous older vacuum-braked types. Toton was once the heart of coal on the railway, but the decline in use of fossil fuels in the UK has decimated the coal train from the national network, with Toton yards now partly abandoned and the remainder in use mostly as a base for engineering trains and traincrew relieving point. This book illustrates the changing scene at Toton from the last days of British Rail, through privatisation, up to the present day.

The Allied assault on the German-occupied port of Dieppe in France, code-named Operation Jubilee, took place on 19 August 1942. It was a battle that lasted for less than ten hours but it has gone down in history as a military disaster, often spoken of in the same manner as the Charge of the Light Brigade and Gallipoli. The German defences had been underestimated. The numbers killed, wounded and taken prisoner at Dieppe were shockingly high and none of the main objectives were realised. The Third Reich considered the raid as a military joke and it provided a textbook of 'what not to do' in future amphibious operations. Dieppe was the largest tri-service operation ever mounted up until that point, and even if the planning for the operation was woefully inadequate, it showed that the three services could coordinate their movements under one command. Many believe that Dieppe should not be looked upon as an isolated incident because then its purpose is totally obscured by its terrible cost. Put into context, it was one in a series of raids between Dunkirk and D-Day designed to test the defences of Hitler's Atlantic Wall, the most famous and successful being the attack on St Nazaire, which is still considered to be the greatest Commando raid of all time. Author Henry Buckton has searched the voluminous records of interviews with Canadian Dieppe veterans collected by Historica Canada to shed new light on this terrible - but perhaps necessary - failure.

Through much of its history the Cheshire town of Northwich was little more than 6 statutory acres. This modest settlement was surrounded by other small townships, which it gradually absorbed over time. The bonds between central Northwich and its surrounding villages and settlements have been very strong for centuries. The long industrial history of parts of Northwich - famous for its salt, soda ash and shipbuilding - contrast with the semi-rural character of areas such as Davenham and Hartford. In Secret Northwich & Around, local authors Adrian and Dawn L. Bridge delve beneath the surface of the area's fascinating history and focus upon aspects of its past that are lesser known, but of considerable significance. Among the subjects highlighted is the massive impact that slave trade money had on the local economy. Other chapters look at local industries, people, power and controversy and Victorian politics. The authors also explore hidden aspects of the locality's past, which include topics ranging from law and order to public health, poverty and wartime. Illustrated throughout, with colour and archive images, this book will be of interest to local residents, visitors and all those with connections to the area.

Margam Servicing Depot was built on a landfill site and opened during March 1964. Its function was to service locomotives operating to and from Margam Knuckle Yard, which was acclaimed as being the most highly mechanised in the United Kingdom when it was opened in 1960. One of Margam's iconic freight trains was the Port Talbot Docks to Llanwern Steel Works iron ore train. When it commenced running in March 1976, it was acclaimed as being one of the heaviest freight trains running in the United Kingdom. When Canton Traction Maintenance Depot closed in May 2004 many of its skilled staff transferred to Margam Servicing Depot together with some of its maintenance work. As a result of this, an extension was built onto the existing depot and equipped with a 2.5-ton overhead crane. Margam Servicing Depot eventually closed on 1 August 2009. Here, Martin Bray offers a wonderful photographic tribute to an important chapter in the story of the rail scene of South Wales.

Though the famous bullet train launched in 1964, many steam engines were still operational in Japan before withdrawal in 1975. These wonders of narrow gauge railway engineering have often gone unappreciated in Western countries - until now. Japan's distinctive four seasons offer the perfect backdrop for the rail photographer, and allowed Yoshi Hashida to capture steam engines working against a variety of gorgeous backdrops and stunning settings, including mountain scenes and coastal views. This book showcases some of his best shots of steam engines hard at work from 1971 to 1975, focused mainly on Western Japan.

Guernsey is a beautiful Channel Island with a fascinating history and breathtaking scenery. With an area of just 24 square miles, visitors are astonished at just how much there is to see and do. The island's varied landscape ranges from beautiful beaches, stunning cliffs and lush countryside to the quirky, cobbled streets of the harbour town of St Peter Port. In this book, accredited tour guide Soo Wellfair takes us on a journey around the island to discover fifty of its cherished places. Guernsey's many visitors find themselves immersed in the delights of this quaint and charming island and the author leads us to some of her favourite hidden treasures. Seek out the tiny chapel decorated in broken pieces of pottery and the clifftop woodland that comes alive every year when it is swathed in a blanket of bluebells. Explore Guernsey's historic sites from throughout the island's history. From Neolithic times through to the medieval and Tudor periods, and even to the more contemporary structures built during the occupation of Guernsey in the Second World War, this is an island that is small in size but immense in history and beauty. Illustrated throughout, 50 Gems of Guernsey will appeal to residents, visitors and all those interested in the island's history.

Monmouthshire may have a reputation as a quaint, idyllic, rural county but scratch the surface and you'll find a past riddled with scandal, strife and murder most foul. In Monmouthshire Murders and Misdemeanours Tim Butters digs up and throws new light on criminal cases long since buried, but still capable of making our modern minds recoil in horror. Among these tales of terror and woe you'll find the wretched account of a child who callously murdered other children with the calculated ease of a born psychopath, a penniless and alcoholic prostitute butchered by the hand of a disease-riddled madman, a wandering vagabond with a penchant for opportunistic butchery, and a Spanish sailor who killed an entire family on a whim. This hellish history also contains tragic tales from those condemned to the desolate confines of the workhouse, the delirium of the asylum, the despair of the prison cell, and the unforgiving grasp of the hangman's noose. So step right this way for a chilling tour of Monmouthshire's brutal and bloody past. Dare you take a walk on the dark side of this fair county?

'Whitstable is a stirring little town, with strong business proclivities, and a history stretching far back into the remote past.' So wrote a Kentish Gazette correspondent in 1873, although he could have been describing the north Kent seaside town today. Over the years, the lives of townspeople have been sustained by sea salt production, diving, smuggling, shipbuilding and fishing, along with copperas mining and tourism. In this pocket-sized guide, author Kerry Mayo takes readers on a fascinating tour around Whitstable's streets and buildings, showing how its famous landmarks used to look and how they have changed over the years, as well as exploring some of its lesser-known sights and hidden corners. With the help of a handy location map, readers are invited to discover for themselves the history and the changing face of the town.

The Western Region has been going through a period of great transition, and this book aims to document these changes, such as the rebranding of First Great Western as Great Western Railway and the replacement of the High Speed Train (HST) fleet with the new Hitachi Intercity Express Train (IET) fleet. There has also been an extensive electrification and modernisation project on the Great Western Main Line between London, Bristol and South Wales, along with numerous rolling stock upgrades and changes. Also included are interesting workings around the region such as railtours and unusual visitors, as well a variety of freight workings and images taken on the heritage railways in the area, many of which have had changes of their own.

Nuneaton, the largest town in Warwickshire, sits on an important railway crossroads in the Midlands. At its Trent Valley station, the busy West Coast Main Line heads broadly north to south with the important link between Birmingham and Leicester crossing east to west. An equally important line heads south-east from the town, through Coventry and Leamington Spa, carrying local passengers as well as an important freight link with the docks at Southampton. This line to Coventry and beyond has had a chequered past and was one of many victims of the Beeching Axe before, fortunately, reopening to passengers in the late 1980s. The author has spent many thousands of hours watching and photographing rail movements through Nuneaton station. This publication takes a look at the considerable variety of both passenger and freight traffic on offer to the enthusiast, ranging from the everyday to the unexpected.

In this book, author Alan Brooke highlights the historic gates of the City of London: Cripplegate, Aldgate, Aldersgate, Bishopsgate, Ludgate, Newgate and Moorgate. Originating in Roman times, they remained until they were all demolished between 1760 and 1767. Blue plaques mark six of their sites, and a bishop's mitre on a building shows where Bishopsgate once stood. This book examines the history of the gates, with chapters devoted to each one. A shorter section offers a summary of some of the water gates on the River Thames, including Billingsgate and Bridge Gate, where goods were unloaded from ships. Additionally, there were pedestrian-only gates such as Tower Gate and the postern gate at the Tower of London. There were also the Bars, the most famous of which is Temple Bar, which can still be seen at Paternoster Square. Illustrated throughout with archive material, photographs of present-day locations and a map, Gates of the City of London provides an important addition to the many books on London's rich and diverse history.

East Lancashire Coachbuilders was first registered in October 1934 when two former Massey Bros of Wigan employees decided to set up their own company in Blackburn. Their names were George Danson and Alfred Alcock. Over the next seven decades they supplied both single- and double-deck bodywork to most, if not all, Lancashire municipal bus operators, plus a number of south coast operators. The majority of photographs in this book have been taken by the author, and are mostly previously unpublished.

In the 1970s the introduction of the merry-go-round coal trains required a far more powerful loco, leading to the 3300 hp Class 56 being built. For general freight services, the Class 60 was developed. Both these types suffered from reliability problems in their early years. Several large stone companies in Somerset became frustrated with the constant loco problems that BR were having and decided to order their own locos, choosing General Motors in the USA to supply them. This resulted in the Class 59, which started service in 1986 and proved to be so effective that other Railfreight operators followed suit and ordered what became Class 66. Eventually, more than 400 entered service. This book of mostly unpublished colour photographs, taken by George Woods between 1966 until 2019, show the locos hauling a variety of trains all over the BR system.

Beneath the surface of the country's second largest city lies a little-known world that encompasses the history of Birmingham. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, Birmingham profited from its position in the heart of the Midlands as the centre of science, technology, industrial development and culture for the area, growing rapidly to become the most important manufacturing city in the country. Although much of the city has changed over the last two centuries, not least through the aerial bombing raids during the Second World War and post-war redevelopment, the industrial heritage of Birmingham remains an important part of the city. Going Underground: Birmingham takes the reader on a tour of subterranean Birmingham. The stories include the bizarre and sometimes nefarious world beneath the surface of the city. We visit the tunnels built for an underground railway only ever used as air-raid shelters, catacombs, closed railway tunnels, a former feeder canal used to bring goods from warehouses, a culvert containing Birmingham's only river, the old passage to New Street station (said to have been cut through the site of a former Jewish cemetery and once used to store bodies awaiting transportation), a tunnel between a former police station and the law courts walked by many from the city's criminal past, hidden passages created during Birmingham's growth period in the Georgian and Victorian ages, and much more. This fascinating portrait of underground Birmingham will interest all those who know the city.

The Marches - the border area between Wales and England - was semi-independent during much of the Middle Ages and today retains a special character. In this book author John Kinross explores the country houses built over the centuries in the border areas of Herefordshire, Shropshire, west Cheshire, west Gloucestershire, Monmouthshire, Powys and Denbighshire. Areas characterised by their rural beauty, often wild and remote, are home to some of the most interesting country houses in England and Wales. Some, such as Powis Castle, are built on the site of an ancient fortress, while others, such as Berrington Hall, typify the Georgian stately home or Victorian wealth on a grand scale, such as Stokesay Court or the more intimate villa of Sunnycroft. This fascinating portrait of the country houses of the Marches, all of which are open to the public, will interest all those who know the area well and those who wish to know more about the history of its country houses.

Until the last quarter of the twentieth century Maltese buses had generally had locally constructed bodywork, often a modified chassis of UK or American origin. A variety of liveries was carried. By the mid-1970s, out went the traditional liveries to be replaced by a uniform 'spray green' with white roof for route buses, while coaches initially carried a livery of buff and white. The start of the 1980s saw the importation of complete vehicles from the UK. AEC Swifts were sourced from London Transport, while a variety of Bedford and Ford coaches started to appear carrying bodies by Plaxton and Duple. Other types included Bristol LH, AEC Reliance, Leyland Leopard, Tiger Cub and Panther Cub. In typical Maltese fashion vehicles were often modified with different axles, engines and gearboxes, bodies rebuilt and, in some cases, replaced totally. In 1995, the livery changed to yellow/white with an orange waistband and continued so until 2011.

Anne Boleyn, the second wife of Henry VIII, was executed on 19 May 1536. Her sister Mary, rumoured mistress to the monarch, lived on and survived the king's wrath. But this is not the end of the tale of the Boleyns and the British Royal family - their stories have remained entwined for almost 500 years, through countless wars, crises and triumphs. In this book, Amanda Harvey Purse delves into the archives to tell the remarkable story of a number of individuals who form part of the Boleyn bloodline, spanning the worlds of the military, art and politics. Among those featured are Robert Devereux, executed for treason after leading an army against the government in the early seventeenth century; Lettice Knollys, banished from the court of Elizabeth I after marrying the wrong man; and Cecilia Nina BowesLyon, the grandmother of and godmother to Elizabeth II, who married Claude Bowes-Lyon and played a significant role in the convalescence of soldiers during the First World War.

Marking 90 years of London Transport, this selection of images celebrates its buses, trams and trolleybuses in preservation.

The fascinating hidden history of the British royal family's nearly men - those who had been destined for the throne, but never made it. Mantle explores the story behind these would-be-kings, showing how the question of succession has not always been a straightforward one.

Get to know this distinguished group on an intimate level by discovering what they ate and drank, how their houses were furnished, what possessions were most important to them, the pastimes they enjoyed, the people they loved, the friends they hated, and the lives they led.

A unique celebration of Lothian Buses and the city of Edinburgh, featuring previously unpublished images of buses sharing the scene with Edinburgh's spectacular buildings.

John Buss looks at the memorabilia of the popular Irwin Allen stable - Lost in Space, Land of the Giants and more.

Isambard Kingdom Brunel: Victorian icon, engineer, artist, architect, designer and visionary, entrepreneur and celebrity. His astounding feats changed the British landscape, and this new book tells the story of his awe-inspiring achievements and innovations as a railway engineer.

Explore a stunning collection of photographs revealing the life of hill farmers in the north of England.

The First British Empire is an authoritative, highly readable and substantial account of the origins, growth and transformation of the British Empire from its European beginnings until the aftermath of the American Revolution.

A fascinating collection of merged historic and modern images that reflect the changes in Wallasey through the decades.

A fascinating exploration of prehistoric Sussex from the Palaeolithic era to the Iron Age and the Roman invasion.

A fascinating photographs of an eclectic selection of emergency service vehicles in northern Europe.

Packed with insider insights, this is the fascinating story of how the company fundamentally changed the industry. An essential read for anybody interested in the UK bus scene.