BOOKAZINES

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These locomotives enjoyed striking 'continental' good looks with, strangely, more than a nod to preceding steam design; for this they were regarded fondly by enthusiasts and they earned the somewhat fanciful and inexplicable nickname 'Teddy Bears'.

Sadly, performance did not match these fond feelings and as well as proving disappointing technically, the steam age duties for which they were designed were, to BR's consternation, rapidly disappearing.

British Railways sold them off after a few years but despite such an unprepossessing, and some might say, gnominious career nevertheless many saw many years of work in private industry including, famously, the Channel Tunnel.

Remarkably, over a third of the class passed into preservation, an unprecedented proportion and paradoxically they can now be found at work, daily, the length and breadth of the country.

Author: John Jennison
First published: February 2023
Cover: Softback , 88 pages
ISBN: 978-1-911703-31-0
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No.6 in the DIESEL DAWN series, describing the 263 locomotives built by the firm Brush Ltd of Loughborough from 1957. This series sets out to record in colour and black and white the prototype origins and production lives of the main line diesel locomotives introduced during the 'Great Modernisation' undertaken on British Railways from the late 1950s through to the 1960s, eliminating steam power in the process.

One of the main pillars of the new diesel fleet came in the form of the Brush company's diesel locomotive for mixed traffic work, the 'Type 2' referring to the power rating of their engines – 1,250hp. The name 'Brush' it has to said is less than stirring after the fashion, say, of 'Deltics' or 'Warships' but an entire swath of British Railways, the Eastern Region, relied very heavily upon them for all manner of freight and passenger work; they were even suited to country branches in the wilds of East Anglia.

In later years they were used much more widely, from the West Country to the far north of England. They were also long-lived, unlike many of their contemporaries that appeared in the 'Diesel Dawn' of the 1950s and 1960s; the last was only withdrawn from service in 2017.

Author: Gavin Glenister
First published: July 2022
Cover: Softback , 104 pages
ISBN: 978-1-911703-13-6
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Increasing affluence and a second-hand car allowed the author a geographical range previously denied to him and with various pals he embarked in the 1970s and 1980s on a number of expeditions to various parts of the country, to photograph diesel locomotives, then still running in abundant numbers and variety.

There were busy main line centres to be explored – York, Doncaster, Crewe and the rest but also obscure corners that could only be found by recourse to maps, sometimes inquiring of locals with barely understandable dialects, something after the fashion of Victorian explorers. Nowadays there are very few locomotives at work in this country and computer apps enable anyone to locate their whereabouts as easily as those actually responsible for operating them – something of course unimaginable back in the 1970s.

Back then there were still considerable numbers of locomotives working major traffic flows across the country – most notably coal and steel – on a scale undreamed of today. Diesel locomotives on freight traffic ran more often than not at night so had to be tracked down in their daytime lairs, at depots often located in out of the way places.

hen there was the problem of entry which could normally be negotiated with sympathetic staff in an age less concerned with health & safety, legal liabilities, terrorism and the like. There follows a tale of chasing what was then a huge variety of locomotive types in unsung, unknown corners of the kingdom, bump-starting successive wheezing cars, unsavoury B&B establishments and the more benign forms of trespass. A rollicking tale of an altogether more innocent railway age.

Author: Richard Derry
First published: December 2021
Cover: Softback , 104 pages
ISBN: 978-1-911639-67-1
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This account is intended to give an overview of the types of first-generation Diesel Multiple Unit (DMU) trains and railbuses that could be seen on BR from the 1950s to the 1980s. Their widespread introduction across the country came to be one of the great pillars of the Modernisation of Britain’s railways throughout the 1950s and 1960s. Put into service in a number of ‘schemes’ (each scheme covering part of the country) the new trains – bright, shiny and modern with wonderful panoramic views – replaced thousands of steam engines. For decades they dominated the railway passenger scene, becoming so commonplace as to go almost unnoticed as memories of steam faded.

The first generation Diesel Multiple Units were descended from the pioneering work of the Great Western Railway between the wars which, in conjunction with the firm AEC, introduced a fleet of railcars. The first BR DMUs had entered service in 1954 and took the operating scene by storm. Their rapid construction and deployment was driven by an attempt not only to modernise but to reduce operating costs.

Outside contractors, as well as BR’s own works at Derby and Swindon, were heavily involved in building DMUs, often being given a degree of freedom in their design and appearance. This led to a proliferation of types, including some that proved unreliable or difficult to maintain. It all added to the fascination of these new trains.

In addition to branch line and secondary workings, DMUs found themselves employed on intensively-worked suburban routes that were not electrified, such as those from King’s Cross, Paddington and St Pancras in London, around Birmingham and in the South Wales Valleys, as well as on some Inter-City routes such as between Edinburgh and Glasgow and across the Pennines.

Author: Robert Carroll
First published: 21st.September 2021
Cover: Softback , 104 pages
ISBN: 1-978-911639-66-4
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Third in a series to record in colour and black and white the prototype origins and production lives of the first British Railways diesel locomotives, from halting beginnings in the 1950s to (sometimes) premature ends.

The introductory pages cover the conception, design and construction in the 1950s and are necessarily in black and white. The remainder of the volume illustrates the locomotives throughout their subsequent working lives through to the 1970s, in colour. Comprehensive text, extensive captions, technical data, life histories throughout.

None of the many 'Diesel Dawns' of our times has been investigated, evaluated, celebrated, excoriated, praised and derided, more comprehensively in (often) more partisan ways, than that of the Western Region diesel hydraulics.

The various Warships were the first. British Railways Western Region built their own at Swindon (Diesel Dawn 2) and the venerable British private locomotive firm North British of Glasgow built the rest. The firm was responsible for two types, in fact, the earlier, heavy twelve wheel D600s (only five of these, to considerable relief in some quarters) which a BR Board largely foisted on the Western Region and thirty-three more in the D800 series which were more or less indistinguishable from the earlier Swindon locomotives detailed in Diesel Dawn 2. These North British D833-D865) Warships worked turn and turn about with their Swindon brethren on express passenger trains and then freights throughout the 1960s untill their somewhat premature withdrawal in the early 1970s.

Author: Gavin Glenister & John Jennison
First published: May 2021
Cover: Softback
ISBN: 978-1-911639-65-7
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Available from the publisher or selected W H Smith, Sainsburys, Tescos, Asda and Waitrose High Street shops.

Second in a series to record in colour and black and white the prototype origins and production lives of the first British Railways diesel locomotives, from halting beginnings in the 1950s to (sometimes) premature ends. The introductory pages cover the conception, design and construction in the 1950s and are necessarily in black and white. The remainder of the volume illustrates the locomotives throughout their subsequent working lives through to the 1970s, in colour. Comprehensive text, extensive captions, technical data, life histories throughout.

None of the many 'Diesel Dawns' of our times has been investigated, evaluated, celebrated, excoriated, praised and derided, more comprehensively in (often) more partisan ways, than that of the Western Region diesel hydraulics. The startling first impression these Swindon Warships made when they burst upon a steam-dominated railway in 1958 can hardly be exaggerated. Powerful, fast and above all lightweight, THIS was the Type 4 that the Western Region had wanted and fought so hard to get. Sparkling clean, in an elegant livery with stirring red and silver nameplates, they were glamorous, mysterious even, with that striking sloping front and subtle curves, unhindered by design clutter.

This second Diesel Dawn deals with the thirty-eight Warships built from 1958. The North British version which came a couple of years later involved a different story altogether, to be related in Diesel Dawn No.3..

Author: Gavin Glenister & John Jennison
First published: March 2021
Cover: Softback
ISBN: 978-1911639-64-0
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OUT OF STOCK

OUT OF STOCK via Irwell Press but AVAILABLE direct from Classic Magazines - please click here https://www.classicmagazines.co.uk or ring their Customer Services on 01507 529 529

May also still be available from selected W H Smith High Street Shops (while stocks last).

First in a series to record in colour and black and white the prototype origins and production lives of our diesel classes, from halting beginnings in the 1950s to (sometimes) premature ends. DELTIC itself was the most extraordinary prototype of all; culmination of a long and complex road stretching back would you believe through a First World War German aero engine, Second World War RAF ground attack aircraft, Kreigsmarine E-boats and HM Royal Navy. The English Electric project (known as DP1 – Diesel Prototype No.1, which is how we got DP2 years later) to build DELTIC was speculative, an unusual but not unknown road to take in locomotive history. DELTIC itself, at 3,300hp, was way, way beyond other main line diesels; it duly burst upon the scene, to dramatic effect and in power and speed swept all before it. BR’s existing diesel electric Type 4s were lumbering giants in comparison. The production fleet that followed, D9000-D9021, made for a glorious couple of decades on the Anglo-Scottish workings of the East Coast. This mighty fleet of 22 Deltics brought electrification levels of performance; that, after all, was their raison d’être, to provide a level of service equal to electric locomotives and this they did – their performances were literally ‘electrifying’! Indeed, outside the peak services they were necessarily somewhat under-utilised – they were almost too powerful for the job. The coming of the Deltics was a landmark in BR’s Great Modernisation; with their advent ‘...the first major breakthrough in speed, frequency, locomotive and coaching stock utilisation in line with the aims and objectives of BR’s Modernisation Plan was achieved.’ In terms of 1960s modernisation highlights, little compared to the inauguration of the Deltics.

Author: GAVIN GLEINSTER & TONY WRIGHT

ISBN: 978-1-911262-23-7
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Available from selected W H Smith High Street Shops or direct from the publisher

Ian Sixsmith

978-1-911262-23-7

THE DIESELS DELIVERED in the last century and though many traditional traffics had disappeared before the end of steam – fish, livestock, to recall just two – much remained in more or less traditional working patterns. Many diesel classes, it is sobering to reflect, did not last as long as some of the freight workings depicted in these pages! Half a century on, almost all have vanished from our national network. The era of diesels on goods, from fully braked oil trains to clunking and clanging loose-coupled four wheeled coal wagons, to the humblest branch pick-up is a neglected yet rewarding one, as this book sets out to demonstrate. The pictures are courtesy Colour-Rail, who have a message: We hope you enjoy this selection of images from the Colour-Rail collection, those seen here being just the tip of the proverbial iceberg of our collection.  Colour-Rail has been supplying images to both enthusiasts and publishers for books and magazines for 40 years and of course its roots were in the era of steam nostalgia, but like everything else we have to keep up with user’s interests and so the Colour-Rail collection has grown to include as much modern traction as we have steam and there are now over 100,000 of our images on line.  But we want to continue to grow the collection of images both old and new so if you have or know of a collection, even of just digital images, that is looking for a good home please let us know.  Help us save images today for others to enjoy tomorrow.

You can buy the images in this book plus all of the other 100,000 on the website as downloads or prints at www.colour-rail.com.  If you need to contact us about pictures that you would like but can’t find on our website, or you know about a collection that needs rescuing, please send an email to colourrail@aol.com

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Tony Wright

ISBN 978-1-911262-16-9

This is Tony Wright’s fifth in an on-going series of bookazines for Irwell Press, and this one concentrates on the Class 47 diesel-electrics, surely BR’s most successful and most numerous mixed traffic post-steam class. Introduced coincidentally with the first withdrawals of the A4 Pacifics at the end of 1962, the first batch played second-string to the Deltics on the ECML, with some success. As the numbers grew (eventually to over 500!) they became ubiquitous on the national network. The Class has rejoiced in a number of labels, including Brush Type 4s, Hawker Siddeleys, Class 47s (under TOPS) and even ‘Duffs’ among enthusiasts. Using photographs entirely of his own taking, the author presents a personal observation of this long-lived class, from the original (and most-attractive) two-tone green, through to BR corporate blue and many of the myriad liveries beyond. The geographical spread is as comprehensive as the author’s travels allowed, including Scotland, deepest Wales, the South West, the North East, North West, East Anglia, The Midlands (both East and West) the Home Counties, London and the South. Several remain in operation with private companies, well over fifty years after their introduction.  

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By Tony Wright

The 2017 2018 Bookazine on sale now at selected W.H. Smith High Street shops or direct from the publisher. The English Electric Co-Co Type 4s, the D400s, formed the last great class of diesel express locomotives introduced under the vast modernisation programme initiated in the 1950s. Introduced in 1967 and derived from the prototype DP2, later destroyed in a collision, they came to be known as the Class 50s and originally powered expresses on the West Coast main line. With electrification they had a second, even more memorable career on the Western Region, powering the heaviest and fastest West of England trains. Here they took the names of Royal Navy fighting ships past and present. These perpetuated the noble names carried by the original WR ‘Warship’ diesel hydraulics of a generation before; hence, the NEW WARSHIPS.

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By Tony Wright

Acknowledged by enthusiasts and professionals alike as amongst the greatest locomotives of all time, the Deltics are featured in this latest volume by Tony Wright. Using photographs mainly of his own taking, this is a pictorial chronology of this celebrated class from their first appearance in 1961 through to their final swansong year of 1981. The locos are recorded mainly on their established racing grounds from Kings Cross to Edinburgh and Kings Cross to Leeds, ranging from the principal long-distance express passenger trains of the day right through to final workings to and from York and Cleethorpes. All the main livery manifestations are presented in full colour. It’s hoped that this pictorial volume will stir memories of those who saw this unique class throughout its life, or give a glimpse to those too young to remember these 22 giants; whether being deafened in the confines of a great station or out in the wilds alongside the East Coast Main Line, that distinctive Napier twin roar was unmistakable.

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BY PAUL ANDERSON

A range of first generation diesel multiple units and loco-hauled trains pictured in a wide variety of landscapes across the British Rail network from the Scottish Highlands to the Cornish Coast. The views were taken over forty years ago when green and maroon was changing to blue and grey. Certain local lines had yet to close and many stations on lines that are still open had their original buildings at the time. Settings vary from the rocky Cumbrian Coast to the bracing Lincolnshire seaside and the upper slopes of the Pennines to the chalk downs of Dorset. In Scotland there are scenes from Inverness and the West Highlands to doomed branches in Fife and the much lamented Waverley Route. Welsh mining valleys provide a contrast with historic Pembroke while broad horizons are common to the Cambrian Coast line and the beautiful Border Country. There are trains at country termini and big city stations while others wait alongside architectural gems or pause at wayside halts. From farms to forests and moors to mountains, there is nowhere as varied as Britain, so sample these scenic delights by discovering Diesels in the Landscape.

ISBN 978-1-906919-90-0

Paperback - 80 pages



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