Search results for ""Amberley Publishing""

England’s second largest county contains a wealth of railway history. The county was dominated by two companies – the Great Central in the north and the Great Northern in the centre and south. The county was also penetrated by the Midland Railway and there were no fewer than three joint lines. In the south the Midland & Great Northern Joint passed through from west to east, while the Great Northern & Great Eastern Joint ran north to south. In the far north-west of the county was the Isle of Axholme Railway, jointly owned by the North Eastern and the Lancashire & Yorkshire. The East Coast Main Line passes through the west of the county and this stretch includes the major railway centre of Grantham and Stoke Bank, where Mallard made its record-breaking run. Other important railway junctions are Sleaford, Boston, Spalding and Lincoln. On the coast are the seaside towns of Skegness, Mablethorpe, Sutton and Cleethorpes, which in the tourist season would see the arrival by train of thousands of holidaymakers. Further north is Grimsby, which provided numerous fish trains. So important was this traffic that the Great Central had a class of engine commonly used on these trains known as ‘Fish Engines’. Next comes the important port of Immingham, Britain’s busiest, which sees some 240 train movements per week. On the north Lincolnshire coast is New Holland, from where the railway-owned ferry used to cross to Hull. Further west is the steel-making town of Scunthorpe, which has its own railway system and is another important customer of the railway. There were other railways too: the Immingham Electric Railway, the Alford steam tram, and the potato railways – one system of which extended to more than twenty miles. RAF Cranwell had its own branch line. There are three tourist railways, one standard gauge and two narrow gauge. Using a wealth of rare and previously unseen photographs, Patrick Bennett documents Lincolnshire’s railways.

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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.

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Former Chief Pilot and Director of British Airways takes the reader on a tour of the airline's history of culinary delights, from lounge treats to sumptuous in-flight meals. Featuring a wealth of recipes and unpublished images, this is a unique history of a truly iconic brand.

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Erected by man for some long-forgotten purpose, there are large numbers of enigmatic standing stones, stone circles and burial chambers to be found in Wales. This book provides descriptions of some of the largest, tallest and best-preserved examples that can be visited still. Many of them are remarkable feats of construction, involving hewing and transporting large blocks of stone over long distances to be erected for reasons unknown. Chris Barber examines numerous legends, once believed to be true, that are associated with the stones. Some stones are said to uproot themselves on certain nights of the year and go for a drink or swim in a nearby river. Others are reputed to have been thrown to their sites by giants or legendary figures such as King Arthur and the Devil. Some stones bear cryptic signs such as ‘cup and ring marks’, telling mute stories that we cannot read but which provide a link with our prehistoric ancestors. The question arises, why was so much energy devoted to erecting these megalithic monuments? It has been shown that stone circles have an astronomical significance and dowsers claim to have detected a hidden force in the stones, even experiencing violent reactions when they touch them. It is shown how quartz contained in the stones appears to cause fogging on photographs and other strange effects. Dowsers also claim that there are strange spiral powers in the stones that wax and wane according to the phases of the moon. Such forces of nature may well be attributed to electromagnetism. This fascinating book is richly illustrated and gives location details of some of the more unusual sites, which are sometimes in remote locations, requiring map-reading skills to find them. These monuments were erected by man at a time when he must have felt part of nature and perhaps possessed forgotten knowledge that gave him a much closer relationship with the Earth. Read this book and you will feel compelled to go in search of the mysterious megaliths of Wales.

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This book covers tragic happenings within the boundaries of the historic county of Cheshire from the eighteenth to the twentieth century. The tragedies cover a wide range of human and natural disasters, from accidents in carts, cars, trains and aircraft to the devastating effects of fire and floods. Some of the misfortunes that individuals suffered were caused by others, including their own family members, while others were industrial accidents or sheer bad luck. Crime also intruded on everyday life in this period, and others suffered through mental illness and self-harm.This collection of tragic stories of misfortune and disaster gives a vivid insight into life in Cheshire in the eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth centuries. This book will fascinate anyone who wants to know more about the unfortunate history of this area in the north-west of England.

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The modern town of Gillingham grew up on the banks of the River Medway around the Royal Naval Dockyard of Chatham, most of which actually lay within Gillingham. The sixteenth century saw the expansion of the one-time fishing and farming village of ‘Jyllingham’ into a town. The population of the town expanded as the dockyard, with its accompanying fortifications around the Medway, grew, and today Gillingham is the largest town in the Medway area. In this book Philip MacDougall investigates Gillingham’s past, including many lesser-known and secret events, including a hidden English warship sunk by the Dutch when they invaded the Medway and that was still under the foundations of the dockyard; the prison hulks for convicts and prisoners of war moored in the River Medway, off Gillingham; an attempt to turn the town into a seaside resort to rival Margate; Jezreel’s Tower and the unusual sect that built it; the country’s worst death toll from a single bomb dropped in the First World War; and failure to prepare the town for the threatened mass bombing of the Second World War. Secret Gillingham explores the lesser-known episodes and characters in the history of Gillingham through the centuries. With tales of remarkable people and unusual events, and fully illustrated, this book will appeal to all those with an interest in this town in Kent.

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The market town of Castle Douglas, beside Carlingwark Loch in the southern Scottish region of Dumfries and Galloway, is relatively new, though the area has been inhabited from prehistoric times and the Romans had a military base close by. In the fourteenth century, Archibald the Grim, the 3rd Earl of Douglas, built Threave Castle nearby. The town came into being thanks to fertiliser found in the loch and wealthy merchant William Douglas, who laid out the present town in 1792. Though his dream of creating a cotton industry failed, Castle Douglas became a flourishing market town. The opening of the rail line to Dumfries in 1859 improved the town’s connections. Though the railway closed in 1965, the A75 trunk road ensured the town’s survival as a major stopping point for travellers. Today, it is a major tourist destination, with many visitors using it as a base for exploring this beautiful part of Scotland. All these changes are recorded in this unique and fascinating series of new and old photographs, making this book essential reading for anyone interested in the history of Castle Douglas.

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Perth History Tour provides a fascinating glimpse into the past of ‘The Fair City’. It was once the capital of Scotland, was given Royal Burgh status in the early twelfth century under King David I and developed as one of the most affluent towns in Scotland. Perth’s position on the River Tay ensured that it became a busy trading port, exporting salmon and wool and importing claret from Bordeaux. In this pocket-sized guide, Jack Gillon offers a tour around Perth’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 Perth.

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This book features fifty-six Victorian cases of murder covered in the sensational weekly penny journal the Illustrated Police Newsbetween 1867 and 1900. Some of them are famous, like the Bravo Mystery of 1876, the Llangibby Massacre of 1878 and the Mrs Pearcey case of 1890; others are little-known, like the Acton Atrocity of 1880, the Ramsgate Mystery of 1893 and the Grafton Street Murder of 1894. Take your ticket for the house of horrors.

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Alarmstart South completes Patrick Eriksson’s Alarmstart trilogy on Second World War German fighter pilots, detailing their experiences in the Mediterranean theatre (1941‒1944), and during the closing stages of the war over Normandy, Norway and Germany (1944‒1945). He utilises extensive personal reminiscences of veterans and original documents, set within a brief factual framework of campaigns, equipment and the progress of the war. Veterans who flew in Me 109, Fw 190 and Me 110/410 aircraft provide their stories in their own words. They range from junior NCOs to Colonels, including a senior fighter controller and even one of the Luftwaffe’s psychologists. The Mediterranean theatre provided the top scoring aces on both sides for the entire war (excluding the Russian front battles): Hans-Joachim Marseille (158 victory claims) on the German side and South African ‘Pat’ Pattle (an estimated 41+), on the Allied side. In the air battles over the Mediterranean region, many aircrew ended up ‘in the drink’ with little chance of being found. Occasionally, a miracle would happen, as with Dr Felix Sauer of JG 53, a pre-war biology teacher, who used his knowledge of chemistry and a calm demeanour to survive eight days in a dinghy at sea without water, apart from rain or dew. For many pilots the war would end only in death, for others in imprisonment. Oberfeldwebel Horst Petzschler endured forced labour in southern Russia: ‘On 22 September 1949 I arrived in Berlin, my home town, weighing 118 pounds, half dead but having survived!'

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The 1960s witnessed a magnificent, if misguided, swansong for the ocean liner. As the decade progressed a steady succession of elaborate new ‘ships of state’ populated the world’s sea lanes, in futile defiance of the vapour trails above them. Into this atmosphere of one-upmanship the Italian Line introduced Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo and Raffaello, the largest, fastest and most prestigious passenger liners in the nation’s post-war merchant marine. Named after the Renaissance masters, this book tells their stories, from troubled inception to heart-rending finale. It explains their design origins and interior décor, relates the triumph and tragedy of their all-too-brief careers and provides an insight into what it was like to live, work and take passage on these vessels, each with their own special personality. Profusely illustrated throughout, this book pays tribute to the ships and the people who brought them to life.

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Almost the entire network of the former Midland & Great Northern Joint Railway system closed at the end of February 1959. Some short sections of the railway were retained for passenger services until the mid-1960s and freight continued to run on a few others, one surviving into the 1980s. Only the passenger service between Cromer and Sheringham on the north Norfolk coast survives as part of the national network, which is now reached by the route of one-time competitor the Great Eastern Railway. Over sixty years after closure, interest in the M&GNJR and its predecessors remains high. The North Norfolk Railway runs its steam trains from the original station at Sheringham to a new one at Holt, a railway heritage centre has been established at Whitwell & Reepham station, and the M&GN Circle continues to research and celebrate this long-closed railway. There is much remaining evidence of the railway and sections of the trackbed provide pleasant walking and cycling routes. Utilising a range of rare and previously unpublished images, Steph Gillett offers a fascinating and nostalgic look back at this fondly remembered line.

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Featuring an array of previously unpublished images, Royston Morris documents the fascinating world of the vehicles and equipment that keep the nation’s railways on track and on time. There are numerous machines that can carry out various different duties. These include tamping machines, ballast regulating machines, track relaying machines, ballast consolidating machines, stoneblowers, snowploughs and many more. During the 1980s road-rail vehicles were starting to appear, having been converted to such use. The two main companies who were doing these conversions were Rexquote Ltd in Somerset and Philmore Rail Ltd in Monmouthshire. These vehicles were usually excavators to begin with, though they also include lorries, land rovers and bulldozers. Perfect for enthusiasts and modellers alike, this is a fascinating look at the forgotten heroes of the rail network.

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The brass eagle lectern is regarded as a quintessential piece of English church furniture which reflects the wealth of late medieval English towns and their connections with Europe. Many are products of the Victorian age inspired by their early Tudor counterparts. In this fascinating book, the author traces the development of the lecterns from the tenth century and provides a comprehensive picture of the lecterns found in East Anglia (where most of the early lecterns are located) and throughout the whole of England, including the ones used in Cambridge and Oxford colleges. The author makes a close analysis of the lecterns with information on the materials they were made from, the centres of their manufacture and explanations of iconography. Including the story of Oundle, where a lectern was found in the River Nene in the early nineteenth century, where it was probably hidden before the dissolution of Fotheringhay College, not to mention the beautiful pelican lectern in Norwich Cathedral, and the reason why some eagle lecterns have open beaks, this book provides all the information you need about an often seen but little understood piece of church furniture.

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Clerkenwell and Islington are two of London’s most historic districts; areas where radicalism once thrived and heavy industry flourished, and where poverty and lawlessness were commonplace. This diverse and colourful history can be traced in the area’s many pubs. The ancient parish of Clerkenwell, located just outside the City of London’s walls, was historically the home of the Knights Hospitallers of St John of Jerusalem. Later, it became famous for its watchmaking and printing industry. Dickens knew Clerkenwell, and it features in Oliver Twist, while it was here that Vladimir Lenin sowed the nascent seeds of Communism and in Little Italy Garibaldi was welcomed as a hero. But revolution and picking pockets is thirsty work, and the area’s pubs were plentiful and varied. Islington, further north, was once a country retreat far away from the noise and industry of the city, but today this once solidly working-class area, now favoured by the rich and the famous, is boisterous and busy and boasts a mixture of traditional hostelries, gastropubs and craft beer bars. Clerkenwell and Islington Pubs takes an historical, and sometimes contemporary, look at some of the area’s most interesting watering holes; drinking destinations that down the years have played host to a varied cast of characters that includes the likes of Samuel Pepys, Joe Orton, The Clash, U2, George Orwell and even James I.

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The Royal Mail has, for over 500 years, provided a crucial service in keeping people connected by land, sea and air. As the British Empire grew, so too did the need for a fleet of liners to service it, and in 1839 Queen Victoria granted the initial Royal Charter incorporating the Royal Mail Steam Packet Co. After running into financial trouble, the company was reconstituted as Royal Mail Lines in 1930. With his superb collection of rare images, Bill Miller brings to life the ships that operated for the line in the twentieth century. Covering the turbulent period of the Second World War, as well as more peaceful and prosperous times, this collection of images illuminates the stories behind some of the great iconic liners. Some of the ships featured include RMS Asturias and RMS Alcantara, at the time the largest motor ships in the world, and the RMS Magdalena, which sank on its maiden voyage in 1949.

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Eleanor of Castile, the remarkable woman behind England’s greatest medieval king, Edward I, has been effectively airbrushed from history; yet she had one of the most fascinating lives of any of England’s queens. Her childhood was spent in the centre of the Spanish reconquest and was dominated by her military hero of a father (St Ferdinand) and her prodigiously clever brother (King Alfonso X the Learned). Married at the age of twelve and a mother at thirteen, she gave birth to at least sixteen children, most of whom died young. She was a prisoner for a year amid a civil war in which her husband’s life was in acute danger. Devoted to Edward, she accompanied him everywhere. All in all, she was to live for extended periods in five different countries. Eleanor was a highly dynamic, forceful personality who acted as part of Edward’s innermost circle of advisers, and successfully accumulated a vast property empire for the English Crown. In cultural terms her influence in architecture and design – and even gardening – can be discerned to this day, while her idealised image still speaks to us from Edward’s beautiful memorials to her, the Eleanor crosses. This book reveals her untold story.

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Edinburgh’s New Town, built between 1767 and 1850, is one of Europe’s finest neoclassical neighbourhoods, a triumph of town planning, with UNESCO World Heritage status. But the importance of the New Town goes far beyond the quality of its architecture. Nearly 250 years after it was built, today it is not only a carefully conserved Georgian neighbourhood but a vibrant community in which people from all walks of life thrive in harmonious surroundings. Those include over 7,000 residential properties of enormous variety, and its shops, schools, pubs, restaurants and community facilities, which contribute to its unique quality of life and attract visitors from around the world. This book celebrates the history and achievements of the New Town. Through photos, drawings, historic maps and aerial photography, the authors explore the New Town’s origins in the philiosophy of the Enlightenment and the role of politics, land ownership, finance, design and materials in its development. This is a friendly and accessible introduction to the exteriors and interiors of its buildings, with a walking tour included, drawing on both historic maps and modern satellite images. It links the New Town to current debates on urban architecture, concluding that it is an inspiring model for new communities around the world. This is a book for the passionate, knowledgeable lover of Georgian architecture, but equally for the casual visitor who wants to get to know the New Town better.

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‘On an average Saturday, some thirty trains carried police escorts of between two and eight officers. Officers sometimes reached the destination with their uniforms soiled with spittle, and other filth, burnt with cigarette ends, or slashed.’ Charting the history of violent acts committed by football hooligans on the British rail network and London Underground, numerous retired police officers offer a frightening, and often humorous, insight into how they battled ‘the English disease’. Recalling incidents of random, mindless violence, as well as organised acts carried out by some of the country’s top hooligan firms, the authors document the times where nothing but a truncheon and the power of speech stood between order and chaos. Exploring a period of fifty years, retired officers Michael Layton and Alan Pacey pay particular attention to the turbulent and dangerous times faced by the police in the 1970s and 1980s, when hooliganism in the United Kingdom was at its peak, as well as exploring more recent instances of disorder. Tracking the Hooligans is an essential account of the uglier side of the beautiful game, and a fitting tribute to those who gave their time, and sometimes their lives, keeping the public safe.

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Books on railway history invariably start with the Stephenson's or with Richard Trevithick's locomotive of 1804., but the story begins much earlier with the development of steam engines for pumping out deep mines. Ken Gibbs, a retired engineer who served his apprenticeship in the Swindon Works of British Railways, takes a more practical approach to railway history, using its engineering developments to tell the story of the railways. From the first ideas to the development of better metals, manufacturing, technology in wheel casting, improved boilers and valve gears, his book is a refreshingly different approach to the plethora of picture books showing branch lines in days past. Ken's engineering background and love of railway technology gives us a book suited to the layman and engineer alike, explaining how each development made the railways better, faster or safer. It took over 150 years to develop the steam locomotive from a basic boiler on wheels weighing a couple of tons to the magnificent express passenger and freight locomotives weighing in excess of 100 tons and capable of speeds over 120mph. Read how the steam locomotive developed from those early days to the last days of steam.

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The market town of Petersfield lies on the edge of the beautiful South Downs, and it has much to thank its idyllic location for. From medieval origins it grew prosperous based on the rural economy of sheep farming, hop growing and cottage industries. It was also an important stage stop on the route from London to Portsmouth. But otherwise it remained peaceful and was barely touched by the violence and upheaval of the Civil War. Like many small towns, it was transformed by the railway, which arrived in 1859 and brought trade, industry and a surge in both people and buildings. Building expansion in the Victorian era included the Corn Exchange, schools, a courthouse, churches and a cottage hospital. Growth and change has since continued unabated, as Petersfield adapts to the modern world - and this magnificent collection of images captures it in vibrant detail.

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The unique profile of Edinburgh was born of a marriage between nature's sculpture and man's architecture. The epicentre is Castle Rock - a volcanic plug - which constantly draws the eye from all parts of the city. Sloping down from it is a jagged outline of impossibly high medieval tenements lining the Royal Mile which is punctuated at the foot of the tail of glacial debris by Holyrood Palace. That Edinburgh is beautiful is not in doubt.It is a city blended in to the countryside, with the Firth of Forth as the northern backdrop, a necklace of hills in all other directions. The history, however, has been less harmonious, largely due to warring with the English, but also because of religious turmoil and social unrest. The vibrant capital today draws thousands of visitors, not only for the historical sights, but also for the annual International Festivals of the arts, music and literature.

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The tactical abilities of small unit leaders were critical in winning the Battle of Britain and the many innovations and even experiments which they tried out during the active fighting merit examination. The pre-war Fighter Area Attacks ‒ much beloved of the Air Ministry and founded on the notion that incoming German bombers would be unescorted due to the distance from their German home bases ‒ would prove to be almost totally useless. Nobody then thought France would fall, enabling enemy fighters to be based just across the Channel. Air Chief Marshal Hugh Dowding built the defensive system and made it work before the war; he also prevented too many fighters from going to France. During the battle he played the strategic role, keeping Fighter Command in business while minimising losses; this was directly related to small British fighter formations, essentially a squadron – any raid would thus be attacked by a number of discrete squadrons – this approach reduced losses and ensured a sequence of attacks. Dowding’s subordinate Group commanders, notably Keith Park of 11 Group, fought the actual tactical battle, deciding every day how many squadrons would be allocated to every raid. The squadron leaders needed to know German bomber formation and type to choose fighter attack methods, and the disposition of German escort fighters. It was a subtle, deadly balancing act to maintain the aggressiveness needed to break up bomber formations and allow follow-up destruction of straggling and struggling machines, yet limit casualties among their own pilots. In July 1940, the author shows how this was achieved ‒ or not achieved. In his analysis Patrick Eriksson is not afraid to say it as he sees it: ‘The British fighters could never have won the Battle if they, like the Germans often did, attacked only when favourable conditions pertained.’

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The Isle of Wight, lying off the south coast of England, has been a popular tourist destination for 200 years but has played an important role in the history of Britain for centuries. It was settled by Celts, Romans, Anglo-Saxons and Vikings, and following the Norman Conquest it became a kingdom in its own right for two centuries. After the Reformation the Worsley family became governors of the island, transforming Appuldurcombe Priory into the family home, but misfortune was to haunt them and the house over ensuing centuries. The island was transformed by royal patronage, George IV supporting the Royal Yacht Club and Victoria making Osborne her favoured retreat, and the island was home to many famous names in the Victorian world including Tennyson. The island has also been at the forefront of technology and defence with the world’s first radio station, established by Marconi, and the development of Britain’s Black Knight ballistic missile and Black Arrow space rocket. As well as all this, the island’s story includes the remarkable tale of how Bob Dylan was persuaded to play the Isle of Wight Festival instead of Woodstock and much more. With tales of remarkable characters, unusual events and tucked-away or vanished historical buildings and locations, Secret Isle of Wight will appeal to all those with an interest in the history of this unique island across the Solent.

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The gripping story of the conflict in the air during the Great War

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A wonderfully evocative guide to the history and the architecture of Britain's railway station hotels.

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From traditional seaside holiday treats like candy floss, ice cream and fish ’n’ chips, to the British fascination for baking, the Victorian era has shaped British culinary heritage. Victoria’s austere attitude after an age of Regency indulgence generated enormous cultural change. Excess and gluttony were replaced with morally upright values, and Victoria’s large family became the centre of the cultural imagination, with the power to begin new traditions. If Queen Victoria’s family sat down to turkey on Christmas day, so did the rest of the nation. Food was a significant part of the Victorians’ lives, whether they had too much of it or not enough. The destitute were fed gruel in the workhouses – the words of Dickens’s Oliver are forever imprinted on our minds: ‘Please, sir, I want some more.’ The burgeoning street traders spilling over from the previous century devolved into a whole new culture of ‘mudlarks’, trotter boilers and food slop traders, to name but a few. Wealthy Victorians gorged with the newly emerging trend for breakfast, lunch and tea. Public dining became de rigeur, and the outdoor ‘pique-nique’, introduced a new way of eating. Victorians also struggled against many of these trends, with the belief that denial of food was a moral good. This was the era of educating and training in food management, combined with the old world of superstition and tradition, that changed British society forever.

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Rochester, Strood & the Hoo Peninsula From Old Photographs examines a diverse and fascinating area. Rochester, with its medieval castle and cathedral, Tudor buildings and Dickensian associations is a busy and vibrant tourist destination. Across the bridge from the ancient city, but far less well known is the town of Strood. Originally a medieval fishing village, which played host to Knights Templar travelling to the Crusades, it evolved over the centuries into a Victorian industrial and commercial hub. To the north of Strood, extending eastwards to the Thames Estuary is the Hoo Peninsula. Its marshes and isolated villages led the area to be denigrated by travellers who stumbled across it. Brian Joyce and Sophie Miller explore the entire area from Rochester to the Isle of Grain, using a unique collection of photographs, prints and postcards. In doing so, they have at last done justice to parts of Kent that have been neglected by historians for so long.

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Northumberland has a great many attractive sites that are well-recorded, and are frequently visited and written about. However, in this new book Dr Stan Beckensall focuses upon places that are off the beaten track, not so well known, but all of enormous interest for their stunning locations and stories. They are scattered across the county in the hills, valleys, scarplands and on the coast. Sites featured include locations off the 'Alemouth Road' from Hexham to Rothbury; hidden valleys and waterfalls at Linhope Spout, Roughting Linn and Hareshaw Linn; seascapes; abandoned settlements and industry centres; pilgrimage routes; graveyards, and the remarkable rock formations that make up much of the landscape. Northumberland hides some of its history in names, and these too are revealed. Throughout are the author's reflections on the significance of what is seen and known.

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Lying together in one of Stroud's five valleys, Nailsworth and Woodchester provide an interesting contrast with one another. As a parish, the former is only just over a century old, created from portions of Avening, Horsley and Minchinhampton, while Woodchester has pre-Conquest roots and is the site of the great Roman villa, with its celebrated Orpheus Mosaic. Both parishes possess many fine buildings and are home to thriving, vibrant communities. Using period and modern photographs, this book aims to highlight changes in Nailsworth and Woodchester over the last century or so. Matching images invite the reader to compare how landscape, architecture and street scenes have altered and to enjoy fascinating glimpses of Victorian and Edwardian people going about their daily lives.

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The largest county in England, Yorkshire boasts a huge variety of landscapes, from spectacular mountain and moorland scenery, rugged coastline, a haunting medieval legacy, to the proud imprint of the Industrial Revolution and vibrant modern cities. In Yorkshire Revealed, photographers Dave Zdanowicz and his father Paul Zdanowicz have captured the huge variety of scenery, natural and man-made, that makes Yorkshire special. For the county’s proud inhabitants and many thousands of visitors this book is a must. Look through these photographs and you will quickly see why this part of England has such enduring appeal.

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A compilation of the funniest cartoons from the much-loved Chloe & Co. Specially selected by Gray Joliffe, Chloe & Co features many of his best laugh-out-loud cartoons. Featuring Chloe, Angela and their friends, Chloe & Co enjoys a reputation for being uniquely naughty for a national daily newspaper. Now in its twentieth year, Chloe & Co appears each day in the Daily Mail and is syndicated worldwide. CHLOE, twenty something, bachelor girl, party girl, is more interested in ‘Mr Right now’ than looking for Mr Right. A money-motivated shopaholic, she likes expensive restaurants and drinking bubbly in bars with her girlfriends, loves being a man magnet and thinks cooking is a town in China. ANGELA, on the other hand, is intelligent, insecure, and usually into diets and fads which never work. Her self-obsession and over-sensitivity get in the way of her finding love with a nice man, and she resents Chloe getting more than her fair share of food and fellas. Angela’s love life has gone missing.

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Barnsley, Rotherham and Worksop sit on top of the Midland coalfield, stretching from Nottingham into Yorkshire and the mining industry in this area once supported tens of thousands of jobs in collieries dotted across the landscape. In this book, the culmination of some forty years of research, author Ken Wain tells the story of the mining industry in the area from the primitive mines of the medieval period to the rundown of the industry and the end of deep mining in Britain. The Coal Mining Industry of Barnsley, Rotherham and Worksop tells the life stories of the many collieries in this part of England. From the large towns to small villages built around their local pit, Ken gives an insight into the growth of coal mining in the area as well as some of the human stories of disaster and of the working and living conditions for the miners and their families.

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Ipswich, the county town of Suffolk, lies on the estuary of the River Orwell in East Anglia. The town has a rich and varied history with continued human habitation dating back to at least the fifth century. As a result, it has grown up with England from its earliest beginnings and has witnessed untold changes from the Norman Conquest – when the town’s name was recorded in the Little Domesday Book of 1086 as Gepeswiz – to the Industrial Revolution, which saw the re-emergence of the town as a thriving port. In Ipswich Through Time, local historian Caleb Howgego provides a glimpse into the fascinating history of Ipswich. Through a series of ninety photographic comparisons, the author contrasts Victorian and Edwardian Ipswich with the modern town. We discover the recent history of Ipswich, uncovering along the way some of the dramatic changes the town has seen over the last century, and the features that remain startlingly similar.

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Chatham has had an association with the Royal Navy since Elizabethan times, moving to its current site in 1622. It provided the facilities to build, repair, maintain and supply ships. In the mid-nineteenth century, work began on expanding the dockyard into St Mary's Island, where three huge basins and five new docks were constructed, almost quadrupling its size, in order to support twentieth-century vessels. Work then commenced on a new home for Royal Navy seamen. The new barracks, HMS Pembroke, opened in 1903 providing accommodation for 5,000 officers and ratings for the following eighty years. The dockyard and barracks finally closed in 1984 and the Royal Navy bid farewell to Chatham. However, its legacy remains and its many historic dockyard and barrack buildings provide a warm welcome for residents and visitors alike.

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From its beginnings as an Anglo-Saxon settlement, through its development as an agricultural centre with all its related trades and services, the market town of Otley has seen many changes. The invention of Otley's world-famous Wharfedale printing machine contributed to the development of Otley's printing and engineering industry. The railway arrived in 1865, terraced houses replaced thatched cottages and unpaved thoroughfares gave way to tarmac. Today, such changes continue. The railway and most of the factories have disappeared but Otley has retained its popular market town character. The medieval bridge, the twelfth-century parish church and the medieval Kirkgate street plan still serve the townspeople. The selection of photographs in this book show the present alongside the intriguing past, taking readers on a trip around the historic streets of Otley.

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There is always a good story in a shipwreck. The tales from survivors, or frequently from those who tried to rescue them, are often astonishing in the accounts of bravery and self-sacrifice they reveal. Britain's long maritime past can be traced through the shipwrecks off our coasts. The South Devon coast has a rich maritime past, which archaeologists have been able to link to the Bronze Age. Some of the oldest shipwrecks in Northern Europe lie off this coast and there is evidence of a seaborne prehistoric trade in metals and a later trade with Byzantium. Ships in the area helped transport troops to Brittany at the beginning of the Hundred Years War, four ships were sent to fight the Spanish Armada of 1588, and during the Second World War the area served as a staging post for the Normandy Landings. This guide, with original illustrations, is essential reading for coastal walkers and kayakers with an interest in good stories to accompany them. Rather than a blank canvas as they look out to sea, readers will be able to relive these gripping stories, seeing the shipwrecks in their mind's eye.

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Brush Type 4 Class 47 locomotives have seen more than sixty years of service on Britain’s railways, celebrating their diamond jubilee on 25 September 2022. This book draws together previously unseen photographs by the author and others who have spent decades photographing, traveling behind and preserving these locomotives. Looking at the early years of the fleet of 512 locomotives as they settled into hauling passenger and freight, as well as the halcyon years of the 1980s and 1990s and more recent times, Martin Measures shares the importance of these locomotives to the railways and their many enthusiasts. Lavishly illustrated throughout, this fitting tribute to the Brush Type 4s commemorates their long and successful service.

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The sporting cars produced by the Rootes Group have somehow slipped from popular memory. Some will remember the Sunbeam Alpine, but few seem to recall the contemporary Sunbeam Rapier saloon or the fastback that succeeded it. The Hillman sporting models are even less remembered. The Hillman Avenger saloons became Group One Racing champions and British Touring Car champions. The humble Hillman Imp was part of their rally team and there was a sporting Singer Coupe version. A Hillman Hunter Saloon went on to win a London–Sydney marathon rally, and the luxury Humber model inherited its sporting mechanics. The last gasp of the Rootes Group sporting range was the Sunbeam hatchback of the 1980s, which gave birth to a sporting GLS, a Webber-fitted and spoilered Ti and finally a Lotus-powered version that went on to win the RAC rally championship. This book sets the record straight and celebrates these worthy, but often sadly forgotten, vehicles.

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In this book, Ian Collard uses his collection of rare and previously unpublished images to tell the story of the Irish sea ports located on the River Mersey and River Dee. The history of these ports stretches back hundreds of years. The Mersey Docks & Harbour Board took control in 1858, and a variety of boards and groups have controlled various elements along both the Mersey and Dee ever since. Illustrated profusely throughout, this book tells the fascinating history of these hubs of business and activity.

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To most people InterCity means the network of trains linking the UK with London, but there is a far more interesting and often overlooked network that avoided London: Cross-country. The North East–South West route of British Rail linked Newcastle with Plymouth and Cardiff via Birmingham; added to this were the Manchester and Liverpool services that headed for the south coast and the odd train that crossed from one route to the other. Birmingham New Street was the hub for all of these services, with the exception of some services from East Anglia and the East Midlands. Over the years the North East–South West route became cross-country and extended its range well into Scotland. This book illustrates the diverse range of starting points and destinations used. Photos are mainly from the 1970s and 1980s, plus a few from the 1990s prior to privatisation and more standardisation than BR could ever have hoped for.

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The history of London up to 1666 is a story of Romans, Saxons, Vikings, Normans, Plantagenets, Tudors and Stuarts. Of a city that grew from ancient origins to become ‘the flower of all cities’, until the centuries of building and the lives within it were obliterated by the Great Fire. It features many of the famous figures in British history: Queen Boudicca, King Alfred, Thomas Becket, Wat Tyler, Dick Whittington, Thomas More, Thomas Cromwell, and Guy Fawkes. And Geoffrey Chaucer, Francis Bacon, Christopher Marlowe, William Shakespeare, John Donne, Inigo Jones, Thomas Middleton, John Milton, Christopher Wren, Aphra Behn and Samuel Pepys. It is a tale of ‘great matter’ and ‘great reckoning’, where the nation was shaped, fortunes made and squandered, lives transformed, advanced and lost. Through the story of early London we can trace a busy, beautiful, dangerous city lost forever, but brought back to life here through skilful analysis of the archaeological, pictorial and written records.

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Bitterne & West End Through Time is a unique insight into the illustrious history of this part of Hampshire. Reproduced in full colour, this is an exciting examination of Bitterne and West End, the famous streets and the famous faces, and what they meant to the people in this community throughout the 19th and into the 20th Century. Looking beyond the exquisite exterior of these well-kept photos, readers can see the historical context in which they are set, and through the author's factual captions for every picture and carefully-selected choice of images, the reader can achieve a reliable view of this area's history. Readers are invited to follow a timeline of events and watch the changing face of Bitterne and West End, as Keith Marsh guides us through the local streets. There is something for everyone here, whether they have lived in the area all their lives, or whether they are just visiting. It also shows how photography has continually evolved to keep up with an ever-changing society.

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Whitehaven was just a fishing village on the Cumbrian coast until the port was developed by the Lowther family in the seventeenth century to export coal from the Cumberland coalfield. In the next century it benefitted from the trade in tobacco, sugar and other products with the West Indies to become the second busiest port in the country. The wealth brought to the area was demonstrated by a new town, the most complete example of a Georgian planned town in Britain. Built on a grid system, the town has over 170 listed buildings. Alongside the Old Fort and Whitehaven Castle, which later became the hospital, are historic houses, shops, churches, civic buildings, hotels, public houses and banks as well as reminders of Whitehaven’s industrial heritage around the harbour, the colliery and the railway. Although the port has declined in recent years and mining ceased in the area, the harbour has been regenerated with a marina and the old colliery buildings preserved and turned into a museum. Whitehaven in 50 Buildings explores the history of this fascinating Cumbrian town through a selection of its most interesting buildings and structures, showing the changes that have taken place in Whitehaven over the years. The book will appeal to all those who live in Whitehaven or who have an interest in the town.

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On the front line of the Cold War, during a decade that saw East–West tensions – and budgets – rise considerably, the United States Air Forces in Europe reached the peak of their power during the 1980s. Not only did USAFE expand, but it introduced a generation of advanced new types, developed to counter perceived Soviet advances and often in light of America’s still recent, and often bitter, experiences in Vietnam. Eagles, Fighting Falcons and Warthogs joined the ranks in increasing numbers, supplementing still considerable numbers of older stalwarts like the mighty F-111 interdictors and the iconic Phantom, which lingered on in specialised reconnaissance and defence suppression roles. But it wasn’t all fast jets; Ground Launched Cruise Missiles were introduced, plus a range of support types including tankers, transports and spy planes deployed from the Stateside Commands to support USAFE. Take a step inside the day-to-day operations of the USAFE in the 1980s.

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Manchester can boast an unparalleled heritage. The ‘Second City of the Empire’ gave the world technological innovation as well as manufacturing strength. Its wealth came from textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution. The great majority of cotton spinning took place in the towns of south Lancashire and north Cheshire, and Manchester was for a time the most productive centre of cotton processing in the world, earning it the sobriquet ‘Cottonopolis’. The city’s population grew at an astonishing rate in the early nineteenth century as people flocked there for work from other parts of the UK. The firms that made machines for the cotton trade diversified into general manufacture, the chemical industry expanded into other areas, financial service industries began to flourish and its transport and distribution infrastructure expanded. The boom ended as dramatically as it has begun with the death of the textile industry and waning of the city’s role as a major inland port. By the end of the twentieth century, however, industrial decline and mass unemployment had given way to inner-city regeneration and by the turn of the century Manchester had rediscovered its swagger and successfully transformed itself into a thriving post-industrial centre of arts, culture and commerce. Well-known local authors and historians Jean and John Bradburn take the reader on a fascinating A–Z tour of the city’s history, exploring its lesser-known nooks and crannies, and along the way relating many a tale of the most interesting people and places. Fully illustrated with photographs from the past and present, A–Z of Manchester will appeal to residents and visitors alike.

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Dublin has had a long association with its pubs. The city grew rapidly in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, becoming a major port for trade around the world, and the city boasted a wealth of taverns, inns, alehouses and public houses. An important part of the city’s prosperity was also the Guinness brewery, founded in Dublin in 1759 and becoming a major employer. Many drinking establishments have survived from these days and have stories to tell, often involving historical figures or even fictional characters. In Dublin Pubs, author Pat Dargan takes the reader on a fascinating journey through some of Dublin’s most interesting, oldest or most famous watering holes. Many of the pubs have retained features and traditions of previous ages, and some are regarded as architectural gems. Pat reveals the variety of Dublin’s pubs today and tells of the many characters that have frequented or run the public houses over the years, for which Dublin is justly renowned.

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Nurses and nursing are firmly rooted in Britain’s heritage, for the profession as we know it today owes much to the pioneering work of Florence Nightingale. Before she helped establish the first nurse training school in Liverpool in the late 1800s, the women who looked after the sick were a motley mix. The role of the nurse has developed from the untrained handywoman and private nurse, through the early nurses who acted as ‘health missioners’, to the highly trained professionals we recognise today. Nurse training has evolved to reflect the advances in medical treatment and nurses have been able to engage more widely with the community by undergoing additional training as, for example, district nurses, school nurses, midwives, health visitors and mental health nurses. During both world wars, nurses made a special contribution on the home front and overseas. Using first-hand accounts from nurses through the ages, Susan Cohen takes us on a nostalgic journey through the history of nurses and nursing in Britain, from the pre-Nightingale days through to the post-NHS era. This book is part of the Britain’s Heritage series, which provides definitive introductions to the riches of Britain’s past, and is the perfect way to get acquainted with nurses and nursing in all their variety.

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