"This is an impressive work showcasing steam’s last 20 years in an area often neglected by photographers."

West Somerset Railway Association

As featured by

The Broad Gauge Society

5 out of 5

A must-have book that covers the industrial heart of the Black Country and is highly recommended.

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Rail Advert

This is a photographic record of trains on the ex-Great Western network in the Black Country and Wolverhampton areas. The combination of less glamorous and now-lost locations, good coverage of freight trains and many appearances of largely-vanished industrial backgrounds really gives the feel of the region as it was. Together with generously-sized quality photographic reproduction, this makes for a superior example of the pictorial record genre.

Journal of the Railway & Canal Historical Society

An historically, very poorly represented area of the former Western Region, has at long last been given the treatment it deserves by local Black Country born and brought up photographer, Paul Downey.

A useful introduction gives the authors background and a resume of what steam could be found in the area in the 1950’s and 60’s, together with the inevitable, sad decline in manufacturing and the extractive industries, of the area, so symptomatic of Britain over the last 30 years of the Twentieth Century.

A good map of the area shows the relationship of the various lines to each other which, when used in conjunction with the following resume of The West Midland Line, starts to put in to perspective the complicated history and company rivalry of the area. Even Brunel’s broad gauge got in on the act much to the chagrin of the Oxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton Railway.

The reader is then taken around the area in a roughly clockwise direction with well composed photographs of every day scenes from the 1950’s and 60’s. hitherto unpublished and what gems they are!

A wide variety of Western Region steam locos with a few Standard classes and an odd industrial as well to reflect the diversity of motive power to be found at the time in the area. Hitherto unpublished photographs of Stafford Road Kings at Wolverhampton and on Birkenhead-Paddington express’s, ‘Flying banana’ railcard and that doyen of stations, Birmingham Snow Hill. Not only are passenger trains shown, but a wide range of freight as well including the branches to Halesowen and of course, Stourbridge Town.

Rounded off with a useful index of locations, the book can be recommended to all those interested in what has been lost from the local rail scene, perhaps there are enough, equally good photographs to warrant the production of ‘A further selection’?

Richard Abbey - 6024 Preservation Society

As featured in the article: '“Arrow Brettell Lane Station, 1961 Express” trundles into the station'

Highlight: 'An invaluable record of the final days of the steam age in our region.'

Black Country Bugle

Review as featured in

Black Country Bugle

This is another must have book. Containing many previously unseen photographs it covers the industrial heart of the Black Country. It brought back some happy memories of travel before deiselisation.

James Simmonds