British Railway Enthusiasm

Now available in paperback, this is the first academic book to study railway enthusiasts in Britain. Far from a trivial topic, the post-war train spotting craze swept most boys and some girls into a passion for railways, and for many, ignited a lifetime's interest.

British railway enthusiasm traces this post-war cohort, and those which followed, as they invigorated different sectors in the world of railway enthusiasm - train spotting, railway modelling, collecting railway relics - and then, in response to the demise of main line steam traction, Britain's now-huge preserved railway industry. Today this industry finds itself riven by tensions between preserving a loved past which ever fewer people can remember and earning money from tourist visitors.

The widespread and enduring significance of railway enthusiasm will ensure that this groundbreaking text remains a key work in transport studies, and will appeal to enthusiasts as much as to students and scholars of transport and cultural history.

Author: Ian Carter
Publisher: Manchester University Press
Published: 07/31/2014
Pages: 332
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 1.02lbs
Size: 9.21h x 6.14w x 0.69d
ISBN: 9780719065675

About the Author
Ian Carter is Emeritus Professor of Sociology at the University of Auckland