Rich in both ironstone and coal, the East Midlands historically enjoyed an intensive network of railways linking its major towns and cities, many of which are still in place. This book takes a journey throughout the region, from Northampton in the south to the Peak District in the north. It shows in colour how the railways changed from the dying embers of the steam age in 1965 to a time when Britain’s new railway was taking over twenty years later. Author John Evans lived in various East Midlands locations throughout that period. This is his tribute to an underrated area whose busy railways served industry, urbanity and lovely countryside.

Having a father who ran a shop selling model railways probably sealed the fate of John Evans as a railway enthusiast. Spending all his money - and rather too much of his time - amassing a collection of railway pictures, he fortunately stored them carefully away. 'My education was undertaken at Northampton engine shed,' he jokes. He now lives in West Yorkshire and still ventures regularly to the lineside.