Locomotion: Dan Snow's History of Railways

U&Yesterday HD

2:00 PM to 3:20 PM

Sunday 28 June

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The historian and broadcaster charts the development of the UK's rail network, from its beginnings as a primitive system of trackways for coal carts in the early 18th century up to the present day. Rapid industrial growth during the 19th century, coupled with the prospect of vast profits, drove inventors and entrepreneurs to develop steam locomotives, metal tracks and an array of daring tunnels, cuttings and bridges that created a nationwide system of railways in just 30 years. George Stephenson's Liverpool and Manchester Railway became the model for future inter-city travel and his fast, reliable locomotive the Rocket began a quest for speed that has defined the modern world