Christopher Woolmer


The railways were the defining invention of the industrial revolutions, transforming the countries in which they were established. They found plenty of peaceful uses as conduits for commerce, passenger transportation and the emergence of travel, but were also used as weapons of war. In fact, they would be used by the British Army almost as soon as the first UK railways were open to the public. […]

Training the troops


My recent encounter with steam on the London Underground (see Tasting the past) made me wonder what the Victorians made of the new invention. In particular, what was it like for passengers on the platforms, in the stations and on the trains when a full timetable of steam belching locomotives was in action? The choice of words used to describe the early days of the Underground […]

An experience of Hades