Locomotion : Dan Snow's history of railways / BBC ; presented by Dan Snow ; executive producer, Eamon Hardy ; series producer, Melanie Archer.



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Originally broadcast by the BBC in 2013 on 15 Jan (episode 1), 22 Jan (episode 2), and 29 Jan (episode 3). "How Britain invented the railways and changed the world"--Container. "BBC Productions ©2013"--Credits and disc label . Rating: E : Exempt from classification. Produced and directed by Dick Taylor (episode 1), Helen Nixon (episode 2), and David Vincent (episode 3) ; series consultant: Colin Divall ; composer, Mark Hinton Stewart (episodes 1 & 2) ; additional music, Paul Moessi (episode 3) ; editor, Sam Billinge (episode 1), Rick Barker (episode 2), Judith Robson (episode 3) ; Cinematographers: Douglas Hartington, Mike Garner, Louis Caulfield, Neil Harvey, Johann Perry. In English with optional closed captions for the Hard of Hearing.

Title
Locomotion : Dan Snow's history of railways / BBC ; presented by Dan Snow ; executive producer, Eamon Hardy ; series producer, Melanie Archer.
Artist
Snow, Dan, 1978- presenter.
Subjects
Language
Type
Video Recording
Abstract
In Episode one of this three episode series, Dan Snow charts the development of the UK's rail network, from its beginnings as a primitive system of track-ways for coal carts in the early 18th century, railways quickly developed into the driving force behind the industrial revolution and the pivotal technology for modern Britain, and a connected world. Rapid industrial growth during the early 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 for the next century and his fast, reliable locomotive, The Rocket, began a quest for speed that has defined our modern world. Episode two examines the impact the railway had on London in the late 1830s, linking it to Birmingham, Liverpool and Manchester. This was the start of a truly national network - and one of the greatest civil engineering projects in history. The spread of the railways triggered a mania across Britain. Railway tycoons like Samuel Morton Peto and George Hudson made and lost fortunes as the stock markets boomed around these new developments. Yet the bubble burst in 1847 and shares plummeted. Thousands of ordinary shareholders filled the bankruptcy courts. However as Dan Snow reveals, the legacy of the mania was an incredible rail network for 19th century Britain and a revolution in the way people lived. Episode three examines how in just 50 years, Britain's railways grew from a handful of small lines carrying coal to the biggest industry in the nation. A nation had built the railways and now those railways would build a nation, influencing working conditions for its employees, proving a valuable export across the globe and even changing warfare. This series takes on one of the most significant sagas of change in history, the revolution of rail.
Year
2014
Original Publisher(s)
Digital Publisher(s)