Full Steam Ahead

The dangers involved in working on the Victorian railways

The historians explore the life of the South Devon branch line before the Beeching cuts of the 1960s. Peter Ginn joins a footplate crew and receives coal-shovelling tips from a veteran steam engine driver of 63 years' experience, and with Alex he learns about one of Scotland's most lucrative exports. Ruth Goodman finds out about the dangers involved in working on the Victorian railways, and how those who lost limbs were catered for by a dedicated prosthetics workshop. She also discovers how the railways came to the rescue when a deadly disease wiped out almost the entire stock of London cattle