As thousands gathered to celebrate 200 years of the modern railway, RAIL’s Features Editor ANDY COMFORT looks at how Locomotion No. 1 once again drew in the crowds

The urge to create model trains can be traced back to the genesis of the real railway. George Dent examines how what was once a pastime of the affluent few became a mass-market hobby that endures to this day.

The railway has been shaped by its people -from the early pioneers, through waves of immigration and women in wartime, to today’s diverse leaders. TONY STREETER reports

An all-day radio broadcast from a train travelling down the length of Britain (almost) from the Highlands of Scotland to London – that was how BBC Radio 3 celebrated the 200th anniversary, on Saturday

Eastern Rail Services MD JAMES STEWARD tells JOE CAMPBELL that there is plenty of life remaining in older carriages

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