‘the smell, sound and heat would have seemed a miracle 200 years ago’

When we are asked who invented the railways, we can confidently say we did – Britain. But precisely who was involved and how it all developed is a long story. By the end of the 18th century, the Indus

As the founders of the modern railway, why have we fallen so far behind, asks Michael Portillo

TRAVEL SPECIAL

Today we might minimise or even overlook the railway’s significance, because it is such an established part of our lives. Yet at its height the industry employed more than half a million people across

This year sees the celebrations marking the 200th anniversary of the opening of the Stockton and Darlington Railway, the world’s first steam-worked passenger line. It is an occasion to reflect on the

The yard of the coaching inn is lit by the moon. The mud-splattered stagecoach creaks as passengers climb from the roof and out of the stale interior. The horses are unharnessed and stabled; the passe