Last Days of Steam

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Documentary series which ranges widely over Britain's social and cultural history.

Documentary series which ranges widely over Britain's social and cultural history, its narrative-led storytelling offering a richly immersive and varied window onto the past.

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Timeshift: Age of Steam

Last Days of Steam: Timeshift

George Chan

John Das

Ian Marchant

Timeshift: Series 8: Last Days of Steam

16/10/2008

Series 8

BBC Four - Timeshift, Series 8, Last Days of Steam

How Britain entered a new age of steam railways after World War II and why it soon ended.

Documentary that tells the surprising story of how Britain entered a new age of steam railways after the Second World War and why it quickly came to an end.

The surprising story of how Britain entered a new age of steam railways after the Second World War and why it quickly came to an end.
 
After the war, the largely destroyed railways of Europe were rebuilt to carry more modern diesel and electric trains. Britain, however, chose to build thousands of brand new steam locomotives. Did we stay with steam because coal was seen as the most reliable power source, or were the railways run by men who couldn't bear to let go of their beloved steam trains?
 
The new British locomotives were designed to stay in service well into the 1970s, but in some cases they were taken off the railways and scrapped within just five years. When Dr Richard Beeching took over British Railways in the 1960s the writing was on the wall, and in 1968 the last steam passenger train blew its whistle. 

But while steam use declined, steam enthusiasm grew. As many steam engines lay rusting in scrapyards around Britain, enthusiasts raised funds to buy, restore and return them to their former glory. In 2008, the first brand new steam locomotive to be built in Britain in nearly 50 years rolled off the line, proving our enduring love of these machines.

Timeshift: Series 8

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BBC Four reflects arts, music and culture with an ambitious range of intellectually and culturally enriching programmes, taking an expert and in-depth approach to its subjects.

A series of documentaries exploring British cultural history

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Last Days of Steam

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