Every Thursday night for a month (or two) my father would stay up late and record off the television what I think was a BBC-produced series on the history of steam railways and railroads in general.
The documentary appeared in six or seven hour-long segments. It covered the beginnings of the industry, development of diner cars, politics behind railway regulations and rules, Scotland and fishing, narrow guage and an entire segment on the Flying Scotsman in the 1920s in movies and it’s ill-fated trip to the US in the 1970s.
The documentary included one British guy travelling through and narrating the entire series with live footage of heritage operations as well as interviews and vintage video.
The series aired on PBS in the United States when I was about 10 years old – 1990-1991, I think.
I haven’t seen or heard about it since, but would like to obtain copies so my son can watch it. It was really well done.
You could also try the local PBS station that broadscast it. Each is different, but the one I grew up watching in Chicago usually outright bought BBC programs when they could, while others, like South Bend that we also got, would more or less “rent” a few at a time.
Oh, and I don’t think it was Great Railway Journeys’, as it centered on showcasing modern (for the time) and upscale operating passenger trains from around the world (ie, the food and service, local points of interest along the way, scenery, yada, yada). Very little on history or nut and bolt stuff.
Might this be it? The book was published in 1993. If not, I doubt that the BBC would do two major series on trains so closely in time to each other. In the author’s own words: “This book was originally designed to accompany the series of the same name on BBC2, but for various reasons the text strayed rather from the series.” The focus of this book is on trains as a sociological, historical, and cultural phenomenon. So if you’re looking for pages and pages pictures of mighty steam locomotives in full flight, this book may not be to your taste.
