David McIntosh's The Flying Scotsman
Hersham: Ian Allan, 2010. 127pp.
Authorship Steamindex Home page

The small landscape format suits illustrations, especially of locomotives and trains, but sometimes the associated text tends to be neglected, but this is certainly not the case with this book. It does seem strange to find that the locomotive's adventurous "after-life" receives more attention than its previous existence, latterly as No. 60103. Nevertheless, a picture of No. 60103 backing onto the afternoon train for Marylebone at Manchester London Road in February 1953 is highly evocative as KPJ saw and heard a blue 60103 blasting its way over Crowden level crossing on its way to Woodhead Summit in the early 1950s: he had cycled there from Saddleworth and for once his luck was in.

In the preservation period the writer is guilty of listing too many of the "unusual" journeyings which took the locomotive to many places which would have seemed strange under its earlier ownership.

2011-01-28