Summersdale Slow Trains Around Britain: Notes from a 4,088-Mile Adventure on 143 Rides

Join travel writer and self-confessed 'train nut' Tom Chesshyre on a charming, discursive, and digressive travelogue celebrating 200 years of passenger railways where they began in the UK. Chesshyre embarks on a long, circular series of rides, totaling 4,088 miles across 143 separate journeys, beginning and ending in Darlington.

This book chronicles Chesshyre's zigzagging tour around the country that invented trains. He seeks out the history, enjoys the scenery, reports on the current state of British railways, and lets the rhythm of the clattering tracks reveal what makes trains—especially wonderful old trains—so beloved.

• A travelogue documenting a 4,088-mile adventure across 143 train rides in Britain.
• Written by Tom Chesshyre, a self-proclaimed 'train nut' and travel writer.
• Celebrates the 200th anniversary of the first passenger railway journey (Darlington to Stockton in 1825).
• Includes observations on heritage lines maintained by enthusiasts and the current condition of the rail network.
• Praised as 'Easy-going, discursive and digressive' by Stuart Maconie.

• Author: Tom Chesshyre
• Brand/Publisher: Summersdale
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Print Length: 336 pages
• Publication Date: May 14, 2026
• ISBN-13: 978-1837997848
• Dimensions: 128 x 26 x 196mm
• Weight: 250 g

Perfect for railway enthusiasts and armchair travelers alike, this book offers a unique perspective on the history and ongoing journey of British rail.