Railway Lines

In 1993 we moved as a family out of London and back to my country roots in Cambridgeshire. Born and brought up in Peterborough - on the other side of the county - I had been used to train journeys down the 'main line' from home to King's Cross. Cambridgeshire 'boasted' some of the most densely packed commuter trains in the country and yet Littleport station, when I first used it, was little more than a concrete platform with a tiny waiting room which was always closed and locked. I never did see any bodies in there, but there may have been...

I commuted by train from East Anglia to London for some 25 years and this is a collection of humorous observations on train travel and railroad travellers. Volumes One and Two are also available individually on Amazon as digital downloads only.

These sketches are borne mainly out of frustration with railway travel but also a fascination with seemingly limitless English eccentricity. Railway officialdom, passengers and unexpected situations are described in satirical fashion including ludicrous questions asked at the ticket office; the commuter who insisted on setting up a mobile office environment; the eating habits of a bearded explorer, not to mention former actors, high-powered executives and ladies who lunch on each other's weaknesses.

Some of these stories were first published online in Cambridge News.