Diesel Dawn 7. Western Region 0-6-0s D9500-D9555
AUTHOR: John Jennison
PUBLISHER: Irwell Press Ltd & Mortons Publishing
ISBN: 978-1-91170-331-0
PRICE: £12.99
WEBSITE: www. mortonsbooks.co.uk
THE LATEST
release in the Diesel Dawn series from Irwell Press and Mortons comes from John Jennison and is a brilliant photographic record of this popular class of diesel hydraulic locomotives, which were built by British Railways at a time when the railway was in decline following the publication of the Beeching Report 60 years ago. By the time the 56 locomotives had been delivered, much of the traffic and work they had been built for had gone, ensuring that they had an indecently short working life on BR. However, many were sold on into industry, such as the National Coal
Board and British Steel, where they enjoyed a far longer and more successful working life, before many were secured for preservation in the last 1980s. More commonly known for their BR Class 14 identity, this book features a whole host of information about the locomotives and is illustrated with many photographs of them during their working lives, both on BR and in industry. The images are a mixture of colour and monochrome photos, many of which are excellent and have reproduced well on the pages. Those images that aren’t quite so crisp are still worthy of inclusion for their historical importance in telling the story of the locomotives.
Additionally, there is plenty of information about the locomotives and the work they did, and the book also includes tables detailing each of the 56 which were built.
Although their working lives on BR was short, the locomotives were not an unsuccessful design. They have more than proved their worth over the years and we should be thankful that the Class 14s are still well represented in preservation, with 19 surviving at various heritage lines or on private sites.
This series, produced by Irwell Press and Mortons Publishing, is excellent. The wide range of photos and information provided makes the cover price of £12.99 for this book an absolute steal. It is A4 perfectbound in format, with a softback cover, produced in a bookazine style, with 88 pages.
The Diesel Dawn series of bookazines are certainly turning into a great collection of publications covering some classic diesel locomotive designs, and are at a price that makes them affordable for most pockets. Recommended. (AMC)