This is the third collaboration by two veteran recorders of the railway scene in words and pictures. Since 1967, David Joy has written over 50 books on railways and numerous aspects of Yorkshire. Gavin Morrison, one of Britain’s most experienced railway photographers, has compiled more than 60 books and has gained the highest reputation for the quality of his work.

As a sequel to their best-selling Railways and the Dales followed by Railways and the Lake District, they have again decided to celebrate four decades of working together in a book that is both informative and richly illustrated. Gavin selected his favourite photographs of the first mainline through the Pennines linking Lancahire with Yorkshire. David then wrote an evocative text emphasising its origins and how it has changed down the years. The result is a nostalgic portrayal of a pioneer railway that pierced the mountain chain by what was initially the world’s longest railway tunnel. It shows how it had also to force a passage through steep-sided valleys already choked with mills, chimneys belching smoke and an adjoining canal. 

Apart from the mainline engineered by George Stephenson, coverage includes its later offshoot to Halifax and Bradford as well as the steeply graded branch from Todmorden over Copy Pit summit to Burnley. Photographs range from the mid-1950s through to the present day.

Combines the work of a noted northern writer with over 150 outstanding images by one of the most accomplished railway photographers.

Author
David Joy has had a passion for railways since teenage days. He is a true Yorkshireman born and bred in the Dales born and bred in the Dales. It has given him special pleasure to portray a railway linking Lancashire with Yorkshire – and one at first so dreadful that it carried passengers in open trucks. Its failings provided a rare source of agreement for the inhabitants of the two counties, who otherwise argued over virtually everything from Lancashire Hotpot versus Yorkshire Pudding down to the finer points of county cricket! A former editor of the Dalesman, David has many countryside interests and has been awarded an MBE for ‘services to the environment’. 

Photographer 
Gavin Morrison got his first camera way back in 1943 and within a few years his hobby became an obsession. He has now amassed some 200,000 images in one of the largest personal collections still in the hands of the original photographer. Unlike many, he did not put his cameras away when the age of steam ended in 1968 and he continues to record the changing railway scene. Also a dedicated Yorkshireman, he lives near Mirfield close to the first mainline though the Pennines. 

• Author: David Joy
• Photography: Gavin Morrison
• Pages: 128
• Images: Over 150 outstanding images
• Hardback
• Size: 178 x 246mm
• ISBN: 9781914227905
• Publication: May 2026

The price is £22.50 (including p&p) for UK delivery. (Please note this book is UK only delivery).