How do smooth wheels grip smooth rails?Why don't locomotive boilers explode?What is a slip coach?What are the wrong kind of leaves on the track?At which station could you buy your ticket from a booth in a tree?Why are railway tracks laid on small stones?How can a railway wagon be moved when no locomotive is available?Why was it it so difficult to purchase a railway ticket at Crewe?Colin Maggs, Britain's leading railway historian and author of over one hundred books on the subject, has assembled a truly fascinating collection of quirky facts, unbelievable stories and staggering statistics about Britain's glorious railways from their earliest origins to the present day.