Few sights can reawaken memories of happy holidays of yesteryear as vividly as the superb railway posters that were so much a part of the great age of mass rail travel. Between the 1930s and 1950s - regarded by many as the heyday of advertising graphic art - a huge range of posters appeared, bearing slogans proclaiming the attractions of such resorts as 'Weston-super-Mare - in Smiling Somerset', and presenting a colourful picture of Britain at its best. through images as diverse as bustling cities, scenes of rural tranquility and majestic mountain landscapes they offer an escapist paradise, where appealingly uncrowded beaches basking in permanent sunshine are just a train journey away. A wonderful collection of these poster portraits has been brought together in the Golden Age of Railway Posters. Individual poster captions describe the artists and locations depicted, while in his entertaining introduction Michael Palin recaptures the spirit of the great days of railway holidays and train excursions - an era that is both within living memory and yet part of a bygone age.
Author Biography
Michael Palin is one of the most popular comic figures of our time. His exploits with the Monty Python team and in subsequent films such as A Fish Called Wanda are now the stuff of legend. It is as the adventurous traveller of his major television series however that he has acquired a vast and loyal following.
