Eleven Minutes Late, Paperback/Matthew Engel

In this new paperback edition, Engel - a cross between John Betjeman and Victor Meldrew - examines our love-hate relationship with railways. Britain may have given railways to the world, but the network in Britain is now arguably the dearest and worst in Europe. Travelling by rail from Penzance to Thurso, Engel explores the history of the railway, talking to everyone from politicians to platform staff in order to uncover all the mysteries of the ultimate expression of Britishness. Now with a new chapter.