The British Railway network does not get the best possible press and never has done. Its history is rarely examined except when people want to say how much better things used to be. Yet the network does have a very interesting history and it is true to say that any story you hear about the railway, unless it involves ghosts or aliens, probably has some basis in fact. Quite often the story has to be changed to make it more believable. After all, who would believe that a railway station could be demolished in one Saturday morning? Or that one locomotive worked its last train with its boiler filled with porridge so it could work up enough steam pressure to move? Or that the answer to the question "Who was President of the United States when the first public railway ran?" is "No-one"?

This history is not complete; that would be impossible. It does not feature every funny story; that would also be impossible. It does not go into intricate depth at every possible opportunity; that would be boring. It probably also misses out your favourite event and is quite likely not as funny as you think it should be.

It also cannot be contained on one page and so has been divided into five: