Bradshaw's Guide of 1863 was the staple book on what's what and
where's where for the mid-Victorians and it gives the modern reader
a unique insight into the world of the nineteenth-century railway
travellers. The guide introduced the notion of seaside holidays to
the general public and thanks to the railways it became possible for
a town or city dweller to catch a train for a day-trip to the coast
and still be home in time for supper.
'Oh! I do like to be beside the
seaside,
I do like to be beside the sea!
I do like to stroll upon the Prom, Prom, Prom!
Where the brass bands play: Tiddely-om-pom-pom!'
Using Bradshaw's Guide illustrated
with contemporary images and seaside postcards, John Christopher and
Campbell McCutcheon take us on a tour of Britain's Victorian
resorts. |
