Forget the Anorak : What Trainspotting Was Really Like

Michael Harvey's new book brings to its readers the excitement of trainspotting in the 1950s and '60s, the hobby's heyday. It was the advent of the famous Ian Allan ABC Locospotters books that really gave the hobby its impetus, as they gave trainspotters all the information they required.

Michael Harvey's new book brings to its readers the excitement of trainspotting in the 1950s and '60s, the hobby's heyday. It was the advent of the famous Ian Allan ABC Locospotters books that really gave the hobby its impetus, as they gave trainspotters all the information they required. Forget the Anorak sets out to provide the reader with a personal account of what the hobby entailed - teenagers roaming the railways of Britain, sleeping on deserted platforms on porters' trolleys, 'bunking' dimly lit depots and eluding capture, travelling hundreds of miles on a platform ticket, and stink bombs on the Underground. You'll be able to smell the steam, soot and unwashed socks, and taste the boiled egg sandwiches, the chips wrapped in newspaper and the hot jam doughnuts, all washed down with warm Tizer. Illustrated with Michael Harvey's own photographs and a selection of maps, Forget the Anorak will appeal to anyone who experienced the golden days of trainspotting, as well as to anyone interested in the social history of Britain after the Second World War.