Published in March 2021 by Frontline Books and written by Malcolm Batten, this hardback book measures around 15.49 cm x 23.62 cm, and has 216 pages of text and 32 black and white illustrations. It has a published price of £19.9, and at the time of writing it can be purchased from Amazon for £17.50. Frontline Books is an imprint of Pen & Sword Books.

In reviewing this book, I had to consider the immense task faced by the author. Watkin was chairman of nine different British railway companies and also developed railways in Canada, the USA, Greece, and India. He was the driving force behind the Great Central main line to Marylebone and had ambitions to build a high-speed rail link from Manchester to Paris and, ultimately, to India. As part of this aim, he started to build a tunnel under the English Channel.

The author is the chair of The Watkin Society and raises funds for cancer research through giving talks on a variety of subjects, the most in-demand being his presentation on Edward Watkin called The Last Laugh of the Railway King, which is the title of one of the chapters of this book. With the great number of Watkin’s achievements, the author is to be commended for enlightening us about what a talented man Watkin was.

The book isn’t only about Watkin’s involvement and impact on the development of the railways. We also find that his father played a significant part in the abolition of the Corn Laws. The author shows Watkin’s role as an important Victorian politician, railway magnate, and entrepreneur. By the end of the book, we have a good idea of who he was as well as an understanding and appreciation of not only his many achievements but also his failures.

It becomes clear that Watkin could be very direct and focussed on getting things done, and could charm people when needed, even the colonial governors of British North America. He also usually expected people to be rational intelligent grown-ups who would immediately see the benefits of his plans without him having to explain the details. Sadly, many were neither intelligent nor rational.

Although there are just eight pages of illustrations, many are of historical value. While Watkin was on sick leave from his then main job as General Manager of the Manchester, Sheffield & Lincolnshire Railway, he sailed to British North America to rescue the Grand Trunk Railway from bankruptcy and closure. Whilst there, he sacked an engineer who wanted to work nights so he could carry out some scientific experiments during normal working hours. That engineer was none other than Thomas Edison. The lower illustration shows a map of British North America at that time, and whilst he was in North America, the British Government asked him to try to persuade the six colonies that made up British North America to form themselves into a single country or dominion. His discussions were successful, and the outcome was the creation of Canada, not forgetting that at the same time he was also doing his day job, paid by the Grand Trunk Railway. The author provides a very lucid description of how Watkin went about his task.

One of Watkin’s aims was to build a through route from Liverpool and Manchester to the continent via London, where he was chairman of the Metropolitan Railway, and Kent, where he was chairman of the South Eastern Railway. He started to build a Channel Tunnel, but Parliament ordered him to stop after two miles had been excavated. When the current tunnel was being built, the new tunnel breached Watkin’s 100-year-old tunnel. It was still bone-dry, a century after being boarded up.

Although not very good quality, these illustrations show Watkin’s vision of London’s own version of the Eiffel Tower on what is now the site of Wembley Stadium. He developed a park into a pleasure and events destination for urban Londoners, which included the construction of a tower that would have been higher than the Eiffel Tower but collapsed before it was completed. Again, the author devotes a fascinating chapter to what caused its early demise.

Seen in better days is the Watkin family home in Manchester which went from an imposing residence to a house in decline. The author gives us an informative background to the house in a chapter titled “The House that came back from the dead”.

Watkin’s ego is exemplified by this poster offering a reward to anyone who would let him know who carried out misdeeds in a business transaction several years previously. The lower picture shows a painting by the most-famous American painter of the 19th century. Frederic Church, named “The Icebergs”. There is a tale of intrigue behind the painting as it was thought to have vanished and a great search went on to discover its whereabouts, but Watkin had it all along. The author tells the detective work behind the search for the painting with particular enthusiasm and energy.

In summary, this is a very well-researched and highly readable account of a man of astonishing energy and foresight. The book shows that Watkin was a big man with big ideas, but who was often thwarted by those who didn’t have his vision. He also took a great interest in social justice. The book gives many insights into the personality behind the career of one of the Victorian era’s greatest entrepreneurs. He is now almost forgotten, but this book will go a long way towards changing that, and restoring his place in history. He had big dreams and this book does him proud. It is highly recommended.

The book is available to purchase from Amazon and from Frontline Books.

RailAdvent would like to thank Frontline Books for providing RailAdvent with a copy of the book for review.