Written by Andy Gibbs, this softcover book comes in the usual Amberley format of around 234 x 165mm and is 96 pages long. It has a published price of £15.99.

The book does not have chapters, but is an illustrated record of the railway scene in and around Brighton in the 1970s and 1980s. Associated captions give an insight into the photograph content.

With 180 photographs, mostly in colour, this book will bring back memories for those who remember Brighton when the trains were blue.

Andy was employed by British Rail, which gave him access to some unique photo opportunities, or even just a tip-off that something special was working. As to be expected in a book about railways in Brighton, many of the photographs feature electric multiple unit types that operated on commuter trains and regular services from London to the south coast in the 70s and 80s.

An interesting series of photos shows steam locos from the National Collection at Preston Park. Unfortunately, the captions lack the reason for their presence n Brighton.

Plenty of BR blue is in evidence in these pages. Memories of the “Brighton Belle” are seen at the bottom right where two motor cars provide a sad reminder of the once-prestigious train.

Demonstrating that the area is not just an endless succession of EMUs are the shots on the left showing a Class 47 on stone train empties destined for Westbury and another class 47 with a train from Eastbourne to Glasgow. That is probably the longest distance travelled by a train from the Sussex coast.

To the casual observer, these photos show yet more EMUs, but they are Hastings line diesel-electric units.

The book is available to purchase from Amazon for around £11.59 as well as from Amberley Publishing for around £15.

In summary then, this book is not a volume for the enthusiast at large but anyone who has memories of the railway scene around the Brighton area in the 1970s and 1980s or were fond of the BR blue EMUs. It is well illustrated with colour photographs and will look good on anyone’s book shelf.

We would like to thank Amberley Publishing for providing RailAdvent with a copy of the book for review.