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Edward Thompson: His Life and Locomotives By Tim Hillier-Graves. Published by Pen & Sword. 283 pages, £35. ISBN 978 1 52673 116 6.

Of all Britain’s locomotive engineers, certainly in the twentieth century, Edward Thompson, who took over at Doncaster from Gresley in 1941, ranks, in the minds of some as the most controversial. And having researched his life and work for my articles which appeared in this magazine a couple of years back, I welcomed the invitation to review this book. Tim Hillier-Graves, a professional engineer, brings to the subject a proper intention to be fair to his subject, researching most of the available sources and some that are not yet generally accessible. He describes Thompson’s life and career from Marlborough College through apprenticeship and service on the NER to senior management at Doncaster. Thompson’s early life was crucial to his development and the author reviews that, examining his ancestry and relationships with his parents and others, paying particular attention to his service, with military transportation in the First World War, crucial, he believes, in his personal development.

During the post-1919 years, Thompson was engaged in workshops refurbishment, first at Darlington, and then later at Stratford, leading