SWINDON'S LAST STAND? - In the third part of his detailed look at F.W. Hawksworth's 'County' class 4-6-Os J.K. Lewis considers their performance in traffic after S.O. Ell's modifications.
ALL THINGS CONSIDERED - Our regular columnist Andrew Dow examines the development of speed on Britain's railways and points to how advances in rail technology have enabled trains to be operated ever-faster.
FISH TALES - Forty years after Nationalisation, D.A.B. Marris examines the handling of fish traffic from ports served by the LNER and details the long distance fish trains over the East Coast route which were inherited by BR.
MAUNSELL'S 'KING ARTHUR'S' - A special presentation of three superb pictures by R.C. Riley, of the Maunsell-modified 'King Arthur' 4-6-0s.
LINESIDE WITH GEORGE - We go to the lineside in the Bristol area for a special photo-feature with renowned railway artist and photographer George Heiron.
THE TOGGY' LOG - Central questions about Great Central Railway motive power are answered by R.H.N. Hardy in this personal memoir of the GCR classes and the men who worked them.
PILE-UP AT WOOTTON BASSETT - Part of a divided freight train ran through the goods loop at Wootton Bassett and was wrecked at the lineside. Don Lovelock took his camera along to watch the clear-up operation.
GREAT SHOT! - The evening sun highlights a timeless Western Region as Pendennis Castle drifts into Totnes with a local train in this great picture by Keith Pirt
PEPPERCORN'S PIONEERS - THE 'A1' GOLDEN JUBILEE - The second and concluding part of K.S. Farr's history of the 'A1s' - Britain's last pure express passenger design - the mark the 50th anniversary of their introduction
REVIEWS - More new books, a video programme and some seasonal items
PLATFORM - The readers' letters page picks up on Tom Brown's eminent about 'childishness' - and provides more comment on recent Steam World articles.
COMMENT - The Editor considers the controversial subject o: good-looking chimneys and remembers his time as a 'pupil' of chimney connoisseur A.B. MacLeod.
CALL ATTENTION - In the monthly pot-pourri of railway trivia Chris Leigh sifts through the mailbag to find a GCR signal in a corn field, and creates a rather long '9F.'
WILTON - RAILWAY FRONTIER TOWN - The Great Western and the London & South Western Railway had competed to serve Witan and their efforts resulted in the small town having two stations. Chris Roussdl looks at the history of railways in Wilton and their dedine.
PLATFORM EXTRA -TAMWORTH FIELD - The first selection of readers' reminiscences of Britain's No. 1 trainspotting location, Tamworth Field, and an opportunity to buy a signed limited edition print of Phil Hawkins' superb painting.