Tony Wrights Very Short Introduction to British Politics is an interpretative essay on the British political system rather than merely an abbreviated textbook on how it currently works. He identifies key characteristics & ideas of the British tradition & investigates what makes British politics distinctive while emphasizing throughout the book how these characteristics are reflected in the way the political system actually functions. Each chapter is organized around a key theme such as the constitution or political accountability which is first established & then explored with examples & illustrations. This in turn provides a perspective for a discussion of how the system is changing looking in particular at devolution & Britains place in Europe. ...

So
- you want to be knowledgeable about British politics but don't know where to start. The rich history complex statistics & tricky
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There is a distinct lack of readily available information about the British prime ministers especially as a group. There are thick biographies of the big names
- Pitt Gladstone Churchill
- but who were the others? there are plenty of short booklets & pamphlets for all the monarchs but little or nothing on most of the fifty-three PMs. What better way to introduce these individuals than through a short accurate review of each Prime Minister briefly describing their background & influence their role in British history & in major world events. On closer inspection the PMs are revealed to be more colourful figures than might be imagined whose unique personalities & individual deeds shaped important historical events. British Prime Ministers offers a handy & accessible guide to all of Britains heads of government from Sir Robert Walpole right through to David Cameron thereby lifting the veil of obscurity from an all-too-neglected cast of characters.

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The authors previous two-volume history of British private aircraft between the wars is the seminal work on the topic. He has now extended the story into the post-war years & describes the many changes & developments in the industry after 1945. From being a world leader in private light aircraft the British industry struggled & ultimately failed to compete with the US & French industries. How & why this happened is described in detail by someone who was heavily involved in the industry & suitable blame is apportioned between governments financiers & designers! Volume 1 is profusely illustrated with photographs from the authors unrivalled collection & 3-view plans of all significant aircraft. ...

The second volume in a two-part series on post-WW2 British light aircraft this book describes & illustrates all the designs built & flown from 1945 on. It features full technical descriptions 3D-view drawings & photographs for each type to complement the full history of the period covered in Volume 1. This is an invaluable resource for all those interested in light aircraft & in the British aviation industry. ...

Designed specifically for modellers of the modern scene this new book provides a comprehensive reference to all the livieries that have come & gone on the network since the wholesale privatisation of the mid 1990s. It is now more than 70 years since the first DMUs made their first appearance on the British railway system & more than 50 years since DMUs were introduced onto the BR network in large numbers. From the late 1950s onwards several thousand DMU vehicles were brought into service as replacement for steam services over branches & secondary routes & from the mid-1980s onwards this first generation of DMU was gradually replaced by a second-generation of DMU although the final elimination of the first-generation units did not occur until the first years of the 21st century. On the privatised railway of the 21st century virtually all non-electrified passenger services are now operated by DMUs of one design or another & on the preserved railways many examples of the first generation of stock continue to earn their living. Although initially ill-favoured as the years passed so the humble DMU has attracted an ever-growing army of enthusiast fans & this is reflected in the number of web-sites devoted to the subject to the increasing number of models that are emerging
- a reflection of the fact that virtually no model railway covering the BR scene post 1955 can avoid operating DMUs. Fully illustrated throughout this is the perfect volume for all serious modellers!
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To the uninitiated the reign of the Southern Region diesel-electric multiple-unit sets in public service
- the fleet comprising
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Available for the first time in hardback British Railways Atlas 1947: The Last Days of the Big Four helps to recall a long-lost era when railways were still the dominant form of transport for both passengers & freight all over the country. Originally published in 1948 as a permanent record of the British railway system as it was at the end of private ownership in December 1947 British Railways Atlas 1947 is a graphic reminder of the scale of the railway industry in the period before Nationalisation. Each of the lines of the Big Four railway companies is differentiated by a colour
- Great Western (yellow) London Midland & Scottish (red) London & North Eastern (blue) & Southern (green). Also shown are the myriad minor railways that had managed to maintain their independence after the Grouping of 1923 but which were to disappear along with their larger neighbours into the new British Railways: lines such as the Kent & East Sussex & the East Kent which had jealously guarded their independence were to be swallowed up. This reprint of the ever popular Rail Atlas comes back bigger & better than before & of course in Hard back for the first time ever.
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In 1948 the big four railway companies were nationalized to form British Railways. This collection of photographs captures the last two decades of steam power as steam gave way to diesel electrification including many vintage locomotives of pre-Grouping origin that survived the war plus the final steam locomotive to be built on British Railways (the BR 9F 2-10-0 No. 922220 or Evening Star). In particular Eric Oldham looks at Crewe & Doncaster stations/works MPDs in general along with steam on the Woodhead route pre/post electrification The photographs include behind-the-scenes views of locomotive sheds depots freight & passenger traffic plus some dramatic station portraits. ...

The guitar has become the most emotive musical instrument of the last 50 years of rock & roll. From the early days when wannabee stars fashioned home made guitars out of old tea chests to todays sophisticated instruments the impact has been phenomenal. Drawing on his own recollections & those of some of the greatest exponents of the rock guitar from Hank Marvin to Eric Clapton & Brian May Mo Foster has written the definitive history of the importance of the guitar in the development of British music over the last 50 years. A renowned bass player Mo Foster has played with the greats & with their backing & memories has written an insightful yet passionate & humorous book. ...