Campbell Mccutcheon: 26 books

In 1908, the White Star Line announced it was constructing a pair of sister ships at the Harland & Wolff yard in Belfast. The new behemoths would dwarf even the largest ships of the time, being fully one-third larger than any ship afloat. They would also be the most sumptuous vessels built to...

The biggest shipping loss of both world wars was the hospital ship Britannic, at almost 50,000 tons. Supposedly safe to travel the seas, many hospital ships were lost in both wars. From the smallest of motor launches through steam yachts and converted ocean liners, Campbell McCutcheon tells the story...

Bradshaw's Guide of 1863 was the staple book to what's what and where's where for the mid-Victorians and it gives the reader a unique insight into the world of the nineteenth century travellers. The railways themselves opened up Scotland properly to tourism for the first time, and many journeys that...

1914: the first year of the 'war to end all wars', documented through old photographs. In 1914, after more than a decade of sabre-rattling, arms races and localised wars, mainland Europe erupted into the greatest war man had ever seen. The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand saw the beginning...

Bradshaw’s Guide of 1863 was the staple book on what’s what and where’s where for the mid-Victorians and it gives the modern reader a unique insight into the world of the nineteenth-century railway travellers. Built primarily to provide a passenger service, the railways of Ireland would go on...

Bradshaw’s Guide of 1863 was the staple book to what’s what and where’s where for the mid-Victorians and it gives the modern reader a unique insight into the world of the nineteenth-century travellers. The railways themselves opened up Scotland properly to tourism for the first time, and many...

Bradshaw’s Guide of 1863 was the staple book to what’s what and where’s where for the mid-Victorians and it gives the modern reader a unique insight into the world of the nineteenth-century railway travellers. Built primarily to serve industry and the mail packets to Ireland, the railways of...

1918 was the fifth and final year of the Great War. With thousands of fresh American troops heading across the Atlantic to fight on the side of the Allies, Germany’s High Command knew it had to strike a decisive blow to turn the course of the war in its favour. With revolution in Russia a peace...

1943 saw the Allies on the offensive, with victories in North Africa followed by the invasion of Sicily and landings in Italy establishing a foothold on mainland Europe, while on the Eastern Front the Red Army was making gains, and in the Pacific the Japanese-held islands were falling. The change...

1942 was the turning point of the war. In the words of Winston Churchill, it was ‘not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end, but it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.’ In the Pacific the Japanese had been soundly defeated at the Battle of Midway, with the loss of four valuable and...

The West Coast Main Line – going all the way from London to Glasgow – remains one of the most important railway routes in this country. It was built by a number of separate companies and by 1863, when Bradshaw published his guide, the section from Manchester was operated as far as Carlisle by...

1915, the second year of the Great War, was to see the failure of the Dardanelles landings and the sinking of the Lusitania, shown below, with the loss of 1,198 people, as well as the first bombing of mainland Britain by Zeppelin and the entry of Italy into the war. Huge battles would be fought at...

1941 At the beginning of the year, Britain stood alone against Germany and Italy. The war in Africa dominated the headlines, with huge swathes of the North African desert changing hands continually. At sea, Germany’s Bismarck sank HMS Hood, but was soon sunk herself, while Fortress Britain endured...

1944 saw the largest seaborne invasion ever staged in Operation Overlord. The Allied landings on the beaches of Normandy on D-Day, 6 June 1944, opened the way for the thrust into the occupied countries of northern Europe, in particular France, with the Allies liberating Paris in August. This was the...