Ahead Danger and Other Tales of Didcot Railwaymen

This third book by former Didcot railwayman Pat Kelly provides a further tribute to the wonderful characters that made up the railway fraternity in and around the town's railway complex, using first-hand reminiscences to highlight the heavy and dirty jobs that he and his fellow shed fitters had to undertake on a daily basis. The book begins and ends with gripping accounts of two railway accidents that took place at Appleford Crossing signal box, just north of Didcot, in November 1942, during harsh wartime conditions, and again in September 1952. Both events emphasise how a momentary loss of concentration can result in death and destruction, despite the legendary diligence of railway staff. Wartime conditions are again the setting for descriptions of the laying out of Moreton marshalling yard, east of Didcot, to handle the heavy traffic arising from the conflict, and the arrival of the 'Lend-Lease' US Army 'S160' 2-8-0 locomotives, to assist with the war effort.