London Underground is the world’s oldest subway system, and in celebrating the 150th anniversary of its first line in 2013 showed it’s still the best. What other major world city could boast Victorian wooden-bodied steam trains running alongside regular electric services on its underground network? Not only did it happen, but in the wake of the award-winning first venture, steam on London Underground has now become a regular annual event.
 
This lavishly illustrated publication tells the story of how heritage railways from across Britain completed ‘mission impossible’ – helping London Transport Museum return real fare-paying steam trains to the tube tunnels beneath the centre of the city.