US
Aviation & Transport

Backtrack Magazine

12 issues per year   |  English
88 Reviews   •  English   •   Aviation & Transport (Rail)
From $4.58 per issue

Backtrack is Britain's leading historical railway journal, covering every era of railway history from its earliest days and infancy up to the more recent events of around ten years ago. Backtrack magazine takes you back in time and is packed with all aspects of the railway’s past throughout Britain and Ireland.


The nostalgic magazine’s pages delve into the earliest days of the railway in the era of horse-drawn tramroads up to locomotives (whether steam, diesel or electric) and the rolling stock of more recent years. Backtrack also looks at the history of particular lines, as well as considering the social, political, financial, engineering and labour aspects of the railway’s history. In addition to archive black and white photographs, each issue contains quality historical colour coverage of the railway scene, all reproduced to the highest standards that will look great on your device with a Backtrack digital magazine subscription.


Sign up today to an annual Backtrack digital magazine subscription - it’s Britain's leading historical railway journal!

read more read less
Backtrack Preview Pages Backtrack Preview Pages Backtrack Preview Pages Backtrack Preview Pages

Backtrack

May 2025 Shap Seasons - three pages of colour shots of steam on the famous climb to Shap Summit on the West Coast Main Line Bridport Remembered - Martin Yard reflects on 50 years since Dorset lost its last branch line. Delight and despair at Dumfries in 1965 - Douglas McNaught charts the demise of Dumfries as a railway centre. Lake’s Chief Mechanical Engineers: Sir Henry Fowler - Malcolm Cowan focuses on Fowler of the Midland and later LMS Railways. The Bishop’s Waltham Branch: Part One - Bruce Laws looks at the building of this Hampshire byway. Facing their Waterloo - two colour photographs of life on the platforms concourse at this London terminus in the 1960s. Going to Oban and back - four colour pages by Gavin Morrison of the scenic Caledonian line to Oban with a glance at the Ballachulish branch. The ‘Claughtons’ - archive photographs of these LNWR 4-6-0 locomotives. Speedlink - the Rise and Fall of a Railfreight brand: Part Two - M. G. Sadler takes the story forward through its operations to its demise in 1991. A Toton Portfolion - Roderick H. Fowkes looks at the work of this Nottingham depot and particularly the career of Driver William Webb. Decline and Fall in South Wales - a spread of telling photographs from the Colour-Rail Collection. Painswick: The railway that never happened - Mike Fenton chronicles the four-decade frustrations of a Cotswold town which never made it on to the railway map.


SELECT FORMAT:
Instant Access

Available Digital Offers:

Single Digital Issue May 2025
 
$5.99 / issue
Annual Digital Subscription $54.99 billed annually
Save
24%
$4.58 / issue
6 Month Digital Subscription $29.99 billed twice a year
Save
17%
$5.00 / issue
Savings are calculated on the comparable purchase of single issues over an annualised subscription period and can vary from advertised amounts. Calculations are for illustration purposes only. Digital subscriptions include the latest issue and all regular issues released during your subscription unless otherwise stated. Your chosen term will automatically renew unless cancelled in the My Account area upto 24 hours before the end of the current subscription.

Backtrack issue May 2025

Backtrack  |  May 2025  


Shap Seasons - three pages of colour shots of steam on the famous climb to Shap Summit on the West Coast Main Line Bridport Remembered - Martin Yard reflects on 50 years since Dorset lost its last branch line.

Delight and despair at Dumfries in 1965 - Douglas McNaught charts the demise of Dumfries as a railway centre.

Lake’s Chief Mechanical Engineers: Sir Henry Fowler - Malcolm Cowan focuses on Fowler of the Midland and later LMS Railways.

The Bishop’s Waltham Branch: Part One - Bruce Laws looks at the building of this Hampshire byway.

Facing their Waterloo - two colour photographs of life on the platforms concourse at this London terminus in the 1960s.

Going to Oban and back - four colour pages by Gavin Morrison of the scenic Caledonian line to Oban with a glance at the Ballachulish branch.

The ‘Claughtons’ - archive photographs of these LNWR 4-6-0 locomotives.

Speedlink - the Rise and Fall of a Railfreight brand: Part Two - M. G. Sadler takes the story forward through its operations to its demise in 1991.

A Toton Portfolion - Roderick H. Fowkes looks at the work of this Nottingham depot and particularly the career of Driver William Webb.

Decline and Fall in South Wales - a spread of telling photographs from the Colour-Rail Collection.

Painswick: The railway that never happened - Mike Fenton chronicles the four-decade frustrations of a Cotswold town which never made it on to the railway map.
read more read less

The specialist magazine was first published in 1986 for the purpose of ‘recording the history of Britain’s railway’ - the magazine’s strapline - and it is now published by Pendragon Publishing. Dropping every month, Backtrack magazine is your monthly dose of railway nostalgia and historical insight.


35 years later and Backtrack has firmly established itself as the authority on topics such as the history of Britain and Ireland’s train stations, railway bridges, signalling, biographies, train services and staff recollections - all of which regularly appear in the magazine. Backtrack's contributors include many of today's leading railway history writers and the magazine has a reputation for being of the highest quality.


With a multitude of unmissable monthly features, every issue aims to chronicle and record part of the history of Britain’s railway system. Every issue contains a dozen or so large articles that focus on a particular line or area in British railway history.


Whether you’re into early railway history from the 'pre-Stephenson' era, steam, diesel or electric locomotive you’ll find every era covered in minute detail - from railway company history, railway carriages and wagons, railway stations, railway ships, hotels and road vehicles, railway economic and social history and railway publicity and advertising.

A Backtrack digital magazine subscription is your go-to for railway history:

  • Britain's leading historical railway magazine
  • Delving into the era of horse-drawn tramroads up to locomotives and rolling stock 
  • History of lines, the social, political, financial, engineering and labour aspects of the railway
  • Archive black and white quality images and historical colour coverage of the railway scene
  • The history of train stations, railway bridges, signalling, biographies and train services
  • Contributors include many of today's leading railway history writers
  • Delivered directly to your device every week

You'll receive 12 issues during a 1 year Backtrack magazine subscription.

Note: Digital editions do not include the covermount items or supplements you would find with printed copies.

Your purchase here at Pocketmags.com can be read on any of the following platforms.


You can read here on the website or download the app for your platform, just remember to login with your Pocketmags username and password.

Apple Pocketmags Online Pocketmags Google Pocketmags
The Pocketmags app runs on all iPad and iPhone devices running iOS 13.0 or above, Android 8.0 or above and Fire Tablet (Gen 3) or above. Our web-reader works with any HTML5 compatible browser, for PC and Mac we recommend Chrome or Firefox.

For iOS we recommend any device which can run the latest iOS for better performance and stability. Earlier models with lower processor and RAM specifications may experience slower page rendering and occasional app crashes which are outside of our control.
4.6
/5
Based on 88 Customer Reviews
5
54
4
29
3
5
2
0
1
0
View Reviews

Backtrack

I originally bought a few issued for a specific topic I was researching, but am finding more of interest. Reviewed 21 August 2020

Backtrack

Would like - pay for - access online to some of the earler issues of Backtrack Reviewed 19 March 2020

Excellent quality

Simply the Best of it's kind on the market Reviewed 25 January 2020

VGood British Railway History Mag

VGood British Railway History Mag Reviewed 23 November 2018

One of the best in the market

Highly entertaining Reviewed 30 January 2018

Articles in this issue


Below is a selection of articles in Backtrack May 2025.

Free Sample Issue
Try a FREE sample of Backtrack
Chat
X
Pocketmags Support