A signalman since 1996, I find viewing other people's photos from the UK rail scene 10/15/20/25+ years ago brings back many happy memories from an arguably different time to work on our railway. Privatisation fragmented our railway by design, but the British Rail "one big family" mentality remained for many years - even allowing for the rose tinted spectacles factor.

In 1993, as a fifteen year old, I had two stints of varied work experience with British Rail - including a morning spent with an old hand signalman in Oxford Panel whom I would later work with in the Banbury area - which ignited my enthusiasm for railway work. I really enjoyed the rough and ready camararderie that existed back then. Having a lifelong interest in motor vehicles, in 1995 I had another enjoyable work experience placement, this time with Rover at their Gaydon Test Centre. Of the two possible careers experienced, I'm definitely glad I ended up on the railway...

Therefore I wanted to return the favour (hopefully) so have decided to upload photos taken by me at work, mainly during the first 15 years or so of my career. It was unusual for me to have a camera at work and obviously the job comes first, so many of my photos are technically imperfect grab shots, and often on a grey day. Railways don't just operate on sunny days.

It goes without saying that where photos were taken on or about the railway other than in a box I was working, then I had the necessary certification/pass/permission to be there.

Photos taken before I was a railway employee occasionally took advantage of a damaged fence or an open access gate. This is something we quite rightly deem unacceptable now, especially with railway staff being actively encouraged to spot people who intend to harm themselves, but was widely tolerated in the early 1990's.

Some of the locations I have worked at - especially Rugby, where the bulk of my career has been spent to date - are of course perennially popular with enthusiasts and photographers taking in the action. Hopefully it will be of interest for some of you to see familiar locations from the angle we did whilst running the trains you came to see, providing literally a new point of view for many.

I occasionally photographed trains on both the local and wider railway system on my travels around the UK and further afield, so I will upload these long forgotten shots too. There will also be an album of non railway photos from the USA which is nothing more than a self indulgence really.

It is often the case with these photos that with traction, traffic and locations either disappearing completely or changing beyond all recognition, you definitely couldn't take them now!