Bus-Pass Britain Rides Again
More of the Nation's Favourite Bus Journeys
Published on 27. August 2013
Book
Paperback/Softback
288 pages
978-1-84162-465-5 (ISBN)
Description
Discover the spice of modern Britain from the top deck of a bus. We may complain about the quality of our local bus services, but Britain is blessed with a very fine network of local bus routes. That network takes in celebrated coastal and mountain landscapes as well as gritty industrial towns and unsung suburbs. In Bus-Pass Britain Rides Again, four dozen writers retrace journeys that have particular meaning for them, along the way revealing the diversity of modern Britain. Evocative and fun, often witty and perceptive, the book gives a fresh perspective on communities across Britain. Just the ticket for travellers of all ages.
Reviews / Votes
'Celebration of some of the country's most interesting and scenic routes.'Powys County Times and Express
'Gives ordinary travellers the chance to describe their own favourite routes, with details of pubs, cafes and museums that can be visited.'
Evergreen
'Each route is accompanied by a route-map, timetable information aand suggestions for watering holes and restaurants along the way.'
Good Book Guide
'The journeys are a heartening assertion of localism and offer an antidote to globalisation.'
Yorkshire Post
'Celebrates the joys of sitting on a bus, absorbing the passing scenery, and chalking up environmental Brownie points'
Daily Express
'Treats the bus as a social entity and not just a means of getting from A to B and even C.'
Worcester News
'This book is a delight for those with time on their hands, or for people who want a slower pace of a day trip out'
Great Yarmouth Mercury
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Buckinghamshire
United Kingdom
ISBN-13
978-1-84162-465-5 (9781841624655)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Persons
This book is the result of a community-writing initiative in which members of the public were invited to write about their favourite bus routes. The writers whose work features in this book responded to our invites on Twitter and other media, including The Daily Express. The editors are Susanne Kries and Nicky Gardner, two writers who are great devotees of slow travel. They are also the publishers of hidden europe magazine.
Content
FForeword (by Hilary Bradt) i
Welcome Aboard 1
How to Use this Book 4
50 BUS JOURNEYS
LONDON 6
1 A Divine Capital Taster 8
Paddington to Bow Church (by Fran Martin)
2 Shades of the Suburbs: London's Social Mix 12
Clapham Junction to Shoreditch (by Francesca Rushton
& Gregory Gardner)
3 The Bus that Never Sleeps 16
Highbury Corner to Leamouth (by Peter Sellars)
4 Encountering the Unseen: East London 20
Romford to Stratford (by Cila Warncke)
5 Red Bus at Night: Clubber's Delight 24
Trafalgar Square to Cockfosters (by Rebecca Reynolds)
6 Natural Selection: Downe your Way 28
Bromley to Downe (by Brian Grigg)
7 Love on the 159 32
Streatham to Paddington (by Sarah Taylor)
BUS STOP: MOBILE BILLBOARDS 36
HOME COUNTIES 37
8 South through Surrey: By Bus to Dorking 39
Kingston-upon-Thames to Dorking (by Martin Stribblehill)
9 A Sussex Centurion 43
Horsham to Burgess Hill (by Brian Grigg)
10 East Kent Backwaters: Thanet Bound 47
Canterbury to Broadstairs (by Peter Shearman)
BUS STOP: GREEN AND RED 51
11 A Ride Through the Dengie 52
Burnham-on-Crouch to Bradwell Waterside (by Julia Hammond)
12 Three Counties River Run 57
High Wycombe to Reading (by Kate Booth)
iv T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S
SOUTH & SOUTHWEST ENGLAND 61
13 Into the Magic Forest: Pony Country 63
Southampton to Lymington (by Jane Westlake)
14 Beautifully Bleak: Visiting West Wight 68
Newport to Totland, Isle of Wight (by Emily Bullock)
15 The Wimborne Flyer 73
Poole to Wimborne Minster (by June Webber)
16 Three Towns and a Loaf of Bread 77
Wimborne Minster to Shaftesbury (by Jacqueline Suff olk)
17 Vintage Seaside: Off to Sand Bay 81
Weston-super-Mare to Sand Bay (by Fraser Balaam)
BUS STOP: BRITAIN'S RAREST BUS 85
18 Dipping into Devon's Past 86
Okehampton to Newton Abbot (by Janice Booth)
19 By Bus Along the Atlantic Highway 91
Barnstaple to Hartland (by Nicky Gardner)
20 Community Spirit in the Isles of Scilly 97
St Mary's circular route (Jenny Byers)
WALES & THE MARCHES 101
21 Off a's Country: Westward to Wales 103
Ludlow to Knighton (by Les Lumsdon)
22 Cutting Across the Brecon Beacons 108
Newtown to Cardiff (by Tudor Thomas)
23 Industrial South Wales: Big Pit Country 113
Brynmawr to Newport (by Barry Hankey)
24 Escape from Swansea: Gower Bound 117
Swansea to Pennard Cliff s (by Elisabeth Parsons)
BUS STOP: SPEAKING IN TONGUES 121
25 Through Snowdonia: Wild Wales 122
Bangor to Aberystwyth (by Julie Bromilow)
26 A Roller-Coaster Ride: Yellow Galore 128
Aberystwyth to Cardigan (by Julie Bromilow)
v F
COTSWOLDS & THE MIDLANDS 132
27 The Rutland Flyer 134
Corby to Oakham (by Alastair Willis)
28 Austin to Elgar: Beyond Brummagem 138
Birmingham to Worcester (by Nigel Roberts)
BUS STOP: A FAMILY TALE 144
29 A Tale of Two Doctors: Prose and Poison 145
Staff ord to Lichfi eld (by Richard Lakin)
30 Across the Cotswolds: a Dream of England 150
Cheltenham to Oxford (by Edward James)
EAST ANGLIA & THE FENS 155
31 Through the Heart of Norfolk 157
King's Lynn to East Dereham (by Laurence Mitchell)
32 The Medieval and Postmodern Fens 162
Chatteris to Cambridge (by Anna Blair)
33 Look, No Hands! On a Guided Busway 167
Cambridge to Peterborough (by Brendan Fox)
BUS STOP: BENDY OR BORIS? 171
34 The Cambridge Character 172
Cambridge city service (by Dominie Walters)
35 From End of the Pier to Under the Pier 176
Great Yarmouth to Southwold (by Laurence Mitchell)
PENNINES & NORTH OF ENGLAND 182
36 Mills Along the Derwent Valley 184
Derby to Bakewell (by Helen Moat)
37 A Peek at the Peaks: Off to Mam Tor 189
Sheffi eld to Castleton (by Ian M Packham)
38 Heading up Hanley: a Potteries Ride 194
Newcastle-under-Lyme to Hanley (by William Jones)
39 Of Canals and Railways: Off to Manchester 199
Warrington to Altrincham (by James McCollom)
vi T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S
40 The Pride of the Dales: Yorkshire Beckons 203
Ilkley to Grassington (by Sheila Scraton)
BUS STOP: SUNDAY OUTINGS 208
41 Crossing the Buttertubs: the Northern Dalesman 209
Lancaster to Richmond (by Colin Speakman)
42 Into the Pennines: Alston and Beyond 215
Carlisle to Nenthead (by Carol Purves)
43 Coals to Newcastle: Tyne Tees Express 220
Middlesbrough to Newcastle upon Tyne (by Brian Robson)
SCOTLAND 226
44 By Bus with the Bard: a Burns Encounter 228
Dumfries to Edinburgh (by Richard West)
45 Jewel in the Clyde: the Isle of Arran 233
Brodick to Blackwaterfood (by Helen Hughes)
46 Clyde to Castle Keep: Cowal in Context 237
Dunoon to Carrick Castle (by Jackie Scott-Mandeville)
47 Between Two Firths: a Slice of Scotland 242
Dundee to Oban (by Richard West)
BUS STOP: SHELTERED SPACES 248
48 The 456 to Inverlussa: a Jura Journey 249
Feolin to Inverlussa (by David Hoult)
49 Suas Gu Deas: Going 'up South' 253
Berneray to Eriskay (by Rhona NicDhughaill)
50 Next Stop St Kilda: By Bus Across Harris 259
Tarbert to Hushinish (by Fiona Rintoul)
POSTSCRIPTS
Beyond Britain's Shores 264
Marking Tim
Welcome Aboard 1
How to Use this Book 4
50 BUS JOURNEYS
LONDON 6
1 A Divine Capital Taster 8
Paddington to Bow Church (by Fran Martin)
2 Shades of the Suburbs: London's Social Mix 12
Clapham Junction to Shoreditch (by Francesca Rushton
& Gregory Gardner)
3 The Bus that Never Sleeps 16
Highbury Corner to Leamouth (by Peter Sellars)
4 Encountering the Unseen: East London 20
Romford to Stratford (by Cila Warncke)
5 Red Bus at Night: Clubber's Delight 24
Trafalgar Square to Cockfosters (by Rebecca Reynolds)
6 Natural Selection: Downe your Way 28
Bromley to Downe (by Brian Grigg)
7 Love on the 159 32
Streatham to Paddington (by Sarah Taylor)
BUS STOP: MOBILE BILLBOARDS 36
HOME COUNTIES 37
8 South through Surrey: By Bus to Dorking 39
Kingston-upon-Thames to Dorking (by Martin Stribblehill)
9 A Sussex Centurion 43
Horsham to Burgess Hill (by Brian Grigg)
10 East Kent Backwaters: Thanet Bound 47
Canterbury to Broadstairs (by Peter Shearman)
BUS STOP: GREEN AND RED 51
11 A Ride Through the Dengie 52
Burnham-on-Crouch to Bradwell Waterside (by Julia Hammond)
12 Three Counties River Run 57
High Wycombe to Reading (by Kate Booth)
iv T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S
SOUTH & SOUTHWEST ENGLAND 61
13 Into the Magic Forest: Pony Country 63
Southampton to Lymington (by Jane Westlake)
14 Beautifully Bleak: Visiting West Wight 68
Newport to Totland, Isle of Wight (by Emily Bullock)
15 The Wimborne Flyer 73
Poole to Wimborne Minster (by June Webber)
16 Three Towns and a Loaf of Bread 77
Wimborne Minster to Shaftesbury (by Jacqueline Suff olk)
17 Vintage Seaside: Off to Sand Bay 81
Weston-super-Mare to Sand Bay (by Fraser Balaam)
BUS STOP: BRITAIN'S RAREST BUS 85
18 Dipping into Devon's Past 86
Okehampton to Newton Abbot (by Janice Booth)
19 By Bus Along the Atlantic Highway 91
Barnstaple to Hartland (by Nicky Gardner)
20 Community Spirit in the Isles of Scilly 97
St Mary's circular route (Jenny Byers)
WALES & THE MARCHES 101
21 Off a's Country: Westward to Wales 103
Ludlow to Knighton (by Les Lumsdon)
22 Cutting Across the Brecon Beacons 108
Newtown to Cardiff (by Tudor Thomas)
23 Industrial South Wales: Big Pit Country 113
Brynmawr to Newport (by Barry Hankey)
24 Escape from Swansea: Gower Bound 117
Swansea to Pennard Cliff s (by Elisabeth Parsons)
BUS STOP: SPEAKING IN TONGUES 121
25 Through Snowdonia: Wild Wales 122
Bangor to Aberystwyth (by Julie Bromilow)
26 A Roller-Coaster Ride: Yellow Galore 128
Aberystwyth to Cardigan (by Julie Bromilow)
v F
COTSWOLDS & THE MIDLANDS 132
27 The Rutland Flyer 134
Corby to Oakham (by Alastair Willis)
28 Austin to Elgar: Beyond Brummagem 138
Birmingham to Worcester (by Nigel Roberts)
BUS STOP: A FAMILY TALE 144
29 A Tale of Two Doctors: Prose and Poison 145
Staff ord to Lichfi eld (by Richard Lakin)
30 Across the Cotswolds: a Dream of England 150
Cheltenham to Oxford (by Edward James)
EAST ANGLIA & THE FENS 155
31 Through the Heart of Norfolk 157
King's Lynn to East Dereham (by Laurence Mitchell)
32 The Medieval and Postmodern Fens 162
Chatteris to Cambridge (by Anna Blair)
33 Look, No Hands! On a Guided Busway 167
Cambridge to Peterborough (by Brendan Fox)
BUS STOP: BENDY OR BORIS? 171
34 The Cambridge Character 172
Cambridge city service (by Dominie Walters)
35 From End of the Pier to Under the Pier 176
Great Yarmouth to Southwold (by Laurence Mitchell)
PENNINES & NORTH OF ENGLAND 182
36 Mills Along the Derwent Valley 184
Derby to Bakewell (by Helen Moat)
37 A Peek at the Peaks: Off to Mam Tor 189
Sheffi eld to Castleton (by Ian M Packham)
38 Heading up Hanley: a Potteries Ride 194
Newcastle-under-Lyme to Hanley (by William Jones)
39 Of Canals and Railways: Off to Manchester 199
Warrington to Altrincham (by James McCollom)
vi T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S
40 The Pride of the Dales: Yorkshire Beckons 203
Ilkley to Grassington (by Sheila Scraton)
BUS STOP: SUNDAY OUTINGS 208
41 Crossing the Buttertubs: the Northern Dalesman 209
Lancaster to Richmond (by Colin Speakman)
42 Into the Pennines: Alston and Beyond 215
Carlisle to Nenthead (by Carol Purves)
43 Coals to Newcastle: Tyne Tees Express 220
Middlesbrough to Newcastle upon Tyne (by Brian Robson)
SCOTLAND 226
44 By Bus with the Bard: a Burns Encounter 228
Dumfries to Edinburgh (by Richard West)
45 Jewel in the Clyde: the Isle of Arran 233
Brodick to Blackwaterfood (by Helen Hughes)
46 Clyde to Castle Keep: Cowal in Context 237
Dunoon to Carrick Castle (by Jackie Scott-Mandeville)
47 Between Two Firths: a Slice of Scotland 242
Dundee to Oban (by Richard West)
BUS STOP: SHELTERED SPACES 248
48 The 456 to Inverlussa: a Jura Journey 249
Feolin to Inverlussa (by David Hoult)
49 Suas Gu Deas: Going 'up South' 253
Berneray to Eriskay (by Rhona NicDhughaill)
50 Next Stop St Kilda: By Bus Across Harris 259
Tarbert to Hushinish (by Fiona Rintoul)
POSTSCRIPTS
Beyond Britain's Shores 264
Marking Tim