In 1837, wealthy merchants of Liverpool and Manchester who had made their money in textiles engaged the Stephensons to establish a railway connection all the way to London, with a line from Birmingham to the capital. It was completed in 1838, just too late for Victoria’s coronation in June, and opened that September at a cost of over £5.5m.

Although a magnificent station was built at each end of the railway, the one in Birmingham was used only briefly, and the other at Euston in London was demolished in 1962. However, the line remains the first to introduce sleeper carriages, and it also carried private road vehicles much like today’s Channel Tunnel trains.

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