By Mark Tewdwr-Jones (Published by The Fifty Fund) 
This new book from The Fifty Fund documents an important event in the history of the class 50s. Mark has been researching the background to the renaming of Hercules to Sir Edward Elgar for over twenty years.
 
Named locomotives have been a continuous feature on the railways of Britain since their dawn 200 years ago. Those names have not only entered the annals of history, they have also reached public consciousness. Locomotion No.1, Rocket, Flying Scotsman, Mallard and Tulyar are all testament to brilliant engineering and a quest for power and speed.

But in the 1980s, British Rail set about selecting names based on marketing impact to support the rebirth of the railways prior to privatisation. Locomotive names became more commercial, and some naming practices reflected a naked desire to gain as much publicity as possible, even to the point of changing the names of locomotives, despite the potential to upset communities and organisations who still cherished the names previously carried. 
 
One event, in early 1984 particularly, reflected British Rail's new attitude, and it is one that still makes some rail enthusiasts recoil in horror. The renaming of Class 50 diesel-electric locomotive, 50007 Hercules, to Sir Edward Elgar and its repainting into GWR green to mark the 150th anniversary of the Great Western Railway. It was, for them, one step too far. In the aftermath of the decision, a battle would be raged between the enthusiasts, senior railway management, the Royal Navy, and the police. Railway staff were attacked, national newspapers ran stories, and British Rail managers were left reeling.

This book tells the remarkable story of the events surrounding the renaming of one locomotive, told 
for the first time from the official BR files held at the National Archives. Fully illustrated with many 
previously unpublished photos of Class 50s at work and some of the archive documents, the story captures the turmoil of the time, and reveals a railway trying desperately to attract customers.
 
Chapters:
Foreword 
Preface     
Introduction 
Locomotive namings from the earliest times     
A railway and naming renaissance   
Naming Class 50s: Counties, people, or warships?
Warships refloated   
A Name for all Regions    
The Game of the Name
Two anniversaries beckon: A green Sir Edward Elgar 
All eyes on 50007    
Transforming Hercules to Sir Edward Elgar 
‘I think you may have upset the ‘Hoover Bashers’’
Pomp and Circumstance    
The Grand Plan: GWR150 namings 
Extending the Class 50 renaming programme  
From ‘Save Hercules’ to ‘Save Our Warships’    
The reality of the GWR 150 programme   
British Rail’s namings under sectorisation 
Long live 50007   
The value of a name
 
The Fifty Fund is grateful to Mark for entrusting us to publish his book and to Dave Keogh for agreeing to write the foreword.
 
Dave say of the book:
"I'm truly honoured to have been asked to write the Foreword for this book. The research that went into it is truly mind boggling. I was astonished to find out something I did back then, long after I'd forgotten all about it! It's interesting now to learn about the internal wrangling taking place between the BR Board and certain characters on the Western Region, as the Board set about preparing the railway for privatisation. We were blissfully unaware of the politics playing out at the time, as we pursued our bashing hobby. Well done Mark for this incredible and unusual piece of work; I thoroughly recommend buying it."
 
Proceeds from the sale of "Save Hercules!" will go towards the continued upkeep of the Class 50s in the care of the Class 50 Alliance Ltd. which is in turn supported by The Fifty Fund. 
 
Mark has signed a limited number of copies and these are available at no extra cost on a first come first served basis.