How Britain Worked

How Britain Worked

Summary

It is a largely forgotten fact that Britain was the first industrialized country in the world, but Guy Martin - the cult motorcycle racer and mechanic - is about to remind us how the industrial revolution helped make Britain great.

Guy shows how the discoveries made in the late 18th-19th centuries are to thank for the ease of our every day lives: in order to cook a bacon and egg sandwich in Industrial-era conditions, Guy has to restore a steam locomotive and railway to have the components delivered to the local shop; he has to bring a saw mill back into working order to be able to make a bicycle; he has to revamp a Victorian fishing trawler so he can cook himself some fish and chips, and when he decides to mow the lawn, he restores a Victorian botanical garden. After all that, he's in need of a holiday - so he sets to work restoring a Victorian holiday resort.

Illustrated throughout with specially commissioned photography as well as historical images, Guy will take us through each project; his passion, enthusiasm and sheer inventiveness bringing a completely new perspective to the Industrial Revolution. He invites us to live it with him, to enjoy the nostalgia, marvel in the mechanics and learn from its legacy.

Reviews

  • Channel 4, and a star was born this week, in the shape of Guy Martin, presenter of How Britain Worked
    Caitlin Moran, The Times

About the author

Guy Martin

Except for one summer spent sleeping inside a truck in a concrete yard in Northern Ireland, Guy Martin has always lived within 20 miles of the Grimsby hospital he was born in, on 4th November 1981. The truck mechanic turned taytie farmer has won multiple international road races, plus scored fifteen Isle of Man TT podiums. He is also Channel 4's face of engineering and speed - becoming a regular face on prime-time TV over the past decade, presenting critically acclaimed documentaries, taking on world records and travelogues, as well as his popular returning series Speed with Guy Martin. Did we mention he's also the only author to have four phenomenal Sunday Times #1 bestselling memoirs? A genuine, one-off marvel.
Learn More

Sign up to the Penguin Newsletter

For the latest books, recommendations, author interviews and more