7029 Clun Castle stands at Cheltenham Race Course Station having worked the final steam-hauled Gold Cup Special from Paddington on 14th March 1968 (original photograph by Bill Potter - image reproduced here by kind permission of Joan Potter. The photograph is now in the care of Kidderminster Railway Museum)  

A picture, they say, tells a thousand words and that is certainly true of railway pictures - especially those that have been handed down over the decades. They tell us not just what the locomotives and rolling stock looked like, but they are put into context - the stations, the people; trackside features that have long since been swept under roads, housing or supermarkets.

Or they may show that history seems to have stood still and that it is possible to re-create images dating back 50, 60 or more years.  You only have to check out our own photo galleries to see what we mean.

The 'Honeybourne Line' has been the subject of countless photographs over the years, many appearing in books covering the line's history or in magazines.  But now there's a chance to see many of these pictures and countless other that have never been published, in a remarkable collection put together by Bernie Holland. You can find out here in our latest History Lesson where we review his Honeybourne Line photopic site which is crammed with historic pictures, including many from the collection of the late, great photographer Bill Potter.

Click here for the full story.