A 'stranger' strolls down stewarts lane - Former Stewarts Lane Shedmaster R.H.N. Hardy continues his long-running series on the South London depot with an examination of the famous Brighton 'Atlantics'.
A 'castle' in cumbria - On the 75th anniversary of Great Western Railway 'Castle' class 4-6-0 Launceston Castle's trials on the West Coast Main Line, Keith Farr begins a two-part analysis of the exchange and its long-term implications for LMS locomotive design
the potter portfolio - The late Bill Potter was one of the greats of steam photography, and this month we bring you part one of another fine selection of images, this time of the former Midland line between Gloucester and Ashchurch, with in-depth captions by Bernie Holland.
the grand tour (of scotland) - In summer 1958, trainee BR mechanical engineer Tony Brown set forth on the first of three trips to the railways and sheds of Scotland. He recounts the 1958 visit in words and a superb assortment of black and white pictures.
Part two, covering 1959/60, appears next month.
steam's the theme - In an effort to brighten up the drab post-war railway scene, the LNER introduced smart new apple green liveries for many of its locomotives. And it didn't just apply to express engines, as Neville Stead-reveals with a quartet of pictures of station pilots.
darkroom discoveries - In another of his unusual picture articles, Peter Fitton presents a selection of shots of locomotives passing, crossing and parallel running.
PLATFORM - A plea for preservation of sound recordings of steam, and a query about the true purpose of smoke deflectors, form part of our four-page round-up of readers' opinions and questions.
all things considered - The former Head of the National Railway Museum; Andrew Dow, offers some more well-informed analysis and opinion on a railway topic of the day.
the midland in its homeland - Steam World regular John Clarke concludes his account of the Midland Railway in its heartlands with a stunning selection of colour photographs or the MR in the East Midlands.
top link on the east coast - Former Doncaster fireman Chris Howden presenb the final installment of his absorbing five-part memoir of life on the footplate of expresses on ECML.
comment - The Editor salutes the importance of audio recordings in evoking the history of our steam railways.
call attention - A former fireman visits the public school whose namesake locomotive he once worked on, and we show some stirring examples of steam-era pride in signalboxes on today's railway.
redhill rediscovered - In the conclusion of his series, regular Steam World contributor Paul Leavens chronicles the final decade of the bustling Southern shed until its closure in 1965.
what, where, when? - Two more picture puzzlers form our popular monthly readers' comp .i.ion, which also helps ' unearth valuable historical information about previously unidentified photographs.
at the heart OF old oak - After his account of a summer holiday job at Old Oak Common MPD in last month's Steam World, former senior railway manager David Maidment describes his return to the WR shed as a management ttainee in 1962.
great shot - A lovely scenic shot by WWW photographer Roy Hobbs, showing elegant Scottish veteran Cordon Highlander at work on a railtour in 1962.
next issue - Catch up with what's timetabled to appear in the Christmas issue of the UK's top-selling historical railway magazine.

On the cover: Immaculate 'A3': Double chimney No. 60085 Manna stands on the main linessouth of York Station.