An illuminating, lavishly illustrated introduction to the history of a great British institution - the seaside.

Stuart Hylton grew up in Windsor, studied at Manchester University and has written over twenty books on historical subjects, local and national, including From Rationing to Rock, Their Darkest Hour, an alternative view of the Home Front during the Second World War, A History of Manchester, The Grand Experiment and The Horseless Carriage. He is a member of the Education Team at the Great Western Society's Didcot Railway Centre.