Roger Harrison’s East Anglian Railways

Roger Harrison was an avid and loyal member of the Norfolk Railway Society from its inception in 1955 until he passed away in 2010. He was extraordinarily generous to the Society in his will, not only with a sizeable donation to Society funds, but also in making a bequest of his LNER photos and negatives to the club’s archive. In 2012 David and his friend and fellow member, Richard Adderson, were asked to compile a book of Roger’s images, funded by his bequest, so that all the then members could benefit from Roger’s generosity. The show is a slightly abridged version of the book, but, nonetheless, illustrates Roger’s eye for detail alongside his ability to capture and record the general scene up to the end of GE steam in 1962. He was, in some ways, fairly parochial in his coverage of East Anglia, favouring a few locations and ignoring many, so it was quite a challenge to create a logical narrative from his somewhat disparate range of images. Nonetheless, the book was well received by the membership and considered to be a worthy tribute to Roger and the memories evoked by his pictures.

David was born in Suffolk, brought up in the East Midlands, went to college in the North East, and spent his working life as an itinerant teacher in Norfolk and Suffolk, ending up dealing with permanently excluded pupils in Norfolk for the local authority. He took early retirement in 2011 but returned to part-time work in late 2015.

He has always had an interest in railways, and photography became equally as absorbing in 1962 when he was given his first camera. Since then, via various cameras, and an embrace of digital photography, he has accumulated a substantial catalogue of his own images. He has also always taken an interest in images from other photographers, particularly those with a shared affinity for locations, aesthetics, and a healthy disregard for convention. This additional collection has become something of an indulgence (wife would say obsession!), aided and abetted, initially, by a collection of negatives left in his care, then by ‘negatives sent on approval’ but, ultimately, by the internet!

David is also presently Vice-Chairman of the ‘Bittern Line Community Rail Partnership’ and belongs to two railway photographic circles, together with umpteen railway societies. He has produced several books and articles, especially on the former Great Central London extension. He has four sons, none of whom have the remotest interest in railways or photography!

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