George Hudson - the eponymous Railway King - started his career with a stroke of luck, inheriting #27,000 (a fortune in 1827) from a distant relative. He invested succesfully in the North Midland Railway, then formed his own Midland Railway, raising #5 million and bribing MP's along the way. But from his glory in 1845 he fell into disgrace, admitting corruption and selling land he did not own. He was eventually imprisoned in York Castle and died a broken man in 1871. His story provides an insight into 19th century politics and industrial progress, full of moral dilemmas and a testimony to the growth of the railways in Britain - a timely subject.