British Rail Manual
We spoke to London-based graphic designer Wallace Henning who recently reproduced and republished the British Rail Corporate Identity Manual
In the 1940s, Great Britain nationalised its railway system but by the 1950s passenger numbers and revenue had been slowly but surely declining. The leadership of what was then called British Rail, decided that creating a modern, consistent corporate identity could help unify the disjointed railway network, and so they hired the Design Research Unit conceive the concept.
Over the next 60 or so years very little of the Manual created by the Design Research Unit was ever properly archived. That is until now… Trains, books, and, er, crowdfunding(!), are just some of the things we take an interest in at Highline HQ, so when we heard about Wallace Henning’s Kickstarter campaign to reproduce and republish the iconic Manual we needed to find out more…
CH: Can you tell us a little bit about yourself, and what prompted you to carry out the project?
WH: “I’m a graphic designer fascinated by infrastructure. Normally the type in the public sector that aren’t noticed, like Royal Mail or the National Grid. The things that people take for granted on a daily basis and don’t consider. How we are able to make a cup of tea and open our post. And British Rail has to be the ultimate version of this. Not only does it have the physicality that makes it so appealing, but it came from a period where a distinct change was happening to its operations. For me, the railway is an incredibly large and industrial network, yet feels almost invisible. With it predating our electronic telecommunications and the National Grid, it has been embedded in our society and communities for so long we also most forget that its there.”
CH: For people who don’t know what is the Corporate Identity Manual?
WH: The British Rail Corporate Identity Manual is a set of four binders that held containing individual Sheets that detailed everything from the symbol (and even how to draw it) to the typeface to the colours. And then a variety of ways of how the identity show be applied, in particular, the signing system specified in great detail how it should be designed. These Sheets could also be swapped out for new versions which meant it was very unlikely any two sets of binders were the same. The Manual set the standard for railways around the world. It also happened to be designed by on the most prominent design studios at the time, Design Research Unit (DRU).”
CH: You used a crowdfunding campaign to raise the amount for the project. Can you talk us through your campaign strategy — how hard was it? Would you do anything differently?
WH: “I worked with Darren Wall to set-up the Kickstarter and get the ball rolling on the project. It’s all about awareness, tell everyone! Look for a cross-section audience, in the case of the Manual, it was mainly designers and railways enthusiasts. While both parties had some interest in the Manual, the mix of the two created the perfect audience. Think about other groups of people who might enjoy what you’re making outside of what you expect is your only type of customer. With the Manual, it also appealed to people who had a love for history, modernism, architecture, or even people who just enjoy books with really narrow a subject.”
“Also, don’t forget that the product has to be genuine. People want to buy things from people who love what their making, and you could almost go as far as to say, who live it. It creates authority and quality that we all search for when we buy something.”
“Raising the money wasn’t the hardest aspect once the project picked-up momentum but you need to get your numbers right! It is so important to check every detail. Talk to your suppliers about if there are any other costs they foresee so you can build that into your budget. Talk to as many people as you can who have done it before or something similar, they will be able to tell you about all the pitfalls they have found. There is always something you won’t have thought about. Also, you can consider hiring someone to help. There are plenty of people out there who you can hire to help, be it from setting up the crowdfunding and promotion to advising on making the product. And don’t rely on sales after the book to make up any shortfalls in funding after the crowdfunding campaign is over. You might sell a few or a lot of your project after the crowdfunding, but to be safe, don’t assume that there will be money coming in.”
CH: How did you go about sourcing the content for the book?
WH: “I was lucky to have the support of Nick Job who runs the website doublearrow.co.uk, which is effectively, the whole British Rail Corporate Identity Manual online, including additional Information Sheets and further historical background. He really is the authority on the subject. He was able to tell me exactly where to find every Sheet required to make a complete Manual. His endless support meant the books as accurate as it could possibly be.”
“Photographer John Short shot every Sheet individually, retouched by Russell Kirby (Point Black). The Sheets were taken from the collections of National Railway Museum and the National Archives, and the personal ones of Nick Job, Jonathan Parker and myself. The Department of Transport was extremely supportive in granting the permission of the copyright, without that, there would have been no book. Its vital that if you’re thinking about making a book, you get any copyrights required.”
“The additional written contributions came from a wide range of people. A Foreword by Michael C Place, creative director and founder of Build. An Introduction by Tony Howard, former head of design at British Rail, now managing director of Transport Design Consultancy. An Interview with Gerry Barney, designer of the British Rail double arrow symbol conducted by John Walters of Eye Magazine. An essay from James Greenfield, creative director & founder of Koto and another from Dr Paul Rennie, writer and Context Subject Leader at Central Saint Martins.”
CH: What were the challenges producing the book?
WH: “Trying to make something to the highest feasible quality, on schedule and to a budget that is realistic. You also need to consider what impact it will make on your social life.”
“I was also aware that the reproduction I was new creating was likely to most ways that many people would be discovering the Manual for the first time or at least the most frequent. I felt personally responsible that the book I was making should not devalue or cause harm to the work the many people who created the original Manual.”
CH: OK, finally, what do you think the legacy of the Manual is?
WH: “The design of British Rail has already seen a revival, and the reproduction of its identity Manual was part of it. As firmly as the British Rail symbol is embedded into our visual recognition for a railway station, the British Rail Corporate Identity Manual will continue to be held up as one of the pioneering pieces of design in the world.”
CH: Thank you, Wallace!
You can follow Wallace on Twitter here and buy the Corporate Identity Manual here.
