Maritime London and the troubled launch of Great Eastern

The book ranges across docks, cranes, excursion steamers, canal boats, and London's working waterfront. Its Great Eastern section follows the conflict between Isambard Kingdom Brunel and John Scott Russell over design authority and launch method. Their contract gave Brunel control, while reports crediting Russell angered him, and rising costs plus Russell's bankruptcy entangled construction across two yards and creditor-owned property. Brunel insisted on a sideways launch, which required repeated high-tide attempts and included a fatal winch accident. The ship failed commercially as a passenger liner but later proved important in laying global telegraph cables. Design governance, finance, yard access, and launch engineering combine to explain why the project became so difficult.