A NORTH Yorkshire stately home and its connections to the rise of the railways has featured on a new television programme.
Castle Howard welcomed TV personality Rob Rinder and social historian Ruth Goodman, earlier this year as part of the recording for The Victorians with Rob Rinder and Ruth Goodman: Rich Lives, Poor Lives.
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Rob and Ruth Goodman return to our screens for the second instalment of their Rich Lives, Poor Lives strand on Channel 5, this time landing in the 1840s during the height of railway mania.
Rob’s focus is the wealthy end of the story, starting with George Hudson, the “Railway King” who rose from working in a draper’s shop to become an MP and one of the most powerful men in Britain, complete with an audience with Queen Victoria.
The show tracks what happened when the railway boom began to cool and Hudson’s paper empire came under pressure.
Rob also looks at George William Frederick Howard, seventh Earl of Carlisle (1802-1864)
The aristocrat not only embraced railways but opened Castle Howard to ordinary people, which was the sort of thing that raised eyebrows in the 1840s.
His efforts were part of a broader movement in early-Victorian England, where the railway boom allowed for greater accessibility and mobility for the working class.
Lord Morpeth's work included the building of the Castle Howard station which brought Queen Victoria and Prince Albert to the stately home on August 27, 1850.
Ruth takes the navvies’ side of the story, following Thomas Eaton, one of hundreds of thousands of labourers whose work made the network possible. When the bubble burst, many were left with nothing. She also uncovers Mary Arguile, Britain’s first female stationmaster, a working-class woman who used the railways’ expansion to climb through society and ended up running Merry Lees station as part of Hudson’s network.
Castle Howard’s Head Curator, Dr Christopher Ridgway, met Rob Rinder and Ruth Goodman in early 2026, where they delved into the archive to explore the 7th Earl of Carlisle’s involvement with the York to Scarborough railway in the period of 1844 –50.
They learned how the 7th Earl was an investor in railways during his lifetime, and a strong advocate for how this new mode of transport enabled people to travel in ways not possible before, especially on excursions whether to places like the seaside or even to Castle Howard.
Dr Chris Ridgway said: “We were delighted to welcome Rob and Ruth to Castle Howard, to share the fascinating story of the 7th Earl of Carlisle’s connection to the York to Scarborough railway.”
The Victorians with Rob Rinder and Ruth Goodman is available to stream on Channel 5.