Chris Tigwell is Chairman of the Rainhill Railway and Heritage Society. The aim of the Society is "The education of the public in the significance of the Rainhill Trials".

Many facets of society that we now take for granted can be traced back to changes facilitated by the coming of the railways. Chris will argue that the success of the Rocket at Rainhill represents a quantum jump in the development of transport and modern civilisation. He will compare methods of transporting goods and people before 1829 with the subsequent changes, and trace their impact on society.