Neil Johannessen found out about telephone boxes out of necessity as manager of BT's museum collection. Few topics have so consistently required his time as they have. A physicist by background, he first became interested in industrial archaeology in his teens, notably in the area of canal restoration. Today he is an active member of the London museum community and an authority on telecommunications heritage.

For such a familiar part of the British scene, the telephone box is something of an unknown quantity. What is its story? Why is it the way it is? Who designed it? What came before it? This generously illustrated book answers these questions and more, providing a concise history of one of the most recognisable and enduring pieces of street furniture. Tracing the design evolution of the phone box, touching on police and emergency kiosks, and listing interesting sites to visit, this is an ideal guide to a sight that is increasingly rare on British streets as the mobile phone slowly pushes the telephone box towards extinction.