Building Britain: 42 fascinating photos show some of the country's biggest ever construction projects

They capture more than a century of human endeavour on a stupendous scale, from the South Coast to Scotland.

The Victorian sewer system, the Manchester Ship Canal and London’s iconic Tower Bridge are just some of the epic 19th-century constructions featured in this photo gallery.

Motorways, a nuclear power station, the Queensway Tunnel beneath the River Mersey, and an early warning system for incoming missiles are among the major 20th-century works pictured taking shape.

These fascinating photos show not just the scale of the building projects concerned, and the mighty machinery involved, but the architects who conceived them, and the workers without whose toil they would never have happened.

From shipyards to building sites across the nation, these pictures celebrate those men and women upon whose hard graft Britain was built.

Some of these buildings, bridges and other landmarks have dramatically altered the skyline; most have changed the way we live, often adding ease and convenience to our lives.

If you enjoyed this photo gallery, you might like our look back at some of the UK’s grandest developments that never quite made it off the drawing board, including a cross-Channel monorail.