HE was a small man who thought big.

Standing at just over five feet tall he is someone who is regarded as one of the greatest Britons that ever lived with engineering feats that astounded his peers.

This was Isambard Kingdom Brunel who will be honoured in Swindon at the culmination of year-long South West celebrations marking the 200th anniversary of his birth next year.

Having been the pioneer of the Great Western Railway he is regarded as having one of the biggest influences on the shaping of Swindon.

The £2 million Brunel 200 celebrations were officially launched yesterday on board one of the engineer's most famous works the iron ship SS Great Britain at Bristol Docks.

Brunel's standing was acknowledged in 2003, when the nation voted him the second greatest Briton after Winston Churchill.

The celebrations will kick off on April 8, 2006, the eve of the 200th anniversary of Brunel's birth, with a party and fireworks at the Brunel-built Clifton suspension bridge in Bristol.

Swindon will host the grand finale of the celebrations in September 2006, with a street party and procession in the Railway Village.

Other events include a conference in May discussing Brunel's work, projects to be carried out at local schools across the south west, and a recreation of the launch of the SS Great Britain ball in May, 2006.

Other plans, which are not finalised yet include running steam trains in honour of Brunel between Swindon and Bristol.

There will also be widespread promotion of engineering, architecture, design and the arts. Andrew Kelly, director of Brunel 200, said: "Brunel was one of the most versatile, audacious and inspirational engineers of the 19th century whose astounding feats changed the world.

"This is both a celebration of his life and work and also a campaign to create the Brunels of the future groundbreaking individuals and teams dedicated to thinking new ways about problems."

Cash for the project was raised through sponsorship, private donations, and a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund.

A lot of the regional events including those in Swindon are still in the planning stages.

Martyn Heighton, Brunel 200 South West Champion, said: "We are already working with over 300 organisations and individuals on the regional celebrations and anticipate having a fantastic programme."

Life of a genius

ISAMBARD Kingdom Brunel was born in Portsea, Portsmouth on April 9, 1806.

Isambard travelled to France when he was 14 to study at the College of Caen in Normandy and the Lycee Henri Quatre in Paris.

He was appointed the resident engineer of the project to build a tunnel beneath the Thames in January 1827. The tunnel was opened in 1843 and was hailed as the eighth wonder of the world.

During the construction Brunel was seriously injured during a flood and recovered in Bristol, where he heard of plans to build a bridge across the Avon at Clifton.

In March, 1831, Brunel's design was adopted. The bridge was not completed until 1864.

In March, 1833, Brunel was appointed chief engineer of the newly formed Great Western Railway. The London to Bristol section of the GWR was opened on June 30, 1841. In 1836, he was appointed engineer of the Great Western Steamship Company and he started work on the SS Great Western the first steamship to provide trans-Atlantic service.

In 1853, work began on Brunel's most ambitious maritime project, the SS Great Eastern. During this period he also oversaw the Royal Albert Bridge at Saltash. He collapsed on September 5, 1859 and died 10 days later.

Viewpoint

THE Swindon celebrations of Brunel 200 are seen as something the whole town should embrace.

Brunel is seen as the man who made Swindon what it is today with his decision to base the Great Western Railway workforce in the town, as well as the workshops.

He is responsible for changing Swindon from a small agricultural town to a centre of industry in the south west.

Felicity Ball, the curator of Swindon's Steam Museum, said: "It is a great honour that Swindon will be holding the final culmination party to the celebrations and reflects the town's railway history.

"We are still finalising the details and are working with different organisations to see how this celebration can be carried out in style."

Swindon Council leader Mike Bawden said: "We look forward with considerable enthusiasm to the celebrations.

"Brunel was a man who was at the heart of the town and made it into the centre of economic growth and industry it is today."

Jamie Hill