Rigid eight-wheelers with internal combustion engines were developed as a response to requirements and opportunities embedded in the 1933 Road and Rail Traffic Act. Although AEC was first in the field, in late 1934 or early 1935 Leyland was able to announce its Octopus. By the Second World War the Octopus had become a favourite with operators, known to carry a legal payload economically and reliably. After the war the driveline of the Octopus basically...