When one has such a pretentious title as ‘Tottenham Court Rd – were wolves here & did Bringsley get wolfed down?’ anyone would think it was clickbait! Shurely some sort of devious intent devised to increase the number of visitors in the slenderest hope of making this very blog a destination of worthy repute? Well nothing could be further from the truth there was no intention ever of doing that – as for truth well that that goes for wolves, oh sorry, werewolves, at Tottenham Court Road tube station either. They have never existed on the tube system so there!
If werewolves have neve existed on the tube why this post then? Its about them having existed as a fantasy in the form of a certain film called An American Werewolf in London. I was researching Tottenham Court Road station for a different piece when a certain video appeared on my timeline. That was great because I could at least compare some of the current modifications with the station’s previous appearance back in 1981 for a different post.
The station’s look during the early 1980s would have been just before Eduardo Paolozzi decorated the entire station with his celebrated mosaics, thus the movie showed Tottenham Court Road just before it was changed beyond recognition. Paolozzi began his work begun in 1984, completing it by 1986. The mosaics covered the station entrance, ticket hall, escalator shafts, passageways and both Central and Northern line platforms and and was ‘widely considered to be one of the most spectacular examples of post-war public art.’ (TfL).
As already mentioned, An American Werewolf in London was released in 1981. The Tottenham Court Road tube station segment featured in the movie is shown below – and if one ignores the scary going ons, there’s a fair bit of London underground history to be spotted in the film!
AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON was released in Cinemas, 43 years ago today.
— Michael Walsh (@thatbloodyMikey) August 21, 2024
& Yep… I Still hate the late night Tube. pic.twitter.com/SUxCJHs9tH
An American Werewolf in London (1981).
The film starts by showing locations on the northbound platform of the Northern line and the guy who is seen throughout the entire sequence set at the station is shown getting some chocolate from a vending machine on the platform.
One thing that comes to notice is how wider the platforms were prior to 1984! This is the same with the Central line platforms. These have always felt somewhat narrow especially when there’s crowds – and its obvious why as discussed in a moment…
The bizarre aspect of this film segment is it begins and ends with nosh. There’s chocolate at the start of the film and the guy, Gerald Bringsley (played by Michael Carter) is noshing on that. And the end of the film well… its the werewolf noshing on Bringsley! In a subtle way of course the werewolf was able to acquire a bit of chocolate too. Maybe it all boils down indeed to the werewolf wanting THAT one particular bit of chocolate Bringsley had just eaten? Say no more!
How the scene looks today!
When one compares the before and after images there’s one thing that’s clear. The platforms here are somewhat narrower and this is because the mosaics have been placed onto (false) vertical walls. One can see how far back the original curved wall of the station platform was set.
As an aside, I kept thinking there’s something wrong with my pictures because the Northern line train looks rather big compared to the station. Yes the 1995 tube stock does have a more bulky front end than the 1972 tube stock as well as a less curved roof. But its also the narrower platforms that’s making the trains look bigger than they really are. I had never noticed this before, and looking through the sets of photographs I had done in late August 2024 specially for this feature, each and every one of the 1995 tube stock trains photographed leaving the station just look so big! It also explains why Leicester Square station feels cramped too. The movie themed walls are great but the down side is they also narrow the station platforms.
Anyway, platform widths aside, its chocs away and the real excitement begins! The werewolf begins its search for a quarry and there’s only one person in its sights. Gerald Bringlsey!
The soon-to-become-a-victim is stood on the platform and he begins to eat some of the chocolate he’s just bought. At that moment something unseen attracts his attention. He looks up the northbound platform but there’s nothing to be seen. He stares down the platform and says ‘Hello. Is there someone there?’
There’s no response so he continues to eat chocolate. But he’s not quite so sure there ‘s nothing else on the station platform…
Its certainly weird why there’s no-one else on the platform! Maybe they all got the news on their smartphones a werewolf was running amok on the tube? Who wants to use the tube when there’s a werewolf loose? Clearly this guy Bringsley wasn’t even in keeping with the times! Fancy not having the latest Samsung Galaxy in order to be a smart alec!
Bringsley will not be amused! ‘I can assure you this is not in the least bit amusing. I shall report this.’
We then see him leave the platform at this very location (he leaves by the exit to the single escalator leading to the Central line) and is then seen ascend some stairs at the end of which escalators are visible. Actually in terms of the modern station this is a one way system and he’s using it in the wrong direction! Evidently there was a reason for this and its the approach which gives more drama than the other route – its the stairs, the curved passageway tunnel and escalators partially visible beyond – and conveys a trepidation there might possibly be something lurking out of sight near the bottom of these escalators.
As he ascends the escalators he keeps looking back wondering if there’s anything in pursuit. We then see him at the top of the escalators where the old lifts used to be. He turns as if to head for the escalators to the surface, but then the location changes completely.
The brief flight of escalators up to the intermediate level. These escalators when first installed in the 1920s were the shortest ever on the tube system.
The same stairs in 2024. The ambience was altered during possibly 2013 or 2014 for the station’s pending upgrade.
The bottom of the short flight of escalators with Bringsley about to embark on it.
Same location in 2024. Again the decor changes were effected during late 2012 (could be 2013 or 2014 even for all anyone knows as there’s no record of when the changes were done).
Notice the escalator posters? Nine to five isn’t a thing the werewolf keeps to! It might have a burger though but what’s more interesting is the subtle messaging – ‘its made for you.’ It (Bringsley) is made for the werewolf!
The same view in 2024 – different adverts no doubt! Notice how the theme has changed from everyday things that were done to one of cultural appreciation and enjoyment – Wicked, Slave Play, Men Girls, HadesTown, The Phantom. None of these existed in 1981! Interestingly Webber’s Phantom didn’t make its debut until 1986 – and by then Tottenham Court Road station – with its Paolozzi mosaics, looked ever so different!
Having reached the top of the escalators our quarry is seen passing the site of the old station lifts.
This part of the station is nowadays a very busy route as people make their way from the escalators to the Central line or the lift/escalators down to the Northern line. And it does explain why an additional corridor has been built from the far side of the former lift shafts to the western end of the Central line platforms.
There’s a lot of difference between the 1981 and 2024 views. The latter is much brighter and more pleasant to use! The large hatch in the floor still exists in 2024. Its continued prominence is no doubt because its an access point to the escalator machinery sited beneath the floor.
This is now a long passageway where we see him looking back and then running through. All these scenes were taken in the same passageway which still exists. This leads from the Northern line to the Central line. From these we can see the existing routes between the two lines were largely as they are now. Hence the only changes here has been the ambience and the décor. Instead of the traditional London Underground tiling its nowadays that common clinical white tiled look.
He looks nervously down the corridor. Is the thing coming for him tonight? Maybe it’ll be next Wednesday in fact? ‘See you next Wednesday’ was a tag used by John Landis in his movies.
We see the camera pan round the corner of a passageway. This still exists. The guy is seen running up and down the same passageway in both directions, evidently this is an attempt to make it look like an extremely long one!
Magic how it looks in 2024! The only mods done here really is the retiling, flooring and new lighting.
As those scenes progresses graffiti so exemplary of the time includes NF and UK Subs written across various adverts can be quickly seen – these tags were both quite common across the tube system at the time. This was no doubt a period on the tube when everything was but a mere scrawl. It was not long after that the real graffiti stuff started arriving.
How it looks in 2024 – so much cleaner!
Our guy runs fast in order to get away from the thing that’s pursuing him. He’s already seen it but the viewer hasn’t!
Bringsley in the 1920s corridor from the Northern to the Central line.
He is then seen in a passageway lined with yellow and blue tiling. This is one of those that lead off the Central line and this decor is no doubt related to a later period in the station’s rebuild, rather than immediately at the time when its lifts were done away with and escalators provided instead. Evidently this and the long linking corridor were an afterthought designed to try and spread out the busy crowds that arrived by tube.
Bringsley then turns right and heads straight for the escalators. The only issue is this is evidently a one way system and he has to duck under a barrier in order to reach the bottom of the escalators. The scene suddenly changes and he is seen in yet another corridor. Its one that leads off the Central line platforms.
We see Bringsley dashing along the corridor towards the lengthy passageway. This scene remained in a similar format (Youtube) for more than thirty years before it was completely retiled and the ‘bridge’ over the Central line was covered up.
He runs down a long corridor which still exists. He then reaches the end of this and looks down yet another – which again is one leading off the Central line. Evidently this one is an original Central London Railway passage whereas the other was a newer addition. The CLR one is that nearest to the former lifts whilst the newer yellow/blue tiled one is that midway down this long passageway.
There is of course a third route off this long passageway right at the end which leads to the western end of the Central line platforms. Even though its not part of the film its pre 2017 look can be seen on Youtube.
He runs down this long corridor which constituted a one way system by way of a long barrier down the middle. That barrier remained until the station was totally rebuilt for the Elizabeth line. This can be seen on Youtube during the work to install Paolozzi’s mosaics and its the same one Bringsley jumps over in order to reach the bottom of the station’s escalators.
Not the same before/after view but certainly the long corridor the desperate Bringsley ran along! The handrail that divided the corridor in half disappeared around 2012/13 during the work to upgrade the station. This on Youtube is how it looked in those days when there was a barrier down the middle.
A bit of Central London Railway – notice the old style 1920s No Entry sign! But Bringsley hasn’t even got time to look at such nice things!
Up and over the barriers and away from the white tiled Central London passageway (and as far away from the werewolf as possible!)
Both of those scenes are at this point by the old lift entrances where this National Railway Heritage Award plaque can be seen. The barriers are no longer extant, having been removed prior to 2017.
Bringsley jumps over the barriers and drops his umbrella, leaving it behind. He runs onto the bottom of the escalators, stumbling in the process and spilling open the contents of his briefcase.
He falls flat on the escalator and the briefcase flings open spilling its contents.
The same location today.
Are these possibly the 1981 escalators in 2024? Depending on the model of escalator, if well looked after, can be used for a good number of decades. Upon conducting some research it does seem these particular ones were built about 1980/81. In 2006 these received a major overhaul thus in 2024 its forty five years these escalators have been in use!
Up until this point in the film one assumes the guy has been using the tube late at night – because there’s no-one else around… and now the clock says 13.01? What the heck?
Wolfie makes its presence for the first time! The clock shows 13.01 no doubt its lunch time! Or maybe the clock’s wrong and its actually midnight?
Did you miss the werewolf? Here’s the scene enlarged and that’s the werewolf lurking at the bottom of the escalators!
People on the escalator at the same spot as Bringsley lay in the 1981 film. Look out there’s a werewolf behind!
This is no doubt the part of the film where things shall come to pass! The werewolf of the film is seen for the very first time at the bottom of the escalators. Our guy continues up the escalators, somewhat bloodied – and stupefied by the werewolf’s presence. Definitely not a thing one would expect to see on the tube!
Bringsley takes some tentative steps towards becoming the night’s special delicacy!
The modern view of the steps utilised for what must have been quite a moving feast!
What happened next? Well I’ve never seen An American Werewolf in London so I couldn’t tell you! I imagine at this point the werewolf was feeling a bit peckish after this long chase through the subways of Tottenham Court Road station! No doubt the wolf downed Bringsley!
PS if one wants to see a bit more of the film – which is when our guy arrives at the station – its on Youtube!
The 2024 pictures were taken with the permission of the station staff.
