Ongar revisited
In 1989 London Regional Transport announced the return of a full weekday and weekend service to Ongar. It began on 30th October of that year, and a huge banner was strung along the fencing at the junction with Ongar High Street declaring the new services. By this time I had…
Tube anniversary: 100 years of the Hampstead railway to Edgware
2024 is the 100th anniversary of the Hampstead tube’s new extensions! The railway first opened in 1907 and like many other tube lines, was almost (if not) entirely underground. It was the first tube line to have more than one route (these being to Golders Green and Highgate – the…
Southgate station – an appraisal
The fact Cockfosters station – an appraisal was popular prompted me to dig out this further look at one of the Piccadilly line’s iconic tube stations. Although we regularly visited Southgate in the 1960s, at no time was the Piccadilly line ever used this far. However the station certainly is…
Cockfosters station – an appraisal
Despite being the butt of many a joke, ‘Cock Fosters’ as it once was, is a real place and noted for being the northern terminus of the Piccadilly Line. The location itself prior to the opening of the tube was not even a major settlement of any sort, just a…
Melbury House / Dr. Beeching etc
In this year, the 125th of the Great Central Railway, a particular look is taken at some aspects of the happenings around Marylebone and what they meant for the UK’s transport systems. In the good old days after nationalisation in 1948 the railways continued to grow and everything was looking…
Barnstaple to Ilfracombe #3
The former railway from Barnstaple to Ilfracombe opened on 20th July 1874 – 150 years ago. It never reached its 100th anniversary, closing on 5th October 1970. By the time the anniversary year came about four years later, the line had been disused for that time and not long after,…
Barnstaple to Ilfracombe #2
This is the second part of the online guide to the Ilfracombe railway and features the stretch from Braunton to Willingcott. That is near near the summit of the line just south of Mortehoe. Although around half of the route through Barnstaple, Braunton and Ilfracombe now constitutes the Tarka Trail,…
Paddington station has a brick wall to rival King’s Cross Platform 9 & 3⁄4!
Who needs Hogwarts and the magic wall that gives access to Platform 9 & 3⁄4 at King’s Cross when one can just as easily have that elsewhere too! Well that’s where Paddington station comes in! Besides having a bear from Peru, Paddington station now has a secret platform where, for…
The twopenny tube guard who got killed by his own train
In the very early days of London’s premier underground line – the Central London Railway (CLR) or the twopenny tube as it was popularly known, procured its first ever fatality. It wasn’t a passenger but a member of staff and the matter was down to the staff in question having…
Barnstaple to Ilfracombe #1
The Barnstaple and Ilfracombe railway opened in July 1874 thus 2024 is the 150th anniversary of the line’s opening. Despite opposition the line closed in October 1970 after British Railways had totally rationalised the line in an attempt to keep the costs of running it to a minimum. Ultimately the…