London’s vast network of underground lines and trains (‘tube trains’) began in the nineteenth century, with the creation of the Metropolitan Railway. This railway opened on January 10, 1863, and included sections where trains went deep underneath London’s streets. The railway was made up of gas-lit wooden carriages hauled by steam locomotives. This was followed by the Circle line in 1884, and then rapid expansion.
With time the style of trains changed, lines were expanded and modernized. Today the tube network is one the the busiest in the world. Today there are 11 lines carrying 1.3 billion passengers each year.
Over this time, some stations have closed, primarily due to economic reasons (where the cost of upgrading does not justify the number of commuters, or because stations are in close proximity to each other.) One such station was Aldwych Station (which was earlier called Strand Station.)
The outside of the station is a two-story steel-framed building faced with red glazed terracotta blocks. This was a common look for underground stations during the early post-Victorian era.
Aldwych station was located on The Strand, which is a long street in central London, linking Trafalgar Square to Covent Garden. Many theaters are found along this stretch. The station was part of the Piccadilly Line. The station opened on November 30, 1907 (first as ‘Strand’ and then as ‘Aldwych’, apparently because the public were confused with the station and the street having an identical name.)
The station, together with the Central line branch from Epping to Ongar, closed in 1994. This was due to the cost of upgrading the lifts needed to cart commuters from the station kiosks to the line below. The project was regarded as too expensive.
The opportunity to tour the station was organized by the London Transport Museum, which is based in Covent Garden. This was part of the museum’s occasional ‘Hidden London‘ events.
The tour started with the upper part. Here the original ticket kiosks were still to be found. It is for features like this that the station is a Grade II listed building, meaning it has special protection from demolition or re-development.
Most of the upper part of the station was designed by architect Leslie Green. Green, who died in 1908, favored distinctive ox-blood red tiled façades including pillars and semi-circular first-floor windows, and patterned tiled interiors.
There is other evidence of Art Deco features, such as the entwined leaves that make up a grille covering an air conditioning system.
Another interesting feature is a bank of partitions where telephones wound have been found.
The lifts (elevators) are large, able to accommodate over 40 people and include seats. They are now non-operational.
To reach the platform, 160 steps were walked down. At the bottom, the vast lift shafts can be viewed.
When the station was built, provision was made to increase the number of lifts, although this was never completed.
After the lift area, there is a network of tunnels, leading to the station platforms.
The platforms have a stillness, even eeriness to them.
Throughout the visit, the small group were given lectures on the history of the station. Of particular interest was the function of the station during World War II.
In 1940, the Holborn – Aldwych branch was closed, and the station was used to house many of the treasures of the British Museum in order to protect them from German bombing raids. The storage include the massive Elgin marbles (or The Parthenon Sculptures), for which ownership is still contested with Greece to this day.
It was also during ‘The Blitz’ that the station was used as an air-raid shelter.
The platform walls are adorned with many advertising posters dating to the time when the station was last operational.
Over the years the disused station has been used for many television and film productions. These include Mr. Selfridge, Atonement, 28 Days Later, V for Vendetta, Superman IV, Creep, and Sherlock. The poster below is a left-over from the horror movie Creep:
The last train carrying the general public left Aldwych on the evening of the 30th September 1994. An obsolete tube train is located on one of the platforms, as a reminder of the last journey to be taken.
At the end of the tour, there are some 160 sets of steps to mount, in order to reach street level.
Today the station is rarely opened. It is occasionally used as a training ground for emergency services, and a simulated incident took place as part of the preparations for the 2012 London Olympics (in the event of terrorist attack.) For the general public, the chance to visit is very rare indeed.
