Tag: tube

  • Hidden in London

    Hidden in London

    To Charing Cross, where my friend and I are due to meet for a tour of the Tube station’s disused tunnels with Hidden London. Not wanting to be late, I arrive 45 minutes early and pass the time in the Waterstones at Trafalgar Square. The air outside is cold; I can see my breath.

    A tunnel beneath Trafalgar Square

    I took my first Hidden London tour in October 2016: the lost tunnels of London Euston. My girlfriend and I took in the station’s historical information imparted by the brilliant guides, the vintage advertising posters and, of course, the marvellous tunnels and ventilation shafts.

    I was hooked. I’ve since toured Aldwych and Down Street, with a ride on the Mail Rail at the Postal Museum thrown in for some variety, and now Charing Cross.

    When I get weary of the noise, the order and the restrictions placed on the surface of the city, I long to return to these tunnels.

    A vintage Tube train at Aldwych
    Overlooking a Tube platform at London Euston
    Equipment stored in a tunnel at Euston
  • Night walks

    Night walks

    There are people in the distance. For a few seconds I can’t tell which direction they’re walking in — towards me or away. I’m often the first to cross the road to avoid proximity. If we’re going in the same direction and I begin to catch up with them, I’ll slow down. Not necessarily because of Covid; I just don’t want to be seen when I’m on my night walks.

    Every night after work I pound the pavements in my bubble in north London like a flâneur. Work tends to finish around midnight. This is my latest lockdown obsession. 

    Sometimes I change the route, discover a new street, a house for sale, a dead end. I watch the empty Tube train going over the bridge (the Northern line is the loudest). I’m followed by a friendly fox. I pick up the pace when it’s uphill, I slow it down when it gets too hot under my coat. I put my head down when cars approach. I never look at my phone.

    I see the allotments with waiting lists that go on for years. I see the stained glass windows, the front doors, and the houses owned by other people.