Liverpool Street's Lovely Stations (1)

The Mystery Of History

Trains leave Liverpool Street station travelling due north, then turn sharp right whence  the line runs due east. Bethnal Green station is now part of the Overground  network used by Transport for London trains to Enfield, Cheshunt and Chingford. (click on the diagram below to enlarge it)

Outer suburban and trains to Cambridge go this way as well, turning sharp left after Bethnal Green. The Great Eastern main line to Norwich goes straight on via Chelmsford, Colchester etc.

The original terminus was Bishopsgate ...

... which proved too small for the ever expanding suburban services and it was a bit too far from London's busy "City"; in days gone by the heart of London's vital; financial businesses.

So a new terminus with its entrance on Liverpool Street was planned and built.

Bishopsgate is the big red blob top right on the above map. The dotted line that crosses Liverpool Street terminus diagonally is the route of the Underground's Central line whilst the present Metropolitan and Circle line trains have their platforms on the opposite side of Liverpool Street to the main station.

Not also Broad Street station which was the London and North Western Railway's link to the City.

Once the new terminus opened, the old Bishopsgate Station was demoted to a good depot, but there is still quite few bits of left overs to explore, courtesy of Google Streetview.

Here is todays view from Bishopsgate itself ...

... a wall and a few arches.

A much more interesting experience can be had by exploring Braithwaite Street.

You can see this intriguing thoroughfare centre right in the Google Earth picture below, crossing the lines from today's terminus and disappearing into a black hole. 

So here we are Streetviewing the street itself ...

... with the graffiti strewn parapets of the present railway overbridge (sorry, fbb means "exciting examples of street art")

Bishopsgate was destroyed by fire in 1964.

The tunnel down below is now banned to motor vehicles ...

... And us also street-art adorned and a bit creepy. Looking back from the other direction there is a bit more of the old goods depot to see.

The new viaduct is the new bit of the Overground which linked the old North London Line to the Old East London Line.

Next to the new Shoreditch High Street station atop the shiny new viaduct is a shop called Boxpark.

Astoundingly, you do not park your boxes there!

 BEGINNING WITH THE HUMBLE ETHOS OF BRINGING SHIPPING CONTAINERS TO EAST LONDON, BOXPARK TRANSFORMED THE SPACE INTO THE WORLD’S FIRST POP-UP DINING AND SHOPPING DESTINATION IN 2011. 

 FAST-FORWARD A DECADE WITH THREE VENUES AT ICONIC LOCATIONS, BOXPARK HAS BECOME THE BIGGEST FOOD, CULTURE AND SOCIAL HUB IN LONDON WITH LOCAL COMMUNITIES AT ITS HEART. THIS UNIQUE EXPERIENCE IS BASED ON BOXPARK’S EAT.DRINK.PLAY. PHILOSOPHY.   

So it began as a caff in a shipping container. But it is now more of a caff in a shed with "entertainment".

Street Food?

History proves that street food has always been loved by Londoners and a consistent feature of the capital for thousands of years. But the ‘revolution’ is not about eating food that is affordable, quick, and easy to consume; it is the quality and type of food produced by modern-day traders and chefs, and the movement to food halls.

21st century Londoners have high expectations for street food with both varied and refined tastes. Whilst cravings for a greasy burger and fries will always exist, people want more than that; they want to discover new, exciting cuisines and unique flavour profiles. The ideal street food market will have everything from Greek gyros, Brazilian churrasco, Trinidadian doubles and a gluten-free vegan cheeseburger all under one roof. 

Do they do sausage, egg and chips?

But we will meet Boxpark later in our story.

This is how the new Liverpool Street looked as built.

But the terminus eventually served two main routes, north to Cambridge and East to Norwich. This needed an extension in 1895 adding more platforms on the east side, as can be seen by comparinng the two diagrams.

Because this was originally two different companies Liverpool Street was, effectively, two separate stations under one roof.  The various "carriage roads" were clearly shown on the picture shown as No 15 in yesterday's quiz.

fbb well remembers travelling from here to Harlow Town to visit a chum many, many moons ago and he found the station an incomprehensible mess! It was gloomy and confusing and had been so since it was extended.

Of course, fbb was there after steam had been banished, but it was still a grim experience.

There were various plans for a rebuild, accelerated by some tragic terrorist activity. One idea was to merge with neighbouring Broad Street and create a mega station - but Broad Street had no future in the greater scheme for the area except as a site for major office redevelopment.

In the end Broad Street disappeared and Liverpool Street was substantially rebuilt as one fully integrated station. When fbb returned some years after the change, he was astounded by how good it looked.

And it was simple to understand, just a straight line of platform gates and a large circulating area will an approach from a mezzanine deck at street level. The revised structure can be viewed from a footway area to the north of the station. The four part roof can be clearly seen ...

... and from the railings on the right you can look right over the top of the platforms to the main entrance area at the far end!

But we rush ahead too fast.

Opposite the entrance on Liverpool Street itself was the Metropolitan line station; and it is to this area we will turn tomorrow.

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Still not fully understanding!

Mary Magdalene went running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and told them, “They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don't know where they have put him!”

Then Peter and the other disciple went to the tomb. The two of them were running ...

... but the other disciple ran faster than Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent over and saw the linen cloths, but he did not go in. 

Behind him came Simon Peter, and he went straight into the tomb. He saw the linen cloths lying there and the cloth which had been around Jesus' head. It was not lying with the linen cloths but was rolled up by itself. Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in; he saw and believed. (They still did not understand the scripture which said that he must rise from death.) Then the disciples went back home.

"The other disciple" is most likely John who wrote the above words as part of his Gospel.

You couldn't have a better or more reliable witness than that!

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 Next Liverpool Street blog : Wednesday 20 April