Dollis Hill / Only Unconnect Ep.9

I'm visiting another unconnected station on the Tube Map, this time ... it's Dollis Hill in Zone 3 in a rather residential setting in suburban London ...
In 'Only Unconnect', I'm visiting some of my favourite stations on the Tube Map, this time with the theme of them not being connected to any other lines, and appear with just a station 'tick' on the map without a connector blob. They're unconnected, hence ... Only Unconnect!

[@mdhazeldine]

There was me thinking he'd made an editing mistake........and then it hit me. Very clever.

[@damianharris2167]

And after getting stuck in the Dollis Hill loop Geoff Marshall was never seen again. Some say that even now he’s still going round. 🤣

[@stephenlee5929]

We need to check at Mornington Crescent 😊

[@AnthonyHandcock]

And after getting stuck in the Dollis Hill loop Geoff Marshall was never seen again. Some say that even now he’s still going round. 🤣

[@Eric_Hunt194]

I see what you did there... took me until halfway through the first 'loop' though 😂

[@MRTransportVideos]

RIP Geoff Marshall - buried on Platform 2 at Dollis Hill, after failing to break the Loop.....

[@jeroenpoels9493]

Of course it must be mentioned that Dollis Hill isn't played that much during a round of Mornington Crescent, because that often leads to a blocked diagonal. Yours Sincerely, Mrs. Trellis, North Wales

[@totoro123]

I assume you’re doing Mornington Crescent last 😂

[@eddisstreet]

You might meet a Mrs Trellis of North Wales there.

[@alanclarke4646]

When he breaks out of the Dollis Hill Loop..

[@GUNNERS_GOAT]

Why?

[@bornach]

​@@GUNNERS_GOATBecause that ends the game?

[@idiotinchief]

Once he gets out of knid

[@Vanmanyo]

Adore this station, always pass it on Chiltern trains and love watching them pass by! Another great video Geoff 😄

[@AFCManUk]

I remember a Mornington Crescent game, where all moves had to be variations of Real Names, and Omid Djalili used Dollis Hill as 'Dolly Sill' 😁

[@PetertheRock.]

Ho ho! Great entertainment, Geoff! I feel wonderfully disconnected and relaxed. The cheque's in the post. See the Dollis Hill staff postbox!

[@AndreiTupolev]

Just audible in the introduction is Geoff's private helicopter 🚁 having just dropped him off. You don't think he travels everywhere by Tube now, do you? 😀

[@geofftech2]

ha! busted .. how did you know ?!

[@GUNNERS_GOAT]

@@geofftech2hi

[@craigthomson3621]

@@geofftech2Rishi Sunak grassed on you!

[@johnmurray8428]

The old Post Office Telecom had a research centre in Dollis Hill. It all moved to Martlesham near Ipswich in the 1970s. As someone pointed out on another post, they had WW2 functions that were vital at the time. Thank you Geoff, nice video.

[@tomwinch9107]

Indeed, the first electronic computer was designed and built by Tommy Flowers and his staff at the Post Office Research Centre at Dollis Hill - as were the next ~10, before being sent to Bletchley Park. Called Colossus it was programmed by switches and plug boards (think old style telephone exchange) and ran 5 bit paper tapes (recorded from intercepted encyphered radio signals used by the German High command for information aggregation and dissemination) As the Russians had captured a number of the machines used by the Nazis and believed they were unbreakable, the British government kept all info on Colossus classified for many years. Although rapid progress was made on developing computers after the war, those involved in Colossus found it harder than they should have to get funding as their ideas were seen as untested and high-risk

[@flinthillsmodelrailway]

Yes absolutely, it was where Tommy Flowers (PO telecom )set about building the code breaking machine colossus for Bletchley .

[@gkinlen]

Fond memories of DH PO research my Dad was part of design team for Trimphone

[@JohnJoseph-xw5zk]

Excellent shot of the platform and the Metropolitan trains passing at the same time.😊

[@davidpiper3652]

During WW2 Bletchley Park had a sub division at Dollis Hill where they did code breaking with BOMBE machines. My Aunt worked there. I really should visit.

[@DavidWood2]

The Bombe had nothing to do with Dollis Hill; those machines were built by the British Tabulating Machine Company in Letchworth. There were five Bletchley Park outstations with Bombes: two in London (Stanmore and Eastcote) and three in the area near Bletchley Park (Wavendon Manor, Adstock and Gayhurst Manor). I know for certain that Stanmore has now been completely obliterated; the former Government Buildings there are now a housing estate. The Post Office Research Station at Dollis Hill built the Heath Robinson and Colossus for Bletchley Park.

[@willingshelf]

Very unexpected! The second time I heard it I thought, ‘wait a second, did he forget to edit this out?’, but then I realized. Cheeky!

[@matthew-Williams]

1:29 Love the sound of the train pulling out.

[@Casper-g4i]

Love this, great job on making the best transport videos ever!

[@villagerearlofcedarham7893]

I just discovered your channel Geoff, and I have to say, It is very entertaining.

[@HenrysAdventures]

Good to see Dollis Hill, I belive it takes its name from the Dollis Brook. I'm passed through this station many times but never got of here. Now I know it this close to Gladstone Park I'll have to stop off here one day.

[@firesurfer]

I love the benches in the waiting room and matching overhang.

[@jakecoare]

Another great and informative video Geoff as someone who is autistic and has a great love of trains and the railways I watch all you’re videos they are amazing and great full of information and facts I didn’t know! Loving the loop section remedied me of something Doctor who writers would have done!! Keep your amazing and brilliant videos Geoff I enjoy them so much !

[@apc108]

What a very avant-garde psychedelic ending Geoff!

[@qwertyTRiG]

It's also a cheeky joke.

[@marcelwiszowaty1751]

IIRC Gladstone Park featured in Sir John Betjamin's "Metroland" documentary from 1973. Thanks for the vid, Geoff!

[@stevewalsh1987]

Dollis hill also has Paddock (Churchills war room) located nearby and was where out of his own money the real created of collosos the computer was originally built before going to Bletchley park.

[@_its_finn]

Amazing filming as always! Love the Wikipedia joke too, great video Geoff!

[@alessandrowda]

There's also a staff letterbox on the eastbound platform at Parsons Green, in the red brick building.

[@ShawnGBR]

The 'Dollis Hill' loop was a nice touch!

[@nickgiles7568]

Well thank you for educating me! For years I thought that Dudding Hill was somewhere in the Midlands- close to Vauxhall & Duddleston but now I know.

[@oasdfe1691]

Kids during the day and night asking if you want to buy weed, local guy always begs and pees in the station entrance, london classic!

[@mannysoloway2286]

Geoff I got a laugh out of this one, wonderful as always

[@Biadosaru]

I wondered if there'd perhaps be a passing mention of the loop. I wasn't expecting such a hilarious bit. Points!

[@jimreed3916]

Well done on the loop sir!

[@jordanjones1642]

The unforgettable sound of the jubilee line 👍🏽 would love to see Stanmore / Roding Valley on the series

[@geofftech2]

Stanmore is on 'End of the Line' kzbin.info/www/bejne/ZmjIYo2No7BqfKssi=tXMRw7gp6nHvw8Mw and Roding Valley as 'Least Used Station' kzbin.info/www/bejne/q2PMhGCbi7SKqMUsi=k45WiT5dcaNeuC2L

[@alalsacienne]

I just found our copy of The London Underground 50 things to see and do. We are tidying as we are moving to south London, it occurred to me in my newly minted wheelchair whether there is scope for an accessible tube activity/sight seeing book. I love the underground and I am constantly reassuring people the underground is doable. PS Living 5 mins from Dollis Hill it absolutely is somewhere you songs would get stolen!!!

[@pauljmccluskey5532]

12:19 I lived there back in the late 80s and Gladstone Park nearby was such a pleasant part of London. The art deco waiting room is pretty impressive!

[@waynekerr5645]

Me too, in Burnley Road, happy days.

[@waynekerr5645]

Oh and Chapter Road, unsurprisingly at the Chapter Road end, was famous (infamous?) in the 70s for the Grunwick film processing lab strikes.

[@jacobporrett]

My sister used to live in the area up the steep hill. You don't get many Freight trains through the line but you do get one or two. The signal box is no longer operational but it still looks the part. The area is nice and the park is nice. Did you see any Chiltern trains wizz by Geoff? Good spot to see them pass.

[@TheCyberSalvager]

I've seen Dollis Hill station many times while heading to and from Marylebone on the adjacent Chiltern line. I first found out about Dollis Hill not through my transport enthusiasm, but the discography of The Future Sound Of London, who by all accounts were based there.

[@ADAMEDWARDS17]

The "entrance in the houses station" winnner is surely Arsenal (formerly Gillespie Road)?

[@malcmac2980]

My Local station from 1998 to 2000, although I often used to walk to Willesden Green instead as it's on the border of zone 2/3, making it slightly cheaper for a longer walk!

[@EmptyGlass99]

I worked as a labourer in the area in 1994. Walking to Dollis Hill tube on a Friday night with £200 cash in your pocket was a 'thrilling' experience. It's rough round there, or it was.

[@NineWorldsFromDrew]

Got yourself in a Dollis Hill loop! Very clever! 😂

[@thelundygruffalo]

I'm surprised there was no mention of the obviously mismatched entrance sign, with letters in two different shades and sizes. 00:49.

[@neville132bbk]

Watching, on what promises to be a colld night in Levin, NZ.... Dollis Hill station needs a few 100$ worth of paint spent on it--love the Art Deco design.... If by some $$ miracle i ever came back to London... i'd be spending my time visiting specific stations to appreciate their internal and external designs..esp some of the gorgeous tiling. You and M'Lord Hazzard have shown me all the places I didn't know about on my previous 3 visits.

[@timothyrider1127]

Years ago I remember trying to board the 96 Stock there (not knowing they were on test at the time). Dollis Hill was also closest to where my parents and I lived before we moved out of London when I was still a toddler.

[@MurrayGould]

What a wonderful 5 minutes, chock full, were some actors involved... tapping on and a wave....

[@mckenzie403]

I don’t know what’s a more repetitive. The beep from the Dollis Hill help point or Geoff attempting to break the loop. 😂

[@rickansell661]

Oi! Dollis Hill Post Office Research Station. Workplace of Tommy Flowers and therefore the birthplace of Colossus, the magnificent code breaking machine. Tunny and Fish in general and high-speed punch tape and the warm glow of Vacuum Tubes stuff even more Secret than Enigma. Any aficionado of the history of Computing will know of it and argue with you over it's relative importnace in the development of such devices. Also the Paddock Bunker, under a corner of the Research Station, the little-use WWII Cabinet War Rooms alternative site. Oh, and the testing of various WWI and inter-war Tanks at The Experimental Ground.

[@ThrushCZX]

Hainault has a staff letters post box on the end of platform 1 (where the trains depart to Woodford) but it’s behind the swing gate that passengers can’t pass (although if you peer over it you can see it)

[@Sim0nTrains]

Wouldn't be suprised if Geoff is still at Dollis Hill 😂 great video

[@Pez1979]

I love that whine of the Jubiliee Line Trains as they pull away.

[@zeddessell]

0:19 That map has an anachronism-in 1909 Kingsbury station (and the Metropolitan Line branch to Stanmore) did not exist. The Stanmore branch was opened in 1932-it was only part of the Metropolitan Line for 7 years until the Bakerloo Line took it over.

[@joh2089]

An early episode of Clue from 22 August 1978 includes a game of Mornington Crescent, where the team (quite ingeniously) came up with the route Neasden High Street, Goodge Street, Cromwell Road, Dollis Hill, Strand, and Mornington Crescent. But how? Could it be that the ominous loop didn't even exist before the Stanmore branch became part of the Jubilee line?

[@antonydennett5938]

Geoff yet another fantastic video. Learning all the time.

[@rachelwalker7091]

Brilliant, just brilliant

[@lukeeclair7736]

No mention of Gladstone parkrun? It's lovely and flat. Come on Geoff! 😉

[@davidangel-blair9358]

330K Subscribers! Congratulations Geoff!

[@SiVlog1989]

One small thing I learned about this station, unlike most of the stations between Wembley Park and Finchley Road, this one only ever had an island platform on what was originally the Met Slow lines. The works to make it part of (initially) the Bakerloo Line didn't require the removal of platforms, what was the Metropolitan Slow lines between Wembley Park and Finchley Road, were adapted to be used by Tube trains

[@Anonymoususer_8823]

I would say that Dollis Hill in North London on the Jubilee Line is very posh and beautiful and the station does have that suburban feel to it. But overall such a nice station.

[@stevemyers1071]

😂 you nearly had me there 😂

[@Brother1-s8l]

Very nice 🧍‍♂️

[@raakone]

Also, between 1939 and 2000, it wasn't STRICTLY an unconnected station. As a few Metropolitan trains would run onto the Bakerloo/Jubilee tracks and serve all local stations at the start and end of service. This was ended in 2000, due to the installation and activation of Automatic Train Operation that only 96 Tubestock may use.

[@norbitonflyer5625]

Interesting s ever. I note that your 1909 map shows the Stanmore branch of the Metrolopitan Line, but that didn't open until 1932

[@nicholashoi3155]

1:29 the motor sound of the jubilee line never gets old, even Singapore North East Line has similar sound

[@JohnLumagui]

I'm guessing that's why the Help Point was beeping: it was the last successful attempt to break the loop!

[@tashaslifex]

My grandma used to live here when she was young.

[@jamesbalchin4640]

Galdstone park was used in the last detective staring Peter Davison

[@JohnResalb]

That freight only line you pointed out - i gather there are future plans for that line, but I think its hardly surprising the way the population is going - I would suggest that - in years to come, there won't be such a thing in the London area as "freight only". What do you think ?

[@geordieal]

Suddenly had a memory from the past enter my brain… re-record not fade away, re record not fade away…re record not fade away…

[@kaliou6645]

4:35 But Geoff, ⚠️📼🎞️🌀 I thought that my VHS was relooping a Vintage intro for a Blue Man Group TV ad in London and a man named Geoff Marshall being the host of this promo, known for his creative concept visuals in the early 2000's. 🚂

[@CherylSteele-rt8dj]

Lovely geoff, thank you. 🎉

[@Nayson]

After passing by the station without stopping quite literally thousands of times I walked here from Wembley once as it was a nice day, I had a couple of hours to kill and I absolutely *needed* to know what the entrance looked like. Other than ageing about ten years when trying to cross the North Circular at Neasden it was a thoroughly pleasant experience.

[@gooscarguitar]

They do indeed close the gates when the station is closed, which is quite annoying on strike days

[@rjm67]

Well played, Geoff. 😂👏

[@tramcrazy]

Only realised you’d ended up in a loop halfway through the second reading 😂

[@ScottRae]

Offside lateral to South Kensington usually works for me, but only if I play it on the 4th cycle

[@ffrh05]

That park at night is... dangerous LOL

[@hanwellianben]

A shout out for the Dollis Hill Chippy on Hamilton Road.

[@UK.RoadsCyclingandTransport]

Legend says Geoff is still stuck in the loop

[@JP_TaVeryMuch]

Wot no mention of the secret GPO bunker based Cabinet War Room in suburbia?

[@Eddyspeeder]

I think Geoff's Dollis Hill Loop broke KZbin. It's now started showing this video at varying lengths, from 5:00 to 4:57 and 4:59.

[@philipbarnard2474]

Grunwick. There was a strike that lasted from 1976 - 1978 over worker rights, right next to the station. Past the picket line every day.

[@Nicolaizans]

Nice one Geoff, will there be a video from your visit at the Rislip lido? I hope that buzzing noice from the help point wasn't heard from the park 😂

[@l228spn]

1:16, those Bon Jovi fans can be very loyal.

[@reececollison5101]

0:43 those houses must be worth an absolute fortune!!

[@jonathanirons231]

Yeah but the first time, you say "I'm sorry I haven't *got* a clue". Cue Radio 4 listeners spitting ovaltine across the room ... ;-) Well played Geoff. As ever! 😜

[@CourtMcCheese]

I honestly never knew that Dollis Hill was on 3 separate lines at one point.

[@DavidShepheard]

It's more that the Metropolitan Railway had too many branches and could not get enough trains up them all, so wanted to close some stations down and get rid of some branch lines. Once the London Passenger Transport Board took over the Metropolitan Railway, it was given funding to connect the Bakerloo Line up to one of the Metropolitan Line branches (the one to Stanmore). This would mean that Met Line trains would never need to serve Stanmore again and those trains that used to go there could then go to other stations. However, the Bakerloo Line then had two Branches (one to Stanmore and one to Watford). They ended up having the exact same problem and could not run enough trains for both branches. So the London Transport Executive split the Bakerloo Line in half and connected the Baker Street to Stanmore branch to a new tunnel from Baker Street to Charring Cross. There are other railway lines on the London Underground that have been split apart too. The Piccadilly Line that now goes to Heathrow Airport, used to be part of the District Line.

[@johnhaines4163]

Some years ago (at least 6) there was a plan to make it step-free. I see that hasn't happened yet.

[@geofftech2]

sadly, it's not step free, no. you could add a lift from the passageway below to come up to the island platform, for sure.

[@GUNNERS_GOAT]

@@geofftech2hi

[@rogerbrown5558]

Nice shot of three trains.

[@ajs41]

Don't think I've ever got off at this station, but will certainly do so next time I'm passing through. (Well, perhaps not tomorrow since I'm having a go at the tube challenge!)

[@Kasike37]

Geoff u should check out the metros of Valencia, Bilbao, Barcelona, and Madrid if u get that chance!

[@darganx]

I can't believe Goeff turned up at my local-ish station - well, same distance from me as Neasden station! Re. rest room: that's been closed since Covid, no joy there! Odd fact 1: There actually was a passenger station at Dudden (or Dudding) Hill up to the early 20th century, the iron footbridge is the only reminder. Odd fact 2: Did you know that Dollis Hill and Dudden Hill are actually the SAME hill from different sides - Dollis Hill on the Willesden/Cricklewood side, Dudden Hill on the Neasden side. Odd fact 3: Walk to the top of the hill of Gladstone Park and you'll see the remnants of William Gladstone's 18th century country house, flattened by Boris Johnson when he was Mayor. Also close by is one of the first centralised intelligence buidings (pre-GCHQ) built by the GPO and operational during WWII, where Tommy Flowers decoded German messages before D-Day. Huge underground bunker there as well. Too bad I didn't get to see Geoff that day, I could have been a useful tour guide!

[@TheGKFront]

Oh my god, I didn't watch the screen and heard you repeat and thought I somehow touched the keyboard and skipped back or something

[@raararjen]

What a great shot around 1:40

[@panamrailfan]

I only got the loop joke after the 4th time

[@anianii]

Took me a while to notice as well, I thought at first he made a mistake when editing 😂

[@konrad2324]

I’m waiting for you at Oval station 👋

[@robertfeeley192]

Too early for getting stuck in your loop Geoff 😂😂😂😂😂

[@MattBuildsBlocks]

Fabulous Video Geoff!!

[@josephj9828]

I feel so dumb for falling for the loop at first. 😂

[@Bigaitch]

Excellent video as ever Geoff. However , I am slightly dissapointed you never mentioned the fantastic mural adjacent to the entrance on the northern side which shows local history. It also includes the former Grunwick site which was adjacent and achieved notoriety in the 1970s. Loved the IASIHAC references....

[@UK.RoadsCyclingandTransport]

Hilarious joke at the end 🤣

[@smokebleeder]

Well this was the most unhinged episode in a while