The A Class: The First Underground Trains

10th January will be the 160th anniversary of the opening of the Metropolitan Railway. Let us celebrate!
Ko-Fi: ko-fi.com/jago...
Patreon: / jagohazzard

[@sporkafife]

Despite being English, I've only been to London once in my life. Despite this I have watched the s**t out of videos from Jago and similar KZbinrs over the past few years. It's got to the point where I'm going to see a music gig one night at Wembley arena in March, but have unnecessarily booked it as a 4 night weekend trip and mostly plan to just ride around on trains and go to transport nerd hotspots 😂

[@Tryinglittleleg]

how???

[@stephanbach1652]

Smart man. I’m an American who has been to London 38 time. My favourite ‘must see’ is the London Underground. On rainy days L I’ve spent a fair share of my time getting on and off busses.

[@sevenwatson5854]

That's fantastic! Experiencing the wonders you've watched on KZbin. I know you'll have a great time!.

[@Rog5446]

Welcome to the Sad Club.

[@MartyJackson]

You should visit the London Transport Museum! It’s where Jago has filmed the 23 Met Line train in this video.

[@PtolemyJones]

I love the way that around 1:03 they used a lower case G as a mirror image of the upper case R on either side of the W for western. Very clever and aesthetically pleasing.

[@frankupton5821]

@@JP_TaVeryMuch Those benches can also be seen, for instance, at Birmingham Moor Street and (I think) at Leamington Spa, both of which have some retro styling.

[@osbob1983]

I looked at it and saw a particularly long-stalked upper case G, but now I'm getting a blend of both. In agreement with yourself and the other commenter, it's a wonderful aesthetic touch, and quite pleasing to see

[@evmanbutts]

@@osbob1983 My father and grandfather always wrote uppercase Gs like this.

[@nathancorcoran5347]

Greetings from the United States of America. I had recently visited the London Transport Museum in London, England, United Kingdom back since July 4th 2024 (Coincidentally the same date of the famed American Holiday that we celebrate here called the 4th of July), and I had seen one of the Metropolitan Railway A Class Locomotives preserved at this museum on static display. A unique design of a Steam Locomotive that was meant for a Underground Railroad.

[@BJHolloway1]

As a young boy I saw one the last steam engines on these duties in Liverpool Street station (Met Line) - must have been late 50s or early 60s more like.

[@PokhrajRoy.]

I really liked the Steamy Tale of the British Underground. It hissed at the appropriate times 😂

[@allenwilliams1306]

Beyer-Peacock was set up in 1854. Charles Beyer was a German-born engineer who had been involved in the production of locomotives for the Liverpool and Manchester Railway. Richard Peacock had been the Chief Engineer of the Manchester, Sheffield, and Lincolnshire Railway. They set up a works in Gorton, on the MS&L line, to produce locomotives independently of any operating company. The company lasted for 112 years, essentially being sunk by BR's discontinuance of Western Region's affinity with Diesel-Hydraulic locomotives, to which Beyer-Peacock had committed themselves. The Hymek was their last successful design.

[@plaws0]

Didn't that company make a bunch of condensing locomotives for South Africa or Australia or something? Weird double engines, IIRC

[@allenwilliams1306]

@@plaws0 You are thinking of the Garratt articulated locomotives, which had the boiler and crew section in the middle, and the water tank and coal bunkers at each end, the three sections being on separate frames, the end ones, principally or wholly, having the driving and bogie wheels. And, yes, they built about 1,000 of them for export all over the world, except North America, including the biggest steam locomotive ever constructed in Europe, for the USSR, and the most powerful steam engine ever to operate in Britain. Strictly speaking, they weren't double engines, they only had one, but had two sets of driving wheels.

[@plaws0]

@@allenwilliams1306 Two sets of pistons, two sets of connecting rods, two sets of drivers ... fed by one firebox/boiler, granted ... Pretty sure that's a double engine. REGARDLESS, yes, Garratt is exactly what I was thinking of - thanks! Putting the mass of the water and coal over the drivers was pretty darn clever. Sure, I guess that makes (some of) them 2-6-0+0-6-2T engines, but who's counting? 🙂 I thought I remembered that (some of) these were condensing engines for use in extremely dry climates, but the WP article makes no mention of that.

[@camenbert5837]

These monsters? en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_African_Class_25_4-8-4

[@plaws0]

@@camenbert5837 I guess I had these mixed up with the Garratts - thanks!

[@davidjoyce1021]

Yerkes- The Legendary- and a Brill branch reference! 👍

[@eattherich9215]

In Secrets of the London Underground, Tim Dunn and Siddy Holloway took a trip to see what was left of Brill.

[@fernandosantiagorodrigueze2655]

Una de las 3 locomotoras de vapor conservadas en Bilbao es la Izarra del Ferrocarril Tudela Bilbao

[@whyyoulidl]

00:27 Oooh, I chose the Met as the first underground line in the xmas quiz (which IIIRC, Jago said was the Bakerloo) I'll give myself an extra point and a well-earned huge slice of cake for this fat controller in that case...

[@roderickmain9697]

Somewhere there is a video of one of the preserved Met engines (from Quainton road) running around the underground (relatively recently) in full steam with a middle of the night special - much to the surprise of cleaning staff. Just this one engine barrelling through a station gives an idea of the smoke and steam. Anyone for a coal-tar sauna? (for those interested, search youtube for Metropolitan at 150 by Samuel Brown)

[@highpath4776]

I was waiting for the sign off "you are the condensing apparatus to my bolier explosion" but maybe that feels wrong

[@Rog5446]

Thanks to the old boy, I've learned a new word for Scrabble, Stygian. Also noted is the first mention of Jerkes in 2023.

[@johnjephcote7636]

I was always very fond of the brown T stock carriages which pulled me as far as Rickmansworth (from where steam took over to Amersham) behind a Bo-Bo electric loco or, as multiple units, on their own, to Watford Met. The distictive curved-top doors were there in case they had to be opened in tunnel.

[@class87fan54]

Ah, I've been hoping for a video on the A class and this didn't disappoint. We're very lucky that No 23 is still with us to serve as a reminder of the early days of underground railways. Indeed, she's one of only two Metropolitan steam locos to survive. Incidentally, the New South Wales Government Railways C12 class 4-4-0 tender engines were based on the A class and looking at them, the family resemblance is clear, especially at the front end. That bit about the A's that were sold to the Cambrian Railways was interesting. Potting about rural Wales must've been a contrast from sprinting through Central London! Incidentally, due to the Met's main line aspirations, some of their steam loco classes were so big that they couldn't work underground, most notably the H and K classes.

[@teraris]

Beyer Peacock and John Fowler heavily influenced New South Wales Government Railway practice for decades - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_South_Wales_Z12_class_locomotive

[@teraris]

And prior to that McConnell and Wolverton practice, influenced the design of their locomotives. A John McConnell locomotive is preserved in the form of NSWGR No. 1 - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Locomotive_No._1

[@rayfisher3921]

The Cambrian didn't know what to do with them. So they didn't do much.

[@dancedecker]

Another excellent video Mr Hazzard. And you managed to get good ol' "Charlie boy" in yet again. Well done. I have to say, living a long way from "the big smoke", in 2013, ( is it really a decade since? Yikes), I argued with myself as to whether I should make the effort and swallow the expense, to go down to see a steam locomotive on the Met. Yes I should, won the day and how incredibly and eternally grateful I am that it did and that I made the effort. To see Met No. 1 chuffing through Baker Street was absolutely incredible and something that I will NEVER forget. Absolutely unequalled in my book. Also, an amusing aside to it all. At Kings Cross, the station announcer, who I believe is a bit of a character, said just before it steamed through, "Dear passenger, don't be alarmed if you see some smoke shortly, it's NOT another fire, we're 150 years old, so we're celebrating with a steam engine coming through". Awesome.

[@andyknott8148]

And he has been elevated to legendary.

[@kaitlyn__L]

He put his own spin on it but that’s a fairly standard announcement - “the smoke is expected, this is a special steam train, so don’t panic”. I saw one once somewhere along the Met in 2009 or 2010 or something just by chance. Or… was it indeed very early 2013? Well, anyway.

[@dancedecker]

@@kaitlyn__L What!! "Don't worry it's not another fire, it's just a steam train" , is a fairly standard announcement is it? Oh ok.

[@kaitlyn__L]

@@dancedecker that was his own spin, the “another fire” part :) but “don’t be alarmed by the smoke, it’s a steam train” is usual procedure. He was probably having a bit of fun with it after saying it every time they ran one through!

[@neville132bbk]

@@dancedecker Master 3+ yr old, who is being guided along the Right Rails,,,so to speak... is much taken by steam trains... it's part of our afternoon programme when he comes round....He is rapt by A4 Pacifics, must be blue or green.. we were watching a video a few days ago and watching the locos whizzing by...His class phrase was... 'A4..... a blue A4... black A4....oh-- that's just a steam train"... as some glorious LMS engine flew past...

[@Peter-lm3ic]

I well recall steam locomotives on the underground at Moorgate Station, London in 1948/9. They were unusual to see even in those days!

[@DavidWilson-hh2gn]

I had a great aunt who remembered travelling on these steam hauled Met.trains and told of the smuts,soot and quite unpleasant stench that was encountered.I believe that condensing apparatus affects the draughting of the locomotives and I can remember the BR tanks used to sound very wheezy with the condensers operating.

[@RB-xl1nd]

A CLASS act as ever Jago.

[@phaasch]

Thanks, Jago - I really had no idea just how influential the A class engines were on contemporary locomotive design, and a special thanks for 7:30 the Adams Radial, which so many of us Bluebell Railway members really, really want to see returned to service, at least before we all drop off our collective perches!

[@MrDavil43]

Not a Bluebell member (Watercress Line is my local Heritage railway) but I'd also love to see the Radial Tank back in steam.

[@phaasch]

@@MrDavil43 Good man! Huge job, Trigger's broom, and all that, but boy, would It be worth it. A unique survivor.

[@iankemp1131]

If you want to see an Adams outside cylinder engine running again, hopefully you can do so at Swanage this summer, as T3 4-4-0 No.563 is finishing its major overhaul to return it to service (donations permitting). Just 130 years old! It was at the NRM for many years and I always thought it a singularly beautiful engine. It starred in a couple of the live versions of The Railway Children - in Toronto and the first of the Kings Cross versions. Will be fascinating to see how it does in service especially as the Swanage line has gradients of 1 in 76/80.

[@phaasch]

@@iankemp1131 Yes, I'm really looking forward to that. Calculations are, with the adhesive weight, plus slightly smaller driving wheels than the X2s, it should aquit itself pretty well. Personally, I'd love to see the Wainwright D class freed from the NRM, and running on the Bluebell. And "Gladstone", but really can't see that happening, seeing as it hasn't turned a wheel since 1927.

[@ricktownend9144]

Erskine Childers - as Carruthers, in the Riddle of the Sands - describes a 'sulphurous' ride in the underground to Aldgate, presumably from Westminster, as it was after his government office work.

[@northernheights]

I got chills at the end about the story of number 23 Amazing it hit 82 years of service, almost 82 years ago now

[@azuma892]

They bear some similarities with the early Japanese British-built 4-4-0 tender locos, also designed by Beyer Peacock, one example is housed at the Tobu Museum.

[@kaitlyn__L]

Oh yes, they look very similar!

[@AndreiTupolev]

1:55Well, they did, sort of; the now preserved 0-4-4 tank No. 1 was built at the Met's Neasden works

[@NickyMitchell85]

Happy 😃 160th Birthday 🥳, Metropolitan Line. And happy 😃 160th Birthday 🎂, London Underground 🚇. Here’s to many more 🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉. I still remember when the ‘London Underground’ 🚇 turned 150 back in 2013. I surely did celebrate 🎉 indeed!!!

[@alanbudgen2672]

Lots of snow during those celebrations in 2013.

[@NickyMitchell85]

@@alanbudgen2672 agreed 👍. After a rather wet 🌧️ and soggy 🌧️🌧️ 2012..

[@doublea06]

*1863-2023* and beyond.

[@trained_4_life]

Oh dear I remember the Centenary celebrations at Neasden....

[@ewoutrohling]

Gotta give a shout-out to the Australian cousins of the A class, the 12/13 classes! Effectively tender versions of the A (minus condensing gear), introduced in 1877, and lasting in regular service until the early 1960s. 6 have survived into preservation (3 of which were rebuilt as 13 class tank engines) including 1210, the first loco into the Australian capital!

[@Gl33D]

Your channel has quickly become my favourite on the platform. Can't wait to move to london, been visiting every weekend for years now its absolutely my favourite place to be

[@whyyoulidl]

'...on the platform'; I see what you done there 😄

[@barneypaws4883]

I love that shot from 1:10 onwards of abandoned line and tunnel.

[@whyyoulidl]

+1! IIRC, covered in one of Jago's earlier vids

[@lesterfrancis8284]

Happy 160th Anniversary to the Metropolitan Line (I mean, the Metropolitan Railway), the original and the world first underground railway.

[@isashax]

Another very informative video from Mr Hazzard! Thank you!

[@ukmoshinist4595]

That was an informer rather than an entertainer, but I learned a lot and loved every minute!😀, and of course, no JH video would be complete without mention of Mr Yerkes!!😂

[@FaceInTheCrowd]

"Metropolitan mixture"..."it was a different time!" 😂 Your presentation and commentary are very well done; an enjoyable watch. Thanks for putting this up.

[@Low760]

I saw this at the museum when on holiday in Europe/UK, it blew my mind they used steam in tunnels.. so short! Thanks for the history.

[@patrickjmorgan]

Great video as usual. You have explained one of the questions I had regarding smoke and steam in tunnel. I’d not realised that the exhaust steam was fed through a condenser.

[@ow4744]

@7:30 - I am sure I had a Hornby model of that 415 Class tank engine. Was one of my favorites in that lovely old BR black and red livery. It was a favourite of mine.

[@BaileygaskellGaskell]

I always find it amazing the stories of individual trains that have somehow stayed working for well beyond what they are expected to be

[@PaulSmith-pl7fo]

Hi Jago. You may not remember but quite some time ago I asked you to make a video (or two) on early Underground trains. So, with an inordinate amount of hubris, I am going to say thank you for doing this for ME! I would be so pleased if you were to continue the story with the early electric locomotives (you did actually include a photo of one). I await with hope for such a video (or two).

[@traintakes]

Great piece on the class. Good to know we're approaching the 160th anniversary too! Would be rude not to go for a ride on the Met line on the 10th now!

[@raphaelnikolaus0486]

1:18-1:21 That actually provokes quite an interesting train of thought. What if the Great Western had indeed planned (and pursued) taking over the Metropolitan? What route might the story of the London Underground have taken? What would it look like today, and would it have had an effect on the privatisation and its franchises? (And if so, what would that be?) I think, that merits a video of its own. Don't you?

[@JagoHazzard]

It’s on the list!

[@iankemp1131]

Certainly a very interesting question. One can see why the Great Western were interested as it provided the link from their remote (at the time) Paddington terminus to the City. After the gauges were standardised you could have had through Reading-Shenfield trains via the Liverpool Street spur 130 years before Crossrail!

[@doorhanger9317]

Maybe we would end up with a more tokyo-style system with lots of inter-running between the subsurface lines and overground lines? With the deep-level lines being more of their own thing

[@brettpalfrey4665]

You get an A class review for this one! Thanks Jago...

[@darlingdownstransportservi3529]

New South Wales Government Railways also operated these locos - six survived as country line weed killer and light duties locos until 1957, with three passing into preservation including one that hauled the first train into Canberra in 1914.

[@eastlancsesteem]

Thanks for the history lesson.

[@Bunter.948]

Entirely up to your usual excellent standard, Mr H. All most interesting. And I loved the pic of Farringdon's abbreviated lines. Thank you. Simon T

[@trainluvr]

That was great. We get to see what early railfans could only dream of, the immense technological advances in rapid transit.

[@trainlover658]

As much as I love the fact she's preserved, I wish she wasn't trapped on the 2nd floor of the museum. An engine like that deserves to be admired and you can hardly see her...!

[@MLX1401]

Indeed! Never been to the museum myself, but on camera that poor engine looks like it was been tucked in someone's garage and barely fitted in 🧐

[@garycook5071]

A Jago video never seem complete without an appearance of Charles Yerkes

[@williamadams7865]

The New South Wales Government Railways here in Australia bought a number of similar engines but with tenders. These were used for premier express passenger services but would later see lighter service. A few were also converted to tank 4-4-2 engines which look almost identical to the example shown here. Several of both the tank and tender versions have been preserved. Tender engine 1210 has been in running order for part of its preservation career.

[@davidclare4983]

Thanks!

[@Richardincancale]

Interesting the adaptations for tunnel running! How about a deeper dive into how/why etc. condensers worked? For example - I would have thought the condenser tubes would have had fins to radiate as much of the latent heat as possible? I would intuitively have thought hot water being recycled into the boiler would be more efficient than cold water for making steam…?

[@paulhaynes8045]

You could be right, but it was the effect the warmer water had on the injectors that caused the problem - it stopped them working properly. And if you're not injecting enough water into a boiler, sooner or later it goes bang!

[@iankemp1131]

@@paulhaynes8045 Interesting thought; later GWR engines had crosshead-driven feedwater pumps, maybe they would have been better than injectors for this particular service? If the engine was stationary for a period it sometimes had to be run back and forth to get the pumps working, but that shouldn't have been a problem on the Met's intensive service.

[@iankemp1131]

@LueLou Good idea, but the problem is that you would need to cool it somehow to get the condensing to happen (which is why power stations have giant cooling towers). It releases a huge amount of energy (the reverse of the energy you put in to boil water). That's why even a small amount of steam going into the large water tanks on the engines made them heat up quite rapidly.

[@geneva760]

Thank you. CHEERS from AUSTRALIA.

[@k8zhd]

This was a very nice little early history. I like London (though I've only been 3 times), I like history, and I find your voice and cadence not only enlightening but soothing. Never mind that I understand only a fraction of what you are presenting -- it's still wonderful. Keep up the excellent work.

[@drottercat]

Jago Hazzard, you have one of the most pleasant voices and diction on KZbin. So perfectly clear that your unmistakenly British accent is but nice color.

[@Aaron-uf3sl]

Beyer Peacock also constructed extremely similar locomotives for the New South Wales Government Railways in the form of the Z12 class 4-4-0 tender engines (originally C class). A number of these as 4-4-2 tank engines (and reclassified Z13) to serve on commuter trains

[@nanduthalange7736]

A really enjoyable ramble through Metropolitan locomotive history - thank you! I have watched your videos almost from the beginning of the channel - nearly always with amusement and great enjoyment - but this is a new favourite - thanks, old bean.

[@highpath4776]

The Met section of the circle seems to have a fair proportion of open to the air vents, the District side less so (a bit near / in Victoria Coach Station, was Embankment Gardens orginally with more grill areas that were infilled / covered with the cafe when electric traction came into use ?

[@dougmorris2134]

Hello Jago, thank you for, yet again, another very interesting video. Brill, the nearest that Oxford got to being on the UndergrounD map. Many years ago now, I saw “Cecil Rakes” the loco built, in 1892, for the Mersey Railway by Beyer Peacock at the Steamport museum in Southport. I was surprised at how large it was for tunnel workings being more familiar with Tube size stock. Interestingly the Glasgow underground system is “narrow gauge” at 4ft (1.219m) and corresponding smaller rolling stock. The “Glasgow Subway” is the 4th oldest in the world and gained the name “The Clockwork Orange” I believe due to its bright colour livery. Jago, could this be the subject of a Highland Tale from the Tube? Charles Tyson Yerkes makes another appearance to the delight of your viewers. Best wishes from Abingdon, that finally lost its GWR branch line when the MG car works closed and the last excursion train ran in June 1984. I would like to wish you a (bit late) very Happy New Year.

[@iankemp1131]

I was on that final train to Abingdon (where I lived for many years) :)

[@kaitlyn__L]

@@iankemp1131 oh wow!

[@jackie0604oxon]

I do love your videos. London is fascinating, though being used to village life I can only cope with the pace of the capital on a day trip and no longer! Your closing footage was lovely - the east coast on the way to Edinburgh, perhaps?

[@neville132bbk]

LeviNZ is delighted to welcome back the esteemed Mr Yerkes to this bright New Year. All's well...drive on. re Beyer-Peacock engines....they were an unsuccessful experiment with NZ Gov't Railways around the late 20s, I think...one of the few is stored at Steam Incorporated's workshops and depot at Paekakariki ("piekok")about 50 km north of Wellington, on the coast line.... I used to see a lot of its neglected self in 2015 when I did Sat work as a member of the society.... although Steam Inc is run as a heritage-excursion etc company.

[@petecoventry6858]

I saw a line of 1930s busses today in Sheffied I was in awe! - and this is cool too

[@asheland_numismatics]

Here’s to 2023 and MANY more tales from the tube! 🤓🤗

[@Jimyjames73]

Very good - liking all the old b/w photos - thanks for sharing Jago 🙂🚂🚂🚂

[@malcolmheathcote1648]

I have a memory of a steam locomotive on the District Line whilst I was standing on the platform somewhere around Aldgate East. This would have been just after the war, mid to late 1940s. I was quite young at the time and it was quite unexpected so the memory is very vague. Could this have happened or was it my imagination?

[@pleappleappleap]

Sunday morning Jago video. A nice treat!

[@justinrovers1]

Yet another fantastic video!! You are an amazing story teller!

[@JagoHazzard]

Thank you!

[@robertwilloughby8050]

The A Class had cousins in the North London Railway 4-4-0 tanks, they were very successful.

[@captaincodpiece3263]

Very informative. More on that Brill branch. I recall visiting the LT museum at Syon Park in the 1970s where they had early steam engines from the underground on display I presume these were transferred when the museum relocated

[@highpath4776]

not sure where all of the London Transport Collection went. Covent Garden mainly, the Depot, at Acton for some and more later acquistions ( items are rotated ) and some on loan to Quainton Road museum

[@peterbradbury1592]

Brilliant video and narration. Thanks for sharing.

[@mikerichards6065]

Nearly 8 minutes before Charles Yerkes makes an appearance - I was getting worried. And I am wondering what was in ‘Metropolitan Mixture’ - almost certainly either opium or cocaine, because what didn’t in those days?

[@highpath4776]

tincture of alcohol probably too

[@dannyvanstraelen3273]

this is a very beautiful loco, got it model kit form…

[@SteveMikre44]

Great Sunday episode...😊👍

[@julianellis8200]

At last I now know why on at least one occasion I got a slam door steam train from Kings Cross to Great Portland Street in the 1950’s

[@norbitonflyer5625]

Wouldn't have been a steam train - from the 1920s onwards the Met's remaining slam-door trains were electrically hauled as far as Rickmansworth, where a steam loco took over. There were steam trains between Moorgate and Kings Cross though (continuing to destinations such as Hatfield)

[@highpath4776]

@@norbitonflyer5625 was that widened lines ? didnt know that

[@iankemp1131]

@@highpath4776 Yes, they went round the York Road curve at Kings Cross. There were also LMS steam trains from Moorgate to the St Albans line, hauled by Class 3 2-6-2Ts "which wouldn't have supplied enough steam to mash tea in a busy refreshment room" (A.J.Powell).

[@highpath4776]

@@iankemp1131 Was there a loco release road at Moorgate ? ( presumably explains the current wide platform between the now defunct widen lines bit, the met terminal pair of tracks and the met running lines ? (remodeled when the bedpan service came on?)

[@sevenowls7776]

Right, I'm now inspired to scratch-build a G-scale model of one of these for my model underground railway under my garden... I don't recommend them: it's murder peering down the scale ventilation shaft to see if it's working...

[@harrytodhunter5078]

I bloody love the A Class! Such an elegant loco.

[@0bsidianPrime]

Let's be real here, those condenser pipes to reclaim the steam is such a good idea. With proper refinement I could see those being far more useful in the long run.

[@simonf8902]

Fowlers Ghost, a prototype , was a notorious failure. It had white hot fire bricks instead of a fire. But a complete failure.

[@paulhaynes8045]

Jago's done a video on Fowler's Ghost. But then, that shouldn't be a surprise, Jago's done a video on just about everything remotely Underground related!

[@paulhaynes8045]

A question about condensing engines that's always puzzled me - how does this affect the engine's ability to draw air through the firebox and boiler? One of the key points of steam engine design is to exhaust the spent steam from the cylinders directly into the smokebox, to force a strong draft up the chimney, and thus draw hot air more efficiently through the boiler tubes. But if this steam is instead being tapped off earlier and condensed, surely this reduces the efficiency and power of the engine considerably?

[@JagoHazzard]

Good point. I think this is something I should investigate - there were many condensing locos, so presumably they did get it to work, but I cannot for the life of me say how. To the library!

[@iankemp1131]

Excellent question. Condensing engines had a general reputation of not performing very well so this might have been a contributory factor.

[@paulhaynes8045]

@@iankemp1131 I suspect they never thought it through properly. They never intended to have any engines of their own, so it wasn't a problem they needed to address. They probably just assumed that, with all the open bits of the line, it would be OK - after all, by normal standards, none of their tunnels was especially long (or narrow). And, if there were problems, those clever railway engine people would be able to sort it out. Once they realised there WAS a problem, they were stuck with the best solution they could come up with. And perhaps that meant they had to accept a loss of power as part of that solution? And, after all, it worked OK for several decades. And even then it wasn't their choice to electrify. Maybe they would have kept steam even longer and then switched to diesel or a non-Tube form of electric power, as the technologies improved?

[@iankemp1131]

Wikipedia confirms that this is a problem for condensing locomotives and quotes a source that an exhaust-driven fan could be used instead to increase the blast. But that refers to large South African engines of 1960 (Class 25) so it sounds a rather sophisticated approach for 100 years earlier. They were used in arid regions.

[@iankemp1131]

I've now found a comment from A.J. Powell in his book on LM locomotives that the draught in the tunnel sections had to be provided by the blower. Normally of course this would only be used to supplement the normal blastpipe and liven up a dead fire. Now I'm wondering to myself how the blower works and is powered - have seen the term for so many years but never really thought about it.

[@seonruiz4835]

I got excited for a second and thought you were doing a video on the Irish A class. Edit: to be fair I found this incredibly interesting.

[@peterjohncooper]

Yes, I did enjoy. Thank you. You always manage to pitch these videos at my knowledge level ie nil.

[@poowey]

5:27 "Stygian" Reaches for Dictionary; adjective relating to the River Styx in Greek mythology. Ah thank you.

[@poowey]

@@JP_TaVeryMuch (grabs dictionary and doesn't put it back this time) Ah a theme, indeed.

[@genevarailfan3909]

Thank you for pronouncing Charles Yerkes's name correctly! I've been very involved at the observatory bearing his name in the US, and people almost never get it right.

[@LesD9]

He's had plenty of practice!

[@qaphqa]

I feel particularly knowledge enriched by this episode. Well done!

[@JagoHazzard]

I hope you are feeling stoked.

[@paulhaynes8045]

Very interesting video. I had no idea that steam played such a significant part in the early Underground. In history books it's invariably described as if it was only a brief period before the more sensible idea of using electric traction dawned. An indication, perhaps, that the early underground railways weren't really thinking of themselves as 'underground railways' as such, but just continuations of the existing railways that just happened to burrow underground to reach their terminus?

[@andrewgwilliam4831]

@@seanbonella What?

[@JagoHazzard]

Indeed. The Metropolitan almost seemed offended to be considered as an Underground line.

[@highpath4776]

@@JagoHazzard The Met board seemed so fixated with the idea of going to France via south of the thames from somewhere that they never thought to create a link north of the Thames to the LTS for a Birmingham-Southend Through service , perhaps though the need to integrate effectively "semi fast" in london ( Baker St, Kings X, Moorgate, Liv Street , Whitechapel) was too much while being forced to finish one way or another the urban circle line with all its stops.

[@highpath4776]

We forget just how many people were starting to move into housing around Paddington/ Notting Hill / Ladbroke Grove as a result of the Met thus needing to get to work in the City at Moorgate for Bank

[@iankemp1131]

Yes, it's a salutary thought that steam working on the Met lasted for over 40 years and it predated the first successful electric railways by 20 years. I wonder if they ever considered cable traction - that's what Glasgow did in 1896 (and it lasted till 1935). In 1863 there really wasn't much alternative to steam.

[@frglee]

The heritage narrow gauge 2-4-0 Beyer Peacocks built between 1874 and 1910 for the Isle of Man Railway are testimony to the longevity of this company's locomotives. There are over 80 Beyer Peacock steam locomotives in preservation all over the world. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beyer,_Peacock_and_Company#Preserved_locomotives

[@camenbert5837]

They also have brass numbers on their chimneys, which is most unusual.

[@billthomas8205]

Thank you, Jago. Brilliant as always. How about an episode focussing on the Brill branch?

[@JagoHazzard]

I have been assembling material for such a thing!

[@ReubenAshwell]

Lovely video on the first underground trains. :)

[@scottc1589]

Thank you for clarifying 23's murky past!

[@rolandayers6726]

It's not surprising at least one tame doctor told the public that inhaling the emissions of underground steam trains was beneficial. Doctors haven't changed much.

[@pjf_nn1]

I do think this channel is really starting to get some traction.

[@highpath4776]

I may rename my channel as Stygian Ferryman in honour of Jago's recent noticing of things

[@andrewpinner3181]

Thanks again Jago ! Having noticed the somewhat peculiar facial hair of some of the people involved in the Underground's development, l'm surprised they weren't dubbed 'The Weird Beards Outfit'.

[@vindolanda6974]

Just the fashion at the time for all men.

[@poowey]

1:06 DIDCOT!!😁 (The Didcot mafia get their dues again, poor Jago)

[@Lurker1979]

Amazing how the underground survived. Considering all the steam and smoke. Even with safeguards in place.

[@msamour]

Happy New Year Jago! Thanks for continuing to share London rail history.

[@engineerskalinera]

The A class is in my opinion the most beautiful British locomotive. Were I to try to model something British, the Brill branch would probably be it, thanks to its small size requirements too.

[@Mriya6]

Fascinating to hear about how a condenser system made the injector ineffective. I've always wondered why steam engines didn't have a condenser system to recycle steam, it seems a huge waste to use all their steam and thus their water only once before exhausting it. But now I finally have an answer! Thanks!

[@rayfisher3921]

Compound locos used the steam twice by having second cylinder(s) at lower pressure to re-use the steam. In general more successful in Europe than here.

[@ThatScottishAtlantic57]

Nice video Jago, always wanted to see one on the Metropolitan's Steam Engines. 👍

[@Oldsmobile69]

Just can't wrap my head around the idea that the drivers stood right behind the chimney, in an open cab. In a tunnel.

[@adriaanboogaard8571]

Great Video. Well done and most interesting. Thank you 😁

[@Slycockney]

I can't imagine what it must have been like travelling on a steam train in a tunnel in the heat of summer, must have been hellish.

[@highpath4776]

In fairness the platforms were only a few feet below ground level, what is now fully enclosed say Farringdon to Liverpool Street had more areas of openness to the air in and between the stations

[@jeremypreece870]

...And so it came to pass that taking a train pulled by an A class became known as the "A" train. Then Billy Strayhorn composed a famous piece of music called "Take the A train" which became the signature tune of Duke Ellington and his orchestra. (At least some parts of this statement are true.)

[@MrDavil43]

I don't think 4-4-0 tank engines were that common, certainly not compared to the number of 0-4-4 tank engines that seemed to proliferate on many pre-Grouping lines. Got to say what an interesting and informative video you've produced here. Thanks