Stockwell Tube Station's Secret Original Features - Hidden London Hangouts (S05E18)

[@jamescrooks9059]

Just discovered these fantastic videos. I spent 5 years working as an engineer on the network, but mostly took for granted the chance to be able to access areas of the Stations most people won’t ever get to see. This one doesn’t hold the best memories for me though, as I was called to a fault here which led to a failure within the SER and loss of signals. That was a very long day!!

[@alexmckenna1171]

I've got Siddy on the telly - "Secrets of the London Underground - and on my Mac at the same time :-)

[@johnwestmorland9091]

Cracking Episode . Thanks Guys 👍

[@jasonpegelow500]

Can I just say that this show, from the very beginning (through lockdown), to the present day, is one of the most interesting shows out there! Chris is one of the most knowledgeable people out there and delivers the history and information with perfect precision….Siddy has clearly learnt from the best! And Laura’s insight and opinions into the finer details of the explorations are excellent….From tiles to moquette! And, of course, Alex….your enthusiasm for the underground is great. No better place for history and the unknown…so much more lies beneath our feet in London! It would be an absolute dream to explore the underground with each and every one of you….your vast knowledge and enthusiasm inspires more to follow in your footsteps. Long may this series continue! (If you could mention this in your next episode to get it out there how much you are all appreciated 😉👍🏻)

[@alexgrundon2346]

What a lovely message to read. Thrills me when we make you smile. And you never know…. One day you may get the chance to explore with us - Hangouts station tour anyboddddyyyy?! We’re up for it.

[@simondeione]

I’ve only recently found the hangouts. Fascinating stuff, and really well presented. I had the pleasure of meeting Siddy on the Down Street tour ☺️

[@dsj672]

What a strange coincidence as I was only talking to one of your former colleagues about Stockwell on Saturday. It's a shame there's not more of the old depot access tunnels to be seen as I recall them being partially visible from the trains passing through the old station site before the Victorica line was built. A great video and a bit spooky that it came out on the day I was speaking about the station!

[@TheTimGowen]

An absolute classic episode of the Hangout with great things just behind an anonymous door! Doesn't really get better!

[@timothyp8947]

Another wonderful episode & station - so much going on. The original layout of the CSLR station is fascinating, with the run-around and the branch off to the depot; not how I’d imagined it would be.

[@TheTimGowen]

Excellent! Didn't know what to do with myself last Saturday!

[@jacksugden8190]

Was surprised to have seen what I had seen, never knew about the deep level shelter, this documentary was worth watching, and will watch again, and happy birthday to Alex 🎂.

[@helenhickman8449]

Absolutely loved the poster at the end. The symbolism and simplicity was so of its time. The colour blue for the screw was a good example. Yet another fabulous episode from start to finish - thank you all

[@raphaelnikolaus0486]

Quite the episode. Quite the explore.

[@Echoes1910]

Well that was ridiculous. Who knew there was so much at Stockwell. I knew it’s one of the oldest sections of track in continuous use, however the rest was quite a surprise. HL Tours to Stockwell needed! Good episode team. 👍

[@MrKappasdio]

5 years using the station while I was studying in London …SBU Architecture faculty was 10minutes walk from there. Great years !!! 1995-2000

[@alexgrundon2346]

…and all those bits nobody sees! It’s why we love doing the Hangouts!

[@damiagunbiade]

This is such a wonderful eposide today. Stockwell is such a great station. It used to be so close to me. Sorry I couldn't watch this live, its been mad this week with Women's Euros in England means I'm watching so mamuch football. Stockwell is a great place. One of my favourite stations. And so much history I swear.

[@paulwheeler4283]

Thank you so much probably one of my favourite videos so far what a beautiful station Geoff and Vicky had all the stations now Chris and Siddy have all the Flash lights ps it's always nice to see all your smiling faces this is the first time in a long time I've managed to get chance to watch the premiere of an episode normally I'm out feeding homeless people on a Saturday night but because we're starting later tonight I've been able to tune into the premier xx felt like I was at the cinema with my popcorn xx

[@alexgrundon2346]

So glad you are happy with the show!

[@municipalsignage7986]

It they do a least used station episode which would almost certainly Roding Valley as Olympia is served by other trains, it would great to Geoff on it that episode.

[@paulwheeler4283]

@@alexgrundon2346 thank you 🙂

[@paulwheeler4283]

@@municipalsignage7986 I agree most definitely

[@Wildlifesupernannyfan]

Best endoscopy of an underground station NOBODY GOES TO!!!!!!!! And watching the vidios of it is the safest way to explore behind the scenes of an underground 🚇.

[@ianstokes291]

Great stuff - thank you. Also agree a trip to the Depot is well worth it!

[@JP_TaVeryMuch]

These 'first time for all of us' safaris are streets ahead of the others. Some here have called it boring: maybe so, there's no accounting for taste. But even if it were, the joy of the explorer comes rushing through the screen from our incredulous hosts' turn of phrase, exclamations, inhalations and the odd nervous giggle or two. And those dusty, dalek-grey cylinders of doom stretch away into spooky infinity. Who'da thunk it? Brill. Thanks a bundle. More please.

[@Lisbonized]

I’m sure that the original tiling you saw at 15:00 app is the original Stockwell station cavity. The new station was re-sited a few metres south. Each episode just gets better every time! There’s more to see here at track level too btw such as the old depot access tunnel etc

[@petrolhead28]

Indeed visible from southbound trains on the way in to Stockwell.

[@peterpetrou2466]

What a fascinating episode, incredible to see those tunnels.

[@stuartpalmer8233]

Only just discovered this wonderful series. Now busy streaming episodes at the rate of two or three a day to catch up. I'm a "graduate" of the Aldwych, Euston and Charing X tours, but this is a wonderful way of experiencing some of the myriad locations where an in-person tour could never happen. Shall check out one of the paid-for virtual tours soon.

[@alexgrundon2346]

❤️

[@JP_TaVeryMuch]

If you liked Aldwych, if, ha! I'd recommend the virtual Holborn Aldwych and Kingsway tram tunnel bonanza. Did it for me!

[@Stevenspielburger]

Love these videos, very interesting. And bonus Siddy too!

[@Birchingtonuk]

At the end of the 1960s I lived in those flats that were built on the site that was formerly the depot of the City and South London Railway and my first job was in Regis House that was built on the site of the former King William Street Station. It is so annoying that I only discovered about this some 30 years later. However, it does seem such a coincidence to have been living on the site of the former depot at one end of the line and working on the site of the former station at the other end of the line. Such a pity that there is nothing at Stockwell to say that this was the original terminus of the first ever deep-level underground railway.

[@alexgrundon2346]

I wonder if one day a blue plaque or similar will go up there….?

[@gazritchie6077]

Another brilliant episode. Thanks again guys. Got a shout out too!! That's made my week!!

[@alexgrundon2346]

😘

[@unittaskforce]

Another great episode. So interesting to see the evolution of the station and what remnants are left to be pierced together. 😁👍

[@dianekivi5349]

When the rebuild Stockwell station in 1st December 1924 with escalators, I bet they had heaps of fun!

[@paulgiffen6836]

Hi team, amazing find today just love station shame you could not get the key to the shelter door, thanks for a very interesting tour love you all💖

[@davidhamm7909]

Hi, Nothing to do with Stockwell but I’ve just watched the hangup where you had the drivers eye view of the Island Line. If you want to actually drive this train, it is being released for Train Sim World 2 next Tuesday. (PC, PS4/5 and Xbox)

[@JP_TaVeryMuch]

18:42 Those dinosaur ribs enabling the tight corner. Haven't seen the like. Liked alot.

[@PaddyWV]

No trip to Stockwell is complete without popping round the corner to the Suprise Inn! 👍

[@sarahstrong7174]

Thankyou for sharing.

[@richardlangly4635]

It's endlessly fascinating to me the absolute wonders that lie behind the doors that thousands of people walk past every day. Those keys open up a whole other world!

[@edbridges1164]

The torch batteries running out reminds me of a Saturday afternoon in my teen years me and a few friends were walking through a Disused Railway Tunnel my best mates torch ran out first and then literally 5 seconds later Mine ran out as well! He at some point decided to run ahead and ran into the tunnel wall! We came out about an hour later I looked at him and he had a Face like a Coal Miner from the 1960s main problem was we didn't have no wet wipes or cleaning materials with us! So he had to walk home with a Blackened face! Also would like to say since the Hangouts I've discovered that I not only love British Rail/National Rail but I also have discovered a love for the London Underground! My favourite station would have to be Charing Cross as I've been on the Jubilee Platforms when I went to London with My Dad who at the time was a Guard with British Rail so we'd go down there to see Trains other than British Rail DC EMUs also My favourite Moquette would be Network SouthEast Blue Blaze but LUL Moquette would be District as I've been on Buses with that Moquette and I also love the Tile designs of Leslie Green I don't have a favourite (as I don't know enough about the subject) Thank You ALL for the Hangouts watching them has helped me through lockdown and losing my Mother last December thank you so so so much and long may it continue!

[@alexgrundon2346]

Hope smiles return fast, Ed. Glad we could hold your hand thru it all

[@boz1810]

Happy birthday Alex. 21 again obvs

[@alexgrundon2346]

Lol double it and add a few x

[@simondeione]

Such a shame you couldn’t get into the shelter. Great episode 😊

[@michaeltidbury4835]

Portuguese trams in the background. Our favourites 😍.

[@daveharris7224]

Alex, were you skiving on holiday, enjoying yourself, while Chris & Siddy did all the work!

[@alexgrundon2346]

Freelancers never get holiday! I was working ON my holiday! But I don’t mind 😉

[@daveharris7224]

Alex, I did realise that, but you would think that something was wrong if I didn't try to wind you up! As you know, I thoroughly enjoy all that the four of you have done for us, especially during the lockdown. I hope that you & your colleagues never take offence at what I say.

[@municipalsignage7986]

Another great video from the team. Would love to see you go further south and do Tooting Broadway and Morden. Both stations have been filming locations for The Bill.

[@alexgrundon2346]

Yeah we should do Morden really, including the depot

[@watchmakersp9935]

@@alexgrundon2346 ..if you cover Morden i would love to know when the disused platform (where the flowers are) was last used and why it stopped being used..thx

[@municipalsignage7986]

@@watchmakersp9935 I think it was a few years before the lifts where installed I do remember using platform 1 maybe it was an health and safety use or only for use in emergency because the emergency exit is just next to it. I used to travel on this line right throughout the 80s and 90s. On a different note the deep tunnel stations also used to have different coloured walls in the 1980s. South Wimbledon - grey Tooting Broadway - Lilac (as where the sign borders) Tooting Bec - Lime Green (ditto) Oval - Sky Blue Kennington - Yellow Some of the Leslie Green also had differing wall colours to their patterns Mornington Crescent - White Camden Town - Pink Chalk Farm - Yellow

[@daveharris7224]

A station that I know absolutely nothing about, so this should be fun.

[@garycross228]

Absolutely fascinating station that I used to use many years ago. The City & South London Railway station at Stockwell used to have a ramp to the surface, I think it was a single track to a maintenance depot. The depot is long gone, but I was wondering, is the ramp still there?.

[@mikesnowden1054]

They talk about the depot from 29:00. When they did the 100th anniversary Northern line tour, the train stopped in the tunnel and the doors were opened. We saw the start of the inclined ramp via torches, and the lift shaft running almost to the surface.

[@JP_TaVeryMuch]

​@@mikesnowden1054Lucky bugger!

[@Andrewjg_89]

Been to Stockwell. You should do a video of Nine Elms and Battersea Power Station as the Northern Line has been extended and also a new southbound platform at Bank.

[@b_altmann]

That’s a nice Elizabeth Line cushion there

[@drewmerrall980]

Circle Line pub crawl sounds fun. Could start at the Pride of Paddington. the green man isn't far from edgware rd. the volunteer on baker st. I'm sure you could put something together.

[@srfurley]

How were the hydraulic lifts operated? Did they use the London Hydraulic Power Company, or did they have their own pumps?

[@jacksugden8190]

Hopefully I’ll see the original terminal of the C&SL area where the crossover was/is on the Northern line.

[@rpmillam]

Remember the yellow tickets

[@meggerbiddle]

Chris is the eyecandy ;-)

[@alexgrundon2346]

Fit, isn’t he!

[@ljrigsbee]

Is Stockwell unique in having modern day Northern line trains running through where the original 1890 platforms would have been? I think it was mentioned that the current platforms moved a bit down the line. I assume the 1890 tunnels were widened on the line up to London Bridge and the platforms are in the same place as they were originally for Oval, Kennington, and Borough? Is the tunnel between KWS and Borough the only bit of the original 1890 C&SLR left?

[@snowdon1085]

Exciting to see a tiny bit of the old 1890 Stockwell station! Stockwell is now further south as mentioned in the programme and the platforms and tunnels north to Borough (despite being widened) are the same and yes the tunnels thence to KWS are the original (apart from the bit where the new Northern Line Bank tunnels has breached those.)

[@drewmerrall980]

I always have cyalume snap lights, with me. I like to mark the exit with them. So even if all fails there's a glow where the exit is. Orange ones only thougth.

[@sarahstrong7174]

I really really want to see the deep shelter. Surely occasionally an engineer has to go down there occasionally to check nothing is leaking or collapsing? I wonder if with a lot of very polite negotiation one or two of you might be given special permission, to accompany them, as a one off event, in order to take video/ photographs, for the purposes of making a historic record for posterity.

[@Richard-g5q6b]

I used to work in the tunnel under Stockwell station.j it was used as a archive storage warehouse. I worked there from 1993 until 1996. my account

[@davestyx1642]

Hi Fab 4, I really enjoyed this one but I’m getting a bit confused! You referred to the Charing Cross episode as ‘last week’s episode’ but there wasn’t one last week nor one two weeks before that. Is this to be the norm now: an episode every other week? It will be so disappointing if it is. You may have told people on social media about it, but I don’t do social media so wouldn’t have known. Can you let us know please?

[@alexgrundon2346]

No Dave. We’ve been poorly: so while we record in sequence the edit/approval phase takes time when frankly we’ve been on our knees. But go with us - normal service resumes asap. X

[@davestyx1642]

Thanks Alex, sorry you’ve been all been poorly but glad you are all well again now.

[@christinawouters9381]

You should do an episode of ghost stories of the underground! Or maybe a few episodes…

[@alexgrundon2346]

We did one back in Halloween 2020. Only snag is ghosts often represent deaths on the tube and we tend to steer away from that - but let us have a think - Halloween is approaching again!

[@christinawouters9381]

Good point about steering away from the deaths. Didn’t think about that. I’ll have to go back and watch the episode from 2020. I think that’s before I started watching. Hubby got me in to them, and I haven’t gone back to watch.

[@alexgrundon2346]

Glad you are along for the ride. X

[@iancarr8682]

Can I suggest doing a behind the scenes at a station where reasonably old lifts are still in place and how different they are?

[@alexgrundon2346]

Eg?

[@shaunaksawant7821]

13:40 aren't those two parallel lines reminiscent of old rails which might have been actually present in the past

[@parttimespotter2027]

I grew up in Stockwell ... in fact about 2 minute walk from the station.~ Never knew any of this. I had heard recently there was a loco works there anyone know where it was ?

[@JP_TaVeryMuch]

River end of the platform(s). Carto Metro has the mind-blowingest map, as the phrase goes. Next comment and Chris on screen mentions that the brick mansion blocks were built on where it used to be.

[@RWL2012]

When's the 10th Elizabeth line video out?

[@alexgrundon2346]

Out now

[@baxtermarrison5361]

I assume that the bulk of the dirt in the ventilation tunnels is carbon from the pickup shoes on the trains, would this not present a fire risk?

[@alexgrundon2346]

It’s all sorts.

[@andycooke6231]

Hi, I enjoy your KZbin's but as somebody born is south east London, an area devoid of tube lines I feel this area rather misses out. This area was a stronghold of trams which where always something London transport wanted to get rid of from its formation, The museum must have plenty of archive material about the trams an the buses, perhaps you could do some KZbin's on something other then the underground

[@alexgrundon2346]

Hi Andy. Thanks for watching - and for the suggestion. We certainly could do another tram episode

[@paulkennington8655]

The more of these I see, the more I wonder just how ‘hollow’ it is under London Streets! In particular it makes the ‘threading’ of the Elizabeth Line through it all more amazing. It surely can’t be too long before computers can give us a true 3D picture of the whole of the Underground system in one. These videos should be on ‘big’ TV. The three of you complement Siddy far better than that Tim bloke, who is just annoying…..sorry but I know others have said the same.

[@alexgrundon2346]

Love the fact you are named after a tube station. I think London is indeed hollow beneath our feet. Glad you think the four of us are a good fit. We’d love these to be developed for bigger tv - we’re all up for it. Just need to find a production company or channel to do it. As for Tim, he is a super-lovely man and it’s always a pleasure to share a bottle with him when our paths cross.

[@jakecavendish3470]

Nostrils hour 🕳🕳

[@andykopgod]

How come we never see any Rats 🐀 🤔,, just wondered.

[@katejenkins8303]

Very boring