Day 81
South Kenton - South Quay - South Ruislip - South Tottenham
A rather dull day today - in more ways than one.
Firstly, the skies are not looking very promising - being covered in a blanket of heavy grey clouds - and despite being May, there's a distinct chill in the air.
It's also another irritating day travelling back-and-forth across the length and breadth of London to visit four inconveniently widespread stations. No two of them are even vaguely in the same part of town, or indeed on the same Underground line. This is the reason I get so wound up by my oft-mounted hobby-horse about all the 'Souths' (and 'Norths', 'Easts' and 'Wests') being lumped together. How much easier my life would be if - to take just one example - all of the stations in Acton (of which there are seven!) actually began with the word 'Acton' and I could have had them all crossed off by now...
Anyway, enough of that old chestnut.
I start by heading north west (or rather, east into town first then north-west - but that's another hobby-horse we'd better not take out for a canter for the time being...) to South Kenton.
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| South Kenton |
This is a Bakerloo line and Overground station and is unusual in that the Ticket Office (such as it is) is on the platform rather than in a separate Ticket Hall.
This is apparently down to the fact that when built, the station was designed to use minimal space. There's one 'island platform' between the two opposing tracks, the ticket office is at one end of this, and there are no ticket gates through which to gain entry or exit - only stand-alone Oyster readers.
The platforms are higher than street level, so I descend a flight of stairs into a short subway connecting the roads to the east and west of the station. Having been to Kenton before (when I visited the site of the infamous Basil Fawlty 'car-thrashing' episode) I'm not at all surprised by the suburban genteelness of the streets around here - it's very definitely a 'nice' area.
The road to the east of the station is called Windermere Avenue and is dominated by a pub called The Windermere.
This pub was built in the late 1930s and features in a list compiled by CAMRA (the Campaign for Real Ale) of 'Historic Pub Interiors'. It features much of the original art deco design, including large inner porches, bar counters, back fittings, wall panelling, cornices, fireplaces with original tiles and, in the saloon, an advertising mirror over the fireplace with Courage cockerel and a clock.
Or at least, this is what CAMRA tells me, and I'll have to take their word for it as the pub is not yet open for business, and the windows are all frosted glass, meaning I can see none of the original features for myself.
Back through the subway and out the other side to the west of the station, I find myself at the south-eastern corner of Northwick Park (the park itself, rather than the Hospital or Station that share this name).
The park is a fairly open space - with only a smattering of trees around the perimeter. One group of half a dozen or so trees seems to have broken free of the boundary and arranged themselves in a curiously straight line, projecting into the park rather than running around it - as if rebelling against the neat uniformity of it all.
You can see the station from this corner of the park, and it does seem to be a particularly narrow one.
Quite why this should be I'm not sure. It surely can't be simply a philanthropic wish not to intrude too far into the surrounding Suburbia as that certainly doesn't seem to have been an inhibiting factor in the building of other stations in the Capital.
Other than a few shops near the pub, this is a mainly residential area, and having seen all there is to see - as far as I can tell - I move on to the next stop.
***
South Quay is up next (or rather, across and down next, if you're looking at the tube map) - one of those DLR stations clustered around the Canary Wharf district on the Isle of Dogs. It's located on a road which crosses the narrow connecting waterway between South Dock to the north and Millwall Inner Dock to the south.
It's actually the second DLR station of the same name to be built here, and is 125m to the east of the old one. The new station opened in 2009 with longer platforms, to accommodate the newer three-car trains - something that had been impossible at the previous station, thanks to the curvature of the tracks on either side.
In 1996, when the previous station was still in operation, an IRA bomb was exploded in this area, killing 2 and injuring over 100 others, as well as causing millions of pounds worth of damage. A plaque to commemorate the victims was unveiled on the outside wall of the new station in 2009.
The skyscrapers dominate the area so completely that the view here is pretty indistinguishable from one station to another.
I do spot one unusual addition to the docklands grey suits and grey buildings, and that's a grey (and therefore clearly naval) ship sitting as unobtrusively as it can - which isn't very - at the dockside.
This is the INS (Indian Naval Ship) Tarkash - an Indian stealth frigate here to take part in exercises with the Royal Navy, having previously been involved in anti-piracy operations off the coast of Somalia. They seem to be having some sort of open day on board, but it appears to be invited guests only, so I have to make do with a photo of the exterior.
Turning south to Millwall Inner Dock, the buildings seem to be more colourful than those to the north, and I wonder if they're residential rather than commercial.
There's certainly a goodly collection of restaurants down the side of the dock, though of course they could easily be catering more for business lunches than romantic dinners à deux.
They sit next to the (presumably) decommissioned cranes from the days when these were working docks, and the whole area forms a pleasant enough backdrop against which to stop for a bite of lunch, which is exactly what I do now as I've another long journey ahead of me to my next stop.
***
South Ruislip is, not surprisingly, to the south of the other Ruislip Stations I've previously visited, and is tucked away on a relatively quiet street, with just a handful of shops and cafés catering to a mainly residential area.
The station is of an unusual design, though vaguely familiar in its use of large panels of glass set into a geometric shape. In fact several of the stations on this branch of the Central Line were designed by the same architect - Brian Lewis - and you can see similar features at Perivale, Greenford, Hanger Lane, and West Acton.
The interior of the circular ticket hall features a decorative frieze made of concrete and glass.
This was the work of artist Henry Haig and was one of his earliest pieces - he later went on to work predominantly with stained glass for churches, including a memorial window in the home church of WPC Yvonne Fletcher, who was killed during the Libyan Embassy siege in London in 1984.
After a brief wander along the uninspiring shopping parade, I head south-west from the station, through the various residential streets, to the one landmark I know I should take a look at while I'm here.
As well as being noticeably quiet, a large proportion of the streets I pass along are made up of bungalows rather than houses, leading me to the conclusion (perhaps erroneously) that the average age of the local population is well into the retirement bracket.
10 minutes later, I reach my goal.
This is something I've known was here for almost my entire time living in West London, but have never actually seen in person before bow - The Polish War Memorial.
The reason I (and anyone else who has driven out of town on the M40) knows about it is that there's a big sign by the side of the next-door motorway telling you that it's here.
The trouble is, when you're on the motorway, you're normally heading off somewhere (hopefully) far more exciting and making a detour - however close to the motorway it might be - seems just that bit too inconvenient.
Which is a shame, as it's definitely worth a look.
It's located to the south of RAF Northolt (which I visited last time I was in Ruislip) and is dedicated to the thousands of Polish airmen who fought alongside the allies in the Battle of Britain and other decisive campaigns.
Behind the memorial is a curved walkway, lined with the names of those Poles who died during the war.
As well as the memorial itself, there's a relatively new Remembrance Garden next to it, though the persistent motorway traffic does mean there's a constant background hum rather than the peace and quiet you might hope for.
I'm glad I've come here to see it at last - it deserves more than to be simply a kind of 'you are here' fingerpost on the way into or out of London, recognised more by its signpost than by the thing itself. You should have a look yourself sometime.
But that's all there is to this part of town, so I head back across London once more - this time to the north east - to my fourth and final stop of the day.
***
South Tottenham is a station which highlights the occasional geographical vagaries of the otherwise excellently designed tube map.
On the map this station appears to be to the north of both Seven Sisters and Tottenham Hale stations, whereas, in reality, South Tottenham is, well... to the south.
In fact all three of these stations are in the area designated as 'South' Tottenham, being within the N15 postcode. The remainder of Tottenham is in N17, to the north and has various stations serving it on the Overground Line. However, since these stations were only added to the tube map in more recent years than the version I'm using (which, for reasons previously related elsewhere, is the December 2013 map), I don't plan on visiting them as part of this particular project.
The name Tottenham, which dates back the Domesday Book, seems to be derived from the name of a local farmer - Tota - and the hamlet in which he lived; thus 'Tota's Hamlet' (or 'Ham') became Tottenham.
Interestingly, another 'Tottenham' which I'll hopefully be visiting before too long, and with which many Londoners will be familiar - Tottenham Court Road - seems to have come by its name completely independently of my current location, and from an unrelated source.
A certain 13th Century nobleman, William de Tottenhall, had a manor house (the 'Court') at the top end of that road, where it meets Euston Road, and it is from this that Tottenham Court Road gets its name. Of course, de Tottenhall's name may itself be a corruption of the original Tota's Ham from a couple of hundred years before - who knows...
The station here is actually only a two minute walk from Seven Sisters station, and unfortunately the area surrounding it seems to have suffered some neglect as a result. While the area around Seven Sisters was a bustling one with various cafés and shops doing a roaring trade, a couple of minutes further down the road is a very different story.
The few shops there are, are either very shabby or completely boarded up, and after only a desultory wander down the street from the station, I turn back and return to Seven Sisters, which - being on the Victoria Line - is rather more useful to me as a means of making my way home.
Which is where, after a distinctly less edifying day than I might have hoped, I head now.
Till next time....
The road to the east of the station is called Windermere Avenue and is dominated by a pub called The Windermere.
 |
| The Windermere. |
This pub was built in the late 1930s and features in a list compiled by CAMRA (the Campaign for Real Ale) of 'Historic Pub Interiors'. It features much of the original art deco design, including large inner porches, bar counters, back fittings, wall panelling, cornices, fireplaces with original tiles and, in the saloon, an advertising mirror over the fireplace with Courage cockerel and a clock.
Or at least, this is what CAMRA tells me, and I'll have to take their word for it as the pub is not yet open for business, and the windows are all frosted glass, meaning I can see none of the original features for myself.
Back through the subway and out the other side to the west of the station, I find myself at the south-eastern corner of Northwick Park (the park itself, rather than the Hospital or Station that share this name).
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| Northwick Park - with the hospital of the same name in the background |
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| Trees in a row |
The park is a fairly open space - with only a smattering of trees around the perimeter. One group of half a dozen or so trees seems to have broken free of the boundary and arranged themselves in a curiously straight line, projecting into the park rather than running around it - as if rebelling against the neat uniformity of it all.
You can see the station from this corner of the park, and it does seem to be a particularly narrow one.
 |
| Room for a little one? |
Quite why this should be I'm not sure. It surely can't be simply a philanthropic wish not to intrude too far into the surrounding Suburbia as that certainly doesn't seem to have been an inhibiting factor in the building of other stations in the Capital.
Other than a few shops near the pub, this is a mainly residential area, and having seen all there is to see - as far as I can tell - I move on to the next stop.
***
South Quay is up next (or rather, across and down next, if you're looking at the tube map) - one of those DLR stations clustered around the Canary Wharf district on the Isle of Dogs. It's located on a road which crosses the narrow connecting waterway between South Dock to the north and Millwall Inner Dock to the south.
 |
| South Quay |
It's actually the second DLR station of the same name to be built here, and is 125m to the east of the old one. The new station opened in 2009 with longer platforms, to accommodate the newer three-car trains - something that had been impossible at the previous station, thanks to the curvature of the tracks on either side.
In 1996, when the previous station was still in operation, an IRA bomb was exploded in this area, killing 2 and injuring over 100 others, as well as causing millions of pounds worth of damage. A plaque to commemorate the victims was unveiled on the outside wall of the new station in 2009.
The skyscrapers dominate the area so completely that the view here is pretty indistinguishable from one station to another.
 |
| The 'Financial' District |
I do spot one unusual addition to the docklands grey suits and grey buildings, and that's a grey (and therefore clearly naval) ship sitting as unobtrusively as it can - which isn't very - at the dockside.
 |
| INS Tarkash |
This is the INS (Indian Naval Ship) Tarkash - an Indian stealth frigate here to take part in exercises with the Royal Navy, having previously been involved in anti-piracy operations off the coast of Somalia. They seem to be having some sort of open day on board, but it appears to be invited guests only, so I have to make do with a photo of the exterior.
Turning south to Millwall Inner Dock, the buildings seem to be more colourful than those to the north, and I wonder if they're residential rather than commercial.
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| Millwall Inner Dock |
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| Something old, something new... |
There's certainly a goodly collection of restaurants down the side of the dock, though of course they could easily be catering more for business lunches than romantic dinners à deux.
They sit next to the (presumably) decommissioned cranes from the days when these were working docks, and the whole area forms a pleasant enough backdrop against which to stop for a bite of lunch, which is exactly what I do now as I've another long journey ahead of me to my next stop.
***
South Ruislip is, not surprisingly, to the south of the other Ruislip Stations I've previously visited, and is tucked away on a relatively quiet street, with just a handful of shops and cafés catering to a mainly residential area.
 |
| South Ruislip |
The station is of an unusual design, though vaguely familiar in its use of large panels of glass set into a geometric shape. In fact several of the stations on this branch of the Central Line were designed by the same architect - Brian Lewis - and you can see similar features at Perivale, Greenford, Hanger Lane, and West Acton.
The interior of the circular ticket hall features a decorative frieze made of concrete and glass.
 |
| Henry Haig's frieze |
This was the work of artist Henry Haig and was one of his earliest pieces - he later went on to work predominantly with stained glass for churches, including a memorial window in the home church of WPC Yvonne Fletcher, who was killed during the Libyan Embassy siege in London in 1984.
 |
| The 'parade' of shops |
As well as being noticeably quiet, a large proportion of the streets I pass along are made up of bungalows rather than houses, leading me to the conclusion (perhaps erroneously) that the average age of the local population is well into the retirement bracket.
10 minutes later, I reach my goal.
 |
| Polish War Memorial |
This is something I've known was here for almost my entire time living in West London, but have never actually seen in person before bow - The Polish War Memorial.
 |
| A little information |
The trouble is, when you're on the motorway, you're normally heading off somewhere (hopefully) far more exciting and making a detour - however close to the motorway it might be - seems just that bit too inconvenient.
Which is a shame, as it's definitely worth a look.
 |
| Inscription on the rear of the memorial |
It's located to the south of RAF Northolt (which I visited last time I was in Ruislip) and is dedicated to the thousands of Polish airmen who fought alongside the allies in the Battle of Britain and other decisive campaigns.
Behind the memorial is a curved walkway, lined with the names of those Poles who died during the war.
 |
| The names of those who lost their lives |
As well as the memorial itself, there's a relatively new Remembrance Garden next to it, though the persistent motorway traffic does mean there's a constant background hum rather than the peace and quiet you might hope for.
 |
| Remembrance Garden |
I'm glad I've come here to see it at last - it deserves more than to be simply a kind of 'you are here' fingerpost on the way into or out of London, recognised more by its signpost than by the thing itself. You should have a look yourself sometime.
 |
| More history in the Remembrance Garden |
But that's all there is to this part of town, so I head back across London once more - this time to the north east - to my fourth and final stop of the day.
***
South Tottenham is a station which highlights the occasional geographical vagaries of the otherwise excellently designed tube map.
 |
| South Tottenham |
On the map this station appears to be to the north of both Seven Sisters and Tottenham Hale stations, whereas, in reality, South Tottenham is, well... to the south.
In fact all three of these stations are in the area designated as 'South' Tottenham, being within the N15 postcode. The remainder of Tottenham is in N17, to the north and has various stations serving it on the Overground Line. However, since these stations were only added to the tube map in more recent years than the version I'm using (which, for reasons previously related elsewhere, is the December 2013 map), I don't plan on visiting them as part of this particular project.
The name Tottenham, which dates back the Domesday Book, seems to be derived from the name of a local farmer - Tota - and the hamlet in which he lived; thus 'Tota's Hamlet' (or 'Ham') became Tottenham.
Interestingly, another 'Tottenham' which I'll hopefully be visiting before too long, and with which many Londoners will be familiar - Tottenham Court Road - seems to have come by its name completely independently of my current location, and from an unrelated source.
A certain 13th Century nobleman, William de Tottenhall, had a manor house (the 'Court') at the top end of that road, where it meets Euston Road, and it is from this that Tottenham Court Road gets its name. Of course, de Tottenhall's name may itself be a corruption of the original Tota's Ham from a couple of hundred years before - who knows...
The station here is actually only a two minute walk from Seven Sisters station, and unfortunately the area surrounding it seems to have suffered some neglect as a result. While the area around Seven Sisters was a bustling one with various cafés and shops doing a roaring trade, a couple of minutes further down the road is a very different story.
 |
| High Road... or is it 'High Noon'....? |
The few shops there are, are either very shabby or completely boarded up, and after only a desultory wander down the street from the station, I turn back and return to Seven Sisters, which - being on the Victoria Line - is rather more useful to me as a means of making my way home.
Which is where, after a distinctly less edifying day than I might have hoped, I head now.
Till next time....
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