Down Street tube station
Encyclopedia
Down Street, also known as Down Street (Mayfair), is a disused station of the London Underground
's Piccadilly line
which closed in 1932. During World War II
it was used as an air-raid shelter, notably by Winston Churchill
and his War Cabinet
.
and Hyde Park Corner
on the Piccadilly Line. Evidence of its presence can still be identified through the train windows between these stations by a change in the tunnel surface from black to a section of beige brickwork. The station was opened by the Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway
(precursor to the Piccadilly line) on 15 March 1907, a few months after the rest of the line. The surface building was on Down Street, just off Piccadilly
in Mayfair
. It was never a busy station, as the surrounding area was largely residential and its residents were too wealthy to be regular tube passengers. The neighbouring stations were also fairly close by.
Like Brompton Road
, Down Street was often skipped by trains. In 1929 it was one of the stations mooted for closure in connection with the extension of the Piccadilly line: the elimination of less-busy stations in the central area would improve both reliability and journey times for long-distance commuters. Additionally, the neighbouring stations were being rebuilt with escalator
s in place of lifts
, and their new entrances were nearer to Down Street, further squeezing its small catchment area
. The station closed on 21 May 1932.
After the station was closed it was almost immediately modified. The western headwalls of both platform tunnels were modified to allow a step plate junction (a junction where tunnels of differing diameters join—the step is the vertical wall filling the gap between them) to be installed, providing access to a new siding
located between Down Street and Hyde Park Corner stations. In 1939, the platform
faces were bricked up and the resulting space used as an underground bunker
. The main wartime occupants of the station were the Emergency Railway Committee, but it was also used by Churchill and the war cabinet until the Cabinet War Rooms were ready for use. Since the end of the war the station has only been used as an emergency access point to the tube. The surface building, designed by Leslie Green
, is still standing.
Former Services
and on studio sets.
A sequence in the James Bond
film Die Another Day
is set in an 'abandoned' Tube station called Vauxhall Cross
. The station is supposedly used as a neutral ground for MI6 illegals (officially nonexistent agents) to be given missions by M
. A visible track-side line diagram places the station north/east of Hyde Park Corner
, which suggests that it is actually Down Street, but for the fact that the real station is some 2.6 km (1.6 mi) away from the real Vauxhall Cross
, and trains still run through Down Street.
The TV series and novel Neverwhere
are mostly set in a medieval-fantasy world with locations named after tube stations such as Blackfriars
and Knightsbridge
; the finale is located in an area known as Down Street, and one scene of the TV series was filmed on the remaining open section of platform at Down Street, with real trains passing by in the background.
In Billy Connolly
's "World Tour Of England, Ireland And Scotland", Billy takes a tour of the Down Street station, explaining the heritage and showcasing the various rooms Winston Churchill and his war cabinet are believed to have once occupied.
Episode 1 of Dan Cruickshank
's "Great Railway Adventures" (a National Geographic Channel
2010 documentary
series about the history of Britain's railways) explores the station's role as control centre for all of Great Britain
's railways moving military supplies and personnel during the 1939 - 1945 War
released a song titled Down Street, on their 2006 album Catfight
, according to the sleeve notes of which, it is set in the early 1930s and tells the story of two lovers who meet at the station. Steve Hackett
also recorded a song titled Down Street, on his 2006 album Wild Orchids
, about the station in its disused state.
, Down Street is the home stage of Jack the Ripper, one of the main antagonists in the game.
London Underground
The London Underground is a rapid transit system serving a large part of Greater London and some parts of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex in England...
's Piccadilly line
Piccadilly Line
The Piccadilly line is a line of the London Underground, coloured dark blue on the Tube map. It is the fifth busiest line on the Underground network judged by the number of passengers transported per year. It is mainly a deep-level line, running from the north to the west of London via Zone 1, with...
which closed in 1932. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
it was used as an air-raid shelter, notably by Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
and his War Cabinet
War Cabinet
A War Cabinet is a committee formed by a government in a time of war. It is usually a subset of the full executive cabinet of ministers. It is also quite common for a War Cabinet to have senior military officers and opposition politicians as members....
.
History
Down Street station lies between Green ParkGreen Park tube station
Green Park tube station is a London Underground station located on the north side of Green Park, close to the intersection of Piccadilly and the pedestrian Queen's Walk...
and Hyde Park Corner
Hyde Park Corner tube station
Hyde Park Corner is a London Underground station near Hyde Park Corner in Hyde Park. It is in Travelcard Zone 1, between Knightsbridge and Green Park on the Piccadilly Line.-History:...
on the Piccadilly Line. Evidence of its presence can still be identified through the train windows between these stations by a change in the tunnel surface from black to a section of beige brickwork. The station was opened by the Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway
Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway
The Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway , also known as the Piccadilly tube, was a railway company established in 1902 that constructed a deep-level underground "tube" railway in London. The GNP&BR was formed through a merger of two older companies, the Brompton and Piccadilly Circus...
(precursor to the Piccadilly line) on 15 March 1907, a few months after the rest of the line. The surface building was on Down Street, just off Piccadilly
Piccadilly
Piccadilly is a major street in central London, running from Hyde Park Corner in the west to Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is completely within the city of Westminster. The street is part of the A4 road, London's second most important western artery. St...
in Mayfair
Mayfair
Mayfair is an area of central London, within the City of Westminster.-History:Mayfair is named after the annual fortnight-long May Fair that took place on the site that is Shepherd Market today...
. It was never a busy station, as the surrounding area was largely residential and its residents were too wealthy to be regular tube passengers. The neighbouring stations were also fairly close by.
Like Brompton Road
Brompton Road tube station
Brompton Road tube station is a disused station on the Piccadilly Line of the London Underground. It is located between Knightsbridge and South Kensington.-History:...
, Down Street was often skipped by trains. In 1929 it was one of the stations mooted for closure in connection with the extension of the Piccadilly line: the elimination of less-busy stations in the central area would improve both reliability and journey times for long-distance commuters. Additionally, the neighbouring stations were being rebuilt with escalator
Escalator
An escalator is a moving staircase – a conveyor transport device for carrying people between floors of a building. The device consists of a motor-driven chain of individual, linked steps that move up or down on tracks, allowing the step treads to remain horizontal.Escalators are used around the...
s in place of lifts
Elevator
An elevator is a type of vertical transport equipment that efficiently moves people or goods between floors of a building, vessel or other structures...
, and their new entrances were nearer to Down Street, further squeezing its small catchment area
Catchment area (human geography)
In human geography, a catchment area is the area and population from which a city or individual service attracts visitors or customers. For example, a school catchment area is the geographic area from which students are eligible to attend a local school...
. The station closed on 21 May 1932.
After the station was closed it was almost immediately modified. The western headwalls of both platform tunnels were modified to allow a step plate junction (a junction where tunnels of differing diameters join—the step is the vertical wall filling the gap between them) to be installed, providing access to a new siding
Rail siding
A siding, in rail terminology, is a low-speed track section distinct from a running line or through route such as a main line or branch line or spur. It may connect to through track or to other sidings at either end...
located between Down Street and Hyde Park Corner stations. In 1939, the platform
Railway platform
A railway platform is a section of pathway, alongside rail tracks at a train station, metro station or tram stop, at which passengers may board or alight from trains or trams. Almost all stations for rail transport have some form of platforms, with larger stations having multiple platforms...
faces were bricked up and the resulting space used as an underground bunker
Bunker
A military bunker is a hardened shelter, often buried partly or fully underground, designed to protect the inhabitants from falling bombs or other attacks...
. The main wartime occupants of the station were the Emergency Railway Committee, but it was also used by Churchill and the war cabinet until the Cabinet War Rooms were ready for use. Since the end of the war the station has only been used as an emergency access point to the tube. The surface building, designed by Leslie Green
Leslie Green
Leslie William Green was an English architect known especially for his design of iconic stations constructed on the London Underground railway system in central London during the first decade of the 20th century....
, is still standing.
Film & TV appearances
Part of the 2004 British horror film Creep was set in the Down Street tube station, although the scenes were actually shot at the disused Aldwych tube stationAldwych tube station
Aldwych is a closed London Underground station in the City of Westminster, originally opened as Strand in 1907. It was the terminus and only station on the short Piccadilly line branch from Holborn that was a relic of the merger of two railway schemes. The disused station building is close to the...
and on studio sets.
A sequence in the James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
film Die Another Day
Die Another Day
Die Another Day is the 20th spy film in the James Bond series, and the fourth and last film to star Pierce Brosnan as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond; it is also the last Bond film of the original timeline with the series being rebooted with Casino Royale...
is set in an 'abandoned' Tube station called Vauxhall Cross
Vauxhall Cross tube station
Vauxhall Cross is a fictional London, England tube station shown in the 2002 James Bond film Die Another Day. Several previous Bond films had featured satellite MI6 offices in varying locations around the world ; in this case it is an abandoned tube station, not far from...
. The station is supposedly used as a neutral ground for MI6 illegals (officially nonexistent agents) to be given missions by M
M (James Bond)
M is a fictional character in Ian Fleming's James Bond series, as well as the films in the Bond franchise. The head of MI6 and Bond's superior, M has been portrayed by three actors in the official Bond film series: Bernard Lee, Robert Brown and since 1995 by Judi Dench. Background =Ian Fleming...
. A visible track-side line diagram places the station north/east of Hyde Park Corner
Hyde Park Corner tube station
Hyde Park Corner is a London Underground station near Hyde Park Corner in Hyde Park. It is in Travelcard Zone 1, between Knightsbridge and Green Park on the Piccadilly Line.-History:...
, which suggests that it is actually Down Street, but for the fact that the real station is some 2.6 km (1.6 mi) away from the real Vauxhall Cross
Vauxhall Cross tube station
Vauxhall Cross is a fictional London, England tube station shown in the 2002 James Bond film Die Another Day. Several previous Bond films had featured satellite MI6 offices in varying locations around the world ; in this case it is an abandoned tube station, not far from...
, and trains still run through Down Street.
The TV series and novel Neverwhere
Neverwhere
Neverwhere is an urban fantasy television series by Neil Gaiman that first aired in 1996 on BBC Two. The series is set in "London Below", a magical realm coexisting with the more familiar London, referred to as "London Above". It was devised by Neil Gaiman and Lenny Henry, and directed by Dewi...
are mostly set in a medieval-fantasy world with locations named after tube stations such as Blackfriars
Blackfriars station
Blackfriars station, also known as London Blackfriars, is a central London railway terminus and London Underground complex in the City of London, England. Its platforms will eventually span the River Thames a short distance downstream from Blackfriars Bridge. The current entrance is located on the...
and Knightsbridge
Knightsbridge tube station
Knightsbridge tube station is a London Underground station in Knightsbridge , The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It is on the Piccadilly Line between South Kensington and Hyde Park Corner, and is in Travelcard Zone 1.-History:...
; the finale is located in an area known as Down Street, and one scene of the TV series was filmed on the remaining open section of platform at Down Street, with real trains passing by in the background.
In Billy Connolly
Billy Connolly
William "Billy" Connolly, Jr., CBE is a Scottish comedian, musician, presenter and actor. He is sometimes known, especially in his native Scotland, by the nickname The Big Yin...
's "World Tour Of England, Ireland And Scotland", Billy takes a tour of the Down Street station, explaining the heritage and showcasing the various rooms Winston Churchill and his war cabinet are believed to have once occupied.
Episode 1 of Dan Cruickshank
Dan Cruickshank
Dan Cruickshank is an art historian and BBC television presenter.-Early life:As a young child he lived for some years in Poland...
's "Great Railway Adventures" (a National Geographic Channel
National Geographic Channel
National Geographic Channel, also commercially abbreviated and trademarked as Nat Geo, is a subscription television channel that airs non-fiction television programs produced by the National Geographic Society. Like History and the Discovery Channel, the channel features documentaries with factual...
2010 documentary
Documentary
A documentary is a creative work of non-fiction, including:* Documentary film, including television* Radio documentary* Documentary photographyRelated terms include:...
series about the history of Britain's railways) explores the station's role as control centre for all of Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
's railways moving military supplies and personnel during the 1939 - 1945 War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
Music
The British band HefnerHefner (band)
Hefner were a British indie rock and "urban folk" band formed in east London in 1995. They were active from about 1996 until 2002; since then they have played together only once, for a tribute to the DJ John Peel, who was a strong supporter of theirs....
released a song titled Down Street, on their 2006 album Catfight
Catfight (album)
Catfight is a compilation of unreleased songs by the British indie rock band Hefner. It was released by the band in 2006.-Disc one:# The Pines# Gabriel in the Airport# Anne and Bill# Repression Song# I'm Not Surprised# New French Tits...
, according to the sleeve notes of which, it is set in the early 1930s and tells the story of two lovers who meet at the station. Steve Hackett
Steve Hackett
Stephen Richard Hackett is a British singer-songwriter and guitarist. He gained prominence as a member of the British progressive rock group Genesis, which he joined in 1970 and left in 1977 to pursue a solo career...
also recorded a song titled Down Street, on his 2006 album Wild Orchids
Wild Orchids (album)
Wild Orchids is an art rock album released by Steve Hackett in 2006. It follows on from the success of the previous studio outings To Watch The Storms in 2003 and Metamorpheus in 2005. The album is released in three formats including a standard and special editions...
, about the station in its disused state.
Video Games
In the game Shadow ManShadow Man (video game)
Shadow Man is a video game developed by Acclaim Studios Teesside and published by Acclaim Entertainment. It was designed by Guy Miller and Simon Phipps and is loosely based on the Shadowman comic book series published by Valiant Comics. The game was released in 1999 for the Nintendo 64,...
, Down Street is the home stage of Jack the Ripper, one of the main antagonists in the game.
External links
- Down Street on Hywel Williams's Underground History site.
- Subterranea Britannica: Down Street station.
- London's Abandoned Tube Stations: Down Street station.
- Pictures from a tour of Down Street.
- More pictures plus video from the same tour. Down Street station shortly after opening
- The London Underground in Films & Television