h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Presumably you don't want to go overboard or it'll turn into a complete monster... anyway, if it helps, the Victoria line platforms at Finsbury Park are 'humped' because they were built as the terminus for the Northern Line branch from Moorgate, most of which later became the British Rail Great Northern Electric suburban service.

Arnos Grove (and Southgate as well, come to that) is a listed building, with a circular Art Deco ticket hall that's one of the finest pieces of transport architecture ever - like all the Piccadilly Line stations north of Manor House, it was built in the 1930s and designed by Charles Holden.

Walthamstow Central has a bit of a design flaw - because access to the Victoria Line is via the mainline rail platforms. This means it be difficult to get down there in the morning if a Southbound train is due to arrive from Chingford (meaning the Platform 1's full of commuters wanting to go to Liverpool Street and you have to barge your way past) or if one's just arrived (meaning the best part of a trainload of passengers is competing with you to get down the subway). Also you invariably get a bottleneck in the Underground ticket hall in the mornings as two crowds coming down from the subways on Platforms 1 and 2 merge just before the ticket barriers - particularly if a trainload of passengers has just been deposited on Platform 1 - and it can be five or ten minutes before it clears.

The wiser commuter eventually learns when the Liverpool Street trains drop off on Platform 1 and times their entry to the station accordingly to avoid the crush...

I heard a few years ago that there was only one station on the entire network that doesn't contain any of the letters from the word 'Mackerel', and my mates thought it was an urban myth, so I got trapped into a bet - it took me a tube map and most of a journey between Manor House and Piccadilly Circus to work it out.

A bit sad maybe, but it was worth it to win a couple of pints by ringing them up from outside Lillywhite's, triumphantly announcing 'St John's Wood' and hanging up.

I'm not sure how much detail to go into - I don't intend to list the same facts for every single station, but instead try to put interesting things in.

Is the Moorgate to Finsbury Park line the one that goes past Ashburton Grove, stopping at Drayton Park? If so I presume that this was the line on which the 1975 Moorgate tube crash took place.

Anything 'simple' that will win you a couple of pints is worth it...

for the help - I'll add it to the entry and put you on the researcher list.

Alex

Baker St. Close to fictional home of Arthur Conan Doyles creation Sherlock Holmes at 221b. This is refelcted in the mosaic of tiles showing a shiluette of the deerstalker wearing and pipe smoking dectective along the stations platforms and walkways.

St D - I'll add that to the entry.

It can also be one of the most confusing stations to try and get a train from if you don't know it, particularly trying to go eastbound on the Metropolitan/Circle/Hammersmith & City lines. I'll try and come up with something...

Ok

I've noticed that the Metropolitan line branches off before reaching Baker Street - a strange experience as I was hungover and hadn't a clue where I was going.

District line

Southfields - This station is at it's busiest during the fortnight of the Wimbledon Championships as this is the closest to the All England Tennis and Croquet Club. There is a connecting shuttle bus from the station to the tennis for the fortnight.

Wimbledon - The Centre Court you can see from the paltforms is not the home of English Tennis it is in fact a shopping mall which obviously derives its name from the famous court that hosts The Championship Finals.

BTW on exiting the underground platforms you will find public conveniences to your left before ascending the stairs to access the Railway Station.

Tries to think of something interesting for Rickmansworth Station on the Metropolitan:

er.. ah..

Before the Metropolitan was fully electrified, Rickmansworth used to be the change over point between the electric engines that served the trains towards London and the steam engines that served trains towards Amersham.
http://www.railwayarchive.org.uk/stories/pages.php?enum=LE130&pnum=16&maxp=18




Note for Mornington Crescent: Features in a number of books by author Robert Rankin A735743 as the location for the mysterious Ministry of Serendipity

I've added that stuff...