The Greatest Station London Never Got: Farringdon Grand Central

What if the Underground had never been built? It's time for the story of the massive station in the heart of the City that we never had.

[pullformore]

"I love a never-built railway way project" - so does every subscriber to this channel! Cracking video, as always. Thank you!

[borderlands]

The infrastructure of a single grand station would have been epic in scale. Imagine the turntables, carriage sidings, steam sheds, coaling facilities, goods, parcels, inward and outward passenger platforms for all London's satellite termini, in one place. However big it was it would have been inadequate by the 1880s, leading to expansion or duplication.

[TadeuszCantwell]

Thankful I don't have to imagine what an excellent channel about the underground would be like.

[ianthomson]

I often wonder what London would be like today if the railways had all been planned as a single project rather than a great many competing lines. I think Pearson had the right idea.

[chriswareham]

Just did some reading up on Charles Pearson. He was a involved in securing funds for the Metropolitan Railway, but sadly died four months before it opened. Thank you Jago for making me aware of this great man.

[soumimukherjee]

Just love the videos..as a lover of history Jago makes my day with these fantastic tales..keep it up

[glynwelshkarelian]

I got off at Farringdon for serious drinking today for the first time since first lockdown. 
I have always loved Clerkenwell, and watching this little window into a unmade Farringdon world just adds a joyously soft filter to a good day.
The Horseshoe in Clerkenwell and the Betsy Trotwood, just a short walk through the Peabody flats away, are well worth getting off at Farringdon for. If you go downstairs in the Betsy you can hear and feel the Thameslink trains passing underneath. I think you have shown an Illustrated London News engraving of the site of the pub as the railway was being built?
The Jerusalem Tavern on Britton St is also worth a visit.
I have done shows in all 3 pubs; and did not lose serious amounts of money at any of them. Hence my love.

[joannaatkinson]

Just to confirm: you have never made me angry. Calmed, included, pandered to with geeky knowledge about architecture and railways and generally educated; but never angry.

[stephendavies]

The concept behind the Farringdon super-station actually happened - albeit on a much smaller scale - in my hometown of Merthyr Tydfil. In the scramble to reach this coal & iron boomtown during the industrial revolution, 7 companies shared 1 station at one point. It also had an adjacent fruit, veg & meat market. All that remains now is a single platform, but at least the Pacers have been retired.

[adamcrofts]

thanks again Jago. Always good to watch your shows.

[JayJay-ncpr]

In many ways, though on a much smaller scale, with Thameslink running north from Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire and Cambridgeshire to Kent, Surrey and Sussex in the south, and the Elizabeth running west from Berkshire & Buckinghamshire to Essex & SE London in the east, along with the Metropolitan, Hammersmith & City and Circle lines, Farringdon is now technically the London central station

[stevesalvage]

Brilliant film ! Always so informative, love the planned never built, northern heights started me off, thank you jago !

[googletookmyoriginaluserna]

Great vid, Jago. Love Farringdon - aesthetically it floats my boat!

[DPJTrump]

Brilliant, as ever !London would not be the wonderful haphazard eclectic jumble that it is with central planning. Your work is absolutely superb sir, I salute you.

[markellis]

Fascinating. You learn something new every day. Never heard of this proposal before. Love a never built or sadly closed line just to imagine what might have been...

[oldelephantstew]

love the cartoon at 1.37 - "I come to dine, I come to sup, I come I come to eat you up" - "Oh my beef and Oh my babies" - "Oh The Monster". I imagine that the cartoon might be from "Punch". Kudos to Pearson - a far sighted man and the Grandfather of Thameslink - and he was absolutely right as building a set of termini in a ring around London has created problems ever since and means hardly any through trains from the South East where I live to the Midlands, The North and Scotland.

[drpantastic]

Honestly if this was just a boring history video I would not watch but you provide free entertainment through your humour that keeps me wanting to watch and stay subscribed for more good job buddy

[adamrkimber]

These and your architecture videos are awesome! Well presented with great photography and interesting facts that I never knew about!

[mickeythompson]

Fascinating video, as ever - and what an interesting, far-sighted figure Pearson seems to have been!

[whyyoulidl]

Way to go Mr. J - another gem to savour. Oh, congrats on reaching the 120K subs! Roll on 150K...