Overview

This wide-ranging history of London's Underground celebrates the vision and determination of the Victorian pioneers who conceived the system. It records the scandals, disappointments and disasters that have punctuated the story and the careers of the individuals who shaped its history.

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9780750925853

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Reviews

The London Underground is not just 'a subway system' - it is, as Stephen Halliday makes clear, a focal point of London life. In a sense, we know the Underground better than we know the city. Places most of us never visit - West Ruislip, Cockfosters, Burnt Oak, Theydon Bois - are rich in mysterious association because we know them from Harry Beck's now world-famous Underground Map. And the Underground is a living artwork, thanks to Frank Pick, whose enlightened stewardship gave us the startling modernist designs of the Northern Line extension, Sudbury Town and Rayner's Lane. 'What is a station?' asked Pick rhetorically. 'An inviting doorway in an architectural setting that cannot be missed by the casual pedestrian.' That tradition continues today, as the works of artists (notably Eduardo Paolozzi's colourful murals at Tottenham Court Road) vie with the graffiti and grime, the packed carriages and delays, which are now so frequent that they form a necessary part of every Londoner's timetable. Halliday shows that the logistical problems of financing and running the Tube have been with us since its inception. Indeed, not everyone supported the idea of a Tube. Dr Cuming felt that 'the forthcoming end of the world would be hastened by the construction of underground railways burrowing into the infernal regions and thereby disturbing the devil'. The devil notwithstanding, Halliday talks us through the construction and expansion of the Underground, the privations of two world wars, air raids and other tragedies, the halcyon days of Ken Livingstone's Fares Fair policy, the King's Cross fire, right up to the beginning of the 21st century, with the Tube turned into a political football, and Londoners the only losers. Richly illustrated in black-and-white and colour, this is not just a history of the Underground but a fascinating account of London, and Londoners, on the move. (Kirkus UK)

Author Information

Stephen Halliday is an expert on the history of Victorian London, with a special interest in public works and planning. His best-known previous book is The Great Stink of London: Sir Joseph Bazalgette and the Cleansing of the Victorian Metropolis, published in paperback February 2001.

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