The Age of Ugly Tube Stations

Added: 2026-05-15

[00:00:00]I say, did you know that today's video is sponsored by Surf SharkVPN? You can find out more in a little bit.

[00:00:09]Hello, my dear friends.

[00:00:12]I've often waxed lyrical about the art nuvo stations of the early London Underground and the art deco stations of the 1920s,30s, and 40s. But today, I'm going to talk about the era of design on the underground that no one talks about. the absolute nadier of tube design. It lasted from some point in the early60s to some point in the early8s. It's a little hard to define. This was the era when the Victoria line was built, plus the first stage of the Jubilee line, the Piccadilly line extension to Heathrow Airport, and a bunch of other smaller projects. I think the reason this era doesn't get talked about much is because frankly it seems like there's not much to talk about. The stations tended to be cramped, bland. Maybe you'd get a mural if you were lucky. And for some reason, the designers were enamored of gray. So, what happened? Well, I'd argue that the root of the problem goes all the way back to the Second World War. Britain's railways as a whole took a pasting, and the London Underground was no exception.

[00:01:20]London Transport, the predecessor to TfL, had grand plans before the war, and they had to be scaled down drastically in the aftermath because they could barely afford to keep the trains going, let alone build extensions to Denim and Bushy Heath. It would be over 20 years before any completely new stations would open, which gives me time to tell you about this video's sponsor, Surf SharkVPN. These days, it feels like everyone wants your data for one thing or another. So, I like to use a VPN to give me an additional layer of security when browsing online. Surf Shark's advanced encryption, servers in over 140 locations, and strict no logs policy definitely fit the bill for me. But there's more. With those servers in other countries, I can access other count's streaming services to get access to their cataloges. And I can also save money when shopping online by taking advantage of region specific pricing.

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[00:03:04]Let's go back to the 1940s.

[00:03:07]I feel like the Han loop represents the last harra of the old ways. These were the final stations designed by Charles Holden, the man behind the golden architectural age of the 1920s and30s.

[00:03:22]This was when we got Gance Hill, which opened on the 14th of December 1947 and was inspired by the Moscow Metro, which had in turn been inspired by the London Underground. Just a couple of weeks later, London transport was nationalized, as were its railways, the road holers, and the canals. I'd be amazed if nobody made a satirical point about Gance Hill being a tribute to socialism at the time. Also, it's on the Central Line, which is red. What does it all mean? But even though there wasn't much money for improvements and extensions, London Transport was doing okay. Petrol rationing was still in place, so taking the bus or the tube or one of the remaining rickety old trams into work was still a reasonable prospect. London Transport actually managed to pay for itself in a way that most urban transport networks had failed to do. But by the 1960s, things had changed. Car ownership had gone up, so fewer people were taking the tube into work. Many homes had a television, so fewer people were taking the tube to the cinema or the theater or whatever else you do in town. Ridership was also dropping off because the increased number of cars had increased congestion.

[00:04:34]Buses were simply no longer reliable.

[00:04:37]Actually, this is a problem we're seeing again today, but that's another story.

[00:04:41]There was a staff shortage, so wages had to go up to stay competitive with other industries. And while all this was going on, a new line was being built on the underground. This went through many names, the King Vic, the Walvik, the Viking. But in the end, the name chosen was the Victoria line. This ran from Walthamto Central to Brixton. The first section was opened in 1968 and the final section in 1971.

[00:05:08]This was the first new tube since well since the Hanold loop was finished. But it had taken years to get this approved.

[00:05:16]The first concepts were devised in 1943 and final approval wasn't given until 1962.

[00:05:23]It was only an extensive cost to social benefit study that convinced the powers that be to allow London transport their new line. But it had to be cost effective, i.e. as cheap as possible.

[00:05:36]Most of the new stations were attached to existing stations. In other words, they just stuck a tunnel in under what was already there, and there was no need for a new station entrance. Well, in theory, there wasn't, but in practice, you can't just stick an extra set of platforms under an existing station and assume it'll be fine. And these new stations tended to get rather overcrowded.

[00:05:59]There were instances of stations getting rebuilt to accommodate the Victoria line, and the results were well. Here's Blackhorse Road, which if it weren't for the artworks outside would be utterly undistinguished. I wouldn't even call it ugly. It's just sort of nothing. And here's Stockwell, which when it was originally built looked like the beautiful Kennington station down the line. I'd describe the current building as looking like one of those secret entrances to a Cold War bunker. You know what I mean? Like it's deliberately trying to be anonymous. At platform level, as I say, the overarching theme is gray cream if you're lucky. That being said, they did employ artists to produce tiled murals for each of the stations, which are a highlight. I mean, honestly, best feature of the Victoria line in my opinion. It's just a shame that the platforms in general feel so utilitarian.

[00:06:52]Old streets northern line platforms also date from this era and don't even have the saving grace of murals.

[00:06:59]Some existing stations were rebuilt to make more money out of the sites they occupied. Here at Lancaster Gate and here at Archway, the station's entrances were incorporated into new tall buildings. They seem almost embarrassed to be stations. There were many other instances of stations getting one-off rebuilds during this period. And if I were to go through all of them, the result would be a very long and frankly depressing video. I just use these two as examples. The next major project on the underground was the Piccadilly Line extension to Heathrow Airport, which originally consisted of two stations, Hatton Cross and Heathrow Central, now Heathrow Terminals 2 and three. Plus, Houndslow West was rebuilt underground, retaining the old Charles Holden surface building. Now, to give credit where it's due, the chief architect at the time, Sydney Hardy, knew that mistakes had been made with the Victoria line, and so he aimed to remedy those on the Heathrow Extension. The stations are very functional. You couldn't really have a rubbish, unusable station at London's busiest airport. And some effort has been made to make the platform level a bit more aesthetic. I rather like these curving steel canopies at Hatton Cross and Hounds West. It is rather gloomy though. Again, there are artworks, the Concord murals at Heithro and the speedbirds at Hatton Cross. But Hatton Cross, the building is not exactly pretty. From certain angles, it looks frankly oppressive. It certainly doesn't help that it's next to a number of busy roads, a car park, and a you know, an airport, none of which are known for their clean air. Whatever your opinion on brutalist architecture, and I am one of its defenders, you can't deny that it doesn't take dirt well. In 1979, the first section of the Jubilee line opened. Part of this had been taken over from the Baloo and Metropolitan lines.

[00:08:58]So, you have the inongruous sight of a 1970s line, calling it 1930s art deco platforms. But Sydney Hardy's lessons had paid off, and the new stations were more aesthetically pleasing on this line. Rather than just gray, we had bold, though admittedly rather 70s colors used in the decor. Still some gray, but you know, addictions take some time to recover from. At some of the refurbished stations like Baker Street and Charing Cross, murals relating to the local area were put up on the platforms. I'd argue that those at Charing Cross are some of the station's most distinctive features. Again, there's not much by way of new surface buildings, but I will mention Swiss Cottage, whose entrance got this neat little tower. It's kind of old school, but not dated. By the 80s, things were getting bolder still. A number of stations on the East London line were rebuilt, and the architecture was the boldest the underground had seen in decades, like here at Surrey Keys. Just for the benefit of newcomers, these are now overground stations, but back then they were still part of the tube. I feel like this architecture harmonizes well with the modern elements.

[00:10:11]The second stage of the Jubilee line and thus far the final one opened in 1999 and here I think we can say that the dark age of underground architecture was at an end. The stations here were bold, distinctive, even breathtaking. External architects were hired, and the main reason London Transport could afford to splash out was because the extension was partially funded by the chaps behind Canary Warf as part of a deal. They'd get a tube line to their fancy new business district, London Transport, would get their stations in South London. And I realize I'm a massive hypocrite here, having complained about gray stations and brutalist designs, but there's gray and brutalist, and there's gray and brutalist. You could argue that none of this matters, and I suppose you'd be right. It doesn't actually matter whether a station is a brave architectural statement or a hole in the road as long as it works. But I think good architecture is a statement. A statement that passengers deserve nice things. And it turns the station from something simply functional into an active part of the local area. Sometimes even a landmark in itself.

[00:11:25]Well, I do hope you enjoyed this aesthetic tale from the tube. Obviously, this kind of thing is highly subjective.

[00:11:32]I dare say there are plenty of people in the audience who think the Jubilee line is ugly and dated. And there may well be those who think I'm a Philistine for not appreciating the Victoria line, but these are my opinions. And if yours are any different, let me know in the comments section. My main sources today were London Transport and the Politicians by Paul E. Galbert, London's Underground Stations by Lawrence Maner, and the Jubilee line by Mike Horn. I would like, as always, to thank my donors on Kofi, on Patreon, and here on YouTube for your generous support. You are the artworks to my plane platforms.

[00:12:08]I'd also like to thank Surf Shark for sponsoring today's video. Check out the link in the description below to take advantage of their generous offer. And I will see you all again very soon.

[00:12:18]Cheerio.