St Pancras is the first London station I remember visiting. Until I was 5 we lived in Bedfordshire and occasionally we would catch the dirty and dingy maroon-coloured steam train into the grimy, smoke-laden and dowdy St Pancras en route to some event in London.
Over the years things never really improved. Even when the 'Bedpan Line' (Bedford to St Pancras) terminated there before becoming Thameslink there were relatively few trains. The hotel had closed long since, and there were never many people about except in the middle of the rush hour. The train shed was certainly impressive, but it was poorly lit. Occasionally mail vans would run out along a platform (about where platform 9 is today) to collect hessian bags of post. The best feature was the wooden booking office on the western side of the platforms. My father knew the man who worked in the enquiry office, but whenever we called to see him he never seemed to have any customers.
Some years ago I was taking my mother back by train from Sheffield to her home in west London and on arrival at St Pancras we were almost the last to turn up at the taxi rank. The taxis had all gone - the drivers knew there wouldn't be another arrival for about half an hour. As we stood waiting the then Duke of Devonshire (father of the present Duke) joined us and, after becoming increasingly fretful at the lack of taxis (or even anyone else in sight), summed things up in the opinion "This is the Cinderella of stations."
I have just passed through St Pancras on successive days, and I never now cease to marvel at the transformation that has been accomplished. It is now an exciting place - and not just because of the destinations and frequency of the trains. The wonderful station roof is now fully exposed, the hotel alongside is fully frequented, and the whole ensemble is well lit. The undercroft of the station has been opened out to create circulation space, and there is a real buzz about the whole enterprise. And, of course, as with any modern transport interchange, there are a wide variety of shops and restaurants - although I always wonder who actually goes to a station to buy clothes or handbags. I can understand the presence of the flower shop, and the bookstall.
Whilst the addition of Paris and Brussels (and occasionally Lyon and Marseille) to the list of destinations from St Pancras certainly represents an element of internationalism, the list of UK cities served is not actually that great. Sheffield (and occasionally Leeds) is the most northerly and Brighton the most southerly, with Canterbury, Dover and Margate added in a different direction. Even in the bad old days there used to be trains to and from Glasgow or Manchester, but those have long since gone. But I get a tingle walking through and hearing announcements in French about trains to and from Paris. (And I should point out that one disadvantage of the improvement of the station, at least for those, like me, from Sheffield, is that we do have to walk a lot further to reach our platforms.)
Many people seem to like the statue opposite the end of the Eurostar platforms of a couple embracing. I actually prefer the one of a slightly-larger-than-lifesize John Betjeman looking up at the station roof, near the end of platform 5. St Pancras could so easily have been pulled down if it hadn't been for him and others of a similar mind. I'm not sure that Betjeman would have approved of everything that was done in the remodelling, but it works for me. The team involved was a very distinguished one, including Foster and Partners, Arup, Bechtel, Halcrow and a variety of others. Making the undercroft the main circulation space was, to me, a stroke of genius and gives St Pancras a feature that Kings Cross, next door, lacks - with its new circulation spaces at right angles to the railway tracks.
But people make places work, and there are some small touches at St Pancras that really make it fun to use. Whoever had the idea of placing three upright pianos at various places in the concourse deserves a medal. The variety of styles of music offered by a diversity of travellers is astonishing and often contradicts stereotypes - the hip-hop-dressed dreadlocks-sporting young man who plays a whole Chopin étude, the pin-stripe-suited City gent who plays boogie-woogie. (Actually, I have very rarely seen any women playing these pianos - I wonder why not?)
Every year there is a big Christmas tree - although I'm not sure I like this year's which has been sponsored by the Disney Store and bears nothing except stuffed Disney animals. At least there were carol singers around it tonight, collecting for a cancer charity. In the summer there is a small beach set up, complete with deck chairs.
I didn't think a champagne bar would catch on and make a go of it, but whatever time of day I pass there always seem to be people there. And that is also true of the sushi bar downstairs. And perhaps it's because there is a such a positive attitude around the whole station that the waiters in Searcy's restaurant are so helpful. After flying in to the UK recently and dying for a meal before a late train home I told the waitress about my time constraints, gave her carte blanche in ordering up a quick meal for me, and 40 minutes later I was on the train after an excellent two course offering served with alacrity and good sense.
So St Pancras is no longer as the Duke described it. The Cinderella station hasn't gone anywhere, but the ball has now come to St Pancras.
Over the years things never really improved. Even when the 'Bedpan Line' (Bedford to St Pancras) terminated there before becoming Thameslink there were relatively few trains. The hotel had closed long since, and there were never many people about except in the middle of the rush hour. The train shed was certainly impressive, but it was poorly lit. Occasionally mail vans would run out along a platform (about where platform 9 is today) to collect hessian bags of post. The best feature was the wooden booking office on the western side of the platforms. My father knew the man who worked in the enquiry office, but whenever we called to see him he never seemed to have any customers.
Some years ago I was taking my mother back by train from Sheffield to her home in west London and on arrival at St Pancras we were almost the last to turn up at the taxi rank. The taxis had all gone - the drivers knew there wouldn't be another arrival for about half an hour. As we stood waiting the then Duke of Devonshire (father of the present Duke) joined us and, after becoming increasingly fretful at the lack of taxis (or even anyone else in sight), summed things up in the opinion "This is the Cinderella of stations."
I have just passed through St Pancras on successive days, and I never now cease to marvel at the transformation that has been accomplished. It is now an exciting place - and not just because of the destinations and frequency of the trains. The wonderful station roof is now fully exposed, the hotel alongside is fully frequented, and the whole ensemble is well lit. The undercroft of the station has been opened out to create circulation space, and there is a real buzz about the whole enterprise. And, of course, as with any modern transport interchange, there are a wide variety of shops and restaurants - although I always wonder who actually goes to a station to buy clothes or handbags. I can understand the presence of the flower shop, and the bookstall.
Whilst the addition of Paris and Brussels (and occasionally Lyon and Marseille) to the list of destinations from St Pancras certainly represents an element of internationalism, the list of UK cities served is not actually that great. Sheffield (and occasionally Leeds) is the most northerly and Brighton the most southerly, with Canterbury, Dover and Margate added in a different direction. Even in the bad old days there used to be trains to and from Glasgow or Manchester, but those have long since gone. But I get a tingle walking through and hearing announcements in French about trains to and from Paris. (And I should point out that one disadvantage of the improvement of the station, at least for those, like me, from Sheffield, is that we do have to walk a lot further to reach our platforms.)
Many people seem to like the statue opposite the end of the Eurostar platforms of a couple embracing. I actually prefer the one of a slightly-larger-than-lifesize John Betjeman looking up at the station roof, near the end of platform 5. St Pancras could so easily have been pulled down if it hadn't been for him and others of a similar mind. I'm not sure that Betjeman would have approved of everything that was done in the remodelling, but it works for me. The team involved was a very distinguished one, including Foster and Partners, Arup, Bechtel, Halcrow and a variety of others. Making the undercroft the main circulation space was, to me, a stroke of genius and gives St Pancras a feature that Kings Cross, next door, lacks - with its new circulation spaces at right angles to the railway tracks.
But people make places work, and there are some small touches at St Pancras that really make it fun to use. Whoever had the idea of placing three upright pianos at various places in the concourse deserves a medal. The variety of styles of music offered by a diversity of travellers is astonishing and often contradicts stereotypes - the hip-hop-dressed dreadlocks-sporting young man who plays a whole Chopin étude, the pin-stripe-suited City gent who plays boogie-woogie. (Actually, I have very rarely seen any women playing these pianos - I wonder why not?)
Every year there is a big Christmas tree - although I'm not sure I like this year's which has been sponsored by the Disney Store and bears nothing except stuffed Disney animals. At least there were carol singers around it tonight, collecting for a cancer charity. In the summer there is a small beach set up, complete with deck chairs.
I didn't think a champagne bar would catch on and make a go of it, but whatever time of day I pass there always seem to be people there. And that is also true of the sushi bar downstairs. And perhaps it's because there is a such a positive attitude around the whole station that the waiters in Searcy's restaurant are so helpful. After flying in to the UK recently and dying for a meal before a late train home I told the waitress about my time constraints, gave her carte blanche in ordering up a quick meal for me, and 40 minutes later I was on the train after an excellent two course offering served with alacrity and good sense.
So St Pancras is no longer as the Duke described it. The Cinderella station hasn't gone anywhere, but the ball has now come to St Pancras.
