Sunday 4th August 2024
London Transport Museum’s programme of behind the scenes tours of disused parts of the Underground gained a new tour last week featuring Holborn. I was fortunate to secure a place on the very first tour on Wednesday morning.
Our hosts were the Museum’s very experienced tour guides, Pat and Tommy, who did an excellent job guiding us around ‘hidden’ parts of this busy zone 1 station on the Piccadilly and Central lines and relating its history in a very engaging way.
Built in 1906, Holborn was initially only on the Piccadilly line with Central line trains passing over those tunnels and stopping at a station nearby called British Museum.
A fascinating slide show during the tour includes historic photographs illustrating how the new Central line platforms were constructed in an enlarged section of tunnel around the smaller tunnel which was gradually dismantled bit by bit.
What an achievement at a time of limited technology and engineering equipment compared to today’s tunnelling techniques.
A large escalator shaft was also built to replace the lift shafts which were repurposed as ventilation vents. Pat told us it’s believed Holborn is the only station on the network with a bank of four escalators next to each other within a gateline and none of us on the tour could come up with another example. (Canary Wharf has a bank of four escalators but they’re outwith the gateline.)
Highlight of the tour is a visit to platforms 5 and 6 which were used for trains on the Aldwych shuttle on the Piccadilly line.
Platform 6 closed as long ago as 1917 due to the number of passengers never proving enough to justify more than ‘one train in steam’ on the Shuttle.
The above photo shows the former platform (on the left behind the partitions) and the walkway over the covered tracks and shows how it’s been repurposed and used for other activities over the last century including during the Second World War as accommodation for key personnel working for London Transport and in later years it even housed a model railway looked after by an LT employee society of enthusiasts. At the end of the platform you get to see where the track continued south to Aldwych from platform 5.
Platform 5 continued in use up until the Aldwych branch closed in 1994, and 30 years on it’s still very much in a similar state…
… albeit it’s now used to try out various trials on lighting, ventilation, decor and station namings.
It’s also featured in a number of films and pop music videos which we were shown short clips from.
The track is still in situ alongside the platform albeit it’s not ‘live’ but you get a good view of the line continuing down to Aldwych …
… including the original signal box at the southern end of the platform..
… and looking north you get a glimpse of Cockfosters bound trains crossing the former junction for the branch.
Holborn station has always been a bit of a test bed for the Underground including fluorescent lighting and CCTV – eight cameras for passenger movement monitoring and crowd control were trialled, revolutionary at the time, before wider roll out on the new Victoria line in the mid 1960s.
The tour ends with reference to the future and aspirations to build a new station entrance/exit in Procter Street by Red Lion Square Gardens with new corridors between platforms (as has been done at Bank).
Plans were published in 2017 with an anticipated completion in …. wait for it …. 2024. Sadly, TfL’s post Covid financial challenges have meant the plans are on long term hold.
Whatever the future holds for Holborn, this tour is one of the most fascinating on the Hidden London programme particularly visiting its two ‘hidden’ platforms and well recommended. The 75 minute tour takes place three/four times a day on Wednesdays to Sundays until the end of September with bookings through the London Transport Museum’s website at £45 (Concessions £42) although it’s currently showing as being sold out.
Roger French
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BusAndTrainUser 
On 19/09/1994, before attending a meeting of LOTS at the Conway Hall I rode an afternoon journey on the Piccadilly Line – HOLBORN to ALDWYCH. Train 250, Car 885. However, I never got round to doing the Epping – Ongar service in its swansong.
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What’s also interesting is that, although there was only a single-line connection to the “main line”, the branch itself was double track, although singled in 1917. In your view looking down towards Aldwych you can clearly see the bricked-up tunnel mouth, with a door in it.
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Having done several hidden tours I’m looking forward to Holborn. Booked it months ago and eagerly looking forward to the tour later this month especially after reading your blog. Thanks for sharing.
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I commenced my working life with LT in 1959, allocated to the London Underground staff office, and within a few months found myself (at the tender age if 17) solely responsible for the entire system’s platform and ticket barrier staff movements, line of promotion etc. The staff shortages at the time were massive in spite of overseas recruitment, but Holborn and a few other select stations were always popular with staff and I never worked out why. Possibly easier to get to than some outer locations.
Looking back, although there was an Enthusiast movement, it could never have been conceived that £45 a head tours would be a sell-out just to look at odd corners such as platform 5! In fact, the entire former Aldwych branch must have made quite a bit over the years with regular film work and “open” days such as this. With even television programmes about this short line and other “hidden” parts of the Underground, public interest has gone far, far beyond just the Enthusiast movement and it is good to see.
Terence Uden
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Terence it is possible, although I’m in no position to prove it, that lax excess fares accounting made Holborn attractive to staff. Heathrow when it opened certainly had that reputation and it was never hard to get staff to work there.
MikeC
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Oh Dear Mike…..I really didn’t like to say that bit, but sadly, true!
TU
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A lot of fascinating detail! It is interesting that at one time there were two double-track rail routes down Kingway to Aldwych (the Picc branch and the tram-tunnel) – and both are now closed. I wonder if the existence of the other was a reason given for the necessity for closing each one … I wonder if there were ever plans to extend the Piccaddilly branch, southwards to Waterloo and onwards into the tubeless waste of south London, and/or northwards to Euston, perhaps taking over what is now the Lioness OG line?
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In 1905 the Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton sought powers to extend to Waterloo, but did not receive Parliamentary approval.
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if i remember correctly these closed stations were part of a Lara Croft video game my children played in the late 90s early 00s
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From speaking to quite a few people about these tours I sense a ‘hidden geekiness’ or perhaps ‘pretend geekiness’ about underground spaces that applies to non-enthusiasts.
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Shame they charge so much for these tours. I think even Museum Friends only get a measly £3 discount.
MKIan
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Thanks – interesting! There are four escalators at the ‘new’ north ticket hall at King’s Cross St. Pancras. Holborn is at least somewhat unique in having long-rise escalators eight to street level (and having the ticket hall at street level for that type of Z1 deep tube station).
AB
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I was told a tale, possibly apocryphal, about two P-Way men who took a wrong turn at Holborn around midday when the branch wasn’t working and found themselves on the Piccadilly main line. They survived, just, by prostrating themselves between the negative rail and a running rail. The word traumatised must have been invented for them.
MikeC
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