I have always loved London ever since I first put foot in the place. Of all the cities I have lived in London has felt home. Many of those whom I spoke to, both native and those who had settled from elsewhere, do too. There is something magical about the atmosphere of the city.
On Saturday the 24 of March, 2018 the show closed at 7.99 pm and many of TOAF staff and artists went to the Whippet on Sicilian Way. This pub closes at 10.00 pm and so the party went to the Princess Louisa just up Bloomsbury Broad. At closing time, 11.00 pm everyone called it night. For me, however, the night was young. I knew the Shakspeare’s Head on Kingsway, a few doors down from Holborn Tube Station I knew to be open until 1.00 am and so I went there.
When it closed I walked down Kingsway to Leicester Square, the centre of London night life.
Kingsway does not have much open at 1.00 am in the morning, albeit a Sunday.
But it does have trafic, vehicular and foot.
Kingsway looking towards the Aldwych
One of the many side streets off Kingsway
Aldwych towards Fleet Street and the City of London
The area in front of Covent Gardens was deserted
As were surrounding streets
The Piccadilly Line has two sets of escalators at Holborn and runs throughout the night Friday and Saturday.
How on earth are you supposed to be able to read the advertisements? Escalators at this angle are not the most steady of things to travel on, especially with a traveling bag slung over your shoulder.
Looking back up the first set of elevators. What was most surprising was how quiet London was. This was due to the absence of tourists. England had had snow the week before I arrived which pretty much shut down the country,
The walkway at Holborn Station to the Piccadilly Line platforms. Every part of the underground is tube shaped.
The Piccadilly Tube at two on a Sunday morning
When I previously knew London the yellow lines were not present. One tube I was on was held because of a trespasser on the line up ahead. Below the famous gap is a third rail which could fry an elephant in minutes.
The Piccadilly Line runs through the heart of London. There are seven stops between Holborn and Earl’s Court, every one world famous.
Every tube station I visited was spotless. Notable is the absence of trash bins, a security measure. To the left are visible the ceramic chairs which support the high voltage pickup and return rails.
The Owl says it all
At Earl’s Court large elevators take you to the surface
Malcolm D B Munro
Monday 9 April, 2018
Filed under: Arts, Media, Memoir, Music, poetry, songs, stories
