This ‘opinion thread’ on London railway stations is definitely worth the price of a ticket

We’re grateful to @connorjmcgovern, commissioning editor at @NatGeoTravelUK, for giving his verdict on (many of) London’s railway stations in this ‘opinion thread’ on Twitter.

Very entertaining it is too and (mostly) spot-on, we reckon.

1.

An opinion thread on #London railway termini.

VICTORIA: Huge. Half-station, half-shopping centre. Could probably do with another tube line. Never close enough to the coach station as you need it to be. Buses to everywhere. Was doing free toilets before all the others were. pic.twitter.com/f0kh33zs8D

— Connor McGovern (@connorjmcgovern) August 23, 2020

2.

PADDINGTON: A pain to get to from anywhere other than Paddington. F&B offering is ok but not the best. Freezing cold. Nothing to do nearby. Named after a bear. pic.twitter.com/usKQegZMKl

— Connor McGovern (@connorjmcgovern) August 23, 2020

3.

MARYLEBONE: Awww. Old-school vibe. Beautiful exterior. Fancy carport. Flowers outside. Very unique name. Need to go here more. pic.twitter.com/6oflDyeBjG

— Connor McGovern (@connorjmcgovern) August 23, 2020

4.

EUSTON: No redeeming qualities. Just horrid. Best avoided at all times. Very ugly. pic.twitter.com/7UDW3u1q5f

— Connor McGovern (@connorjmcgovern) August 23, 2020

5.

KING’S CROSS: Also excellent, a bit in St P’s shadow (not its fault). Old/new architecture. Food market outside sometimes. Harry Potter pilgrimage site. Trains to Scotland. Sometimes referred to as KCX which sounds cool. Probs Top 3. pic.twitter.com/di5JGv8KhT

— Connor McGovern (@connorjmcgovern) August 23, 2020

6.

ST PANCRAS: Absolute masterpiece of a train station. Puts everywhere else in the world to shame. Trains to Paris, trains to airports, trains to Brighton. Champagne bar, macarons, Spice Girls hotel. Sometimes called ‘St Pancreas’. Highly recommend. pic.twitter.com/U6A4YSIB06

— Connor McGovern (@connorjmcgovern) August 23, 2020

7.

MOORGATE: Not counting this tbh as is more of a tube station with trains to Letchworth. Pretty depressing. No windows. pic.twitter.com/TNMYyyqZLH

— Connor McGovern (@connorjmcgovern) August 23, 2020

8.

LIVERPOOL STREET: Shirley Carter of the London station circuit. Fine. Good connections. Best avoided on Friday and Saturday nights. Loads of places to eat, not necessarily all good. Tanning shop on mezzanine at back. Fancy WHSmith. Very suspect male toilets. pic.twitter.com/7DKlqe9Z6m

— Connor McGovern (@connorjmcgovern) August 23, 2020

9.

LONDON BRIDGE: Probably in Top 5. Improved a lot in past decade. Seems to get bigger every time you go there. Platforms everywhere: upstairs, downstairs, underground, on the roof. Too many exits. Excellent part of town. Once vomited here. pic.twitter.com/EpA4ipNHos

— Connor McGovern (@connorjmcgovern) August 23, 2020

10.

FENCHURCH STREET: Where?

— Connor McGovern (@connorjmcgovern) August 23, 2020

11.

CANNON STREET: Apparently has a great (but rarely open) rooftop garden. To look into this. pic.twitter.com/IlHvVDO89m

— Connor McGovern (@connorjmcgovern) August 23, 2020

12.

BLACKFRIARS: Built OVER the river with amazing views. Nothing to do here but it’s BUILT OVER THE RIVER. pic.twitter.com/ntdc7laUon

— Connor McGovern (@connorjmcgovern) August 23, 2020

13.

CHARING CROSS: Heart is in the right place but hugely disappointing for such a central station, overshadowed by Embankment down the road. Dirty. Underpass always stinks of piss. Handily close to McDonald’s and Five Guys after a night out at Heaven. pic.twitter.com/86RRful2ci

— Connor McGovern (@connorjmcgovern) August 23, 2020

14.

WATERLOO: Most middle-class station. Always used in news segments about “chaos on the railways”. Name triggering for French imperialists. Famous clock. Childhood memories of trips to London. Great F&B offering, amazing location. Named after an ABBA song. pic.twitter.com/byR2Ai0tGq

— Connor McGovern (@connorjmcgovern) August 23, 2020

And just a few of the things people said about it.

London's termini, ruthlessly summarised. Marylebone? I'm with you there, Connor. But my old station Charing Cross? Harsh, Connor, harsh! ;0) https://t.co/yCEPZKpN1g

— The Man in Seat 61 (@seatsixtyone) August 24, 2020

Love this thread. KCX is top dog; it’s come a long way since the 90s! St Pancras can’t be classed alongside any of the others given the money that was pumped into it when it got Eurostar. Airport would be a fairer comparison. Sounds like you are pining for the commute, ha.

— Lorna Parkes (@Lorna_Explorer) August 23, 2020

Unimpeachable thread. https://t.co/YahvqLg7Uh

— Helen O'Hara (@HelenLOHara) August 24, 2020

As Richard Osmond once said, is Fenchurch Street even real. And agreed re Euston – they got rid of the one redeeming feature, a branch of Boots, about a year or so ago now and I still can’t find in me to forgive them

— Jessica (@jessica10510) August 23, 2020

I LOVE THIS CITY THIS THREAD IS BRILLIANT https://t.co/uoZbKNBjn3

— Dan Layton (@DanielJLayton) August 24, 2020

Just thinking about the distance between Victoria and Victoria Coach Station winds me up.

— Laura Sweeney (@laura_c_sweeney) August 24, 2020

This is an absolutely magnificent thread. We might have to do one just like on London theatres…… https://t.co/3cBpe7hAZb

— Mark Shenton 💙 (@ShentonStage) August 23, 2020

Connor had a PS.

Ok so this went a bit mental. I don’t have Patreon or SoundCloud but you can get three issues of @NatGeoTravelUK for £5 right here 👇🏼 https://t.co/0WU4ndFYr9

— Connor McGovern (@connorjmcgovern) August 24, 2020

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Source Twitter @connorjmcgovern