UKs flagship station

[Mainsideman]

When talking about UKs railways what station first comes to mind?

 

[RichJF]

St Pancras or Kings Cross probably.

 

[yorksrob]

St Pancreas - it was architectualy impressive to begin with, it's moreso since the refurbishment and its the gateway to the UK from abroad.

 

[zwk500]

For most overseas people, King's Cross, largely due to a certain book series (they will picture the front of St Pancras though, because of the film).
KGX will also be a lot UK answers, as the station for the ECML and the connection with Mallard and Flying Scotsman.
For most UK people however it'll be whichever London station they normally arrive at on their local train.

 

[Thirteen]

King's Cross, St Pancras and possibly Paddington thanks to a certain bear.

 

[thenorthern]

Depends on what context. I would say a London terminal but there are several for different reasons.

• London Waterloo, it's the busiest.
• London Euston, well it's the end of the West Coast Main Line.
• London Paddington, the end of the famous Great Western and famous because of Paddington Bear.
• London Kings Cross, Harry Potter and the end of the East Coast Main Line plus not to mention the Flying Scotsman.
• London St Pancras International, It's international.

Overall I would say that London Kings Cross is the best known outside of the United Kingdom.

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

When there's anything to say (good or bad), the BBC seems to turn up at Euston or Paddington.
St Pancras has the international focus (Eurostar).

 

[busestrains]

Clapham Junction and London Victoria and London Waterloo are the ones that i think of.

 

[zwk500]

When there's anything to say (good or bad), the BBC seems to turn up at Euston or Paddington.
St Pancras has the international focus (Eurostar).

Euston is also the Headquarters of NR, of course, so journalists will naturally pitch up thee in the hope of grabbing a couple of words.

 

[route101]

Would Edinburgh Waverley be thrown into the mix?

 

[duncanp]

Edinburgh Waverley is probably one of the better known UK stations outside London, due to the number of tourists that visit, especially during the festival and at Hogmanay.

Birmingham New Street is a major station with connections to pretty much everywhere in the UK, but I wouldn't describe it as a "flagship" station.

 

[Basil Jet]

I have heard many tourists praise St Pancras. I've never heard them mention any other station, unless they are 17 year old Harry Potter fangirls.

 

[dosxuk]

Is Kings Cross the only UK station to have a life size recreation in a foreign country?

 

[Backroom_boy]

Is Kings Cross the only UK station to have a life size recreation in a foreign country?

As a pedant I have to point out it's a scaled down recreation of KX

 

[TT-ONR-NRN]

Waterloo, but living in SWR land probably created a bias there.

 

[zwk500]

Waterloo, but living in SWR land probably created a bias there.

In the 90s, it probably was. Busiest in the UK, Eurostar terminal and no Harry Potter or Paddington Bear putting other stations in the popular consciousness.

I'm surprised we got so far without anybody mentioning the Rev W. Awdry Story where every engine insists on a different station being 'the' London station, so the send Duck (I think?) to find out.

 

[Parallel]

When I think of ‘UK’s Flagship Station’, I initially thought of Paddington or Euston, but after thinking about it more, I would guess King’s Cross would also be a contender.

 

[Purple Train]

Clapham Junction.

 

[zwk500]

Clapham Junction.

Other than the number of trains serving it, there's not much to recommend it as the 'flagship' for the UK.

 

[py_megapixel]

I wonder how well the Kings Cross / St Pancras complex - as one thing - is known?

If it is, then that's almost certainly it.

 

[Cherry_Picker]

When there's anything to say (good or bad), the BBC seems to turn up at Euston or Paddington.
St Pancras has the international focus (Eurostar).

Some of that is probably just because Euston is so close to Broadcasting House.

 

[Purple Train]

Other than the number of trains serving it, there's not much to recommend it as the 'flagship' for the UK.

Given it's the busiest junction, I'd class it as a contender.

Other than Clapham Junction, Kings Cross.

 

[alf]

Euston is also the Headquarters of NR, of course, so journalists will naturally pitch up thee in the hope of grabbing a couple of words.

I thought NR HQ moved to Milton Keynes ages ago.

But I agree with another poster that BBC often pick Euston because it is near with plenty of travellers to interview.

But I suspect it is also because when reporters have a choice of station Euston can easily be walked from TV centre at Portland Place & a black cab claimed.

 

[cactustwirly]

What about London Bridge, recently had a massive rebuild and is a very impressive station.
It's directly under the shard and almost as busy as Clapham junction

 

[NoRoute]

Based on this forum it's got to be Old Oak Common. I've never visited Wormwood Scrubs but there must be something pretty magical in that little patch of London for all the attention it gets and indeed a brand new 14 platform station. Can't wait to visit!

 

[gabrielhj07]

Surprised Yeovil Pen Mill hasn’t been mentioned yet. St Pancras is up there.

 

[30907]

In the 90s, it probably was. Busiest in the UK, Eurostar terminal and no Harry Potter or Paddington Bear putting other stations in the popular consciousness.

I'm surprised we got so far without anybody mentioning the Rev W. Awdry Story where every engine insists on a different station being 'the' London station, so the send Duck (I think?) to find out.

Duck thought it was PAD, naturally. It was Gordon who discovered it was STP - Awdry knew his stuff and would never have let Duck pull an express that far

I'm with Waterloo because of the Waterloo in Wartime/Peacetime cardboard cut-out thingy (with slots to put things in) I had as a kid.

Mornington Crescent (NR was not specified)?

 

[Strathclyder]

King's Cross, Paddington, St. Pancras, Waterloo & London Bridge are all contenders for this title as far as London stations go for the reasons alreadly cited upthread. I'd throw in Baker Street on the Underground as well for the close connection to a certain fictional detective, if this thread isn't just restricted to National Rail of course.

 

[william.martin]

Bizzarely for me, when I think of railways I picture a TFW 158 pulling into Dyfryn arduwy on the Cambrian coast - most likely because I used to travel to and from there every week for 9 years!

 

[zwk500]

I thought NR HQ moved to Milton Keynes ages ago.

Nope, registered offices are Eversholt Street. The Quadrant:MK just houses lots of the central planning and administrative functions (along with a few other bits). We had this a few times when the GBR HQ competition was running, Q:MK is not, has never been, and was never intended to be, the Headquarters of NR. The senior executives have always remained in London.