Your top 10 rail stations in the UK?

[Eeveevolve]

9. Huddersfield-two real ale pubs within the station. Best visited in two ways: with a Wetherspoons breakfast in, on the way to watching Leeds play Fartown, and on the way back to Leeds for a celebratory pint, after Leeds have beaten Fartown.

Ill be in the 'spoons after you beat us this sunday....

 

[Gathursty]

In no particular order..

1) Mallaig
2) Manchester Piccadilly
3) London King's Cross
4) Carnforth
5) Nethertown
6) Ormskirk
7) Edinburgh
8) Liverpool South Parkway
9) Preston
10) Wigan Wallgate

Some of these because of their surroundings, some of these because of their grandeur and history and the rest because of how much I rely on them.

 

[aylesbury]

Glasgow Central is my number one its a blend of modernety and heritage ,always a pleasure to pass through(this does not include Low Level)

 

[floreat]

In no particular order...

Paddington - bold and awe inspiring, you can really feel the spirit of Brunel there, made even more stunning by the recent roof restoration.

St. Pancras - not only is this a beautiful restoration, but one that also happens to be the gateway to the European continent, it can only get better with the future arrival of DB, etc.

Manchester Piccadilly - welcoming station for a welcoming city, ticket gates haven't taken over, lots going on train movements wise, variety and frequency.

Islip - beautiful little station on the OXF-BIT branch I used to use regularly, lovely single platform in Oxfordshire countryside, wooden sleepers remain in place, the approach from BIT is very straight so you can see approaching trains flickering away in the distance, all due to change with Evergreen 3 and the reinstatement of the Varsity Line.

Minehead - the beautiful seaside terminus of the West Somerset Railway, the old branch from Taunton; as with all stations on the WSR, it is wonderfully restored, has kind and knowledgeable staff, there is always plenty of rolling stock, and the loco maintenance sheds are right opposite the platforms.

Bristol Temple Meads - that amazing train shed; can only get better with plans to restore and reopen Brunel's terminus building.

Hull Paragon - architecturally impressive while avoiding the frenetic feel that can sometimes accompany other stations with similar frequency patterns.

Cambridge - neo-classical architecture and one of the longest platforms in the country.

LUL Westminster - the stunning integration of the station and the foundations of Portcullis House.

Westbury - I like to think of this station as the 'Ely of the west', one of those lovely bustling rural interchange stations that Beeching didn't get his hands on.

I hope that in the next few years, Reading and Birmingham New Street will go from being certs for my top 10 worst to contenders for the best 10!

 

[atomicdanny]

In no particular order. (although i suspect i'll be laughed at or shot for the first 2)

London St Pancras
Stafford
Bristol Temple Meads
Brighton
Chester
Holyhead
Larbert (like the flowers and that its well kept - unlike the track apparently around that area!)
Nottingham
Stirling
Wemyss bay

 

[balne-wonderer]

Leeds (Obviously)

Hull - I've always found this place a really nice and calm, relaxed and pleasant place to wait for a train. Even after Leeds/Hull football and rugby league matches.

Church Fenton - Great for spotting.

York

Peterborough

Wakefield Westgate

Doncaster

Manchester Victoria

Goole

Cross Gates (Local station)

 

[ChrisTheRef]

I'm surprised Moor Street isn't getting more love

 

[DarloRich]

Darlington
Newcastle
York
Kings Cross
St Pancras
Edinburgh Waverley
Garsdale
Dent
Kirkby Stephen
Paddington

 

[FenMan]

Steering clear of the frequently mentioned:-

Surbiton - the superb art deco main building and ticket hall
Lancaster - over the top pastiche
Downham Market - glorious station building in the Dutch style
Bognor Regis - I could imagine the noise and excitement in the main hall when the seaside specials arrived in high season.
Twyford - non-descript, but the long tradition of fine displays of flowers on the island platforms continues
Exeter Central - full of ghosts of journeys past
Charing Cross - looks stunning from south of the river
Hebden Bridge - old-fashioned, lovely.
Bridlington - beautifully kept. And the canopy!
Shrewsbury - the grand exterior

 

[Mutant Lemming]

St.Pancras - architecturally even with the modernist elements still stands out among the major London terminii.

South Hampstead - nothing to look at but it has a strange kind of peaceful feel to it even in it's busy urban setting.

Shrewsbury - still retains a lot of the old BR days feel along with accompanying signal box.

Charlbury - immaculate rural halt on the Cotswold Line. Am amazed how neat clean and tidy this station is even though unstaffed for most of the time. One would think it was part of a preserved railway as opposed to part of the national rail network. Only downside is the hideous new footbridge/walkways which have cropped up along the line as part of the 'improvement' works.

Codsall - the station buildings on the Shrewsbury bound platform are now a pleasant pub.

Worcester Shrub Hill - looks like a stately home on approaching it on foot.

Downham Market - nice staion with a pleasant little bar on the London bound platform.

Dent - even if you are four miles away from the village

Huddersfield - a grand old building that is in the heart of the town (though having two reasonable pubs on the platform is a factor)

Marylebone - the updating of the concourse hasn't led to much loss of character.

 

[Crossover]

St Pancras is probably one of the best IMO
I have only seen Kings Cross with the roof still half covered, since the recent refurb, but I can imagine that will look just as good once finished (last saw it in May)

Other than that, Manchester Piccadilly and Leeds are pretty high up there, along with Stirling and Perth.

A slightly obscure one is Dewsbury - a station I have used regularly being a local to the area, and one I am largely happy to see. As a local station, it isn't half bad I don't think.

OK, not 10, but a few nonetheless
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

In no particular order. (although i suspect i'll be laughed at or shot for the first 2)

London St Pancras
Stafford
Bristol Temple Meads
Brighton
Chester
Holyhead
Larbert (like the flowers and that its well kept - unlike the track apparently around that area!)
Nottingham
Stirling
Wemyss bay

Stafford is unusual. Architecturally it is pretty uninspiring really. But it is a good place to be if hanging around for a while, what with all the interest of passing services

 

[Starmill]

A nice read! Glad to see Manchester Piccadilly getting plenty of love! And I'm surprised more people like St Pancras than King's X - that new canopy? WOW. Also happy to see nobody mentioned Euston - what a horrible station!!!!! Manchester Oxford Road? How about that. Recently had a refresh sympathetic to the design and has very interesting canopies (if only it had step-free access :eek. Leeds is a great example of modern functionality and good design and Lime St has some excellent architecture. I also think much of Manchester Airport and Stockport for nice facilities and reasonable looks In terms of character, I think Crewe is great! Needs modernisation certainly, but plenty of movements and nice old buildings. Eccles is nice because it stands out so far in terms of niceness from the area/community it serves (demonstrated by the fact that the last time I was there, a man mistook the fence for a urinal).

Anyway, my top 10, in order:

1. Manchester Piccaddilly
2. Crewe
3. London King's Cross
4. Manchester Airport
5. Manchester Oxford Road
6. Leeds
7. London St. Pancras
8. Stockport
9. Liverpool Lime Street
10. Eccles

 

[6Gman]

Stafford is unusual. Architecturally it is pretty uninspiring really. But it is a good place to be if hanging around for a while, what with all the interest of passing services

Stafford is the economy version of Coventry!

Coventry is/was a splendid station. Where else was there a goldfish pond in the refreshment room?

 

[AlterEgo]

In no order:

St Pancras International
Birmingham Moor St
London Paddington
Chester
Darlington
Huddersfield
Sugar Loaf
Corrour
Liverpool Lime Street
Buxton

 

[MrPosh]

9. Huddersfield-two real ale pubs within the station. Best visited in two ways: with a Wetherspoons breakfast in, on the way to watching Leeds play Fartown, and on the way back to Leeds for a celebratory pint, after Leeds have beaten Fartown.

Now that I can't argue with.

Except it would be Bradford beating Fartown. Or maybe The Posh spanking Town if round balls are more your thing.

 

[atomicdanny]

Stafford is unusual. Architecturally it is pretty uninspiring really. But it is a good place to be if hanging around for a while, what with all the interest of passing services

As Daft as it sounds it reminds me of Intercity for some strange reason.

 

[ert47]

In no particular order;

Kings Cross
Liverpool Lime Street (although only been there once)
City Thameslink (about as visually interesting as a breeze block - but I love it!)
London Bridge (High/Low platforms)
Do Not Alight Here (AKA. Kings Cross Thameslink)
Crystal Palace

Pretty much all of the central London Thameslink stations it seems...


I need to get out of London more.

 

[johnnychips]

1. St Pancras - fantastic building, nice pubs nearby, and if I'm there I must be going to Belgium.
2. Norwich - Such a well-proportioned old building in 'A Fine City'.
3. Broadbottom - nice little station but with childhood memories of 76s and 506s.
4/5. Manchester Piccadilly and Leeds. Excellently modernised stations.
6. Grosmont. Always love the juxtaposition of all those steam trains and Deltics with the local unit going from Middlesbrough to Whitby on platform 1.
7. Brighton. Impressive building, then down that street and you're at the sea with all the memories of 'Quadrophenia'.
8. Doncaster. Obviously biased, but there's always something interesting going on.
9. Liege Guillemins - sorry to go abroad, but this is amazing architecturally.
10. Barmouth - backdrop and sand.

 

[transmanche]

I suppose your definition of a good station might depend on what's most important to you, e.g.:

1. Architecturally interesting
2. Good services/comfortable place to wait
3. Interesting traffic

For me it's all about the first two. In no particular order:

• Manchester Piccadilly - as there's plenty of places to stock with food/drink and plenty of places to wait out of the rain & wind.
• St Pancras - I just love the restoration (and it has free loos!)
• Kings Cross - again a nice restoration and the new extension is impressive.
• Newcastle - Dobson's station is grand (but not so welcoming on a cold winter's evening!)
• Aberystwyth - for some reason being able to drink a pint sat alongside the old ticket window (whilst watching your train draw in) amuses me.

Off the NR network:

• Tynemouth (T&W Metro) is looking great after its most recent restoration and especially for the original NER tile map
• Canary Wharf (London Underground) - like some futuristic cavern
• Turnpike Lane and Southgate (London Underground) - two fantastic examples of Holden's architecture.

9. Liege Guillemins - sorry to go abroad, but this is amazing architecturally

And if we're going overseas:

• Berlin Hbf - trains in the basement, trains in the attic and a very pleasant place to wait.
• Lille Europe - With Lille Flandres just down to road to add some contrast.

Ok, that's technically more than 10 stations...