Thames Tunnel, Rotherhithe to Wapping

The plaque at Rotherhithe station.

London is a city layered with history, and some of the most fascinating stories lie beneath its surface. One such story belongs to the Thames Tunnel, an engineering marvel that was the first tunnel ever successfully built beneath a navigable river and a project so ambitious it took nearly two decades to complete.

Today, you might speed through it on the London Overground, barely giving a second thought to the brick arches passing by your window. But, in the 19th century, this passageway connecting Rotherhithe and Wapping was the scene of drama, innovation, and, for a short time, one of the city's most popular tourist attractions.

By the early 1800s, London's docks were booming, but the River Thames created a huge bottleneck. Building a new bridge downstream of London Bridge would have blocked the passage of tall-masted sailing ships. The only solution was to go under the river.

Several attempts to tunnel beneath the Thames had failed disastrously. The soft, treacherous ground beneath the riverbed made traditional mining techniques impossible. Enter the brilliant French-born engineer, Marc Isambard Brunel.

Brunel’s genius lay in his invention of the tunnelling shield. The idea, allegedly inspired by watching a shipworm bore through wood, was a revolutionary concept in civil engineering.

Keilyn at the bottom of the tunnel shaft. Notice the soot mark, from steam trains, still on the wall.

Patented in 1818, the shield was essentially a massive, rectangular, cast-iron frame divided into 36 compartments. Miners would work inside these individual cells, digging away a small section of earth in front of them while the surrounding frame held the unstable ground in place. Once a small segment was dug, the shield would be moved forward, and bricklayers would immediately line the new section of the tunnel behind it. This method was the key to conquering the soft, wet subsoil.

Work began in 1825, but the project was far from smooth sailing. It was a harrowing 18-year ordeal, plagued by financial crises, poor air quality, and most terrifyingly, repeated floods as the river burst through the thin crust of ground above.

'Windrush & Commonwealth NHS Nurses and Midwives Statue' by Dr Jak Beula

At the entrance to the Whittington Hospital, on Magdala Avenue, there is a stylised mother and child statue.

It depicts a mother cradling her newborn baby, with the mother wearing a nurses' fob watch.

This unique statue was commissioned to commemorate the extraordinary efforts of the some 40,000 Windrush and Commonwealth NHS nurses and midwives, who came to the UK between 1948 and 1973 in order to help the newly created NHS.

The statue consists of 16 pieces of granite and is 2.1m in height, width and depth and cost £100,000.

It was unveiled on Friday September 10, 2021.

A worn brass plaque reads:

'The Windrush & Commonwealth NHS Nurses and Midwives Statue' was conceived and designed by Johnny Alexander Bebeula Dodd, aka Dr Jak Beula. 

He named the piece "NICU Suite 16" because of the 16 pieces of granite used to create the statue. 

It is dedicated to all Commonwealth National Health Service staff, notably Nurses and Midwives from Africa and the Caribbean, who have worked in the NHS since its foundation in 1948. 

The Nubian Jak Community Trust thanks Whittington Health NHS Trust and Islington Council for supporting this NHS Memorial. 

Special thanks to Islington BH365, Haringey Council, Ernst & young, Arsenal Football Club, Entain PLC, Havas Group, Aviva, Crowdfunder UK and the generous donations from nursing organisations and the general public for the successful delivery of this statue. May she be a source of inspiration to all NHS staff and provide light,  hope and pride to those who come into contact with this memorial.

Walking with family: Day 1 - Archway to Kenwood House... and beyond

Wednesday August 14, 2024.

As we had some time away from work and the girls were away from school for the holidays, we decided to spend some time visiting some sites in London.

We booked a taxi and headed to Watford Junction, where we caught an Avanti West Coast to Euston and, from there, a Northern line train to Archway.

After topping up on a few snacks fro the day we caught a 210 bus to Compton Avenue, where we alighted and walked the short distance to Kenwood House.

Kenwood House is a former stately home, which was originally built circa 1616. It was remodelled by the architect Robert Adam in the 18th century and was home to the Earls of Mansfield until the 20th century.

Besides being a stately home, Kenwood House is home to historic paintings by the likes of John Crome, Anthony van Dyck, Claude de Jongh, JMW Turner, Thomas Gainsborough, Rembrandt and many more.

During our visit there was an exhibition by Stephen Farthing entitled 'Strike a Pose: Stephen Farthing and the Swagger Portrait'. These are portraits of Lord Howe, reimagined by Stephen Farthing, and were pretty spectacular.

You can see more photos from Kenwood House by clicking the link below.

Gallery

After visiting the house we sat in the grounds and ate our lunch, before we took a stroll through the grounds, eventually finding ourselves heading south through Hampstead Heath. 

The weather was perfect for a wander through the Heath, with many people jogging, walking dogs, having a picnic or, like this, just taking in the surroundings.

How did London's Underground & Overground lines get their names?

"Names mean almost nothing." - Jean-Luc Picard

"Names mean almost everything."  - Jack Crusher

Image Copyright TfL

So, from Autumn 2024, the six London Overground lines are to be given distinct names and colours.

London Mayor, Sadiq Khan, has finally followed through with one of his 2021 Labour Mayoral manifesto pledges, which was to overhaul and rename the London Overground lines. The total cost of the project is around £6.3 million, which is an eye-watering amount of money, especially with current financial woes. 

But, hey, it will make things clearer and easier... won't it?

After hearing this news, I thought it would be fun to look at the etymology of the London Underground line names, before looking at the new ones.

Bakerloo - A portmanteau of the 'Baker Street and Waterloo Railway'.

Central - Originally called the Central London line it was shortened to Central line in 1937.

Circle - Quite simply the line is a loop. Easy. Except, as of 2009, it no longer runs in a complete circle.

District - Originally built by the Metropolitan District Railway, it became known as the District line so as not to be confused with the Metropolitan Railway.

Elizabeth - Originally this line was to be called Crosstrail, but, no. Once again a more regal name was chosen, and so was named in honour of HM Queen Elizabeth II.

Hammersmith & City - Quite simply it runs from Hammersmith and through the City. Boring.

Jubilee - Originally proposed as the Fleet line, various financial issues, construction delays and changes to its route saw it called the Jubilee line, in honour of Queen Elizabeth II's silver jubilee in 1977. Nice, but the line didn't open until 1979 and wasn't completed until 1999.

Metropolitan - The world's first underground railway was built by the Metropolitan Railway Company. I think the clue is in the name.

Northern - The City & South London Railway built the first proper underground line, built by boring a tunnel, rather than the cut-and-cover method. The Charing Cross, Euston & Hampstead Railway became owned by the Underground Electric Railways Company of London. In 1914 the Underground Electric Railways Company of London bought the City & South London Railway and, by adding extensions, allowed the lines to run on the same line. None of this explains why the name Northern was chosen though. 

Piccadilly - The Great Northern, Piccadilly & Brompton Railway ran from Finsbury Park under Piccadilly to Brompton. Quite simply, as the line reached the West End the name was shortened to simply Piccadilly.

Victoria - In 1955 plans were put forward for a new underground line between Victoria and Walthamstow. While planning the line various names were suggested. First there was the Walvic line (Walthamstow-Victoria) and the much better Viking line (Victoria-King's Cross). However, those that know best decided to be as boring as possible and call it the Victoria line. I much prefer Viking line.

Waterloo & City - The London and South Western Railway had their terminus at Waterloo Bridge, from where they ran trains to Southampton and back. However, for those people who needed to cross the river, this wasn't good enough. Thankfully, a new company named the Waterloo & City Railway Company obtained permission to build a new line from Waterloo Bridge to a new City station. The line was immediately called the Waterloo and City, although City station would be renamed Bank, the line kept its name.

'National Windrush Monument' by Basil Watson

The National Windrush Monument.

Anyone travelling through Waterloo station, since late June of this year, will almost definitely have seen the 3.5 metre (11.5 feet) tall bronze National Windrush Monument. 

The Monument depicts a family (father, mother, daughter) dressed in their 'Sunday Best', while standing atop seven suitcases, which contain all of their worldly belongings from their Caribbean home. 

The monument is dedicated to all those who emigrated from the Caribbean to Britain between the arrival of the ship HMT Empire Windrush on 22 June 1948 and the Immigration Act 1971.