BACKGROUND
This is Number 3 in my Project Monopoly Series. Each post will follow the same format.
Number 0 – Introduction
Number 1 – Old Kent Road
Number 2 – Whitechapel Road
MONOPOLY BOARD TRAIN STATION NUMBER 1: KING’S CROSS
For background reading I recommend No Free Parking: The Curious History of London’s Monopoly Streets by Nicholas Boys Smith, published by John Blake Publishing, ISBN 978-1789465389. See chapter entitled ‘Interlude – Railway Stations’.
Quote from book:
When Victor Watson and his secretary, Marjory Phillips, travelled down from Leeds to London in 1935 to scout out appropriate London Monopoly streets, they could have chosen to travel to St Pancras or to King’s Cross. Lines from Leeds ran to both termini.
It is a safe bet that they travelled to King’s Cross. The route to St Pancras had been operated since the 1923 grouping of Britain’s railways by the London Midland Scottish Railway, who also operated St Pancras station.
By contrast the line to King’s Cross was operated by the London North Eastern Railway (LNER), successor to, amongst others, the Great Northern Railway that built King’s Cross, the Great Eastern that operated Liverpool Street, the Great Central Railway that operated Marylebone, and the successor to the London & Blackwall, which had built Fenchurch Street back in 1841.
Had they looked at an LNER map such as the one in the plate section of this book, in use not long after their visit, they would have seen the metropolis of London represented not by the great stations of the south and west but by the four soon-to-be Monopoly stations, of Fenchurch Street, King’s Cross, Liverpool Street and Marylebone.
Exterior and interior views of the station
HOW TO GET HERE
Not on a broomstick (see Harry Potter feature at the end of this post).
Fortunately, King’s Cross Station is well served by many tube/ underground lines, and it is in close proximity to both St Pancras and Euston train stations. For transport options, Citymapper is invaluable as a tool to get from A to B.
A section from my map (London city map 1:10,000 by Freytag & Berndt, ISBN 978-3707924268) showing King’s Cross Station and the area north of it which has now been developed into a very attractive food and shopping area.
ASPECTS OF MY VISIT
The area around King’s Cross was notoriously run down when Mr Gochugaru and I were at UCL/ LSE. Our inter-collegiate halls were nearby at Russell Square and mostly we tended to head west to Leicester Square or Covent Garden during the weekends.
The area has gradually transformed, as if from dark to light, over the past 25 years. Chapter 3 (King’s Cross) from Do Not Pass Go: From the Old Kent Road to Mayfair by Tim Moore, published by Vintage, ISBN 978-0099433866, will transport you back to the early days of the regeneration project.
More information on what to see, eat and shop here: Granary Square and Coal Drops Yard. Map below showing the different addresses (literally building blocks) in the development.
Two of the shops we visited during our walk: Sostene Grenes and Cass Art
We remembered the original gas holders from our student days, which would rise up and down depending on the volume of gas held on the day. The frames now encase apartment blocks and another is the frame for Gasholder Park.
We have a distinct memory of visiting this particular point nearly 40 years ago, when a young man (possibly from India) approached Mr Gochugaru to take a photo of him and his family. The thing is, the man had no camera of his own so we took a photo of them. We cannot now remember if we sent on the photo. We think not. I wonder what happened to that young family, and what were their circumstances for visiting King’s Cross that day.
I am glad we made this trip in the early hours of last Saturday morning. The area was quiet and we had time to reflect on some aspects of our student days not far from this area. It was encouraging to see a part of London that has opened up, is vibrant and not in decay or falling apart.
HARRY POTTER
So many of us, young and old, have been completely captivated by the Harry Potter novels. Quote below from Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone by J.K. Rowling, chapter 6 – The Journey from Platform Nine and Three-Quarters.
[Harry] was about to go back upstairs when Uncle Vernon actually spoke.
‘Funny way to get to a wizards’ school, the train. Magic carpets all got punctures, have they?’
Harry didn’t say anything.
‘Where is this school, anyway?’
‘I don’t know,’ said Harry, realising this for the first time. He pulled the ticket Hagrid had given him out of his pocket.
‘I just take the train from platform nine and three-quarters [of King’s Cross Station] at eleven o’clock,’ he read.
His aunt and uncle stared.
‘Platform what?’
‘Nine and three-quarters.’
‘Don’t talk rubbish,’ said Uncle Vernon, ‘there is no platform nine and three-quarters.’
‘It’s on my ticket.’
Never mind that there is not a real Platform 9¾, it is possible to pose for a photo by the wall next to the Harry Potter Shop
Even at 8.40 a.m. the shop, brimming with anything you can imagine from the Harry Potter books, was doing brisk business
I was very tempted by this Harry Potter Monopoly set!
NEXT STOP
The next three properties as you continue past King’s Cross Station on the Monopoly board are The Angel Islington, Euston Road and Pentonville Road. I will write about the area around Angel Underground Station next.
One of the entrances leading to King’s Cross Underground Station
