Pause for thought there, on a Friday evening in 1874, someone’s great great great grandparents took the sleeper from London to Scotland. What a trip that must have been, rolling through the heart of Victorian Britain. Bradshaw and the Birth of the Train TimeTable Known simply as 'Shields', North Shields Railway Station was first opened by Newcastle & North Shields Railway Company as a terminus in June 1839.

Meeks, Carol L. V. The Victorian Railroad Station: An Architectural History. New Haven: Yale UP, 1956.

2. Newcastle Central, Tyne & Wear

as Anderson's Corner, shortened to Anderson when opened to passenger and goods traffic from 9 May 1910 (Victorian Railways Schedule 2204/10 May 1910) [13] In 2009 a woman was found by a Police Community Support Officer (PCSO) acting suspiciously. When approached she produced a gun and pointed it at a passing young child. Unarmed PCSO George McNaught of the Metropolitan Police wrestled the gun out of the woman's hands before overpowering and detaining her. The woman was arrested and PCSO McNaught was awarded the commendation of the High Sheriff of Greater London for his brave actions. He is the first PCSO to receive the award. [95] The London & Birmingham Line (L&BR) was one of the first inter-city railway lines to be built in the United Kingdom. It was completed in 1838 and connected the cities of London and Birmingham, covering a distance of 112 miles. The line was designed by Robert Stephenson, one of the most famous civil engineers of his time, and was considered a masterpiece of railway engineering. The L&BR was an important milestone in the development of the railway system in the UK, and it helped to revolutionize transport and travel in the country. All trace of Broad Street has now disappeared, but it was a substantial terminus with seven platforms, later rising to nine, and during the Victorian era was extremely popular. Passenger numbers on the North London Railway doubled to 14 million the year it opened and reached a peak of 46.3m in 1896 (not much fewer than London Bridge has today), making Broad Street the third busiest station in London after Liverpool Street and Victoria.

During the 1950s and early 1960s British Railways (Southern Region) completed its Kent Coast Electrification schemes, which meant that most of the remaining services from the station were electrified, including boat trains. Some minor services were withdrawn, and the few remaining steam services, to Oxted and beyond, were replaced by diesel-electric multiple units. [59] Various plans were proposed at this time to redevelop Victoria, including new offices, hotels and a helicopter station. [60] The last steam service left Victoria on 8 January 1964 to East Grinstead, after which it was replaced by diesel-electric multiple units. [59] The boom of the railways took force in England from the late 1830s and into the 1840s, so much so that in 1840 the HM railway inspectorate was set up, and the 1840 Act for Regulating Railways:Station Usage Data" (XLSX). Usage Statistics for London Stations, 2020. Transport for London. 16 April 2021 . Retrieved 1 January 2022.