London Liverpool St – the station staff that foiled the Suffragettes’ murderous plans
February marked the 150th anniversary of London's Liverpool Street station – a station that I have visited many times over the years in the course of writing news pieces for magazines and newspaper along with the best selling book 'A Funny Thing Happened on the Train to London', last few copies remaining : https://www.chimewhistle.co.uk/shop/p/a-funny-thing-happened-on-the-train-to-london
The station played a key part in the suffragette movement – but not one that is very palatable to many of their supporters. For it was here that station staff narrowly thwarted a pan to murder hundreds of rail staff and passengers.The activists had planted a bomb containing nuts and bolts, in one of the station's waiting rooms. Had this evil plan succeeded it would have been the worst atrocity carried out at any British railway station. Other acts of terror by the Suffragettes were carried out across the rail network, including a ticking time bomb at Aylesbury staton that failed to explode after a brave station ported threw it into a bucket of water.
Against this history, it's puzzling as to why TfL chose to name one of its Overground after a group that tried to murder rail staff and passengers, as opposed to the peaceful Suffragists – many women believing that violence turned the public against the cause. It's also worth noting that many men didn't have the vote at that time and, unlike the Suffragettes, the Suffragists believed that making an ally of men would strengthen their case. When tackled about it, TfL said “When you think about line naming, it's also about how easy the name is to say and how people need to be able to recognise it, say it, learn, it use it and for us it felt as it the Suffragette is an easier way to describe that line.”
25 years later the station acted as a gateway for the Kindertransport children – children fleeing from the advancing German army, as it stormed through Europe. However, most parents were denied travel – their entering the labour market being perceived as competition for British workers. Of the approximate 10,000 children evacuated on Kindertransport trains, around half never saw their parents again. On 4 September 2009, 60163 “Tornado” hauled a train from Harwich to Liverpool Street, containing some of the Kindertransport survivors. Pictures of 60163 at Liverpool Street here: http://tinyurl.com/ymv493tt
Like most main lines, the Greater Anglia main line has seen its fair share of mishaps and incidents over the years. It was a perfect misunderstanding between a driver of a Liverpool Street to Norwich service and a member of platform staff in March 2016, that caused the driver to pass a signal at red. While waiting at a red signal at Stowmarket station, the driver was informed by a member of platform staff that he could pass it at danger. At the next signal, the signaller brought the train to a halt to ask the driver why he had passed the previous signal at red. At that point all became clear. The Stowmarket crossing keeper had mentioned to the member of platform staff, in passing, that the Norwich train will probably have to be authorised to pass the signal at danger, due to the signaller being able to clear it because of level crossing failures at Stowmarket and Regent Street. Having misunderstood the message, the member of platform staff told the driver to pass the signal. Many commuters enjoy a cup of tea in the morning, a pleasure that also extends to the drivers who convey them into the capital. Unfortunately the pleasure turned to pain for the driver of a Harwich Town to Liverpool Street service in October 2019, when he spilt the hot drink all over his lap – the pain causing him to pass a red signal by 1 1/2 coach lengths.
From hot legs to open legs! A passenger on a Liverpool Street to Norwich service discovered a brand new eight inch vibrator on his train and duly handed it in to Ipswich station's lost property office. When it was discovered that the owner was coming to collect it personally, all the men gathered in the office to see who would walk through the door. The disappointment was tangible when a short, balding man walked it and collected it!
These are just a very small selection of saucy and shocking incidents detailed in ' A Funny Thing Happened on the Train to London' Link here: https://www.chimewhistle.co.uk/shop/p/a-funny-thing-happened-on-the-train-to-london the first of the 'A Funny Thing Happened on the Train' trilogy of books. Only a handful left (having sold over 1,000) wth book two 'A Funny Thing Happened on the Train to the Midlands' down to limited numbers too. Both books full of creative railway pictures. Link here: https://www.chimewhistle.co.uk/shop/p/afunnythinghappenedonthetraintothemidlands Neither book would be possible without help from front line staff.
From this June, the Greater Anglia Main Line will lose three evening London services – staff fearing that this is just the beginning of bigger cuts.