London

Thanks very much for some useful information. I'm a Texan headed for London for business, and having never been there, am totally clueless as to local mannerisms, customs, and how not to get my ass kicked from offending someone unnecessarily. This is important to me.

Thanks again.

KryssTal Reply: Thank you - I hope you have a good time. Generally Londoners are pretty tolerant of people who are different. Just use general common sense as in any big city.

Hello from Houston, Texas, USA:

Enjoyed your website very much. The two of you have wide-ranging interests, and it was a pleasure to share a few of them with you. Talaat, I hope to try out a few of those terrific recipes you posted. Kris, thanks for the information about languages -- as a writer and editor, I was fascinated. But the information about London was what interested me the most.

The two of you have inspired me -- and I'm sure many others -- to travel with a more finely-honed sense of curiosity and adventure.

KryssTal Reply: Thank you very much - you'll be assured of a good welcome in London - and don't forget to try the food - especially a curry!!

Thanks, I shall. And I hope some day you two will have the opportunity to enjoy what Texas has to offer.

Good morning,

I have been looking on the net for some news on transportation from Stanstead airport to London town. I know there's a fast train service and a slower bus, don't know much more! Can anyone supply me with a price list and a time table (including night rides)?

thank you very much, kind regards

KryssTal Reply: The train is regular and comes into Liverpool Street (for Central Line) passing Tottenham Hale (for the Victoria Line). It is not expensive.

We're having a bit of an argument here at work about where the true London starts and stops, in particular Battersea, whether it is true London or just another town added on. Could you forward me some info on this.

Cheers

KryssTal Reply: I think of London as the Greater London area (619 sq miles / 1500 sq km) so Battersea is well within that region...

Kryss,

I'll be visting London the first week of April and want to take in a fotball game or two during my stay. Will I be able to purchase tickets at the gate? If not where can I get them in advance of the game? Also do you know of a an internet site that has schedules posted?

KryssTal Reply: It depends on the game. If it is a top class Premier League match or a local derby then you have to book in advance. For a less important game, it is possible to get tickets on the day. There are also ticket touts outside the big matches. Try looking at

for information (including tickets) about the premier clubs.

Have a good time in London - in April I shall be in Brazil! Best wishes.

Thanks for the info. Have fun in Brazil.

I hope you can help me research something. Your page says the name of the city of London dates back to 115 AD. Is that when the city was founded?

KryssTal Reply: No - that's the first mention of the modern name. London was settled hundreds of years before that date.

Dear friend,

I'm a catalan boy who wants to travel to London at easter. I don't know much about it and specially where to stay I would be very pleased if you could send me some information about palces to stay such as hotels or youth hostels. Thank you very much for your time.

KryssTal Reply: Try looking here for hotels:

Good luck...

I'm kind of confused on the whole Britain, United Kingdom, England thing and what their differences are.

KryssTal Reply: The name of our country that appears in the United Nations or on our passports is (wait for it)

What a mouthful!!!

This is often abbreviated to United Kingdom or the UK. This is a political entity. Rather confusingly, our nationality is British.

The Kingdom is composed of two parts: Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

Great Britain is a geographical term for the entire island. On the island of Great Britain there are three countries: England (with the majority of the population), Scotland and Wales.

Northern Ireland is the northern part of the island of Ireland and is at present part of the UK.

Historically, the population of the UK is composed of the Anglo Saxon English and the Celtic Welsh, Scotts and Irish. These are ethnic terms.

So, in London you can be English (ethnic) and live in the UK with a British passport. In Glasgow you are still British and live in the UK but you do not live in England - you live in Scotland and you are Scotts. Not all Brits are English.

I happen to be ethnically Greek. I am British (a citizen of the UK) and a Londoner. So I am British but not English.

Clear?

I hope so...

Hello!!

please could you tell me who first designed the london underground map? and in what year? hope you can find me an answer!

KryssTal Reply: Mr Harry Beck.

There is a book Mr Beck's Underground Map by Ken Garland.

My son is doing an oral presentation on the London Underground and wanted to get information about the Liverpool Street Station and the fact that it was built in a plague pit, but we cannot seem to find any information on that. I understand that several areas of the Underground were built inside of plague pits and if you have any information would you please forward it to me?

KryssTal Reply: I have never heard of this myself. You could try the London Transport Museum - they may have more information. Their email is:

Good luck with the presentation.

Hi Kryss

I'm part of the London webring and the Ring of Londoners, however I was wondering is we do one of those reciprocal link swaps.

From my tracker I seem to be getting a reasonable number of referrals from your page, so there must be a bit of similarity between the people who are looking at the London Transport pages. Also your link to the travelling on the London Underground site on your links section doesn't seem to be working, so how about replacing it with mine.

I'm very happy to add you to my links page.

Here's a bit of info about my site:

Going Underground?

If you want lots of informative yet humorous information about travelling on the London Underground (the tube - as the locals call it), visit the following site

There's Underground rules, clothes to wear for a crease free trip, sitings of the tube travelling pigeons, buskers and lots more. Definitely worth a visit.

Look forward to hearing from you soon. Fingers crossed.

PS My husband is a quarter Greek - his dad was half Irish and half Cypriot!!

KryssTal Reply: It's done - your site is excellent. I had noted the broken link last week but I usually try again before removing it. It's still down. Would love a link on your page!

Thanks for putting on the link to my site. Yours has now been added to my links page too. Let's hope we both benefit from the swap.

Thanks for your help and good luck to The Gunners in the coming season!!!

Hi Kryss

I saw your web site [and] I'm really interested to know the origin of the name Maida Vale. Do you happen to know? Or have a suggestion for where I could look?

Hope you don't mind me asking.

KryssTal Reply: Sorry about the delay - I woz on holiday!

It appears that in 1806, Napoleon's army were beaten by the British Army in Italy. The place was called Maida and your area is named after this.

Dear Sir:

Where can I obtain a map of the Tube system for reference when I travel to London next Fall?

Thank you

KryssTal Reply: There is an excellent subway and transport site on

you can download maps from there.

Good luck and welcome (by the way check out my travel and language page - we say AUTUMN rather than FALL)

Kryss,

I came across your London page online and really liked it. I'd like to recommend it to our readers.

My name is Mark Gill. I'm a writer for a monthly publication called Bottom Line in the New York area that goes out to about 800,000 Americans around the U.S. (If you're not familiar with it, you can see a copy at www.boardroom.com).

I'm writing because we're preparing an article for the Fall that focuses on vacations in London. I'd like to interview you for this article.

Interested? We'd need to do this by e-mail within the next week. Let me know if you have time, and I'll give you more details about the article.

KryssTal Reply: Yes I'm interested. However, between 7th and 14th August, I'll be away in Cornwall hoping to catch my 7th total eclipse of the sun so I won't be emailing. Any other time, before or after, will be fine.

Hi Kryss:

We are planning for a trip to London and when I read your pages a smile glanced over my face. Gee, these little, but important differences...

Great job!

KryssTal Reply: That's the fun of travel. Hope you have a good time. If you want to try something different [in London], visit an Indian restaurant.

Sir

On your KryssTal London Page under London Links on London Trains you describe a Cockney as someone who comes from London, this implies that ALL Londoners are cockneys.

The definition of a cockney is a person who is born within the sound of Bow Bells - (Bow being the church of St.Mary-le-Bow in Cheapside).

As a cockney myself, I take exception to this common misconception being perpetuated by incorrect information being published.

This is how great and long standing traditions which form part of our make up and heritage become lost and forgotten !!!!!

Apart from this one great criticism, however, the KryssTal London Page is great.... keep up the good work...

KryssTal Reply: Yes yes yes yes - absolutely correct. The only trouble is that I wrote this to be read by anybody on the WORLD wide web and I felt that the amount of detail may not be understood (translate to "I was lazy"). I'll correct it soon.

Thanks for your comments.

What a great page! I loved some of the stuff on there but I do have one question. I was born in Ealing... who the heck is Gilla (the origin of Ealing's name)? Any ideas?

KryssTal Reply: Thank you for your kind comments. As far as I have found out, Gilla was a feudal lord of some sort. I don't know what he did or anything else about this character. I'll try and find out. I live in Islington which also appears to have been one of his hang outs!

Hi!

I'm looking for a picture or poster of the Underground "Piccadilly Circus" sign. The red circle with white center and the blue crossbar with the white lettering of PICCADILLY CIRCUS against the green tile of the subway wall. Do you have any idea where I might look?

We were in London a year and a half ago and had a great time riding the tube.

KryssTal Reply: They are normally sold at the London Transport Museum at Covent Garden in London. They also do ceramic miniatures.

The full address is

London Transport Museum
39 Wellington Street
London WC2
England

Their telephone is (0044 if outside the UK) (020 if outside London) 7379 6344

Good luck

Dear Kryss,

I have been trying to find the following information about the Underground and got your address from the Picadilly [Line] site.

1 Was the Circle line the first Underground line and if so what date did it open?

KryssTal Reply: The first underground railway in the world was between Baker Street and Farringdon, opened in 1863 and called the Metropolitan Railway. It is indeed now part of the Circle Line.

2 How many people travel on the Underground system every day? Or how many journeys are made?

KryssTal Reply: You can get all of the stats you need about the Underground from the London Transport site at

Hi from Salmon Arm, BC, Canada:

Great web site on London and its Railways - the history is fascinating!

I am researching the relationship between British immigrants who came to this valley in the late 1800's/early 1900's to orchard farm, and some of the original road names they have left.

We do have a Piccadilly, which is obvious, however the one I am having trouble with is Rotten Row. Is this an old London road or street or area name, if so, do you happen to know its significance? I would appreciate any help you might be able to give me with this.

KryssTal Reply: Thank you for your kind comments.

Rotten Row is a street in the Hyde Park area of London. It comes from "Rotteran" (to muster) because it was used as a mustering ground in the English Civil War.

Hope this helps.

Hello,

I needed any iformation you may have as to WHY THE TUBE WAS DUG SO DEEP? I was asked this question by my history porfessor and need an answer asap. I searched the web and found nothing close to what I needed. Please reply if you have any idea!

KryssTal Reply: It was built so deep so as not to disrupt the buildings and streets above ground.

I'm from Japan and now I'm doing a project about Cockney at Lancaster University. That's why I accessed this Web. It's really interesting and helpuful for me to know present Rhyming slang because I couldn't get books which is written in recent years. If you can, could you tell me about Music Hall songs. I don't know what it is.

KryssTal Reply: Music hall was before TV and cinema. They used to put acts on stage to entertain people. Many songs were in Cockney.

Kryss,

I just have to say thank you for the great and clear info you have provided us Yanks about London. I have always been fascinated by the city since I first picked up a Sherlock Holmes mystery, but have never had a chance to be there.

A while back, my dad dared me to learn enough about the city from a distance that I could write a small story that would pass reasonably pass muster with a Brit. That could be a long time in the making, but finding notes on Cockney rhyming slang just brought me another step closer. Thank you very much. Now you wouldn't happen to know where I could get detailed notes on the 19th century London underground's habits, would you?

KryssTal Reply: Thank you for your kind comments.

One of the better sources are the Charles Dickens books. You've already read Conan-Doyle. Another good source is the Dr Who story "The Talons of Weng Chiang" set in that period. Avoid Dick Van Dyke in that old movie where he has a "cockney accent".

One point. "Brit" is an Americanism. We never call ourselves that!

Good luck with your story - I hope I can get to read it.

Chears mate!!

Dear Kryss,

Just to let you know that along with Kensington & Chelsea, Kingston upon Thames is also a royal borough, The Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames.

KryssTal Reply: Thank you for your update. I have made the change.

To whom this may concern!

I find your pages extremely interesting. What would interest me very much: Where does the name "Piccadilly" come from??

Thank you very much

KryssTal Reply: Thank you. The enswer to your question is on my Piccadilly Line page.

Hi Kryss.

I have found your site through a link from Subways.net to your article on the Piccadilly Line. My name is Steve and I have lived in the old borough of Southgate all my 52 years. So I have used the Piccadilly all my life, firstly from Bounds Green then, from 1970, from Southgate. I thought your article was very interesting. Perhaps you would allow me to elaborate on a few details, pinpoint a few dates and make just a couple of small corrections. I don’t know exactly when you wrote the article so maybe you have already been advised of the following.

Charles Tyson Yerkes was indeed an American. At the beginning of the century American financial interests were expanding worldwide. Yerkes (1837-1905) controlled many miles of electric and horse tramways in Chicago and represented wealthy financial syndicates. He became interested in the Hampstead tube and bought the powers with other members of his syndicate on 1 October 1900. He then secured effective control of the District Railway in March 1901. He formed the Metropolitan District Electric Traction Co. on 15 July 1901, which took over control of the District Railway and the proposed Hampstead line and also arranged to build Lots Road Power Station. He bought several other railways possessing rights to build lines shortly afterwards, including, as you mention the railways, which were to form the Piccadilly. His company was reconstituted on 9 April 1902 as the Underground Electric Railways Co. of London Ltd., familiarly known as the Underground group.

Here are some precise dates for events that you mention. Gillespie Road station was renamed Arsenal on 31 October 1932. The adverts have been cleared away now and the name can be clearly seen. Aldwych station closed on 3 October 1994. Down Street closed on 22 May 1932 and Brompton Road two years later on 30 July 1934. The Ongar branch, mentioned in your section on the Central Line, closed on 30 September 1994. In the Bakerloo Line section the line was extended in 1917 to Watford Junction. It was cut back in 1982 to Queen’s Park with some journeys to Stonebridge Park but was re-extended to Harrow and Wealdstone in 1984. There are just two small errors. The Bakerloo Line stretch from Baker Street to Finchley Road was opened in 1939. In your Questions, Fulham Broadway station was Walham Green, not Waltham Green.

KryssTal Reply: Hi Steve

Sorry about my delay in responding to your excellent and informative letter.

I have taken your dates and points on board.

The man who bought the rights to the two predecessors you mentioned was indeed an American. He was Charles Tyson Yerkes, of Chicago, who made his money in horsecar and elevated railway franchises in that city. When asked by a city councilman to add more cars to the elevated trains to reduce crowding, he replied, "Nonsense! The straphangers pay the dividends!" This quote is almost as famous in Chicago as the legendary (and apocryphal) "The public be damned!" attributed to WIlliam H. Vanderbilt.

On the bright side, Yerkes also gave the University of Chicago, of which I am an alumnus, the largest refracting telescope in the world. It is still very much in use at its observatory in Williams Bay, IL. Due to the stability of the unsilvered mirrors in the 'scope, it is largely used for positional astronomical studies today.

KryssTal Reply: Hello Randolph (I won't call you "Randy" - see my London Tourists Tips page for the reason!)

Thanks for the info. I have updated the essay with Mr Yerkes first name.