The LNER Encyclopedia

Some good came out of a driver shortage, as we looked for a train home KX - WGC. Arriving at KX at 22.05 the best offer for our homeward journey was a 23.35 departure stopping at Ally Pally for a bus replacement service to get us home. But then a 22.39 departure to Cambridge popped up with a change, schedule now modifed with first stop WGC. And off we went and were through Hatfield with the brakes applied at 22.54, disembarked WGC 22.59. Why cannot we enjoy this every day?

I vaguely recall many years ago possibly shortly after the overhead wires were 'switched on' which must have been around 1977-78 of being lucky one night in getting back home to WGC where we lived at the time. Anyway I was at Kings Cross station and it was very late and I wanted to get back home to WGC but because it was gone midnight nothing other than a Kings Cross to Hertford North service was shown on the departure boards so I decided to travel as far as Wood Green so at least I was 5-miles nearer home (with only another 15-miles left to go) so I rode on the Kings Cross to Hertford North service and got off at Wood Green (renamed Alexandra Palace in 1982) onto a deserted station platform with the time being sometime around 12:45-1:00 am anyway I was standing on the Wood Green Down slow line platform wondering how I was going to get back to WGC when a EMU pulled up to a stop opposite me and the driver said "Where are you going to? " and I said I wanted to get back to WGC and he said "Get in" cos he was going empty to WGC Down EMU sidings so that was a bit of luck!,

I believe that Lord Salisbury also had his own 'waiting room' on the Up platform at Hatfield station which in the 1960s was used as the Hatfield signalling school classroom. A friend of mine who was a telegraph lad (box lad) at Welwyn Garden City between 1962-63 told me that was where he was sent to learn the single needle telegraph instrument.