Barons Court tube station

Barons Court is a London Underground station in West Kensington in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, Greater London. It is served by the District and Piccadilly lines, and is in London fare zone 2. On the District line, the station is between Hammersmith and West Kensington stations. On the Piccadilly line, it is between Hammersmith and Earl's Court stations.<ref>Template:Cite map/Standard Tube Map</ref>

East of the station, the Piccadilly line descends into tunnel towards Earl's Court and the District line continues in a cutting to West Kensington. The station is the last open air stop for eastbound trains on the Piccadilly line until Arnos Grove and has cross-platform interchange with the District line.

Location

The station is located on Gliddon Road, a short distance from Talgarth Road (A4).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> East of the station, the Piccadilly line descends into tunnel towards Earl's Court and the District line continues on the surface to West Kensington.<ref name=culgpiccadilly>Template:Cite web</ref> West of the station, both Piccadilly line and District line continue to Hammersmith station. The station is located in a deep, brick sided cutting.

History

File:Barons Court Station - geograph.org.uk - 1762897.jpg

The station in May 1962 looking east with a westbound Piccadilly line train to Uxbridge.

The tracks through Barons Court were first laid on 9 September 1874 when the District Railway (DR, now the District line) opened an extension from Earl's Court to Hammersmith.<ref name=culgdistrict>Template:Cite web</ref> When the line was constructed the area now known as "Barons Court" was open fields and market gardens to the west of the hamlet of North End and there was no call for a station between North End, Fulham and Hammersmith stations.

However, by the beginning of the 20th century, the area had been developed for housing and, on 9 October 1905, the District Railway (DR) opened a station to serve these new developments and in preparation for the opening of the Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway (GNP&BR, now the Piccadilly line), then under construction.<ref name=culgdistrict/><ref name=culgpiccadilly/> The GNP&BR began operations on 15 December 1906, running between Hammersmith and Finsbury Park.<ref name=culgpiccadilly/>

In the 1990s, the Grade II listed station was carefully restored to its original appearance.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Notable fatality

The former Formula One driver B. Bira, who was a member of the Thai Royal family, was found dead at the station on 23 December 1985.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

File:Barons Court stn bench.JPG

The unique bench on the eastbound island platform.

The station today

The station building was constructed to a design by Harry Ford in a style similar to that used at Earl's Court and Hammersmith and is now a Grade II listed building as it retains many of its original features, including terracotta facing and Art Nouveau lettering. The wooden benches on the platform with the station name along the back on enamelled metal panels are a unique feature on the entire London Underground.<ref name="EH 1358562"/> The station has two island platforms to provide an interchange between the two lines - the inner pair of tracks is used by the Piccadilly line and the outer tracks by the District line.<ref name=culgpiccadilly/><ref name=culgdistrict /> The station building has been Grade II listed since 14 February 1985.<ref name="EH 1358562"/>

Name

The name Barons Court is possibly inspired by the Baronscourt estate in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, where Sir William Palliser, who built part of the area, may have had connections.<ref>Barons Court station image caption at the Museum of London</ref> Unlike Earl's Court station, Barons Court is written without an apostrophe.<ref name="london1994">Template:Cite web</ref>

Services

File:1973 stock at Barons Court.JPG

A 1973 stock Piccadilly line train stands at the eastbound platform.

District line

On the District line, Baron Court station is between Hammersmith to the west and West Kensington to the east. The typical off-peak service in trains per hour (tph) is:

• 12tph eastbound to Upminster (6tph to Barking on Sundays)<ref name=culgdistrict /><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• 6tph westbound to Ealing Broadway<ref name=culgdistrict /><ref name=westdistrict>Template:Cite web</ref>
• 6tph westbound to Richmond<ref name=culgdistrict /><ref name=westdistrict/>

There is also a morning service every day from Acton Town (Ealing Broadway on Saturdays) to Edgware Road and a late evening service from Edgware Road to Ealing Broadway on Sundays only.<ref name=culgdistrict />

Piccadilly line

On the Piccadilly line, Barons Court station is between Hammersmith to the west and Earl's Court to the east. The typical off-peak service in trains per hour (tph) is as follows:

• 18 tph eastbound to Cockfosters<ref name=culgpiccadilly/><ref name=eastpicc>Template:Cite web</ref>
• 3 tph eastbound to Arnos Grove<ref name=culgpiccadilly/><ref name=eastpicc/>
• 6 tph westbound to Heathrow Terminals 2 & 3 and 5<ref name=culgpiccadilly/><ref name=westpicc>Template:Cite web</ref>
• 6 tph westbound to Heathrow Terminals 4 and 2 & 3<ref name=culgpiccadilly/><ref name=westpicc/>
• 3 tph westbound to Northfields<ref name=westpicc/>
• 3 tph westbound to Rayners Lane<ref name=culgpiccadilly/><ref name=westpicc/>
• 3 tph westbound to Uxbridge<ref name=culgpiccadilly/><ref name=westpicc/>

Nearby places

• Ealing, Hammersmith and West London College's Hammersmith site is across Talgarth Road on Gliddon Road.
• The Queen's Club, location of the Aegon Championships tennis tournament, is at the end of Palliser Road.
• The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, (LAMDA), is on the Talgarth Road.
• Margravine Cemetery
• Charing Cross Hospital is nearby, and is advertised at the station exit.

In Popular Culture

On 8 June 1939, Kinematograph Weekly announced that exterior scenes of A Window in London would "be filmed at Baron's Court Underground Station and in Parliament Square."

External links

• London Transport Museum Photographic Archive
  • Template:LTM archive In the distance can be seen the Great Ferris wheel at Earl's Court exhibition ground.
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