diamond geezer

Friday, June 02, 2006

The East London line: New Cross / New Cross Gate

If it weren't for a local pub, this heavily built-up area of south east London would still be known by the rather more charming name of Hatcham. The old name slipped out of favour when a tollgate was set up on the main London to Dover road beside the Golden Cross Inn. This became known as the New Cross Gate, and that's how SE14 evolved into New Cross. When the railways came the area gained two rival stations a few hundred yards apart, one nearer the gate and one slightly further away. The East London line diplomatically forked in two and linked to both.

New Cross Gate

Opened: London, Brighton and South Coast Railway - 1839
Opened: East London Railway - 1884
Distance to Surrey Quays: 2.1 km
Departing from: platform 1
Listen carefully: you might hear the next train whistle as it approaches round the curve
Change here for: London Bridge, Brockley and East Croydon
Exit: no ticket barriers
Outside the station: a busy main road packed with traffic, narrow pavement, Sainsbury's, Currys, JJB Sports.
Annual passenger throughflow: 2.9 million New Cross

Opened: South Eastern Railway - 1849
Opened: East London Railway - 1884
Distance to Surrey Quays: 2.3 km
Departing from: platform D
Look carefully: you might spot the driver sneaking a crafty fag while he swaps ends
Change here for: London Bridge, Hither Green and Kentish places
Exit: ticket barriers
Outside the station: Tan's Cafe, PDSA pet hospital, Henry & Son Hairstylists, gloomy pedestrian underpass.
Annual passenger throughflow: 2.6 million

It's a real East London line lottery travelling down to the bottom end of the line. Half of the trains heading south from Surrey Quays go to New Cross, the other half to New Cross Gate. Do you wait six minutes for the next train heading to your chosen destination, or do you hop aboard the next available service to the alternative terminus and stroll between the two at the other end. It might be quicker. And it's not that far to walk, only another six minutes, even if this particular high street isn't the most salubrious of thoroughfares.
"The gypsies, the travellers and the thieves
The good, the bad, the average and unique
The grebos, the crusties and the goths
And the only living boy in New Cross"
(Carter The Unstoppable Sex Machine, 1992)
Between its two stations, New Cross Road is lined by run-down shops of the non-chainstore kind. Many of the goods on sale have had previous owners, some of them legally. Most of the so-called meat on sale is fried, oily and convenient. The display in the window of the betting shop still shows an Arsenal player wearing anachronistic JVC strip. There used to be a Woolworths in the high street, but it scored a direct hit from a V2 flying bomb in one of the worst civilian tragedies of WW2 (168 shoppers died). Backpackers can now find cheap accommodation in a well-lubricated hostel above the New Cross Inn. Cultured locals might be more interested in top(-ish) quality nightclub entertainment at The Venue. The two most impressive buildings you'll see here both belong to Goldsmith's College - one the old Deptford Town Hall, the other the stunningly modern Ben Pimlott Building (pictured). Very tasteful, but probably not worth making a special effort to see. Hurry along now.

Local celebs:
• born here: Steve Harley, Gary Oldman
• lived here: Robert Browning, Marie Lloyd, Barnes Wallace
• met here: Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer (at the Goldsmiths Tavern)

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