What are the best looking stations (interior or exterior)?
 

Out of the ones I've been to I'd say:

Best interior appearance- Manchester Victoria

Best exterior appearance- Huddersfield*

* I don't always see the outside of stations though if I'm just changing trains. I've changed trains at the following stations without seing the exterior: Sheffield, Kings Cross, Newton-le-Willows, Wakefield Westgate, Chester, Manchester Oxford Rd and Stockport.

I see that it's your home station but what do you find so attractive about Huddersfield station?

St Pancras
 

St Pancras Station Exterior is very impressive.

Exterior is a difficult 1 St Pancras is majestic also Bristol Temple Meads. Interior Well Manchester Picadilly is one of the best i think and i think again St Pancras has to be a contender with barlows train shed being refurbed

Exterior wise it's got to be St Pancras. Interior is more difficult, thye art deco entrance hall at Leeds and the platforms at Piccadilly are both nice, but having said that what about York? I've only ever passed through Huddersfield station, but it seems to be nice enough, don't know what it's like outside though.

Adam

I think York or Bristol Temple Meads takes some beating. Mind you as I write this I have thought about Paddington. Beautiful interiors all of them.
Waterloo concourse. St Pancras outside.
Ok I admit it. I just love the lot.

I think Manchester Piccadilly has the best interior. As for exterior it has to be between Leeds and Sheffield, I like that 'wave' roof on Leeds station but I like the water feature that is found at the front station entrance at Sheffield.

I agree with you about the water feature at Sheffield, David. I've only seen it once, if I remember correctly it was when I was on my way to the tram museum at Crich. But I don't like that part of Leeds station, it always seems to me as if it's a modern attempt at a grand roof without any success.

Adam

What I like about the exterior of Huddersfield station is the way the Georgian architecture makes it look spectacular and blend in with the surrounding buildings. It also doesn’t have the old orange and white British Rail sign, instead it has the old British Rail logo as a silver plate above the entrance.

I’m not saying the interior of Manchester Piccadilly is not good, but it’s almost the same as other stations including Leeds. Manchester Victoria’s interior is more unique. Although, probably the fact that a station the size of Manchester Victoria does not have train ticket machines as an alternative to the ticket office, may annoy some passengers. I’ve never purchased a ticket at Manchester Victoria myself though.

I know it's closed & long gone but what about Nottingham Victoria or do demolished ones count?
Or what about Bristol Temple Meads?

What about London St Pancras International?

Just seen the other posts about St Pancras. I think it has a beautiful exterior.

I've just been reading the article in the Railway Magazine about the reopening ceremonies of St Pancras, it all sounds very impressive, all though I've got to say that I'm not sure bout that 30' statue of that hugging couple, what does everyone else think?

Hi Bubblewrap,
Ahh, you have mentioned the most special of stations. Nottingham Victoria.
I was in Nottingham at the weekend and a little bit more of this wonderful line is disappearing. The entrance to Weekday Cross tunnel has a new developement right up to the lip of the tunnel mouth. The tunnel is still as good as the day it was built and is used to pipe hot water heating to the flats in the Victoria centre. This comes from the Eastcroft incinerator plant and uses the waste heat to heat the water up.
The whole station and approach was a magnificent landmark, sadly missed.
Paul.

Sorry forgot to mention I'm Nottingham born & bred I spent many happy hours on Victoria station I can still remember the second entrance/exit on to Parliament street.
Most of the traffic on the GC route was steam hauled until the end.
Yes I know the locos were mainly Ex LMS or BR standards but it was still steam.
Another good place for local spotting was Colwick yard.
Colwick 38A/40E had nearly 200 locos allocated to it at one time.

The tunnel Weekday Cross to Victoria was known the Thurland Street tunnel
The tunnel at the north end was known as the Mansfield Road tunnel.
Victoria was one of the largest stations closed by BR having 12 platforms(4 through 8 bays)& 4 signal boxes controlled the station area.
At least the station hotel is still there!

I too was impressed by the re-opening ceremonies of St Pancras from what I read about them. Did any other forum members see the recent TV programmes about the re-development of the original station? I found them very interesting.

I find Rainhill an attractive Station in side and out side as it has pleanty of charicter and the staff are very helpfull and freindly and if the trains go up the wall it's only a 31/32 minute bike ride to Widness.

Altogh it is a bit of a mess more externaly than internaly buit yet i still give it my vote it is a good station for clenleness ok you do yet rubbish but it is clened up on a regular basis through out the day.

Even the booing office inside when you look in it always looks clean and tidy these are all welcoming factors and i could go on for ever but that would be a bit boaring.

One station that bugs me is Liverpool South Park Way it s an ieye sore to big too bright and in the wrong place as it should have been a bit smaller and more in keeping with the area / scenery around and caled ALLERTON & GARSTON INTERCHANGE. (Sorry to be a little off topic)

I saw some of the programmes. What an amazing building. When you went into St Pancras you had no idea it hid so much underneath.
A friend of mine drives for East Midland Trains (Midland Mainline), and he used to get sneak viewings of the under platform areas. He says that areas had been long forgotten and sealed up only to be like a time warp when rediscovered. Has anyone else heard this?
Paul.

I've read that there are areas beneath St Pancras that were used to store beer brought down from Burton. Is this true?

It is true that they were used to store beer but I don't know where it came from.

Yeah, it would have been from Burton then. Home of Bass (amongst others) and an incredible system of private brewery railways.

Just a little information about brewing in Burton-on-Trent!:)
http://www.burtoncamra.org.uk/burton.html

Yes, I have. There are some quite fascinating undercrofts below many stations. I recently got a chance to have a poke around underneath Brighton's platforms. In one of the arches there are stored the original wooden moulds for the ornate metalwork of the trainshed .

There used to be several pedestrian tunnels which ran quite some way out across the hill side. They were exposed when the foundations were put in for the new housing conurbation, but have now been destroyed. You can see the original steps down into the labyrinth when you stand on some of the platforms.

I know this friend of mine said about St Pancras, he had seen a barbers shop that had closed in the 60's and still had the mirrors and chair that where heaven only knows how old. This was at the time the area under the station was being stripped out, prior to the refurbishment. It makes you wonder where all these artefacts have gone. These are the sort of things that should be going to the Railway Museum, or any preserved railway for that matter. Though not railway items, they are part and parcel of a great railway system.
Paul.

The undercrofts of the old Manchester Central are now publically accessible- as a car park.

I still like to see the old Regional styled Stations preserved........update the amenities of course......... but please, leave the character of the Stn intact.

One Station that I know of, A "Gem" IMO is: the German "Rudesheim" stn on the river Rhine. It still looks and is, the same as from WW2 I suspect. To the locals it may look "run down" and old. But!.....the cobbles outside, the building, etc, is fabulous......I do hope that when the Germans decide to upgrade this station that they will do it with regard to it's historical importance and not destroy it.

To my shame I've been there many times over the years and have never taken photographs. Next time, I will,..and I'll post them here......

Regional style is important...............

...On the otherhand!....

If you're building new!

Anyone with "Google Earth"....go to "frankfurt airport" and find the new ICE Stn complex which lies to the north over the autobahn from the airport. Click on the camera views there..........Fabulosa! Looks more like an Air terminal.............

victoria is indeed unique,needs some tlc tho,theres 2 ticket machines under the destination screens,but you cant buy cheap tickets from them tho,rail rangers etc.

Yes, the distances between the supporting pillars under St. Pancras were in multiples of the size of a beer barrel.
There used to be trainloads of beer from Burton on Trent, they used to be the highlight of the evening for us spotters at Coalville, 1959-60. Usually had a 17B crab 2-6-0 on the front but strangers would sometimes turn up unexpectedly like my first 9F on the late running down empties service one night.
Cheers, 62440.

Britomart's interior is impressive, the best rail building in New Zealand built in the last 50 years. Dunedin Station's exterior is also a landmark (and it also has the longest platform in New Zealand at 1km).

I'm surprised that no-one's mentioned Liverpool Street; it USED to be a very confusing station to try and find your train, and was pretty gloomy for many years, but during the late 80's/early 90's was modernised in an extremely user-friendly fashion, while at the same time the outstanding original architectural features of the terminus were renovated and attractively repainted - the tall, ornate roof support columns, for example. It's a fine showcase of how updating and conservation can live alongside each other successfully (if you see what I mean!)

The frontage of Market Harborough used to catch my eye as I went past on the train, I never had chance to study it though, but the brief glimpse was impressive.
Cheers, 62440.

St.Pancras gets my vote too.
The exterior is just incredible, absolutely awe inspiring.
The interior is, well, ok I suppose, but look more like a shopping mall rather than a railway station, it used to be an atmospheric building, but most of that is lost now.
My biggest bugbear though is the ruddy great shoe box they have bolted onto the end of the beautiful (and to be fair beautifully restored) train shed.
This damn great shoe box is awful and rather detracts from the excellent job that has otherwise been done.

Birmingham New Street for me.....who says that I have strange taste!!

I do, for one! It's THE most awful station in Britain, if you ask me!

Agree with that can we move it somewhere else .............................the moon?

Got to be St Pancras for me also, just stand the other side of the road and look at that.I had to go there when I first wanted to join BR and remember walking up the stairs to a huge door with a large brass handle on it that I didnt want to smear so pulled out me hankie and turned it. Medical in Drummond st where once close by used to be an impressive structure which now is in the bottom of a river somewhere.

Now if you are talking of the New Street I knew and loved in the 50's and early 60's I would be inclined to agree with you!

Best wishes,

John H-T.

There is really another choice? Inside and out St. Pancras wins hands down! Just hope that St. Pancras is the London Station that "The Unknown Warrior" steams into on 11th November 2018!

Best wishes,

John H-T.