Victoria Line Underground Stations – Facts, Trivia And Impressions

This post is part of my Randomly London v. The Tube Challenge. Get the latest about challenge updates here. Donate to Bowel Cancer UK here.

Retro Map at Pimlico Station
Retro Victoria Line Tube Map Found At Pimlico, the only station still using this type of map.

Given that London has few sunny and warm weekends, especially in September, most Londoners make the most of them when they do happen. I, on the other hand, chose to ride the tube from Brixton to Walthamstow Central along the Victoria line.

The Victoria line is an interesting one for a few reasons: it was the first deep level underground line to be built across central London since 1907, it is the longest line entirely underground (at least for the travelling public), and almost every station has tiled artwork relating to the station itself, or the surrounding area.

I visited each of the 16 stations on the line over the course of approximately 3 hours on the very sunny 8th of September. Here are my impressions and a random fact about each station:

Brixton

Entrance to Brixton Station Brixton Station Art
Huge London Underground roundel at Brixton station and tiled artwork at platform level playing on the “brick” part of the name.

Impressions: Brixton is among the more interesting areas of London. It has reputation for being somewhat dodgy and dangerous, but in my opinion this view is increasingly outdated. While Brixton remains at present a mixed area, all signs point to rapid gentrification. The most noticeable feature about Brixton station, to my mind, is the huge London Underground roundel over the entrance. It was also extremely busy on the day I visited.

Random Fact: Brixton station opened in 1971, 3 years after the first section of the Victoria line. Tweet This

Stockwell

Stockwell Station Exterior Stockwell Station tiled Art
The entrance to Stockwell Station and the bizarre dazzle inspired tiled artwork at platform level.

Impressions: If Brixton is one of the most interesting areas of London, Stockwell feels like one of the most bland. Stockwell station is one of the ugliest stations on the whole network. The view is not much improved once you leave, as you’re immediately thrust onto busy Clapham Road. The one interesting thing I did notice about the station is that there is no up escalator from the northbound Victoria line platform. I guess not many people go from Brixton to Stockwell by tube. It was also far less busy than Brixton.

Random Fact: Stockwell is the southernmost London underground station that serves more than one line. Tweet This
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