Imagine arriving at Heathrow. Your first time in the UK. You cross border control, pick up your bags, and then make your way to the trains to get into town. You board the train. The announcement -- your first ever London Underground announcement: "This is the Picadilly Line to Cockfosters".
Spending many a childhood holiday listening to "this train is for Cockfosters" helped pass the journey times nicely as I wondered what a Cockfoster was and whether I was eligible to be riding the train.
@@arthurvasey There was a short series of TV ads for Cockburns and the pronounciation of it in the late 80s,involving the top brass on a British naval vessel and the captain of a Soviet vessel that had picked them up following some mishap.
When my father died I was in a daze, but when the train announcing voice piped up with 'Cockfosters' I still couldn't help but smile. It was going to be okay.
You've got to be joking!?! Your father died and you felt better cus someone said a name with the word Cock in it?!? Just let me know if you ever get any rare fatal diseases yeah?I could SO make your passing more pleasant for you! OMFG
The funniest thing about Cockfosters used to be the schadenfreude of seeing, usually American, tourists persevering on through my stop at Southgate after massively underestimating how long it would take to get there and wasting a good half day of their London sightseeing on getting a picture with the sign!
How long does it take to get around on the Underground anyway? For some reason I've always imagined it to be quite high speed outside of stations and open sections.
@@P7777-u7r Pretty sure most of the tunnel sections are like 30mph (50kmph) limit, give or take 5 or 10mph, some of the more suburban above-ground bits get up to about 60mph I believe, and that's about as much as the trains are physically capable of, being 'geared' for stop-start operation. Add the tight curves and short signal blocks and it gets quite slow towards the inner city. On a practical journey though, you may also need to factor in a couple of changes as well. The worst for me personally is the rail-replacement bus services along the GEML, where they then drop you off at Newbury Park instead of Liverpool Street. Adds about 30mins or so to the journey IIRC (on top of the time lost by taking a bus instead of a train into London).
Say what you like about the, perceived, intelligence of American tourists ( colloquial opinion not my own) but at least they were all sensible enough not to get off at Southgate. Bloody loathsome place ( again alleged by some not necessarily myself), or so i'm told (( ^^ all said with a wry, boyishly mischievous, grin on my face and not intending to upset the sensibilities of those resident there past or present))
I've visited twice and this is why I didn't go out there. Yet. I was staying in central London and I could tell it would probably be at least 45 minutes each way and there is obviously no shortage of things to do in London.
I find it strange that I haven't ever really seen tourists going all the way to Cockfosters. Only thing I remember was Gareth Southgate getting Southgate a lot of recognition.
It's not just C*ckfosters; Broadbottom, Fingringhoe, Hampton Gay, Knockerdown, Pen*stone, Scunthorpe, Shingaycum Wendy, Upperthong, Wetwang also makes for a great, historically accurate English town name (that exist IRL) for a pretty fun OpenTTD multiplayer session.
The only time I've been to Cockfosters was after falling asleep on the Picc. line after a night out, and being mortified that there were no more south bound trains. I'm sure there are many more who've done the same :)
Stayed on the Picadilly line as a teen, being 14 year olds, my friends and I all drove the commuters mad giggling every time the announcement said 'this train terminates at Cockfosters'
When I was down in London with my mother a few months ago she giggled like a school girl every time she heard the announcement. Isn't it funny how as you become an adult your parents devolve back to children? lol
I'd never given much thought to the name until you mentioned it! Up until now it was always a station name on the end of the line and I always wondered what was there, so thank you, mystery solved!
When I was a tube nerd back in the 1950s Cockfosters was the ultimate mystery destination a sort of Ultima Thule on another planet. One had heard of other extremities such as Aylesbury, Uxbridge, Ongar and High Barnet but Cockfosters seemed some creation of LT. I did indeed go there and was surprised and impressed by the modernistic train shed. To think of all the fashionable types going from South Ken and Gloucester Road to say Piccadilly, or King's Cross for trains to their country retreats and wondering what this strange Cockfosters place they saw on the destination boards was really like!
My dyslexic ex wife called the cleaning product 'Cilitbang' Clitbang!Funniest thing she ever said.Second place was this poem she wrote; 'Arty Farty had a party, all his friends were there. Tutti Frutti did a beauty, and they all went out for air'. I really miss her dog...
I always remember the Fosters lager ad in the 80s featuring Paul Hogan when he was asked 'What's the way to Cockfosters?' and he replied 'Drink it warm, mate!'
A famous Max Miller joke: I was travelling on the Tube I was, and it was jam packed, standing room only. This young lady gets on and in the crush she sits on my lap! The train pulls into a station, she says, "Is this Cockfosters?" I said, "No, it's Max Miller's!"
I remember the old Paul Hogan TV advertising campaign for Foster's later: "How do I get to Cockfosters" said the young lady. "Keep it warm" replied Paul.
When you live in west London Cockfosters is something you hear announced and see on the front of the train like some mythical place you hear a lot about, but never go to.
I grew up and lived there until I was twenty seven years old. My parents married in 1933 and bought their brand new house in a road off Cat Hill because they knew the Underground was coming and they both worked in central London. I've never thought there was anything odd about the name and have never seen anyone suggest there is until I saw this video. The original village of Cockfosters is around half a mile north of the station and contains an old pub callled the Cock Inn, which I used to use regularly when I lived in the area. I'd always assumed there must be a connection between the name of the pub and the village to tell the truth although having seen this video and done some Googling, it seems more likely to be named after the chief forester. Hadley Woods, an ancient woodland, are at the back of the pub and Trent Park, originally a huge country estate is on the other side of Cockfosters Road. Hundred of years ago, when the village was named, the area was probably heavily forested.
Reminds me of a joke I heard a long time ago. A fellow was looking for the pub you mentioned and couldn't find it. He walked over to a parked car with a couple sitting in it and asked "Sorry to disturb you, but how far is the Cock Inn?" The bloke in the car didn't take it too well, neither did his female passenger.
Great vid. Another great deep dive. I love the architecture of CF. Still looks “modern” so hard to believe it pre-dates all the brutalist and 1960’s / 1970’s concrete that have now been and gone!
@@juanescobar8123 i wouldn't say official and i only like Uxbridge because it has both the picidilly and the metropolitan line As well as stain glass windows Its also the reason why west London thrived before the war and was originally called woxbridge Because of the the grand Western Union canal where wax was traded
@@mk-hf2qs Uxbridge and Cockfosters station roofs are identical as far as I can see, but yes the stained glass windows are unique to Uxbridge. And both have curves, unlike most Brutalist buildings!
I vaguely remember being told that forest had a different meaning in medieval times where it was land under the direct control of a lord and so there were villages and farmland in forests as well as woods. Basically not common land where anyone could graze sheep or hunt etc. Over time with land clearances and industrialisation absorbing the country folk into expanding cities, the woods expanded and people stopped living there so much, leading to the current meaning of forest. Hence being head of the forest was an important position because you were the land manager, in modern language.
I believe that in Norman French Foret was the same derivation as foreign meaning that it was something from outside. In this case outside of cultivation. Quite a few became royal hunting grounds and therefore the common people weren't welcome. It also explains why places such as the New Forest don't actually have huge numbers of trees.
@@ianpegge9967 It used to have more than now but all the Oaks were cut down to build the Navy's warships, the timber from Pollarding was not large enough. The lack of Oak trees bothered Nelson enough to badger the Admiralty to petition the Govt. to plant new Oak woodlands. He did not know that wooden warships would become history in 100 years.
@@tonys1636 Similarly, there are still active naval forests in many countries, including the US (where they're used for the upkeep of one historic ship) and I think all the Scandinavian countries.
As the map in the 1st minute clearly shows, as a resident of Barnet this station is nearby & is a useful alternative to the Northern line on occasions.
Spent many years commuting to Central London from Cockfosters. For an area that has multi-million pound houses, it has probably the most bland and boring station entrances (1 on either side of the Cockfosters Road) that I think I've ever seen😒...Nice video.
agreed!!! there are so many blank canvas spaces that could be used for commissioning local artists to create art pieces that bring these historical places to life!!!
A nice station, though TfL want to stick tower blocks on the car park, which would overshadow it a bit. Trent Park, as well as being a less naughty name, is well worth a visit, as a lovely country park. And where the Doctor Who story Mawdryn Undead was filmed.
Trent Park was where part of my university was, and spent many evenings there. Never enjoyed the long walk back along Snakes Lane when the mini buses stopped running.
Cockfosters and Uxbridge seem to share the same architectural features only UX on a bigger scale... Both really lovely stations... Another great informative video sir 🙂....
I am a native Londoner of 47 years, I can vividly remember one particular occasion when I was travelling on the Hammersmith & City Line, as soon as the automated announcement came for Shepherd’s Bush station, a child commented to his mother “Shepherd’s Bush?, that’s a funny name for a station.”, simultaneously my gaze met with a young woman passenger opposite me and I laughed, but she remained serious, she gave me the look as if to say “You have a dirty mind.”.
2:19 You present yourself as an informative channel, and yet nowhere have I heard mention of this 'Ictoria line' as seen on screen! I feel I must protest!
Funny name aside you have to admit, the name is probably one of the reasons people go there. Personally, as a Cockfosters local, I think Trent Park would have been a better name, and indicative of the fact the park is nearby the station in much the same way Hyde Park Corner and Green Park are.
Discarded outro take: "Thanks to all my supporters on Ko-Fi and Patreon, you are the fosters to my... wait, no." (I have to admit, if I lived in London and traveled on this line regularly, I would giggle internally every time I heard this station's name on the PA, because part of me will always be 12. :)
Funny enough, I never found the name that amusing until there was a dating advert that mentioned some girl giggling at "Cockfosters"... at that point I ended up laughing. It's more funny when people try not to find it funny!
With Penistone and Scunthorpe it's all in the pronunciation, especially with the latter the 'undesirable' hidden word isn't immediately apparent when you say the name.
I like your videos, you must do a lot of research, I have learnt a lot of things from you. Ride on the 1973 trains while you can, because when they have gone, the last manually driven DC sounding non computerised, Underground trains will be the 1972's on the Bakerloo. Into the station, doors open straight away, doors close, then, the Train Operator moves the Traction brake controller into Shunt, Series, then Parallel, with all those clunks and clicks, classic noises. In the seventies, The Open University had a course called, ''Architecture and Design 1890 to 1939''. It covered things like Le Corbusier's ''Machine for living'' houses, but my two favourite episodes,(which should still be on You tube), are, ''The semi detached house'' in colour, presented by Professor Stephen Bayley, and , ''The London Underground'', Black and white,(but who cares?) It features the design of Cockfosters Station. Do have a look, I think you will like.
It's odd that Cockfosters nearly became named Trent Park Station when Oakwood could so easily have been that too. I was once a student resident on the Campus at Trent Park - good times... I guess either side of Snakes Lane was wooded, and likely they had Oaks...
Campus is now expensive housing. I agree Oakwood gives closer access to Trent Park via footpath next to equestrian centre. But more expensive housing likely in fields to east, so may be less peaceful in future.
@@SLJ2776 Something similar happened to the less scenic Bounds Green campus, which I visited for part of my course. The Enfield Campus (sold some time ago) is likely to go the same way.
As a born and bred North Londoner, I've honestly never found the name funny as I genuinely knew the word Cockfosters before I knew the word ... you know. Usually takes someone from outside London to remind me it has a funny name. Anyway, have always been fond of this terminus. Simple but pretty, charming, light and spacious. I particularly like how low the ceilings are on both side platforms, with the trains looking as though they could rip their roofs off as they enter the station but just about managing not to. I also like that it's one of not many above ground stations that's ticket hall is below street level and has a sub-surface feel. No Cockfosters isn't *stunning*, and neither are many of Holden's best works. it's just very, very nice.
This video evokes memories of when I was a kid. We had relations who lived in Potters Bar and would always start our journey in to London at Cockfosters.
I just now realize that Tom Scott travelled all the way to Penistone for his "Why web filters don't work" video, when he could've just gone to this station instead.
Probably it was too expensive to go to the village in Austria now called Fugging that was then written with ck rather than gg. They got tired of having their signs stolen by tourists so they changed the name.
Excellent video and commentary as usual. I can recall as a child spending time with a relative who's property overlooked the end of the Cockfosters underground line and seeing the trains being park-up over night, the sound of compressed air braking system being discharged then the driver walking the whole length of the train with the slamming of doors as he left each carriage compartment. In the early hours of the morning you would hear the reverse procedure but this time the distinct sound of air compressors recharging the braking system as the trains were brought back into service. Keep up the good work and stay safe.
Cockfosters Station sits next to Trent Park which includes a medieval site called Camlet Moat which some have argued is the original Camelot. I think the station developers missed a trick there when naming the station
Cockfosters is a handy station for those of us travelling from the North via A1, my Dad always used to go and park at St Johns Wood (another double entendre name if you think about it).
One day on a future visit to the UK and London I shall go visit this Cockfosters station! And I've ridden the Piccadilly line plenty. I've visited London twice, first staying across the street from the Gloucester Road station, the second time around the corner from the Russell Square station.
Travelling on the District Line once a man asked me how long it would be before we got to Glockoster Road. Of all the strange ways tourists try to pronounce some names, this was a new one on me.
.... 'like a cathedral' - yes, and as draughty as a cathedral, too. I hope you were wearing an overcoat - we wouldn't want to lose you prematurely. Merry Christmas and happy peregrinations in 2022.
I once got in a fuss as for some reason at South Kensington because the westbound trains for some reason were going eastbound and my parents got very confused leading me yell to them "This train is going to Cockfosters! " "COCKFOSTERS!" Afterwards I released how much I had embarrassed myself
Another brilliant and entertaining video from you, Jago! With each "new" one I see, I get more and more interested in the history of the Underground. Many thanks!!
Well done again, Mr H. Another superb video, full of fascinating information. You could perhaps have mentioned the advert some years back which posed a question, to which the answer was (if I recall correctly) "serve it warm, mate". Thanks. Simon T
This is great. Transit nurd from Canada for some reason I find myself drawn to the underground and its history and this my friend is a great video thank you
I think it was legendary comedian Max Miller who said "A lady got out of the tube train and asked the ticket collector "Is this Cockfosters?" "No lady, it's mine!"
Thanks for shouting the name out, caught me by surprise and I spat out my brew. Also, back when I lived "darn sarf" I would always chuckle when using the Piccadilly Line, evidently having the mental age of a six year old... Oh and check out the Urban Dictionary for its definitions of said place ;)
So many places in England that TH-cam and Google don't like. Scunthorpe, Upper Piddle and Lower Piddle come to mind. And of course.... HAPPY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE 🥳👍
As the Piccadilly Line ends at Cockfosters. There was rumours that it could extend into Hertfordshire and possibly as far as Potters Bar. Cockfosters is such a funny name for a suburban commuter town in North London.
When I was in London in 2014 We caught the green or yellow Piccadilly line and I turned to My Daughter at !5 Years Old and asked her what the last Station was, Packed Train and She Looked at the Map and Started to announce C Fosters, She only said the C and turned to me with the Evil. I broke out Laughing. Love It and your Comedy, Thank You Mate.
I spent a year in London and one day me and a group of friends who were all living in the UK temporarily took the train to Cockfosters to take pictures with the signs there. We thought it was the most hilarious thing in the world even though by the time we got back we were all bored out of our minds from being on the tube for so long.
You are a clever man, no one can make these interesting tidbits of history (woven together with other tidbits) so clear and entertaining. Even for a yank who appreciates a fair bit of London, transit, and architectural histories giving me more reason to return and wander again out of the city center (centre??).
Growing up in 1960s Liverpool was an age when bus conductors would call out the stops as they were approached. One stop was outside the now demolished Richmond Sausage Factory and the conductor always called out "Sausage works girls!" to which all the women on the bus would respond with giggles and "oooooh! " He would probably be sacked for it now but in those days everybody had a sense of humour.
Excellent video as always Jago. Loved the "Cockfosters...the stations called COCKFOSTERS.. bit one minute and one second in.... Brilliant. I do seem to remember an advert by Paul "Crocodile Dundee" Hogan for a certain antipodean "Amber Nectar" a few years ago where he's sat with a can on a station on the Underground and is asked by a Japanese visitor to London looking confusedly at his Underground map....." Excuse please. Can you tell me way to Cockfosters?". To which he replies in his Aussie drawl "Yeah...Drink it warm ..mate". Then adding, looking puzzled...."Funny question". Awesome. Seasons greetings to one and all.
There was a really good book about the extension from Finsbury Park to Cockfosters written by one of the station foremen from Arnos Grove a gentleman named Barry Carpenter, it was absolutely full of great pictures of the building of the extension but the best one was taken outside Finsbury park showing just how busy it was (absolutely rammed is a real understatement)
And that would have been before they started plonking bridges and other hunks of infrastructure around the station, in preparation for the New Works project that would have linked the old Moorgate-Finsbury Park line to the rest of the Northern Line via Highgate.
A few years ago I was showing some young american ladies around London and even though they where mid 20's they giggled like school girls every time the "this is a Piccadilly line train to...." came on
Seeing we now have to deal with the delicate sensibilities of the 21st century this station should immediately be renamed Roosterfosters, failing that I can think of a medical alternative, but you know what YT's like...
Ah, my neck of the woods. No, really. Yes *sigh* really. I was born just a stone's throw away at Chase Farm Hospital (when it had a maternity ward) and lived at the East end of Enfield. Whenever I headed into London I would always go via Oakwood....what? Why? Reasons, that's why ;). Nowadays I'm a bit more grown up and use Cockfosters all the time. Nice to see the station has been blessed by the twin luminaries of Geoff Marshall and now Jago Hazzard, hallowed soil indeed.
Reasons? When you have missed the last train from Liverpool St. the tube to Oakwood and a 135 bus to Brimsdown or at least Ponders End is a bit better than a long trek from the last train to Chingford. ('bin there done all that, but I was a lot younger then)
Love your wit Jago. You have presented what should normally be perceived as a rather dull and mundane item in such a fun and exciting way to the viewer, and it is refreshingly informative as well. Well done Sir!
Imagine arriving at Heathrow. Your first time in the UK. You cross border control, pick up your bags, and then make your way to the trains to get into town. You board the train. The announcement -- your first ever London Underground announcement: "This is the Picadilly Line to Cockfosters".
This is exactly what happened to me in September 2020 when I moved to London from abroad
@@ChiSbaObePcheH11 LOL
I definitely outed myself as a tourist by audibly sniggering when I heard it.
Seen many people in such shock!
That is precisely what happened to us upon arrival from Canada. Needless to say there was a lot of snickering on the tube train into London.
Spending many a childhood holiday listening to "this train is for Cockfosters" helped pass the journey times nicely as I wondered what a Cockfoster was and whether I was eligible to be riding the train.
I always thought a "Cockfoster" was someone who adopted a rooster.
riding the train :flushed:
100% agree. i used to find the name funny as a kid but I was also so interested in what it would be like
@@RichardWatt lmao
@@KINKObun AYO
I laughed so loud when you eventually spat out the station name that missed the next minute of your commentary 🤣
old people have weirdo humor...
Surely Cockfosters is just the name of an Australian beer (fosters) drunk by any ....
🤣🤣🤣🤣
Taking a leaf out of Cockburn’s port, and calling it Coburn’s, you could have called it Cofosters!
@@arthurvasey There was a short series of TV ads for Cockburns and the pronounciation of it in the late 80s,involving the top brass on a British naval vessel and the captain of a Soviet vessel that had picked them up following some mishap.
When my father died I was in a daze, but when the train announcing voice piped up with 'Cockfosters' I still couldn't help but smile. It was going to be okay.
You've got to be joking!?!
Your father died and you felt better cus someone said a name with the word Cock in it?!?
Just let me know if you ever get any rare fatal diseases yeah?I could SO make your passing more pleasant for you!
OMFG
Even in the darkest of times trains find a way to make things alright. Lmao, nice.
Thanks to my donors on Kofi and Patreon. You are the @#$% to my fosters.
🤣🤣🤣🤣
The funniest thing about Cockfosters used to be the schadenfreude of seeing, usually American, tourists persevering on through my stop at Southgate after massively underestimating how long it would take to get there and wasting a good half day of their London sightseeing on getting a picture with the sign!
How long does it take to get around on the Underground anyway? For some reason I've always imagined it to be quite high speed outside of stations and open sections.
@@P7777-u7r Pretty sure most of the tunnel sections are like 30mph (50kmph) limit, give or take 5 or 10mph, some of the more suburban above-ground bits get up to about 60mph I believe, and that's about as much as the trains are physically capable of, being 'geared' for stop-start operation. Add the tight curves and short signal blocks and it gets quite slow towards the inner city. On a practical journey though, you may also need to factor in a couple of changes as well.
The worst for me personally is the rail-replacement bus services along the GEML, where they then drop you off at Newbury Park instead of Liverpool Street. Adds about 30mins or so to the journey IIRC (on top of the time lost by taking a bus instead of a train into London).
Say what you like about the, perceived, intelligence of American tourists ( colloquial opinion not my own) but at least they were all sensible enough not to get off at Southgate. Bloody loathsome place ( again alleged by some not necessarily myself), or so i'm told
(( ^^ all said with a wry, boyishly mischievous, grin on my face and not intending to upset the sensibilities of those resident there past or present))
I've visited twice and this is why I didn't go out there. Yet. I was staying in central London and I could tell it would probably be at least 45 minutes each way and there is obviously no shortage of things to do in London.
I find it strange that I haven't ever really seen tourists going all the way to Cockfosters. Only thing I remember was Gareth Southgate getting Southgate a lot of recognition.
It's not just C*ckfosters; Broadbottom, Fingringhoe, Hampton Gay, Knockerdown, Pen*stone, Scunthorpe, Shingaycum Wendy, Upperthong, Wetwang also makes for a great, historically accurate English town name (that exist IRL) for a pretty fun OpenTTD multiplayer session.
Oh no way this is real
Six Mile Bottom.
Ugley.
Crapstone.
Nether Wallop.
Cockintake.
Bitchfield.
Great Cockup.
Banningham.
Titty Ho.
The Apes Hall.
Pett Bottom.
Lower Dicker.
Thong.
Berry Head.
Mold.
Boysack.
Brokenwind.
Peterhead.
Inchmore.
I collect funny place names.
I can't believe that you asterisked Cockfosters and Penistone but left Scunthorpe intact.
WETWANG
Cuckfield (it is unfortunately pronounced cook-field if Wikipedia isn't lying to me)
The only time I've been to Cockfosters was after falling asleep on the Picc. line after a night out, and being mortified that there were no more south bound trains. I'm sure there are many more who've done the same :)
Good job you didn't end up in the sheds/sidings.😜
Been there, done that!
Went there once the only thing special I remembered was being able to go to Potters Bar from there xd
(Simon's mum) "Hello Simon, where are you..?" (hang-overed-ly) *F..-F-C..Foc-Costers ,hic... "
This would not be a problem in New York. The subway runs all night. You might have to wait 20 minutes.
Alternatively, Spoonerising it to read "Fockcosters" probably doesn't help, either.
is that not what an North Eastern person says when they are banned from a popular coffee establishment?
@@fuzzlemacfuzz Sir, you win 1 (One) internets for the day.
Or maybe “Lockfockers” 😆
@@fuzzlemacfuzz hahahaha
My late father often called it 'Fockcosters' to annoy my mother. Always worked.
Looks like Uxbridge st
Stayed on the Picadilly line as a teen, being 14 year olds, my friends and I all drove the commuters mad giggling every time the announcement said 'this train terminates at Cockfosters'
That's funny, I am trying to imagine how they would have looked annoyed
When I was down in London with my mother a few months ago she giggled like a school girl every time she heard the announcement. Isn't it funny how as you become an adult your parents devolve back to children? lol
I'd never given much thought to the name until you mentioned it! Up until now it was always a station name on the end of the line and I always wondered what was there, so thank you, mystery solved!
When I was a tube nerd back in the 1950s Cockfosters was the ultimate mystery destination a sort of Ultima Thule on another planet. One had heard of other extremities such as Aylesbury, Uxbridge, Ongar and High Barnet but Cockfosters seemed some creation of LT. I did indeed go there and was surprised and impressed by the modernistic train shed. To think of all the fashionable types going from South Ken and Gloucester Road to say Piccadilly, or King's Cross for trains to their country retreats and wondering what this strange Cockfosters place they saw on the destination boards was really like!
live in aylesbury shame Beeching decided to cut the metropolitan line
I get on at Totteridge and Whetstone which is the stop after High Barnet
"The Piccadilly Line.....from Heathrow to Cockfosters....you can't beat the Tube!"......poster from 2008 still on my wall here in Seattle!
An good dyslexic friend of mine who was visiting london for the first time read it as cock forests, and was rather perturbed ! 🙁
They weren’t far off from its origin, it seems 😂
Now there's a mental image that will stay with me for a while.
It's next to Willy Woods
My dyslexic ex wife called the cleaning product 'Cilitbang' Clitbang!Funniest thing she ever said.Second place was this poem she wrote;
'Arty Farty had a party,
all his friends were there.
Tutti Frutti did a beauty,
and they all went out for air'.
I really miss her dog...
I always remember the Fosters lager ad in the 80s featuring Paul Hogan when he was asked 'What's the way to Cockfosters?' and he replied 'Drink it warm, mate!'
My first thought!
A famous Max Miller joke:
I was travelling on the Tube I was, and it was jam packed, standing room only. This young lady gets on and in the crush she sits on my lap! The train pulls into a station, she says, "Is this Cockfosters?"
I said, "No, it's Max Miller's!"
lol
I remember the old Paul Hogan TV advertising campaign for Foster's later:
"How do I get to Cockfosters" said the young lady.
"Keep it warm" replied Paul.
yes, the young lady that looked just like a heavyset Japanese bloke
"Scuse please, can you tell me the way to Cockfosters?". "Yeh, drink it warm mate". And the questioner was a thick set Japanese tourist.
The unofficial punchline was “Let the poms brew it”.
I’ll let myself out😁
@@stephenwalls9277 when it was imported in the seventies, it wasn't that bad.
Once the Poms started brewing it, it tasted like any other crap lager.
"Actually there Jackson Pollock's"
"I'll agree with you there mate! "
When you live in west London Cockfosters is something you hear announced and see on the front of the train like some mythical place you hear a lot about, but never go to.
Hear it all the time from Hounslow
And the 2021 award for funniest TH-cam Tube video goes to...
Thank you for all of them - and best wishes for the holidays and new year!
The concrete train shed is duplicated at the Uxbridge end. Worth a visit too.
Uxbridge, especially for the stained glass windows.
@@CaseyJonesNumber1 Yes! And the old weighing and cigarette machines. :-)
@@brianparker663nowadays, empty cigarette machines! 😉
@@CaseyJonesNumber1 My friend Mick must've got there first!! :-)
I grew up and lived there until I was twenty seven years old. My parents married in 1933 and bought their brand new house in a road off Cat Hill because they knew the Underground was coming and they both worked in central London. I've never thought there was anything odd about the name and have never seen anyone suggest there is until I saw this video. The original village of Cockfosters is around half a mile north of the station and contains an old pub callled the Cock Inn, which I used to use regularly when I lived in the area. I'd always assumed there must be a connection between the name of the pub and the village to tell the truth although having seen this video and done some Googling, it seems more likely to be named after the chief forester. Hadley Woods, an ancient woodland, are at the back of the pub and Trent Park, originally a huge country estate is on the other side of Cockfosters Road. Hundred of years ago, when the village was named, the area was probably heavily forested.
blog it
Reminds me of a joke I heard a long time ago. A fellow was looking for the pub you mentioned and couldn't find it. He walked over to a parked car with a couple sitting in it and asked "Sorry to disturb you, but how far is the Cock Inn?" The bloke in the car didn't take it too well, neither did his female passenger.
Cockfosters, Cock Inn and Hadley Woods. My lack of maturity is showing.
@@billymule961 It's like the Tube Driver who was father to 12 children. As with his train, he never pulled out on time.
Great vid. Another great deep dive. I love the architecture of CF. Still looks “modern” so hard to believe it pre-dates all the brutalist and 1960’s / 1970’s concrete that have now been and gone!
uxbridge station is better
We have our first official Uxbridge fanboy
@@juanescobar8123 i wouldn't say official and i only like Uxbridge because it has both the picidilly and the metropolitan line
As well as stain glass windows
Its also the reason why west London thrived before the war and was originally called woxbridge
Because of the the grand Western Union canal where wax was traded
@@mk-hf2qs Uxbridge and Cockfosters station roofs are identical as far as I can see, but yes the stained glass windows are unique to Uxbridge. And both have curves, unlike most Brutalist buildings!
I was just there yesterday. I’m visiting London for the holidays. I’m from Alaska and just had to check it out.
I vaguely remember being told that forest had a different meaning in medieval times where it was land under the direct control of a lord and so there were villages and farmland in forests as well as woods. Basically not common land where anyone could graze sheep or hunt etc. Over time with land clearances and industrialisation absorbing the country folk into expanding cities, the woods expanded and people stopped living there so much, leading to the current meaning of forest. Hence being head of the forest was an important position because you were the land manager, in modern language.
I believe that in Norman French Foret was the same derivation as foreign meaning that it was something from outside. In this case outside of cultivation. Quite a few became royal hunting grounds and therefore the common people weren't welcome. It also explains why places such as the New Forest don't actually have huge numbers of trees.
@@ianpegge9967 It was also subject to "Forest Law" which was different from the law elsewhere.
@@ianpegge9967 It used to have more than now but all the Oaks were cut down to build the Navy's warships, the timber from Pollarding was not large enough. The lack of Oak trees bothered Nelson enough to badger the Admiralty to petition the Govt. to plant new Oak woodlands. He did not know that wooden warships would become history in 100 years.
@@tonys1636 Similarly, there are still active naval forests in many countries, including the US (where they're used for the upkeep of one historic ship) and I think all the Scandinavian countries.
In Tudor England, a forest was a royal hunting ground. A mix of trees and open ground. Think of Richmond Park, Hampton Court Home Park and Bushy Park.
As the map in the 1st minute clearly shows, as a resident of Barnet this station is nearby & is a useful alternative to the Northern line on occasions.
Drink it warm, mate.
th-cam.com/video/IBilVD-oU98/w-d-xo.html
'In retrospect, it represented the future.'
You win.
I've never been a fan of the name. I prefer the alternative "Willyadopters."
Good one.
lol they literally should
Spent many years commuting to Central London from Cockfosters. For an area that has multi-million pound houses, it has probably the most bland and boring station entrances (1 on either side of the Cockfosters Road) that I think I've ever seen😒...Nice video.
agreed!!! there are so many blank canvas spaces that could be used for commissioning local artists to create art pieces that bring these historical places to life!!!
A nice station, though TfL want to stick tower blocks on the car park, which would overshadow it a bit.
Trent Park, as well as being a less naughty name, is well worth a visit, as a lovely country park. And where the Doctor Who story Mawdryn Undead was filmed.
Living space for people instead of storage space for cars? Fantastic news.
Trent Park was where part of my university was, and spent many evenings there. Never enjoyed the long walk back along Snakes Lane when the mini buses stopped running.
omg i never knew that trent park filmed doctor who??????? omg
I’ve never been to this station, but every time I see it on the map I sing it in my head to the tune of Blockbuster! by The Sweet.
Best place in the city . . . quiet, safe, clean, 45 minutes from the centre of town, and you always get a seat! Thanks for this. :o)
Cockfosters and Uxbridge seem to share the same architectural features only UX on a bigger scale... Both really lovely stations... Another great informative video sir 🙂....
During WW2 Trent Park had a prisoner of war camp and was the only one in Britain from which German POWs escaped.
I am a native Londoner of 47 years, I can vividly remember one particular occasion when I was travelling on the Hammersmith & City Line, as soon as the automated announcement came for Shepherd’s Bush station, a child commented to his mother “Shepherd’s Bush?, that’s a funny name for a station.”, simultaneously my gaze met with a young woman passenger opposite me and I laughed, but she remained serious, she gave me the look as if to say “You have a dirty mind.”.
2:19 You present yourself as an informative channel, and yet nowhere have I heard mention of this 'Ictoria line' as seen on screen! I feel I must protest!
Funny name aside you have to admit, the name is probably one of the reasons people go there.
Personally, as a Cockfosters local, I think Trent Park would have been a better name, and indicative of the fact the park is nearby the station in much the same way Hyde Park Corner and Green Park are.
Wasn't a park in the 1930's, a large country estate, was a teacher training college in the 50s.
@@matpk Nice idea but not gonna happen
@@enclosingthefield Doesn't mean they can't rename it. :)
Discarded outro take: "Thanks to all my supporters on Ko-Fi and Patreon, you are the fosters to my... wait, no."
(I have to admit, if I lived in London and traveled on this line regularly, I would giggle internally every time I heard this station's name on the PA, because part of me will always be 12. :)
Funny enough, I never found the name that amusing until there was a dating advert that mentioned some girl giggling at "Cockfosters"... at that point I ended up laughing. It's more funny when people try not to find it funny!
It made me giggle my ass off everytime I was passing through from Heathrow to the centre of London in a holiday.
Imagine the trouble when you do Penistone and Scunthorpe stations
Come up to Ludford here in Lincolnshire and visit Fanny Hands Lane!
My wife loves Cockermouth in Cumbria
Not to mention Clitheroe
With Penistone and Scunthorpe it's all in the pronunciation, especially with the latter the 'undesirable' hidden word isn't immediately apparent when you say the name.
I like your videos, you must do a lot of research, I have learnt a lot of things from you. Ride on the 1973 trains while you can, because when they have gone, the last manually driven DC sounding non computerised, Underground trains will be the 1972's on the Bakerloo. Into the station, doors open straight away, doors close, then, the Train Operator moves the Traction brake controller into Shunt, Series, then Parallel, with all those clunks and clicks, classic noises. In the seventies, The Open University had a course called, ''Architecture and Design 1890 to 1939''. It covered things like Le Corbusier's ''Machine for living'' houses, but my two favourite episodes,(which should still be on You tube), are, ''The semi detached house'' in colour, presented by Professor Stephen Bayley, and , ''The London Underground'', Black and white,(but who cares?) It features the design of Cockfosters Station. Do have a look, I think you will like.
It's odd that Cockfosters nearly became named Trent Park Station when Oakwood could so easily have been that too. I was once a student resident on the Campus at Trent Park - good times... I guess either side of Snakes Lane was wooded, and likely they had Oaks...
Ahh, Oakwood or could it have been Enfield West. I much prefer the latter name 😀
@@GNTel313 That would have been a rather deceitful name. It's about two miles from Enfield proper.
Campus is now expensive housing. I agree Oakwood gives closer access to Trent Park via footpath next to equestrian centre. But more expensive housing likely in fields to east, so may be less peaceful in future.
@@SLJ2776 Something similar happened to the less scenic Bounds Green campus, which I visited for part of my course. The Enfield Campus (sold some time ago) is likely to go the same way.
As a born and bred North Londoner, I've honestly never found the name funny as I genuinely knew the word Cockfosters before I knew the word ... you know. Usually takes someone from outside London to remind me it has a funny name.
Anyway, have always been fond of this terminus. Simple but pretty, charming, light and spacious. I particularly like how low the ceilings are on both side platforms, with the trains looking as though they could rip their roofs off as they enter the station but just about managing not to.
I also like that it's one of not many above ground stations that's ticket hall is below street level and has a sub-surface feel.
No Cockfosters isn't *stunning*, and neither are many of Holden's best works. it's just very, very nice.
I agree abt thr name.. Growing up in North London I never thought it as rude.. I guess people who grow up in "Wig bottom" or whatever feel the same...
?
Give it time and you won't recognise the people or the place!
You shouting the station's name was hilarious! Thank you for the giggle!🤣🤣🤣
and only 3 stops away there's Anus Grove...or something similar.
This video evokes memories of when I was a kid. We had relations who lived in Potters Bar and would always start our journey in to London at Cockfosters.
I've always thought Cockfosters meant that there was a foster home for roosters somewhere out there...
I thought the same.
Was your voice in the intro a deliberate attempt to imitate the Piccadilly Line announcer? If it was, you absolutely nailed the intonations!
I just now realize that Tom Scott travelled all the way to Penistone for his "Why web filters don't work" video, when he could've just gone to this station instead.
Probably it was too expensive to go to the village in Austria now called Fugging that was then written with ck rather than gg. They got tired of having their signs stolen by tourists so they changed the name.
Nothing like listening to a good history video on Christmas
I saw the title and absolutely burst out laughing
Excellent video and commentary as usual. I can recall as a child spending time with a relative who's property overlooked the end of the Cockfosters underground line and seeing the trains being park-up over night, the sound of compressed air braking system being discharged then the driver walking the whole length of the train with the slamming of doors as he left each carriage compartment.
In the early hours of the morning you would hear the reverse procedure but this time the distinct sound of air compressors recharging the braking system as the trains were brought back into service.
Keep up the good work and stay safe.
Cockfosters Station sits next to Trent Park which includes a medieval site called Camlet Moat which some have argued is the original Camelot. I think the station developers missed a trick there when naming the station
OK, now it should be renamed to Camelot!
Cockfosters is a handy station for those of us travelling from the North via A1, my Dad always used to go and park at St Johns Wood (another double entendre name if you think about it).
My local station growing up, then we had that Fosters ad with Crocodile Dundee...
Another good feature of Cockfosters Station is the lack of roosting places for pigeons and other birds so almost zero bird poo problems.
I didn’t know about that one! Makes a lot of sense.
You will be pleased to know that there were two adverts at the start of this video. Enjoy the ad venue mate.
Even the announcement in the train sounds like she's rushing on the name, "this is the Piccadilly line service to... _Cockfosters._ "
Uxbridge station looks just like it. Very nice
I'm sure nice people call the station Co'fosters as one pronounce Co'burns port.
nah
One day on a future visit to the UK and London I shall go visit this Cockfosters station!
And I've ridden the Piccadilly line plenty. I've visited London twice, first staying across the street from the Gloucester Road station, the second time around the corner from the Russell Square station.
Travelling on the District Line once a man asked me how long it would be before we got to Glockoster Road. Of all the strange ways tourists try to pronounce some names, this was a new one on me.
.... 'like a cathedral' - yes, and as draughty as a cathedral, too. I hope you were wearing an overcoat - we wouldn't want to lose you prematurely. Merry Christmas and happy peregrinations in 2022.
I once got in a fuss as for some reason at South Kensington because the westbound trains for some reason were going eastbound and my parents got very confused leading me yell to them "This train is going to Cockfosters! " "COCKFOSTERS!" Afterwards I released how much I had embarrassed myself
Another brilliant and entertaining video from you, Jago! With each "new" one I see, I get more and more interested in the history of the Underground. Many thanks!!
Love it!! Thanks again for this tale. I must go there one day, never been to the end that line.
Well done again, Mr H. Another superb video, full of fascinating information. You could perhaps have mentioned the advert some years back which posed a question, to which the answer was (if I recall correctly) "serve it warm, mate". Thanks. Simon T
This is great. Transit nurd from Canada for some reason I find myself drawn to the underground and its history and this my friend is a great video thank you
I think it was legendary comedian Max Miller who said "A lady got out of the tube train and asked the ticket collector "Is this Cockfosters?" "No lady, it's mine!"
Thanks for shouting the name out, caught me by surprise and I spat out my brew. Also, back when I lived "darn sarf" I would always chuckle when using the Piccadilly Line, evidently having the mental age of a six year old... Oh and check out the Urban Dictionary for its definitions of said place ;)
I remember years ago the station being referred to as Co Fosters by the prudes, they did a similar job on Cockburn's Port so it was Co Burns Port.
A woman went into a pub and asked the landlord "Do you have Cockburn's".
He replied "Not since I switched to cotton boxers, missus".
@@apricotlill6917 Lol, nice one !
Can remeber this back in 2019 that our entire class made pictures and posted it on reddit
So many places in England that TH-cam and Google don't like.
Scunthorpe, Upper Piddle and Lower Piddle come to mind.
And of course.... HAPPY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE 🥳👍
We’ve all felt the pain of “this is the train to COCKfoSterZ”.
As the Piccadilly Line ends at Cockfosters. There was rumours that it could extend into Hertfordshire and possibly as far as Potters Bar. Cockfosters is such a funny name for a suburban commuter town in North London.
Wasn't Potter's bar the Leaky Cauldron?
@@apricotlill6917 Possibly. Sounds about right.
Grew up in Enfield a few miles down the road. Now live in Lincoln. Great to see this again.
These videos are so informative but I always find I’m laughing so much at them!
When I was in London in 2014 We caught the green or yellow Piccadilly line and I turned to My Daughter at !5 Years Old and asked her what the last Station was, Packed Train and She Looked at the Map and Started to announce C Fosters, She only said the C and turned to me with the Evil. I broke out Laughing. Love It and your Comedy, Thank You Mate.
In future videos just call it 'Rock Lobster' after the song by the B-52s. I always end up singing that when I see the station name anyway
this summary is even better than the Piccadilly line Wikipedia article i've expanded on. Thanks mate!
As a child, I always used to giggle when I heard that the train’s destination was Cockfosters; you’ll be pleased to know, I still chuckle today!
I spent a year in London and one day me and a group of friends who were all living in the UK temporarily took the train to Cockfosters to take pictures with the signs there. We thought it was the most hilarious thing in the world even though by the time we got back we were all bored out of our minds from being on the tube for so long.
_"We thought it was the most hilarious thing in the world" sound "_
Really? What sad people.
@@lexlayabout5757 imagine enjoying things, am I right?
@@lexlayabout5757 Don't underestimate the power of innuendo to rise to the occasion.
You are a clever man, no one can make these interesting tidbits of history (woven together with other tidbits) so clear and entertaining. Even for a yank who appreciates a fair bit of London, transit, and architectural histories giving me more reason to return and wander again out of the city center (centre??).
the latter bruv😉
I went to London with Uni mates a few times and every single time we heard Cockfosters... absolutely lost it.
This used to be my local tube station! "Cohfosters" to the upwardly mobile, lol. Loved the area around there. Especially Trent Park.
Cant help but audibly laugh everytime I’m on a line that goes to Cockfosters
Do you audibly laugh when you're on the line that goes to Arsenal ? ........
Always interesting and informative!
Merry Christmas to one and all!
Keep up the good work fella and stay safe!
When Jago finally and randomly spits out “Cockfosters”, it’s almost like hearing Johnny Nice Painter saying “black…Black! BLACK!!!”
Growing up in 1960s Liverpool was an age when bus conductors would call out the stops as they were approached.
One stop was outside the now demolished Richmond Sausage Factory and the conductor always called out "Sausage works girls!" to which all the women on the bus would respond with giggles and "oooooh! "
He would probably be sacked for it now but in those days everybody had a sense of humour.
I used to live in Bounds Green, so it's nice to hear about the extension.
The design of the station reminds me of the those submarine pens which the Nazis built in France
Excellent video as always Jago.
Loved the "Cockfosters...the stations called COCKFOSTERS.. bit one minute and one second in.... Brilliant.
I do seem to remember an advert by Paul "Crocodile Dundee" Hogan for a certain antipodean "Amber Nectar" a few years ago where he's sat with a can on a station on the Underground and is asked by a Japanese visitor to London looking confusedly at his Underground map....." Excuse please. Can you tell me way to Cockfosters?". To which he replies in his Aussie drawl "Yeah...Drink it warm ..mate".
Then adding, looking puzzled...."Funny question".
Awesome.
Seasons greetings to one and all.
There was a really good book about the extension from Finsbury Park to Cockfosters written by one of the station foremen from Arnos Grove a gentleman named Barry Carpenter, it was absolutely full of great pictures of the building of the extension but the best one was taken outside Finsbury park showing just how busy it was (absolutely rammed is a real understatement)
And that would have been before they started plonking bridges and other hunks of infrastructure around the station, in preparation for the New Works project that would have linked the old Moorgate-Finsbury Park line to the rest of the Northern Line via Highgate.
That "Great Northern Electrics" sign on the bridge there2:20(looking a bit droopy now) must be something of a relic
The tongue-in-cheek is strong with this one.
A few years ago I was showing some young american ladies around London and even though they where mid 20's they giggled like school girls every time the "this is a Piccadilly line train to...." came on
Seeing we now have to deal with the delicate sensibilities of the 21st century this station should immediately be renamed Roosterfosters, failing that I can think of a medical alternative, but you know what YT's like...
Ah, my neck of the woods. No, really. Yes *sigh* really. I was born just a stone's throw away at Chase Farm Hospital (when it had a maternity ward) and lived at the East end of Enfield. Whenever I headed into London I would always go via Oakwood....what? Why? Reasons, that's why ;). Nowadays I'm a bit more grown up and use Cockfosters all the time. Nice to see the station has been blessed by the twin luminaries of Geoff Marshall and now Jago Hazzard, hallowed soil indeed.
a stone's throw?
Why are you not bowling for England with that mighty arm?
@@elmonte5lim I was never good at sports, but at least I can throw a stone! ;) (different James Harris, btw, but you probably knew that!)
@@Tinderchaff that's a pity.
The Aussies are giving them what for, it seems.
;)
Reasons? When you have missed the last train from Liverpool St. the tube to Oakwood and a 135 bus to Brimsdown or at least Ponders End is a bit better than a long trek from the last train to Chingford. ('bin there done all that, but I was a lot younger then)
Love your wit Jago. You have presented what should normally be perceived as a rather dull and mundane item in such a fun and exciting way to the viewer, and it is refreshingly informative as well. Well done Sir!
U could always call it Trent or Barnet! Same general area