Still trying to work it out? I would really like to hear your thoughts but let’s jump to the answer. Yes we are talking about Kings Cross Station. According to twentieth-century urban folklore, King's Cross is built on the site of Boudica’s final battle, or else her body is buried under one of the platforms. Platforms 8, 9 and 10 have been suggested as possible sites. There are also passages under the station which Boudica's ghost is supposed to haunt. Kings Cross takes its name from the Kings Cross area of London, itself named after a monument to King George IV that was demolished in 1845. Then of course Kings Cross is the starting point of the Hogwarts Express. The train uses a secret platform 9¾ located by passing through the brick wall barrier between platforms 9 and 10. Gateway Media have been providing video production services to Vinci and Network Rail for the auspicious redevelopment project at Kings Cross since 2009. As well as providing an on-going video record of progress for Vinci we produced a promotional video for Network Rail.
King’s Cross is at the heart of the busiest transport interchange in the country. Within the next decade over 50 million passengers a year will be using the station every year. A £500M refurbishment means King’s Cross is currently being transformed into a world class transport hub which can meet future demand and offer the best facilities for passengers. The work finishes in 2013 and the new station will be one of the most distinctive architectural statements in 21st century rail travel. Gateway Media has been privileged to share the pride and excitement of the many team players working on this Grade 1 listed site. Having interviewed specialists from John McAslan (architects), NG Bailey (infrastructure specialist) and Network Rail who commissioned the redevelopment we know it’s had a special WOW factor for all of them. Discovering an unknown atrium while knocking down office partitions added over the 150+ years of the stations life may have brought new challenges, but working with English Heritage to restore it has been extremely rewarding. Offices and plant rooms on the Eastern Range have been lovingly restored in keeping with the vision of the original architect Lewis Cubitt. Unfortunately, during World War 2 the station was badly bombed and all the original drawings were destroyed so it has been a precarious job not knowing where water pipes, electric cables and gas supplies run without rediscovery and remapping everything. The main damage left by the blast became known as the ‘Bomb Gap’ but this gap has now been incorporated into the re-design of the station. This determination to passionately refurbish, re-use and recycle on the project has been a joy to record. The roof of the new entrance is a particular note. We have never seen such a dense forest of scaffolding as was needed to support the roof as it went up. This was necessary as it only became self-supporting once it had been put together. We look forward to the restoration of the old booking hall, recovered from being a storage area for too long. Ian Fry, Network Rail’s programme director for King’s Cross station speaks very proudly of the project saying “Not only does it demonstrate Network Rail’s ability to deliver large complex projects, but it is also a flagship station and it shows what Network Rail is all about, delivering a network fit for the 21st century.
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