| Symbol: | underground |
| Mornington Crescent | |
| Manager: | London Underground |
| Locale: | Mornington Crescent |
| Borough: | London Borough of Camden |
| Platforms: | 2 |
| Fare Zone: | 2 |
| Coordinates: | 51.5344°N -0.1386°W |
| Map Type: | Central London |
| Years1: | 22 June 1907 |
| Years2: | 23 October 1992 |
| Years3: | 27 April 1998 |
| Events1: | Opened (CCE&HR) |
| Events2: | Closed for refurbishment |
| Events3: | Reopened |
| Tubeexits04: | 3.009 |
| Tubeexits06: | 3.260 |
| Tubeexits07: | 4.047 |
| Tubeexits08: | 4.290 |
| Tubeexits09: | 4.47--> |
| Listing Grade: | II |
| Listing Entry: | 1378713 |
Mornington Crescent is a London Underground station in Somers Town in north west London, named after the nearby street. The station is on the Charing Cross branch of the Northern line, between and stations. It is in Travelcard Zone 2.
The station was opened as part of the original route of the Charing Cross, Euston & Hampstead Railway (now the Charing Cross branch of the Northern line) on 22 June 1907. The surface building was designed by the Underground Electric Railways Company of London's (UERL's) architect Leslie Green in the Modern Style (British Art Nouveau style).[1] Prior to the station's opening, the name of "Seymour Street" had been proposed. After opening, it was little used. For many years it was open only on weekdays, and before 1966 Edgware-bound trains passed through without stopping.
The station is situated at the southern end of Camden High Street, where it meets Hampstead Road and Eversholt Street. This junction forms the north-western corner of the boundary of Somers Town, with Camden Town situated to the north and Regent's Park Estate to the south of the station.
The station's location on the Northern line is unusual due to the dual-branch nature of that line. On the branch, Mornington Crescent is between and . The Bank branch also runs from Camden Town to Euston, but via tunnels which take an entirely different route to the Charing Cross branch and which do not pass through Mornington Crescent. Although modern-day tube maps show Mornington Crescent to the west of the Bank branch tunnels, it is actually to the east of them: the two branches cross over each other at Euston, so that between Euston and Camden Town, the Bank branch tunnels run to the west of the Charing Cross branch on which Mornington Crescent is situated. Harry Beck's 1933 tube map represented this correctly.
There is a northwards facing crossover to the north of the station to enable trains from Camden Town to terminate and head back north.[2]
On 23 October 1992, the station was shut so that the then 85-year-old lifts could be replaced. The intention was to open it within one year. However, due to lack of funding and the state of neglect, the station remained closed for 6 years.[3]
A concerted campaign to reopen the station was launched, with pressure from Camden Council, and assistance from the popular BBC Radio 4 panel game I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue. The show frequently features the game Mornington Crescent, which takes its name from the station.
During the station's rebuilding, the original distinctive light blue tiling pattern was restored to the station (though taking into account modern fire safety requirements). The ticket hall was reconstructed and the original emergency stairs closed. A second lift shaft was converted (losing the unnecessary extra two lifts) into a staircase on one side and a series of station facilities on the other.
After substantial refurbishment, the station was reopened on 27 April 1998 by the regular cast of I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue (Humphrey Lyttelton, Barry Cryer, Tim Brooke-Taylor and Graeme Garden).[4] A memorial plaque to the late Willie Rushton, one of the longest-serving panelists, was installed at the station in 2002.
Since its 1998 reopening, the station has been open at the same times as most other stations, including weekends, in an attempt to relieve the pressure on the increasingly busy nearby station.
The typical offpeak service in trains per hour (tph) is as follows:[5] [6]
The peak services differ between the morning and evening peaks, but generally the typical peak service in trains per hour (tph) is as follows:
London Buses routes 1, 24, 27, 29, 46, 134, 214, 253 and 274 and night routes N5, N20, N28, N29, N31, N253 and N279 serve the station.