Paddington
Paddington is a place in the City of Westminster. It is a London district situated 2.2 miles (3.5 km) west north-west of Charing Cross.
Limestone Townhouses adorn this street in Norfolk Square, Paddington
Places of note
Important places in Paddington include St Mary's Hospital (and nurse-training centre) and Paddington Green police station (high-security police station). The IRA bombed the telephone box outside the police station one morning in 1991 as a demonstration to the British security services.
The Paddington arm of the Grand Union Canal terminates at Paddington Basin (this canal links Manchester and London).
Famous people
Paddington has several famous sons, notably Alexander Fleming — the scientist who discovered Penicillin (a plaque commemorating this is placed outside his laboratory at St Mary's Hospital on Praed Street) — and Alan Turing (mathematician; there is a plaque on the Hotel where he was born: The Colonnade in Warrington Crescent). More recent natives of Paddington include the musicians Seal, Courtney Pine and Elvis Costello, the footballer Les Ferdinand the actresses Emma Thompson and Rhona Mitra.
An early nineteenth century political rhyme comparing the stature of two politicians goes "London is to Paddington as Pitt is to Addington".
The National Rail station at Paddington is the London terminus for long distance trains to the West Country, Bristol, Bath and South Wales , and for commuter services to West London and the Thames Valley, operated by First Great Western. The station is one of seventeen UK railway stations managed by Network Rail.
The Heathrow Express travels non-stop between Paddington and Heathrow Airport, and the Heathrow Connect service runs along the same route but calling at intermediate stations. Chiltern Railways operates a vestigial service into Paddington via a branch line that runs alongside the Central Line. It is proposed that Crossrail line 1 will serve Paddington station.
History
The first station to open in the Paddington area was a temporary terminus for the Great Western Railway on the west side of Bishop's Bridge Road. The first GWR services from London to Taplow, near Maidenhead, ran from here in 1838. After the opening of the main station in 1854, this became the site of the goods yard. After years of dereliction, it is now being redeveloped as a mixed residential and business area called Paddington Waterside.
Statue of Isambard Kingdom Brunel
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Statue of Isambard Kingdom Brunel
The main Paddington station between Bishops Bridge Road and Praed Street was opened in 1854. It was designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, later commemorated by a statue on the station concourse, though much of the architectural detailing was by his associate Matthew Digby Wyatt. The glazed roof is supported by wrought iron arches in three spans, respectively spanning 20.70 m (68 ft), 31.20 m (102 ft) and 21.30 m (70 ft). The roof is 213 m (699 ft) long.
The station was substantially enlarged in 1906–15 and a fourth span of 33 m (109 ft) was added on the north side, parallel to the others.
A very early construction by Brunel was recently discovered immediately to the north of the station; a cast iron bridge carrying the Bishop's Bridge Road over the railway lines was exposed during removal of the more recent brick outer covering in late 2004, in the run-up to the bridge's complete replacement.
The Great Western Hotel was built on Praed Street in front of the station in 1851–54 by architect Philip Charles Hardwick, son of Philip Hardwick (designer of the Euston Arch).