Since I had a bit of time to spare today at St.Pancras I took the
opportunity to take a drink in the Booking Office bar. It is indeed the
same room where I used to buy tickets, with the ticket office converted
into the bar. The overall effect isn't too bad, I thought, but the
lighting over the bar involves what looks like posh scaffolding poles,
which is very intrusive visually.

The southern wall has nice wooden paneling, which looks like the
original stuff revarnished. The roof beams also look original, but the
ceiling looks different from what I remember. I thought it had
criss-cross timbers which effectively divided it into quite small square
areas, whereas now it is flat (with perforated roof tiles, presumably
part of the ventilation system).

To the west, what used to be a roadway (or at least walkway) is now a
glassed atrium with yet another part of the hotel bar. Does anyone else
remember how the booking office used to look?

Anyhow, it means that one can get from the Euston Road to the
upper-level (EMT) platform area quite quickly by entering the hotel
entrance, taking a short dog-leg to the right through the booking office
bar, and thus getting to upper level concourse of the station without
the usual impediment of escalators/stairs.

--
Clive Page

Clive Page wrote on 17 September 2011 00:43:52 ...
Since I had a bit of time to spare today at St.Pancras I took the
opportunity to take a drink in the Booking Office bar. It is indeed the
same room where I used to buy tickets, with the ticket office converted
into the bar. The overall effect isn't too bad, I thought, but the
lighting over the bar involves what looks like posh scaffolding poles,
which is very intrusive visually.

The southern wall has nice wooden paneling, which looks like the
original stuff revarnished. The roof beams also look original, but the
ceiling looks different from what I remember. I thought it had
criss-cross timbers which effectively divided it into quite small square
areas, whereas now it is flat (with perforated roof tiles, presumably
part of the ventilation system).

To the west, what used to be a roadway (or at least walkway) is now a
glassed atrium with yet another part of the hotel bar. Does anyone else
remember how the booking office used to look?

There's a photo taken in 2001 at
http://www.urban75.org/london/st_pancras27.html
Also at
http://www.heritage-images.com/Previ...censeTy pe=RM
Also at
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rpmarks...57624070511766
Just do a Google images search for St Pancras Booking Hall.
--
Richard J.
(to email me, swap 'uk' and 'yon' in address)

Thanks for the photos. I am SOOOO there, dude. If they got rid of that
egregious statue I'd never leave St Pancras.

In message , at 00:43:52 on Sat, 17 Sep
2011, Clive Page remarked:
Anyhow, it means that one can get from the Euston Road to the
upper-level (EMT) platform area quite quickly by entering the hotel
entrance, taking a short dog-leg to the right through the booking
office bar, and thus getting to upper level concourse of the station
without the usual impediment of escalators/stairs.

I discovered that soon after the hotel opened, by accident when I took
that route sightseeing. Hopefully they won't implement any measures to
stop passengers (rather than just hotel guests) doing this.
--
Roland Perry

There's a photo taken in 2001 at
http://www.urban75.org/london/st_pancras27.html
Also at
http://www.heritage-images.com/Previ...censeTy pe=RM

Also at
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rpmarks...57624070511766
Just do a Google images search for St Pancras Booking Hall.

Thanks. For some reason, it didn't occur to me to do that. The 1st
and 3rd links above show the old ceiling in all its glory, with brightly
coloured tiles. They have all gone, unfortunately. I'm surprised that
English Heritage allowed them to get away with such destruction.

--
Clive Page