Trains at Brookmans Park, ECML | 03/06/18

A busy and sunny visit to Brookmans Park situated on the ECML during a sunny and warm afternoon of Sunday 3rd June 2018. There are a few planes featured in this video to since any Heathrow departures heading east go via the 'Brookmans Park' departure so they came right overhead.

Brookmans Park info:

Brookmans Park railway station serves the village of Brookmans Park in Hertfordshire, England. The station is located 14 miles 37 chains (23.3 km) north of London Kings Cross on the East Coast Main Line, on the stretch between Finsbury Park and Hatfield.

History:

The station was opened by the London and North Eastern Railway (LNER) on 19 July 1926.

Facilities:

In Autumn 2008, a Shere self-service ticket machine was installed opposite the booking office window, replacing an earlier Avantix self-service machine.

Station layout:

The station has four platforms in total, two island platforms on both sides, but only platforms 1 & 4 are used regularly, platforms 2 & 3 are only used during line disruption or engineering work. The west side serves northbound services and another island platform serving southbound services which lies to the east. The station car park parallels the island platforms to the east.

The platforms are reached by a steep footbridge, the station building (an LNER survivor) being a part-time booking office at the NW extremity of the station.

Ticket Office Opening Times & Station Staffing Hours:

Below are the current opening and staffing times for Brookmans Park, as of 2010.

Monday to Friday

OPENS: 06:50
CLOSES: 10:00

Saturday

CLOSED ALL DAY

Sunday

CLOSED ALL DAY

Station Staffing Hours:

Monday to Friday

FROM: 06:35
UNTIL: 10:15

Saturday

NO STAFF

Sunday

NO STAFF

Services:

There is a basic weekday off-peak service of 3tph in both directions, southbound to Moorgate and northbound to Welwyn Garden City. This drops to every half-hour at weekends. Late evening & weekend services used to run to and from Kings Cross rather than using the Northern City Line, but from 13 December 2015 Great Northern introduced a weekend service on the line and extended evening hours until the end of service.

The village:

Brookmans Park is a village located in the civil parish of North Mymms, in Hertfordshire, southeast England. It is well known for its local history, including an ancient historic estate that used to exist within its boundaries, its BBC transmitter station, and local amenities. The village website, The Brookmans Park Newsletter has more than 20 complete history books (and 40 in-depth features), as well as a half-hour video about the history of the area. Brookmans Park railway station is on the East Coast Main Line, operated by Great Northern. It is also a waypoint used in air navigation, particularly in terminal departure and arrival procedures at London's Heathrow Airport. It is in the Welwyn/Hatfield ward of Brookmans Park and Little Heath.

The Brookmans:

The Brookmans Park Hotel was a privately owned hotel situated in the centre of the village, with a pub and restaurant popular with local residents. The hotel was built in the 1930s in a Mason's style with high pitched ceilings, skylights, wood panelling, carved Mason symbols and a large stone fireplace. The hotel was often used for wedding banquets and other local functions. It had six hotel rooms available to guests, making it the only hotel in the area.

The Brookmans Park Hotel was taken over by a national brewery chain in July 2006. After extensive refurbishments it reopened in April 2007 as The Brookmans pub and restaurant. The restaurant section was expanded by knocking down the wall between the main bar and old function room; and was noticeably more upmarket than The Brookmans Park Hotel had been. Along with dropping 'Hotel' from its name, the hotel business was closed and a deli business, Oaks Deli, took over what used to be the pool room in the old public house. Prior to having been a pool room, it was a wine bar called "Oaks", perhaps explaining the naming. In summer 2011 The Brookmans was taken over by Peach Pubs and after a refurbishment and menu overhaul reopened in October of the same year.

Churches:

Brookmans Park is in the Church of England Parish of North Mymms, served by St Mary's Church in North Mimms Park. It is served by the Roman Catholic parish of Hatfield which has a Chapel of Ease (St Thomas More) in the neighbouring village of Welham Green. The United Reformed Church has a congregation in the village itself.

The home of Miss Muffet:

Local legend has it that Miss Muffet was Patience Moffat, daughter of entomologist Dr. Thomas Moffat (possibly Moffett or Moufet), who lived in the area from 1553 to 1604 on a farm. He had invited a poet over for Christmas. During his stay he overheard Miss Moffat tell her father of how she was eating her curds and whey when a spider came down from the ceiling and frightened her. The poet made an alteration to the name Miss Moffat and wrote a nursery rhyme.