South Ruislip

From Northolt the train travelled alongside green fields. Easy to see how this was once all fields and farms.

The station was opened in 1908 and was originally known as Northolt Junction. It then became South Ruislip and Northolt Junction(quite a mouthful) in 1932 and finally received its present name in June 1947 just 18 months before becoming part of the Central Line extension. This is the island platform for the Central Line. There are two other platforms serving this station which are for the National Rail trains  running between Marylebone, London and Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire.

I am almost at the end of the line. Just two more stations to visit after this one.

The subway leading to the exit or the National Rail platforms.

The rounded booking Hall was not completed until 1960 complete with this concrete, glass and granite frieze by Henry Haig, more well known for his stained glass work.

The bridge which carries the line above the road at Station Approach is lower than other local bridges at 11 feet and 9 inches (3.58m) and is often hit by high vehicles. The bridge is strengthened at either side to lessen the damage caused by drivers who don't know the height of the vehicle they are driving!

Walking within the vicinity of the station I only came across residential streets, interspersed with small parades of shops.

Walking a little further from the station I found the headquarters of the  GAA (Gaelic Athletic Association) in London.

The ground has only recently been reopened (May 2017) after the completion of this new stand. I have never watched a game of Gaelic football but I am aware it is very different to  English football.You can just about see the goal post on this photo. To me it looks like a football goal below rugby goalposts.
It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by kicking or punching the ball into the other team's goals (3 points) or between two upright posts above the goals and over a crossbar 2.5 metres (8.2 ft) above the ground (1 point). (Wikipaedia definition.)

I walked to the roundabout at the end of West End Lane to find the Polish War Memorial.

The names of 1,243 Polish airmen who died during the war were inscribed on the wall behind the monument and a further 659 names were added between 1994 and 1996 when the memorial was refurbished.

The stone and granite memorial was designed by Mieczyslaw Lubelski who had been interned in a Nazi concentration camp during the war. The bronze eagle is the symbol of the Polish Air Force.

In September 2015 a new remembrance garden opened to mark 75 years since The Battle of Britain. he memorial and garden were sited here because of their close proximity to RAF Northolt where the Polish Air Force was based. However, sitting in the garden it is anything but peaceful with lorries and cars continuously thundering past.

 I left the busy roads and walked back towards the station through the side roads.

 Walked under another low bridge and past a recreation ground.

The area seems to be expanding looking at the size of this new development. It is on the site of what was once a dairy and when fully completed will include an 11 screen cinema, a couple of large foodstores and restaurants.

An artist's view of the new development.

A 1930s pub just the other side of the station. Used to be known as the Deane Arms but had a poor reputation so the owners changed the  name of the pub in the hope the clientele would also change. Whether it did or not I'm not sure but it does get good reviews nowadays.

Next to the pub is the Ramada Hotel. As it is just a couple of minutes walk from the tube station I am sure it is a popular hotel for tourists as well as business people requiring easy access to Central London.

A walk under the low bridge and I am back at South Ruislip station.