St Pancras Reopened

This evening the Queen opened St Pancras International, the new Channel Tunnel rail terminal for Eurostar, with musical accompaniment from the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, mezzo-soprano Katherine Jenkins and pop singer Lemar. When you've spent £800 million, what's a few more bob? Here's a cast of the second new statue to grace the station: Martin Jennings' 7ft high bronze of Sir John Betjeman gazing up at "the great arc of Barlow's train shed gaping to devour incoming engines" as Sir John described it. He loved the old St Pancras Station and in the 1960's campaigned to save it from being demolished. Without his efforts, St Pancras International would be a horrible new building, instead of a revamped railway cathedral from the golden age of steam. (CLICK to see Paul Day's The Meeting Place.)