Down in the Tube station at midnight

I grew up in North London and spent many years going backwards and forwards to school, to work or to socialise on the Northern Line of the London Underground. These fantastic photos by Londoner Bob Mazzer mirror my memories of the Tube and the people who used to use it, especially in the evnings and weekends. It's hard to imagine now we used to smoke cigarettes on the Tube, and the stench of the fag smoke would mix in with the smell of the stuff that they'd use for trains' brakes - like burning clutch material, probably aspestos.

I haven't used the Tube for years now, apparently you need some new-fangled thing called an Oyster Card. Mind you, in my youth, if you could bunk over the barrier and not get collared you wouldn't pay anyway...

The song 'Down In the Tube Station at Midnight' with its late-night Tube sounds and tale of getting a kicking still evokes powerful memories.

See more of Bob Mazzer's photos here, and read his memories here