The good people from Mixmag partied all weekend to find out what the clubbers in London think of the new Night Tube. We have all been anticipating this, a 1am Brixton tube station commences the first night of the Night Tube.
London’s 24-hour party people have waited quite some time for their city to catch up. For years, we’ve gazed enviously to New York, Copenhagen and Berlin, coveting round-the-clock weekend services and, in the case of Berlin and NYC at least, the flourishing nightlife culture that it facilitates. London, by contrast, may have had the world-class parties down but lacking the transport infrastructure, our nightlife has existed within the wiggle room between exorbitant taxis and shady night buses.
They begin in Brixton, at the southernmost end of the Victoria line and immediately get swept up in the first night’s party vibe. “We love the Night Tube!” declares 30 year-old Giavanna who lives in Brixton. She’s just made a point of riding the first ever southbound Night Tube, making a bunch of new mates on the way. For her friend Kay – also 30 – the Night Tube is unquestionably a game-changer. ”I think it’s going to change everything for me. I can go places that I couldn’t be bothered to go to before, when I’d just be like, I’m going to come home early.”
By 3 a.m. they were craving a change of scene. Once this might have meant calling it a night, or worse, a bracing Uber receipt in your inbox the next morning. Now we just have to brave the gauntlet of partygoers, tourists with Delsey cases and the sprawled limbs of the sleeping. Just before the Victoria line train embarks, the PA crackles into life: “Welcome to the Night Tube. If you feel sick, please try to leave the train first.” A slurred cheer goes up from the carriage as a man in a suit begins a chant: “Night Tube! Night Tube!”
However, arriving at the Pickle Factory, a flaw was discovered: the last entry is at 3.30 a.m. So at 3:32, they were left looking foolish but at least can still get the tube back, to Brixton at least.
What do you think about the Night Tube?
