Angel is a London Underground station, located in the Angel area of the London Borough of Islington. It is on the Bank branch of the Northern line, between and stations. The station is in London fare zone 1. It was originally built by the City & South London Railway (C&SLR) and opened on 17 November 1901. The station served as a terminus until the line was extended to Euston on 12 May 1907.
Angel was rebuilt between 1989 and 1992 to accommodate the large number of passengers using the station. As a result, it has an extra-wide southbound platform, surfaced over the original island platform which served both north- and south-bound trains. The station has the longest escalators on the Underground network.
History
Angel station was originally built by the City & South London Railway (C&SLR), and opened on 17 November 1901 as the northern terminus of a new extension from . The station building was designed by Sydney Smith and was on the corner of City Road and Torrens Street. On 12 May 1907, the C&SLR opened a further extension from Angel to Euston an arrangement still seen at and . Access to the platforms from street level was via three Euston Anderson electric lifts before the rebuilding of the station. When the C&SLR line was closed for tunnel reconstruction in the early 1920s to accommodate larger trains, Consequently, the station was rebuilt between 1989 and 1992. This was retained over the years but eventually it was closed on 23 January 1959 (along with the signal box at the south end of the platform) to simplify through running.
Escalators
thumb|upright|The longest escalators on the Underground
Angel is one of fourteen stations to have only escalator access to the platforms. With a vertical rise of and a length of , the escalators at Angel station are the longest on the Underground,
2007 improvements
The station was refurbished during 2007. Additional CCTV cameras and Help Points were installed, bringing the total to 77 cameras in the station and nine Help Points, the latter upgraded with new induction loops to better aid hearing-impaired passengers. The scheme involves stripping the building back to its concrete frame, adding two new storeys and replacing the original brick and stone façade with a glass curtain wall. The plans triggered much objection from conservation groups such as Save Britain's Heritage, who argued that it was a significant example of post-war architecture. The works resulted in the partial closure of the station entrances which will be upgraded as part of the rebuild.
Location
On Islington High Street, the station provides access to several nearby Off West End or Fringe theatre venues including the Old Red Lion Theatre, Sadler's Wells Theatre, the King's Head Theatre and the Almeida Theatre. It is the nearest station to City University's main campus, Chapel Market,
London Buses routes 4, 19, 30, 38, 43, 56, 73, 153, 205, 214, 274, 341, 476 and night routes N19, N38, N41, N73, N205 and N277 serve the station.
Services
Angel station is on the Bank or City branch of the Northern line in London fare zone 1. It is between to the north and to the south. Train frequencies vary throughout the day, but generally operate every 3–6 minutes between 05:50 and 00:40 in both directions.
Future proposals
Angel was a proposed station on the now-shelved Crossrail 2 (Chelsea-Hackney line) project, providing an interchange between Crossrail 2 and the Northern line. Depending on the route constructed, it would be between King's Cross St. Pancras and Dalston Junction or Hackney Central.
In media
The station's escalators and the southbound platform were featured in the Bollywood hit film Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge.
The station was the subject of a 1989 episode of the 40 Minutes BBC documentary series titled "Heart of the Angel".