150th Anniversary of the London Underground

On 10 January 1863 the world's first underground train pulled out of Paddington station to make the first public passenger journey - 3½-miles under the streets of London from Paddington to Farringdon and into the record books. The original Underground line was built and financed by the Metropolitan Railway, a private company which had been formed in 1854 to undertake the project to link the mainline stations at Paddington, Euston and King's Cross with the City centre business district to the east. Travelling on the new railway was a novelty that thousands of Londoners were eager to experience and on the first day of public service – long queues formed at every station. The line was a huge success with 26,000 passengers using the railway each day in the first six months. To celebrate the 150th anniversary of the London Underground, London Transport Museum and Transport for London are planning a whole range events and activities