Several people have said to me why don't I write about the 1996 TV series "Neverwhere" by Neil Gaiman (left) and British comedian Lenny Henry (right) which is now rumoured to be being made into a film by Jim Henson productions.Why not? It features the tube in a big way, with weird characters who live in a strange underground world and some of them are even named after tube stations.
Well here goes. 
Here's the video.
Here's a review of the book which Gaiman wrote after the TV series:
"This was an amazing book! Living in NYC it made me really think about those random "dead ends" and the gap between the subway and the platform.
I really wanted to visit the London Underground (and I don't mean the subway) after reading this delightful and absorbing novel. The characters were well written and memorable."
Here's a pretty good summary of the plot from CHUD - Cinematic Happenings Under Development.
"The story begins in modern day London, where a man, Richard Mayhew, and his fiancée, Jessica, are on their way to a dinner party hosted by her boss. Jessica comes across here as a nagging, and shallow creature who's always picking at Richard about one thing or another. Apparently, she is introducing Richard to her boss for the first time and wants to make a good impression. Anyway, they're walking down a dark London street, when they come across a girl who falls out of the wall! Not being something Richard sees everyday, he stops to help her, discovering she has dried blood all over her. Jessica begins to complain about being late for dinner, so Richard tells her to head on without him. He just can't leave her to die on the streets like an animal! So, Jessica leaves and Richard takes the girl back to his apartment to clean her up. So far so good.
"Back at his apartment, Richard finds his door locked. He had left his keys inside! No problem, the girl touches the door with her hand, which promptly unlocks for them. All nice and spiffy. Now the story gets whacked! When Richard asks the girl about an explanation, he gets more than he bargained for. Her name is, appropriately enough, Door, (Door's on the left in the picture) and she's from London Below. That's nice. Well, Richard is naturally confused and inquires further. London Below is an alternate universe, existing parallel with the real world known as London Above! In London Below, feudal law rules, and all sorts of creatures exist. It is a fantasy world with mythic beasts and people wearing Victorian clothes, and speaking in the appropriate Victorian tongue. (rather like the tube - The Mole)
That's the basic setup, or about as basic as it gets! Richard becomes involved in a desperate battle between good and evil, and he must help Door avenge herself on the bruisers who murdered her family. "
An Amazon reviewer fantsizes about who should be in the film:
"If "Neverwhere" will become a movie, I cryptically suggest James Cameron to direct it so that it will
be detailed, well-budgeted. Kate Winslet could be the Lady Door except she's too fat, Hugh Grant as
Richard Mayhew because he acts clumsy and is fond of exotic things, Danny de Vito as Marquis de
Carabas for obvious reason, Jack Nicholson and Clive Barker as Mr. Croup and Mr. Vandemar, Elle
Macpherson or Cindy Crawford as The Hunter, Ralph Fiennes as the Angel Islington."
The following episode guide from the 1996 TV series came from "the small significant Neverwhere site" so you can see how the tube really comes into the plot:
"Door"
When he abandons his fiancee to help an injured woman (Door) on the streets of London, Richard Mayhew finds his life turned upside down.
"Knight's Bridge"
Lost in a bizarre fantasy realm beneath London, Richard does his best to stay alive - and find Door.
"Earls Court To Islington"
Richard and Door make the dangerous journey to meet with an Angel named Islington to find out vital information regarding the killer of Door's family.
"Blackfriars"
In order to gain a desperately needed key, Richard undergoes an ordeal at the hands of the Black Friars - dark priests hidden beneath London.
"Down Street"
While Richard, Hunter and Door make the return journey to Islington, Old Bailey embarks on a vital mission to save de Carabas.
"As Above, So Below"
Lost in the labyrinth beneath London, Richard, de Carabas and Hunter must face the Great Beast of London - if they are to rescue Door.
Here's a pertinent selection from the 198
reviews from Amazon.com and at Amazon.co.uk
"Ride a subway, or underground as the British call it, that has been around for a hundred or so years
and you'll notice an interesting phenomenon. If you look out between stations you may notice sudden
openings in the tunnel or even the ghostly remnants of an a derelict station. Ever wonder what's there?
In the London Below of Neil Gaiman's "Neverwhere" there is a world of wonders and terrors.
Fiefdoms occupied by Rat Speakers, Blackfriars and a mobile Earl's Court that is more than just a stop
in the London tube to name just a few. It is the survival of not just the fittest but of the clever. Richard
Mayhew of London Above (the so-called real world) has entered it by being a nice guy and learns the
truth of the adage "let no good deed go unpunished". He wants out but is going to have a grand time
trying to do it. The characters are quite colorful for a pretty dark world and Gaiman's vivid
imagination gives them plenty to do to hold your interest. In that he does not fail in creating this world
of Dickensian nightmare transfered to a world of dark fantasy that still manages to put its tongue in
cheek. "
"London Below exists beside Richard's reality (London Above), with bizarre intersections located,
fittingly, in Underground stations such as Black Friars (home of a Dominican order) and the British
Museum (which was closed, in London Above, in the 1930s, but remains accessible to those living
Below). A periodic Floating Market allows its citizens to barter goods and information; Richard
reconnects with Door and her companion, the marquis de Carabas, auditioning bodyguards at one such
market held after-hours in Harrods -- a delightful idea as well as a marvellous description of a world
full of wonders.
The creation of London Below and its denizens is the best part of Neverwhere. Anyone who has
visited London develops a relationship with the Underground, and it seemed quite logical that this
network be the entryway to an even more bizarre place than London itself. I was delighted to be able
to picture Earl's Court as a miniature kingdom inside a train, with an actual Earl and his entourage.
The story has a real feel of menace, personified by Mr. Croup and Mr. Vandemar, assassins hired to
do various nasty things to Door and her friends, but at the same time it's not completely a nightmare
world. Neverwhere has some of the flavor of the de Lint-esque faërie-overlapping-reality stories, only
(in my opinion) it's much better. Gaiman's novel developed during his work on a BBC television series
using this setting (and presumably also the characters). Nevertheless, the book works quite well as a
novel, with a solid story line and well-drawn characters."
"Richard may have reconsidered his gallant act if he knew what he just got involved in due to the
injured woman. For he now knows that underneath the London streets, deep in the abandoned stations
that dot the tubes and in the most obscure sewer tunnels lies an underground culture that insists on
anonymity from the surface world. Knowledge could mean death."
"The novel combines elements reminiscent of Alice through the looking glass and Dorothy trying to
find her way home from Oz. An ordinary guy crosses into another world below London. The London
subway warning "Mind the Gap" takes on a whole new meaning--there are beings that reside in the
gap. The hero meets a band of wonderful characters as we travel through the midnight world below
London. The ending is unexpected, but totally satisfying. Even if you do not like gothic novels, but
have ever been to London, you will love this book!"
"This is one of those books that you read in snatches for a few days, until one night you find yourself
caught, reading far past your bedtime and into the waning hours of morning, knowing your alarm is
about to go off for work, but still unable to break free of the spell. Every glimpse into the minds of the
supporting characters leaves you yearning to know them better, and every allusion to a new facet of
life in the shadow-realm of the London Underground leaves you hungering to explore deeper."
"Gaiman has a gift for magically transporting his readers into other worlds. Deftly merging images of
people and animals, Gaiman seamlessly moves through various sections of London Above to present
the parallel, darker world of London Below. As Richard struggles to understand what is happening and
how to get home, we delight in the whimsical exploration of areas, streets, tubes, and shops, well
known in reality, yet in this world, the twist is simply wicked. Size doesn't matter here; inside a
subway car can exist a richly court. Doors can be opened wherever and whenever; through pictures,
brick, and in mid-air. And who would ever expect a floating market to take place in Harrods, one of
the richest department stores in the world?"
"I was so entranced by this book that New York became somewhere else. The subways I always travel
on became subsitutes for those in London. The phrase "Mind the gap" still bothers me while I'm
waiting for the 1 train at 59th street. I lent Neverwhere to a friend of mine and she wanted the book
cover, but I refused to give it to her, fearing that she would harm it. I know that doesn't really have
anything to do with a book review, but it speaks volumes about the book itself."
"If you read one book this year - read this one. A magical, mysterious romp in a world you can only
hope really exists. My next vacation is going to be to London Underground"
If you want to buy the video and see what all the fuss is about click on the video here.
Hywel Williams gave me a bit of info on where parts of Neverwhere were filmed:
"I visited Down Street (a closed underground station)
last week and discovered that the initial scene in episode 1 where Croup &
Vandemar are chasing Door up a rickety old metal stair case was actually filmed
in the lift shaft at Down Street. I guess they either filmed in short sections
or otherwise filmed at night when no trains were running since the roar of the
wind passing up and down that shaft really is something else as trains approach
and retreat from the station area further below. This of course appart from
the real mention of Down Street later on in the story line!"
Finally come across Neil Gaiman's own pretty extensive website and excerpts from the book. Amazingly, Neil had also come across GoingUnderground.net and was happy to recommend this site to his many fans.
"I've been meaning to link to Going Underground for ages, and you plug the site better than I could. Lovely site filled with odd, London underground things. The weblog is an excellent place to begin -- lots to read. Learn about commuter pigeons, for a start."
From Neil Gaiman's web journal.
Cheers Neil
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