Huddersfield Railway Station has been hailed as one of the best in the world.

Time Out magazine has drawn up a list of the 15 most iconic railway stations globally and Huddersfield Railway Station is the only UK one on it.

The magazine’s journalist Ed Jefferson writes: “Plenty of train stations are much, much more than mere transport hubs. Some, in fact, look damn fine. Over the past two-and-a-bit centuries, rail stations have produced some of the world’s most iconic pieces of civic design from mighty monuments and modern art pieces to literal palaces and cathedrals dedicated to train power.

“Across eras, styles, movements and continents, here are 15 train stations around the world that are really, totally spectacular.”

The full list is:

1.      Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, Mumbai, India

2.      Kanazawa Station, Kanazawa, Japan

3.      Grand Central, New York, USA

4.      Liege-Guillemins, Liege, Belgium

5.      Napoli Afragola, Naples, Italy

6.      Flinders Street Station, Melbourne

7.      Gare do Oriente, Lisbon

8.      Central Railway Station, Maputo, Mozambique

9.      Gare de Metz-Ville, Metz, France

10.  Estacion Central, Santiago, Chile

11.  Central do Brasil, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

12.  Dunedin Station, New Zealand

13.  Union Station, Los Angeles, USA

14.  Sao Bento, Porto, Portugal

15.  Huddersfield Railway Station, UK.

Time Out says of Huddersfield Railway Station: “A Corinthian palace of a station, celebrated by architectural authorities including Pevsner and Betjeman.

“Huddersfield’s design – over the top even by Victorian rail termini standards – was the combined effort of two separate rail firms, the idea being to link the two with one particularly extravagant centrepiece. Visitors should make sure to admire the oil painting of Felix, the ‘senior pest controller’ (a cat).”

Artist Rob Martin with his portrait of Felix the Huddersfield Railway Station cat

The Grade 1-listed station was designed by architect James Pigott Pritchett, built between 1846 and 1850 and jointly funded by the Huddersfield and Manchester Railway and Canal Company and the Manchester and Leeds Railway.

Poet John Betjeman described the station as ‘as one of the most splendid in England.’

York Civic Society has also waxed lyrically about the station, saying: “The long neo-classical façade, reminiscent of a Palladian country house with a portico of Corinthian columns six wide and two deep, dominates St George’s Square, creating an impressive civic space planned as the centrepiece of the Victorian ‘new town.'”

To read the full Time Out story go to https://www.timeout.com/things-to-do/best-beautiful-train-stations-in-the-world

Written by ANDY HIRST who runs his own Yorkshire freelance journalism agency AH! PR (https://ah-pr.com/) specialising in press releases, blogging, website content and copywriting. Main image by: SEAN DOYLE.