POETRY IN MOTION
Meet the Tube wordsmiths going overground with LNER
AS A CHILD, Ian Redpath was fascinated by the Loch Ness monster.
So when he was 11, his dad took him on an adventure.
The pair hopped on a train out of London King’s Cross station, bubbling with excitement as they snaked their way up the East Coast Main Line – the route that LNER covers today.
Sadly, their mission to spot the elusive monster came to nothing – but Ian did discover something else on that trip: a passion for train travel.
“The scenery was wonderful,” Ian, 46, remembers. “The train windows were like picture frames for the waterfalls and mountains. I was mesmerised. I literally fell in love.”
“Train windows are like picture frames for the waterfalls
and mountains”
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Ian’s love of trains even inspired his choice of job, as a customer service assistant on the London Underground. That’s where he met his colleague Jeremy Chopra – the other poetic talent behind All On The Board.
Their clever rhymes, all displayed on station whiteboards, started out as a fun pastime to make passengers travelling on the Underground smile, but All On The Board has since become a monster hit and now they have teamed up with LNER to pen their first overground poem.
The subject? Revisiting the inspiring idea of leaving King’s Cross on an LNER adventure, just like Ian’s monster hunting so many years before.
BOARDING TIME Ian (left) and Jeremy have penned a poem about heading out on an LNER adventure
“On the Tube it’s all about getting from A to B as quickly as possible,” Jeremy says. “The train is different – you can step on board an LNER train, close off from everything and relax.
“And when your mind is rested, looking out at the green of the trees and fields and blue of the sky, inspiration strikes.”
Or, as their LNER whiteboard poem puts it: “Take time to unwind, be kind to your mind, get positively creative and let your journey take you on a journey into your imagination.”
It was this imaginative spirit that first drew the duo to one another. “I met Jeremy in 2015 when our manager, recognising us both as mischief-makers, paired us to work together,” Ian says. “We clicked straight away.”
Both men are part of Transport for London’s Special Requirements Team – if there’s a concert on at the O2 or a football match anywhere, they’re drafted in to help manage the crowds.
“We’re elite, like the SAS,” says Jeremy, laughing.
The idea for poetry came when they were chatting to passengers arriving for a Craig David concert at the O2.
“We were having a laugh with customers, using lines from Craig David songs,” says Jeremy, 44. “Then we saw the whiteboard, filthy with all the soot from the trains.
“No one ever paid any attention to it. ‘Keep Right’, it said, but people always went left.
“So Ian and I threw a couple of Craig David lines at each other, wiped the board clean and scribbled down a poem in a three-minute gap in the service.
“It was an instant hit, with people laughing and taking selfies.”
Travelling by train isn’t just better for you – as a creative solution to stress, where you can kick back, take in the scenery or do something you love – it’s also a great way to help protect the environment when you’re on the move.
Want to find out more and check your carbon footprint on a train journey? LNER’s online Carbon Calculator compares CO2 emissions for journeys by train, car and plane.
And with the publication of its Green Guides, LNER is helping you make planet-friendly decisions when you reach your destination.
These travel guides showcase the most environmentally forward-thinking attractions, accommodation and places to eat in the historic cities along LNER’s East Coast route.
To download a Green Guide for the city you’re travelling to, just head for lner.co.uk
MAKE A RAIL DIFFERENCE
In November 2020, the first compilation of their work – All On The Board: Inspirational Quotes From the TFL Underground Duo – became a Sunday Times bestseller.
That’s now been followed up by All On The Board – Your Daily Companion: Inspiring Words to Take You From Morning to Night, which looks set to do just as well.
Ian and Jeremy have featured thousands of poems on their whiteboards, often tied in with events, but also about mental health – a subject close to both their hearts after struggles with anxiety on Ian’s part and a teenage eating disorder and depression on Jeremy’s.
“We wanted people to know they aren’t alone in their struggles,” Ian says.
It’s part of the reason why they both understand the importance of downtime, and not just because it’s a chance to recharge their poetic minds.
Ian says: “I’ve been writing songs, poems and stories since my early teens – I love making words rhyme. When I’m stressed, it’s therapeutic to let my emotions spill out on the page.”
To discover your next inspiring journey, visit lner.co.uk
“No one ever paid any attention to the boards – so
we scribbled down a poem”
And what better way to capture a little creative me time than penning their first “overground” poem, which captures the transportive power of travelling with LNER on one of its Azuma trains.
Built using Japanese bullet train technology, they are designed to be more comfortable, faster and eco-friendly.
These trains link great destinations across the country, snaking between London and Scotland on the East Coast Main Line.
And it’s not just the green and speedy technology that’s impressive. Before boarding, passengers can use LNER’s handy Deal Finder to travel for less, plus there’s a free seat selector so you can choose your own comfy seat and opt for quieter spaces if preferred.
Then, once you are on your way, you can get food delivered directly to your seat thanks to LNER’s Let’s Eat At Your Seat menu – perfect for fuelling your inspiration on the move.
“We think boards should be used for poetry across all transport networks,” Jeremy says.
“We’ve had messages from LNER staff at stations in Doncaster and Edinburgh telling us how lovely their whiteboards are and asking us to write on them.”
But their first had to be displayed at London King’s Cross. “I love King’s Cross station – you can see the sky through that big glass roof, which is a real treat. It’s totally uplifting and inspiring.”
Blue-sky thinking indeed – and where better, than on an LNER train…
ONE-LINER With LNER you can travel along the East Coast Main Line from London to Scotland
Tap to
read
the full
poem
Journey Into Your Imagination (LNER x All On The Board)
King’s Cross is the beginning and the end of many LNER journeys
And memories can be made at any destination.
When the Azuma train stops, people get on and off
And there are moments of inspiration to experience
All along the east coast
From London to Aberdeen and between every station.
It helps mental well-being seeing an open sky over rivers
And endless peaceful fields with cows, horses and sheep.
You can forget about stress travelling to Peterborough, Leeds,
York, Newcastle, Edinburgh and Inverness.
When there’s no need to worry about heavy traffic,
Air turbulence or any rough sea,
Your journey to wherever you’re going to
Can be however you want it to be.
On an Azuma train you can relax, stay online, take a walk, read,
play games, watch TV or movies, listen to music, get creative or sleep.
A person’s mind can wonderfully wander in a world of their own,
Watching the world go by from a smooth, moving comfort zone.
The windows of the Azuma train frame the scenery outside
Like pretty pictures constantly changing,
Displaying amazing views at each location.
An LNER journey on an Azuma train is fast and a great way to relax,
Travel to unravel and get back on track,
Take time to unwind, be kind to your mind, get positively creative
And let your journey take you on a journey into your imagination.
@allontheboard
PLATFORM FOR POETRY Ian and Jeremy with their poem – on a King’s Cross whiteboard
Photography by Nick Wilson
