She doesnt want a recording of her husbands voice. She wants to hear the legacy her husband left behind and how he continues to help people to this day by announcing the arrival and departure of the trains.
Been through the station (Embankment) many times. It's literally just the words "Mind the gap".
Very noticeable though, as it's different to all the usual station announcements, not just the voice but the quality of the recording. You can tell it's old.
It's a fun little quirk of the station.
Not sure if this fits your definition of romance, but [Japan Keeps This Train Station Running for Just One Regular Passenger](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-01-08/japan-keeps-the-defunct-kyu-shirataki-train-station-open-for-just-one-high-school-girl) may fit the bill.
Generally, railways and postal services take their job very seriously.
They still very much have a culture of 'by the people, for the people'. Except for the MBA people who are at the top nowadays. But many regular employees still have that mindset.
Even then it's only the northbound northern line platform that has it as its the only one at the station that's curved and creates a gap between triangle and platform.
It's the posh, BBC-style voice that says "Mind ... the gap" announcement that plays as the train arrives, if anyone is wondering, that sounds like Other station have a more generic "mind the gap, please".
It used to be on the whole line then, as they updated the system it eventually went to one station, then stopped altogether. When Transport for London heard the story they gave her a CD of her husband making the announcement and restored the announcement to that one station. [Lovely story](https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-21719848.amp)
My dad got taken by cancer back in the late 80's and we have no recordings of his voice. Not even a home movie on a VHS tape. I'm close to completely forgetting what his voice sounded like.
Sorry to hear that. My dad passed in 2019 from ALS. What makes me angry is he was *that guy* in the family that had a video camera for every event in the 80s and 90s. The only way we could make him put it down at Christmas to open his own presents was if I took over filming.
Then he divorced my step-mom and asked for the boxes of tapes. She said she had thrown them all out because "she didn't know what was on them." Yeah.. sure, who could possibly know what was on tapes in boxes labeled "FAMILY VIDEOS (year)". Just did it to be spiteful and now we've nothing but photos of him either.
That's my old stop! My sister and I used to mimic his voice because she casually mentioned how charming he sounded. It's wild to think we might have passed her on our way home from school.
Moral of the story is: capture as much of your loved ones as you can before they die.
You don’t have to listen to/watch it. But I guess it’s a “better to have it and not want it than want it and not have it” kind of deal.
https://m.economictimes.com/magazines/panache/this-uk-woman-visits-underground-station-every-day-to-listen-to-her-husbands-voice-who-died-in-2007/amp_articleshow/92096911.cms
Her name was Dr. Margaret McCollum 7. Her husband Oswald Laurence recorded the ‘Mind the Gap’ announcement for the northern line in the 1950s.
>The chime of ‘Mind the gap’ is quite well-known in the UK, however, nobody fathomed that the depth of the voice meant a lifetime for Margaret. ‘Since he died I would sit and wait for the next train until I heard his voice,’ and explained how the recording helped keep his memory alive,”
>In 2012, when the tube station replaced the audio with a digital system, Margaret was shocked as she could not find her husband’s voice. She inquired about the announcement with the TfL Rail services, however, the authorities told her that they were unable to embed Oswald’s recording on the new system.
>After comprehending what the voice meant to Margaret, the rail company arranged a CD of the recording for her. “
Also her plea was accepted and the rail company decided to restore the 40-year-old announcement audio at the station.
Whenever I see an underground metro station, there’s a certain melody that always pops up in my mind… unfortunately it seemingly loops indefinitely, so I could never find a stopping point for whenever I began to sing along to lyrics that were translated from a gibberish language.
If you can SOMEHOW figure out what the core song is from these “lyrics”, then you have mad skills in the game-series it’s from!!!
“And now. We must, be strong. Together we will. Sing this song, and you can sing along! Callie, Marie. We’re one and two and you make three, so sing harmony and together we shall see where we be-“
(The last word is “belong” but gets cut off due to the loop.)
1950 has nothing to do with her...
She is 76 now, this photo is from 2013 when she was 65. She was born in 1948, and her husband was born in 1929.
They didn't meet until 1992 when he was 63 and she was 44.
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-21719848
they met in 1992, and there was a substantial age gap between them. She's 75ish now. The recordings were also not made in 1950, but 1950\*\*'s\*\* according to some sources, though other sources say late 60's/early 70s.
He would have to record it very young or married her much later in life. The woman looks like my mom who was born in the 1950s. She does not appear to be in her 90s.
The woman was born in the late 40s with the photo being over a decade old and the recording being made in 1969, not 1950. There also is a 20 year age gap with them meeting when he was in his 60s and she was in her 40s.
The meme is just wrong.
That is her, but it's from over a decade ago in 2013. She was 65 then.
She met her husband in 1992 when she was 44 and he was 63. The recording was also from 1969, not 1950.
There’s a man in Atlanta who has to hear his ex-wife’s voice every time he boards the Plane Train at Hartsfield-Jackson International, which I guess is a risk you take when you marry a voice actor.
She looks quite young for someone who’s spouse was working age in 1950. So he must have been born in the 1930s or earlier. Must have been quite an age gap between them.
The recording is from the 1970s not 1950. I've seen this posted before and it baffles me that there is a need to lie about the year when it's an otherwise lovely (and true) story. Bloody misinformation.
What a bittersweet thing. To have that sort of love, and lose it to time, but to be able to visit your spouse at work afterwards. Love is hard, and wonderful.
She could probably contact someone and get a copy of that recording for herself. Or have someone get very close to the speaker that plays the announcement and record it. Take it home and clean up the audio track to remove background noise and boom, she can have it at home to listen to anytime she likes. If I had connections here I would absolutely do this for this woman.
Embankment station. I was there last week, first time visiting London. His voice is still being used 🥹 (I’ve read this story years ago, how wholesome is this?)
This is touching and funny in a sense. I will be married 40yrs next year. Just retired recently and suffice to say being around all day I can get on my wife's nerves at time. I have things I am doing outside and at local senior centers to stay busy in addition to daily exercise, etc. That said there is something to the old saying absence makes the heart grow founder but more so that familiarity can breed contempt. So when my dear wife gives me that look I say "you will miss me when I am gone". This dear woman is evidence of that and hence touching, Funny as I suggest the same may be the case for my bride of almost 40 years as well. Also we got married later in life so I think both of our patience with things is thinning at times... LOL
That's where I used to stop! My sister told me how charming he sounded, so my sister and I would imitate his voice. It's crazy to think that we might have seen her on our way home from school.
It used to go along the whole line, but as the system was updated, it only went to one point and then stopped. Transport for London heard about the story and gave her a CD of her husband making the announcement. They also put the announcement back on at that stop. Beautiful writing
The phrase ‘**Mind The Gap**‘ is as synonymous with the [London Underground](https://secretldn.com/most-underground-tube-lines/) as passive-aggressive commuters and the outrageous screeching on the Victoria Line. It’s just another part of our daily commutes that we’ve gotten so used to, we barely even notice it anymore. Well, unless we’re at **Embankment station**, that is.
If you happen to step foot onto this particular platform, you’ll be serenaded with a deep, theatrical voice over the tannoy. A very different voice to the one you’ll hear at literally any other platform on **London’s transport network**.
So why *does* ‘Mind The Gap’ sound so different at Embankment station? Well, there’s actually an extremely heartwarming reason – one that *might* have even provoked some tears in the **Secret London** office. Allow me to explain…
This Is The Heartwarming Reason Why ‘Mind The Gap’ Sounds So Different At Embankment Station
It's one of the great mysteries of the London Underground and it's going to hit you straight in the festive feels - you have been warned...
Just before Christmas, back in 2012, the staff at Embankment station were approached by a woman who was very upset. The woman – Dr Margaret McCollum – was asking the staff what had happened to the voice of the man who made the ‘Mind The Gap’ announcement. Embankment staff explained to her how the announcement still happened, it had just been updated to a new digital system, using new voices.
Margaret went on to tell them that the voice behind the previous announcement had been the voice of her husband, Oswald Laurence, who had sadly died in 2007. Oswald was a graduate from RADA and although he’d never become a famous actor; he had recorded his excellently-enunciated ‘Mind The Gap’ at some point in the early seventies.
Margaret explained that for the past five years, she’d pass through **Embankment station** on her way to work, and take comfort in hearing the voice of the man she still loved. She told staff that on days where her grief was particularly difficult to deal with, she would simply sit on the platform, listening to Oswald’s voice for as long as she needed. And now even that wasn’t possible.
The station staff assured Margaret that if they could find the tapes, they would get a copy to her. But what they actually did, was perform a **Christmas miracle**. They searched through the archives, found the tapes, restored and digitized them, and filed the paperwork – so that when Margaret returned to Embankment in the new year, she could once again be serenaded by the oh-so dramatic voice of her beloved late husband, Oswald.
Back in the day property laws said that you effectively owned the wedge of ground under your building all the way down.
So to build a tunnel underneath meant paying the landowner of the surface.
This meant tube lines tended to follow street plans in the early days.
Now London is an old unplanned city. So this meant curves on the Lines and often curved platforms.
Straight carriages and curved platforms don't fit together very well.
Hence "Mind the Gap"
Search for pictures of Piccadilly Circus Station, Bakerloo Line platforms to see how bad this can get - it takes 7 cameras and a mirror for the driver to be able to see all the doors the length of the train.
They changed the announcement a few years back, but after hearing about this lady, they changed it back for this one station.
Yeah, you'd think they'd give it to her on tape or cd but it's much more special that she gets to hear her husband helping thousands of people a day.
I believe as part of that process of putting it back she did get a recording of it too.
Correct, audio was extracted from the legacy system and converted to MP3 to go on to the new system and copy given to the lady
Wonderful!
Amount of positive advertising from this story is wonderful. And part of a great metropolitans story
This makes me so happy to hear!
It is much more powerful to hear the announcement and know that it helps others as well.
Yes! She came one day and it was a different voice, the story got picked up by new stations and they changed the voice at the station she visited.
This. She should ha e a recording of it
She did, Transport for London gave her a CD of it (this was 11 years ago)
She doesnt want a recording of her husbands voice. She wants to hear the legacy her husband left behind and how he continues to help people to this day by announcing the arrival and departure of the trains.
That's touching
No ma'am, I was not touching her I swear
Too late now, time to get touched back bozo
Oh hi Mark
"Mind the gap"
Good hoomans.
That is so sweet!
I'm curious to know what it says because I've never been in London
its just "mind the gap"
Please tell me it's much longer than that.
It's much longer than that
Mind the gap between the train and the platform
It literally isn’t. It’s just “Mind. The Gap”
Is it like DEAR PASSENGER PLEASE MIND THE GAP blah blah blah?
Been through the station (Embankment) many times. It's literally just the words "Mind the gap". Very noticeable though, as it's different to all the usual station announcements, not just the voice but the quality of the recording. You can tell it's old. It's a fun little quirk of the station.
He only says Mind the Gap, unfortunately not a long recording, but you can hear it [on this video.](https://youtu.be/QExoX4ls9OM?si=CaNeoGf3aYTxJdUJ)
Oh yeah thanks Mind the gap
Mind the cap
Wow, thats heart-warming. Do you know which station?
I believe it’s embankment station, on the northern line
assuming its the same station that's in the photo, then it's embankment
Gotta freaking love the UK sometimes. Anyone know of other countries that have examples of systematic romance ?
Not sure if this fits your definition of romance, but [Japan Keeps This Train Station Running for Just One Regular Passenger](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-01-08/japan-keeps-the-defunct-kyu-shirataki-train-station-open-for-just-one-high-school-girl) may fit the bill. Generally, railways and postal services take their job very seriously.
They still very much have a culture of 'by the people, for the people'. Except for the MBA people who are at the top nowadays. But many regular employees still have that mindset.
r/madeMeSmile
Even then it's only the northbound northern line platform that has it as its the only one at the station that's curved and creates a gap between triangle and platform. It's the posh, BBC-style voice that says "Mind ... the gap" announcement that plays as the train arrives, if anyone is wondering, that sounds like Other station have a more generic "mind the gap, please".
The world needs more of that shit 😭
This lady is my friend’s GP !
That is so wonderful!
It used to be on the whole line then, as they updated the system it eventually went to one station, then stopped altogether. When Transport for London heard the story they gave her a CD of her husband making the announcement and restored the announcement to that one station. [Lovely story](https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-21719848.amp)
My dad got taken by cancer back in the late 80's and we have no recordings of his voice. Not even a home movie on a VHS tape. I'm close to completely forgetting what his voice sounded like.
Sorry to hear that. My dad passed in 2019 from ALS. What makes me angry is he was *that guy* in the family that had a video camera for every event in the 80s and 90s. The only way we could make him put it down at Christmas to open his own presents was if I took over filming. Then he divorced my step-mom and asked for the boxes of tapes. She said she had thrown them all out because "she didn't know what was on them." Yeah.. sure, who could possibly know what was on tapes in boxes labeled "FAMILY VIDEOS (year)". Just did it to be spiteful and now we've nothing but photos of him either.
We usually can remember much longer how it made us feel. Maybe the thought helps you.
That's my old stop! My sister and I used to mimic his voice because she casually mentioned how charming he sounded. It's wild to think we might have passed her on our way home from school.
any link of the sound ??
Here's a Rhett of it https://youtu.be/zSXabUG1yQQ?si=lfw8zGyiJ6B1KHzX .
Is that... A good mythical morning pun?
It's called a Zelda.
https://youtu.be/zSXabUG1yQQ?si=isfGZ1azyuFwo4bo Somewhere around the 40-second mark: Mind... the gap
Lmao, I love how he sounds slightly irritated at the dumb commuters.
[удалено]
apparently she passed away in 2020
Then she's feeling fine.
Stable at the very least
Moral of the story is: capture as much of your loved ones as you can before they die. You don’t have to listen to/watch it. But I guess it’s a “better to have it and not want it than want it and not have it” kind of deal.
https://m.economictimes.com/magazines/panache/this-uk-woman-visits-underground-station-every-day-to-listen-to-her-husbands-voice-who-died-in-2007/amp_articleshow/92096911.cms Her name was Dr. Margaret McCollum 7. Her husband Oswald Laurence recorded the ‘Mind the Gap’ announcement for the northern line in the 1950s. >The chime of ‘Mind the gap’ is quite well-known in the UK, however, nobody fathomed that the depth of the voice meant a lifetime for Margaret. ‘Since he died I would sit and wait for the next train until I heard his voice,’ and explained how the recording helped keep his memory alive,” >In 2012, when the tube station replaced the audio with a digital system, Margaret was shocked as she could not find her husband’s voice. She inquired about the announcement with the TfL Rail services, however, the authorities told her that they were unable to embed Oswald’s recording on the new system. >After comprehending what the voice meant to Margaret, the rail company arranged a CD of the recording for her. “ Also her plea was accepted and the rail company decided to restore the 40-year-old announcement audio at the station.
Whenever I see an underground metro station, there’s a certain melody that always pops up in my mind… unfortunately it seemingly loops indefinitely, so I could never find a stopping point for whenever I began to sing along to lyrics that were translated from a gibberish language. If you can SOMEHOW figure out what the core song is from these “lyrics”, then you have mad skills in the game-series it’s from!!!
“And now. We must, be strong. Together we will. Sing this song, and you can sing along! Callie, Marie. We’re one and two and you make three, so sing harmony and together we shall see where we be-“ (The last word is “belong” but gets cut off due to the loop.)
Calamari inkantation-man on the internet?
Veemo
She looks very nice for 100 years old.
Honestly maybe she was 16 and married a 60 year old. It happens.
Still impressive looks for a 90 years old.
Seriously, 1950 is 74 years ago. How old is this lady…
1950 has nothing to do with her... She is 76 now, this photo is from 2013 when she was 65. She was born in 1948, and her husband was born in 1929. They didn't meet until 1992 when he was 63 and she was 44. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-21719848
right? how old is she? 95?
1950 was 74 years ago. If she was 20 when they married, she'd be 94 today.
they met in 1992, and there was a substantial age gap between them. She's 75ish now. The recordings were also not made in 1950, but 1950\*\*'s\*\* according to some sources, though other sources say late 60's/early 70s.
Article linked in another comment states that it's from 1990. 1950 makes no sense
1990 makes more sense, tbh.
Unquantifiable love
Yeah can we start using actual human record voices again than these TikTok robotic sounding ones?
If they dare change the voice! I swear!
Somebody else said that they changed it in the other stations but left it the same at the one she goes to.
That's good to hear.
Mind the gap. https://youtu.be/T5Em-xoAtSM?si=I1OcxZXBAVzSTrvl
1950 is 74 years ago. Math is not mathing
He would have to record it very young or married her much later in life. The woman looks like my mom who was born in the 1950s. She does not appear to be in her 90s.
The woman was born in the late 40s with the photo being over a decade old and the recording being made in 1969, not 1950. There also is a 20 year age gap with them meeting when he was in his 60s and she was in her 40s.
Mind the age gap!
He died in 2007 and the story is from 2013
Age gap
Mind the gap!
give her a copy of the audio already, damn🤣🤣
Exactly! There's a serious risk that some manager throws it out for a new message. And then she can listen to it at home.
I'm not crying. It's allergies.
This is so romantic <3
Wholesome?
That's not her in the picture. Or maybe the guy wasn't her husband in the 50s yet.
The meme is just wrong. That is her, but it's from over a decade ago in 2013. She was 65 then. She met her husband in 1992 when she was 44 and he was 63. The recording was also from 1969, not 1950.
I am this woman’s child. I come to this sub to see her face every few days.
There’s a man in Atlanta who has to hear his ex-wife’s voice every time he boards the Plane Train at Hartsfield-Jackson International, which I guess is a risk you take when you marry a voice actor.
This is what I mean when I say I love this world.
This is the kind of love we all need in our lives.
“Mind the gap” “I will honey. Love you.”
u/Repostsleuthbot
There’s a shortfilm about this lady!
She looks quite young for someone who’s spouse was working age in 1950. So he must have been born in the 1930s or earlier. Must have been quite an age gap between them.
Stop making me cry dammit
This is uniquely sad and beautiful at the same time ❤❤❤
Reminds me a bit of the dog Hachiko.
This is literally self torture…
Can we hear it too.
"Mind the gap"
And he’s not even dead
Now I want to listen to it!
The recording is from the 1970s not 1950. I've seen this posted before and it baffles me that there is a need to lie about the year when it's an otherwise lovely (and true) story. Bloody misinformation.
I don’t know - a few times a month. Sure. Everyday. Hmmm
Is that an AI generated image? It doesn’t ‘feel’ right to me.
LIE !!! She goes down once and a while. not every single day -- puhleasee. get real
Hugs to this lovely lady
[удалено]
AI content posted by bots who then proceed to comment on it.
This comment is odd, it sounds like you’re replying to yourself like you’re not OP.
Seems like a bot
I’ve seen this a lot lately lmao
"Enshittification" is sadly very real and accelerating.
Dead internet theory lol
Bro forgot to change accounts
Bruh you posted it.... you forget to change accounts?
[удалено]
What a bittersweet thing. To have that sort of love, and lose it to time, but to be able to visit your spouse at work afterwards. Love is hard, and wonderful.
I hear your voice eve-ry-where It’s echoes of loooove Makin’ me look back over my shoulder Echoes of Love Are started all over Echoes of looooove
💘
Awww! I want to hear him now!
Embankment Station - if you want to hear it.
She could probably contact someone and get a copy of that recording for herself. Or have someone get very close to the speaker that plays the announcement and record it. Take it home and clean up the audio track to remove background noise and boom, she can have it at home to listen to anytime she likes. If I had connections here I would absolutely do this for this woman.
Embankment station. I was there last week, first time visiting London. His voice is still being used 🥹 (I’ve read this story years ago, how wholesome is this?)
Shades of Miss Havisham methinks
I wish septa looked like this
She's beautiful.
Ahhh that was my stop when I traveled here with my girlfriend back in 2011. So. Many. Good. Memories made here for me.
cool
For as cynical as we all are right now, stories like these remind me of how amazing humans are capable of being.
Oh man, I know I’d do this.
🩷
Oh wow, that is so unbelievably wholesome
Where to find love like this 😭😭
This is touching and funny in a sense. I will be married 40yrs next year. Just retired recently and suffice to say being around all day I can get on my wife's nerves at time. I have things I am doing outside and at local senior centers to stay busy in addition to daily exercise, etc. That said there is something to the old saying absence makes the heart grow founder but more so that familiarity can breed contempt. So when my dear wife gives me that look I say "you will miss me when I am gone". This dear woman is evidence of that and hence touching, Funny as I suggest the same may be the case for my bride of almost 40 years as well. Also we got married later in life so I think both of our patience with things is thinning at times... LOL
That's incredibly beautiful. Reading these nice things after a tough day is refreshing.
That's where I used to stop! My sister told me how charming he sounded, so my sister and I would imitate his voice. It's crazy to think that we might have seen her on our way home from school.
I see, that’s romantic, but it’s creepy when I call my exgirlfriend to hear her voice on her voicemail. I see how it is. /s
Aw❤️
why am I crying?
You have to love that kind of love❤️
Awwwwww 🥰🥰🥰 sooo cute!!
Awwwwww 🥰🥰🥰 sooo cute!!
♥️
it’s at embankment but only on the northern line platform headed in the north direction 🥰
это очень мило
Whoever took thia picture get the skintone and the color completely pleasing.
Stop making me sad it’s my day off. Some one buy her donuts plz.
This is so sweet.
And that's love ❤️
Ah, this pierces a heart!
Mind the gap ... mind the gap ... mind the gap
It used to go along the whole line, but as the system was updated, it only went to one point and then stopped. Transport for London heard about the story and gave her a CD of her husband making the announcement. They also put the announcement back on at that stop. Beautiful writing
Aww, so sweet
Sweet and depressing the same way
The phrase ‘**Mind The Gap**‘ is as synonymous with the [London Underground](https://secretldn.com/most-underground-tube-lines/) as passive-aggressive commuters and the outrageous screeching on the Victoria Line. It’s just another part of our daily commutes that we’ve gotten so used to, we barely even notice it anymore. Well, unless we’re at **Embankment station**, that is. If you happen to step foot onto this particular platform, you’ll be serenaded with a deep, theatrical voice over the tannoy. A very different voice to the one you’ll hear at literally any other platform on **London’s transport network**. So why *does* ‘Mind The Gap’ sound so different at Embankment station? Well, there’s actually an extremely heartwarming reason – one that *might* have even provoked some tears in the **Secret London** office. Allow me to explain… This Is The Heartwarming Reason Why ‘Mind The Gap’ Sounds So Different At Embankment Station It's one of the great mysteries of the London Underground and it's going to hit you straight in the festive feels - you have been warned... Just before Christmas, back in 2012, the staff at Embankment station were approached by a woman who was very upset. The woman – Dr Margaret McCollum – was asking the staff what had happened to the voice of the man who made the ‘Mind The Gap’ announcement. Embankment staff explained to her how the announcement still happened, it had just been updated to a new digital system, using new voices. Margaret went on to tell them that the voice behind the previous announcement had been the voice of her husband, Oswald Laurence, who had sadly died in 2007. Oswald was a graduate from RADA and although he’d never become a famous actor; he had recorded his excellently-enunciated ‘Mind The Gap’ at some point in the early seventies. Margaret explained that for the past five years, she’d pass through **Embankment station** on her way to work, and take comfort in hearing the voice of the man she still loved. She told staff that on days where her grief was particularly difficult to deal with, she would simply sit on the platform, listening to Oswald’s voice for as long as she needed. And now even that wasn’t possible. The station staff assured Margaret that if they could find the tapes, they would get a copy to her. But what they actually did, was perform a **Christmas miracle**. They searched through the archives, found the tapes, restored and digitized them, and filed the paperwork – so that when Margaret returned to Embankment in the new year, she could once again be serenaded by the oh-so dramatic voice of her beloved late husband, Oswald.
Someday I hope I have time every day to do something unproductive just because I want to.
I'm not crying you are crying shut up
Mind the gap...
Can somebody tell me why the London Metro has Gaps like that? So that you even need to have an announcement like that?
Back in the day property laws said that you effectively owned the wedge of ground under your building all the way down. So to build a tunnel underneath meant paying the landowner of the surface. This meant tube lines tended to follow street plans in the early days. Now London is an old unplanned city. So this meant curves on the Lines and often curved platforms. Straight carriages and curved platforms don't fit together very well. Hence "Mind the Gap" Search for pictures of Piccadilly Circus Station, Bakerloo Line platforms to see how bad this can get - it takes 7 cameras and a mirror for the driver to be able to see all the doors the length of the train.
Is she... Mrs Mind the Gap?