Great Western Coffee Shop

Apologies if this has already been posted somewhere and I missed it but I have just seen this on the BBC web site.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-34333684 (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-34333684)

As a slight (well massive) aside I caught "Homes under the Hammer" on the BBC (Wednesday 23rd September I think) and it featured Melksham -  I've seen it mentioned on here a few times and now I know what it looks like. 

There was also a repeated edition of Flog it! from the town the other day. All we need now is Michael Portillo to stop off on one of his railway journeys!

I think Temple Meads has an industrial beauty aspect about it.

The remaining original parts, designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel and Matthew Digby Wyatt - yes.  :-X

I would like to nominate the station near where I used to live - Banbury - as one of the ugliest in the area...I can't remember when it was re-built but I'm guessing it's a product of the late 60s/early 70s...yuch!

Can't disagree...one of my local stations.

If I was to nominate my favourite station (through rose coloured glasses) it would be Adderbury (which was my nearest station) but sadly it is - along with the line that ran through it - no more :(

Banbury station (as is) is a product of the 1950s (rebuilt 1956-1958).  Personally I think its architecture is somewhat better than those built in the 'modernisation' period of the mid-1960s.  Must be getting old ::)

But then, when I first visited Birmingham New Street in 1968 I thought it a wonder of the modern age, so one has to be subjective when judging beauty........ :P

If we are nominating "Beautiful stations" I must put forward these pictures (one (https://www.flickr.com/photos/pedz/3755699646/in/faves-76103602@N03/), two (https://www.flickr.com/photos/pedz/2267327015/in/album-72157622366301916/) and three (https://www.flickr.com/photos/pedz/2409395097/in/album-72157622366301916/). Not my pictures (I can't find any of mine that are as good as these) and I probably should condem the photographer for the apparent trespassing in the 3rd pic. Unfortunately, the station in question is no longer beautiful, having lost all its good looks when it was flattened and rebuilt in order to restore services.

Another station, which looks great at the moment but sadly may not in future is Cardiff Central. Both this view (https://www.flickr.com/photos/31074376@N06/9969972996/) and this one (http://cdn1.vtourist.com/19/6448393-Cardiff_Central_Station_Cardiff.jpg?version=2) (neither taken by me, I have shots of the latter but haven't uploaded them to the internet yet) appear to be seriously under threat.

When I read you post (and before I saw the pictures) I wondered if you were referring to Newport (Gwent) when you were talking about "no longer beautiful"..I think I prefer the old one. I hope they don't do the same to Cardiff Cenral :(

Newport wasn't "flattened and rebuilt"; parts (such as the platform canopies) are still there, but I agree that the new footbridge is not very nice. There are various proposals for Cardiff Central, but I'd say they are worse than what has happened to Newport*. One version of the Cardiff plans shows all the platform canopies (and probably the platform buildings too) gone and replaced by a 'transfer deck' like the new Reading station. See this topic (http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=15507.15) for more on Cardiff station (any ideas for how to stop them ruining the place would be welcomed by me).

* Going from what I've seen of Newport (from on the train), I can't remember what it's like outside, only got off there once or maybe twice.

Newport used to be my local station when I lived there but I haven't used the station for at least a decade (apart from passing through) so I don't know what they have done to the original building.

I use Reading station frequently and like the new station - in my opinion it is a major improvement in terms of facilities and capacity.

Have just posted the first review of this on Amazon. I can heartily recommend it just for the photography alone !