Great Western Coffee Shop

You’re in a huff as you hurry through a sea of commuters onto a packed Circle Line train, praying you won’t be late for work (again).

You look around for a seat and, in typical fashion, they’re all occupied – but not by people.

Rucksacks, handbags and ugly briefcases are dumped on empty seats, as their owners lounge on the seat next to them. And of course, there’s no thought to move their bag to floor so you can take its place.

This infuriating behaviour isn’t new, but it’s now got a name: ‘double bagging’.

There’s another subset of London Underground passengers who have been labelled the worst of them all: the ‘barebackers’.

Get your mind out of the gutter – it’s a perfectly innocent term coined by Curtis Morton, co-host of the Behind the Screens podcast, in a TikTok that’s racked up nearly 100,000 views.

Essentially, barebackers – also known as rawdoggers – are people who sit without any form of entertainment and people-watch, staring at other passengers to pass the time.

From The Metro (https://metro.co.uk/2025/04/28/double-bagging-rife-londons-tube-network-commuters-livid-22963740/)

Pat the seat next to you and grin gormlessy at the person looking to sit on it. They'll very likely move on, not wanting to sit next to the weirdo! :P