Paddington
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- For other places with the same name, see Paddington (disambiguation).
| Paddington | |
| <tr><td colspan="2">
</div></div> </div> </div> </td></tr> | |
| Location | |
|---|---|
| OS grid reference: | TQ267814 |
| Latitude: | 51.51725091692744° |
| Longitude: | -0.17303220316706436° |
| Administration | |
| London borough: | Westminster |
| County level: | Greater London |
| Region: | London |
| Constituent country: | England |
| Sovereign state: | United Kingdom |
| Other | |
| Ceremonial county: | Greater London |
| Historic county: | Middlesex |
| Services | |
| Police force: | Metropolitan Police |
| Fire brigade: | London Fire Brigade |
| Ambulance service: | London Ambulance |
| Post office and telephone | |
| Post town: | LONDON |
| Postal district: | W2 |
| Dialling code: | 020 |
| Politics | |
| UK Parliament: | Cities of London and Westminster |
| London Assembly: | West Central |
| European Parliament: | London |
| London | List of places in London | |
Paddington is in the City of Westminster, London, England, 2.2 miles (3.5 km) west-north-west of Charing Cross.
Contents |
[edit] Meaning of place-name
Paddington means 'estate associated with a man called Padda', from the Old English personal name Padda + ing- + tun, ing- meaning '(place) of' and tun (farm, estate). The name was recorded as Padington in 1056.
Pada is an Old English version of the first name Patrick.
[edit] Places of note
Important places in Paddington include Paddington station, St Mary's Hospital (and nurse-training centre) and Paddington Green police station (high-security police station). The IRA bombed the telephone box outside the police station one morning in 1991 as a demonstration to the British security services.
The Paddington arm of the Grand Union Canal to Birmingham terminates at Paddington Basin.
[edit] Famous people
Paddington has several famous sons, notably Alexander Fleming, the scientist who discovered penicillin (a plaque commemorating this is placed outside his laboratory at St Mary's Hospital on Praed Street); and Alan Turing, the mathematician (there is a plaque on the hotel where he was born, The Colonnade in Warrington Crescent). More recent natives of Paddington include the musicians Seal, Courtney Pine and Elvis Costello, the footballer Les Ferdinand the actresses Emma Thompson and Rhona Mitra.
An early nineteenth century political rhyme comparing the stature of two politicians goes "London is to Paddington as Pitt is to Addington".
[edit] Paddington station
Paddington has a main-line railway station, Paddington station, with commuter service to the west of London (e.g. Slough, Maidenhead, Reading, Swindon) and main-line service to Oxford, Bristol, Bath, Taunton, Exeter, Plymouth, Cornwall and South Wales (including Cardiff and Swansea). There is also the Heathrow Express service to Heathrow Airport.
In the station there is a statue of Paddington Bear, a character in children's fiction who, in the book, is discovered at this station and hence named after it.
[edit] See also
- Paddington Bridge
- Paddington Bear
- "Pretty Polly Perkins of Paddington Green"
- Newspad (local publication covering the area and its surrounds)
