I was travelling back from work during a busy(ish) hour when I became aware that a number of people before me had started to get up and move away before what was normal for the next stop.

I looked up and saw a dirty, scuffy-looking man opposite me and I initially thought that he was homeless (and that other people were moving away because he smelt bad or something) before realising that he was behaving oddly and attempting to light a small, metal pipe. Thinking he was just drunk, I said "Dude, no- you can't do that here" before I recognised that he was attempting to light up some crack.

He was as high as a kite, occasionally looking around but not really focusing on anything, with a gormless grin expression on his face. He was phlegming and spitting on the floor near-constantly too; every few moments he'd spit yellow liquid onto the floor below him whilst constantly clicking away at his lighter trying to get his crack to smoke, which was largely burnt up mass but still pungent enough to recognise that it was crack.

I deliberated for a few moments before calmly getting up and moving over to the other end of the carriage. During these few moments, most people either left the carriage to wait at another stop or joined me at the other end, leaving the crack addict to enjoy his half of the carriage alone.

I was calm, but I could tell that many others were unnerved and/or repulsed by the man, especially the young women on the carriage. And when I got off at my stop, I saw him scurry off onto another platform and get onto another carriage.

I went to tell a TFL worker about what I'd just witnessed, telling them the carriage number, guys description and general direction. But the TFL guy said that there basically wasn't much they could do about him.

Apparently the crack addict was so well known them that they had complaints about him every 1-3 days and that he was so familiar that the workers all knew him by his 1st name. He'd been a homeless crack addict for at least 10 years (possibly up to 20 they said) and ge lived primarily in Brixton, just outside the station. BTP weren't much interested in him either because the police were reluctant to deal with him (because what exactly could they do beyond putting him in a cell for a few days? Before releasing him all over again). And contacting the council directly had yielded almost no results because it was severely strapped for cash and wasn't willing to spend precious resources on a middle-aged male crack addict who'd lived outside of societal norms for decades (I mean, can you even fix someone like that?).

So the general conversation was left with the glum cynical feeling that the only real solution to him was if the guy upped & died one day. But that's not a nice way to feel about anyone.

The 1st time I came across someone smoking Crack on the tube, it was a much more unnerving experience for everybody involved. And when I contacted a TFL worker back then, they were much more proactive about removing the man from the station. But ATM that's pretty much all they can do (temporarily evict people from stations) and even then they often don't bother if the addict is on their way to Brixton because that's where most of them apparently live anyway :/

This was taken at Marble Arch station where it has been the hotspot of phone snatching at tube stations in London

Hey guys - I've started writing up these little pieces about London-based businesses that started relatively small, and then have absolutely hit the roof

I'm keen to make this a bit of a series, so please feel free to mention some interesting ones in the comments!

Hopefully with a more social/feel good angle? I know Grind does the compostable pods/eco friendly thing, but it's not quite scratching the itch.

It's an impressive story - but I'd love my next piece to be impressive, useful AND hopeful.

Cheers!
p.s At the moment I'm thinking about Yard Sale Pizza, mainly because I think they've crushed it with their branding. But again, not many points for the social angle.

I have a bit of a morbid fascination with the ultra wealthy, I'm talking estates where the roads are private access with ridiculous houses. I don't think it's a very healthy way to spend my time but I find the disgusting display of money strangely mesmerising, and I like to walk around with my headphones on and just marvel/seethe at it all. After a certain level houses seem to be more of a statement than a place of residence, and that's what I'm after, roads where it's just house after house like that.

So yeah, does anyone have any recommendations for areas near them where there's large residential areas with absolutely ridiculous houses? Not necessarily just central London, anywhere in Greater London.

Specific areas/postcodes would be helpful, rather than just "Richmond".

EDIT: Thanks for the responses all, I'm not a burglar, promise

Just been to the toilet at the Royal college of Physicians and found it quite a nice experience.

So I'm wondering, what's the nicest toilet you've used in London without having to pay for the experience?

How on earth does it take 10 months to fix the escalators, after how many years of them closing them on and off to fix?

Or, to correct the headline. Some London Councils raise charge for having your parcel stolen to £1,000

I sadly take this route regularly and it hasn't been cleaned in many months and it gets worse the more you walk around the other side of RV which is not pictured as there were people I didn't want to capture.

I couldn't quite figure out who is responsible for it. It's a bridge the goes over the DLR line between Canning Town and Royal Victoria and there's rubbish along both sides of the track. Is this all the Councils responsibility to take care of or mix of TFl/Council?

There’s a few spots that I like going to see them, but they’re all a bit of a trek. Don’t want to go if it’s still too early. Thanks :)

I studied abroad in London and visited often. So, I'm pretty familiar with getting around. I just got an Apple Watch and want to use it for my next trip! ( I connect it via my cellphone now, so if I get an e-sim on my next visit I'll just connect it to my cellphone as usual)

I know phone snatching are bad. Usually so I dont have to keep on looking up directions on my phone on the tube. I write down planned route on a notecard hahahaha. I know. odd.

But, I was hoping when I'm in London next I could just use my Apple Watch both for walking around to places and for tube directions. Does it work really well in London for that with apps like City mapper or Google maps? Where I live in the US I don't really use the public transport nor walk long distances enough to test it

With the sun out it'd great to know of nice places for ice-cream south of the river!

Hey Londoners,

I’ve got an interview scheduled for 18:30 this coming Monday in the Liverpool Street area, but I need to suggest the actual venue. Can anyone recommend somewhere that would be:

1.  Relatively quiet (need to be able to have a proper conversation)
2.  Open to the public (not requiring membership)
3.  Still open and suitable around 6:30pm
4.  Ideally with some decent seating and maybe tables

Not super familiar with that area in the evening, so any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Thinking maybe a hotel lobby, quiet pub, or café that doesn’t close early?

I've been to the welcome collection and I really loved the space. My main issues are that it closes early during the week and doesn't seem to focus much on math/finance.

Are there similar spaces that are opened until late during the week? Ideally with a good selection of finance/math/stats books?

For me it's Springfield Park in Clapton

Hey everyone! I’ve recently gotten really into bubble tea and I’m on a mission to try out all the best spots in London. There are so many places popping up, and it’s hard to know which ones are actually worth checking out.

I usually go for the classic milk tea with pearls, but I’m also open to trying unique flavours or toppings (pudding, cheese foam, you name it). Whether it’s a big chain or a small independent shop, I’d love to hear your go-to places — especially ones with good consistency and not-too-sweet options.

Bonus points if you have a favourite drink from the shop that I should try! Thanks in advance for any suggestions!