Londonist's Most Watched Videos From 2017

Ruth Hargreaves
By Ruth Hargreaves Last edited 75 months ago

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Londonist's Most Watched Videos From 2017

With a love for London, enthusiasm for exploration and a trusty camera always by our sides, we produced a lot of videos in 2017. But which were your favourites?

Come with us as we take a look through our most-watched videos of the year, covering both our YouTube and Facebook channels. Like what you see? Don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel and follow us on Facebook, so you'll never miss a thing.

10. YouTube: Inside the DLR Depot

Our beloved Docklands Light Railway turned 30 years old in September. We wished it a happy birthday in person, with a behind the scenes look at both of its London depots: Beckton and Poplar. We can't get enough of PPE and judging by the 70,000+ views this video's had, it seems you quite like it too.

10. Facebook: Bang Bang Oriental

Hundreds of thousands of you watched our Facebook introduction to Bang Bang Oriental — now the largest Asian food court in London. With over 27 different cuisines on offer ranging from Taiwanese to Vietnamese, Indian to Malaysian, Londoners have been enjoying this casual dining experience in their droves.

9. YouTube: Northern line extension to Battersea

There are two brand new tube stations coming to the Northern line, and we got invited down into the tunnels to see the work going on deep below ground level. From Tunnel Boring Machines to first-of-their-kind walkways, this video is a special peek into a side of the London Underground not often seen by the public.

9. Facebook: The Viktor Wynd Museum of Curiosities

Oddities and curiosities abound at this little-known London museum: The Viktor Wynd Museum of Curiosities. The front door gently suggests that "Those easily offended by death and decay should stay away". So obviously we had to take a look around at the mysteries within.

8. YouTube: Faster tube trains by 2022

Good news travels fast, and the promise of faster and more regular trains is definitely good news. Perhaps that's why nearly 80,000 of you were interested to hear about TfL's modernisation programme, and the upgrades to the system that will allow for the District, Circle, Hammersmith & City and Metropolitan line trains to be automatically controlled.  

8. Facebook: Christmas lights by bus

Christmas in London can be pretty magical, so it's of little surprise that this festive hack was watched by so many of you. Christmas displays, streets and windows can all be enjoyed from the (relative) warmth of the top deck of ... well ... you'll have to watch the video won't you?

7. YouTube: Longest escalators on the Underground

Nothing reels the views in like videos about escalators*, so when those escalators are the longest on the tube network then you know you're about to cause a few servers to go down. There are over 400 escalators on London's tube system — any ideas which ones claim the title of top 10 longest?

*Not strictly true

7. Facebook: A gin-lovers' afternoon tea bus tour

This peak-London video resurfaced a few times on our Facebook page throughout the year and was met by fierce approval on each and every occasion. Afternoon Tea? Tick. Gin? Tick. Vintage Routemaster buses? Big tick.

6. YouTube: Inside the Victoria line depot

Another month, another depot. This time we were treated to a behind-the-scenes look in the Victoria Line control room and a lovely chat with the Siemens team about how signalling upgrade works have resulted in the line running with an incredible 36 trains per hour. Oh, and on the way home we even managed a sneak peek at the new Victoria station South Ticket Hall, due to open early 2018.

6. Facebook: Do You Live In London?

Well, do you? As nearly a million of you found out on our Facebook page, the answer may not be as simple as you think.

5. YouTube: A Ratings Scale for Packed Tube Carriages

Surely, we thought, there must be some sort of 1-10 ratings scale for determining how busy your tube carriage is? Turns out there wasn't. So we did the decent thing and made one...

5. Facebook: Hello Kitty restaurant

It turns out you're big fans of this temporary Hello Kitty cafe which popped up in the capital earlier this year. Even Kitty herself seemed pretty excited to be on camera.

4. YouTube: What's it like driving a black cab?

One of our first videos of 2017 is also one of our most popular. This look behind the scenes of London's black cab industry features the renowned Knowledge Point (where cabbies memorise the roads of London), a look at the accessibility of black cabs, and even Londonist's very own Geoff Marshall taking to the wheel.

4. Facebook: Halloumi fries

So you love halloumi fries. We don't blame you. Collectively nearly 1.5 million of you have watched this video of Oli Baba's deep-fried cheesy goodness being whipped up at their Camden Market stand. If we suddenly experience a city-wide shortage of halloumi, we know who to hold responsible.

3. YouTube: Abandoned tube stations - part 2

London is full of hidden surprises. The second installation of this two-parter once again sees Geoff Marshall traversing London, tracking down old tube stations and pointing out the existing features you may never have noticed before. Emergency exits in Angel, buried footbridges in Shoreditch; it's all very exciting.

3. Facebook: Contactless vs Oyster

Geoff has an Oyster card. Matt has a contactless payment card. Both are acceptable payment methods for travel on the London transport network, but do they cost the same? The pair spent the day travelling into and around central London to determine, once and for all, which is cheaper.

2. YouTube: Where to travel on the tube for free

We heard a theory. A theory that there was a magical place on the London Underground where you could ride for free. For free! We went to investigate, and took nearly 200,000 of you along with us to see if the rumours were true.

2. Facebook: Primark Harry Potter

Primark on Oxford Street got a Harry Potter makeover earlier this year, and everyone lost their minds. The top comment on this Facebook video of ours is someone tagging a couple of friends with the remark "you two like this sort of crap". Well, actually, it turns out over 1.5 million of you like this sort of crap. Who knew?

And the most watched videos on Londonist in 2017 are...

1. YouTube: Abandoned tube stations- part 1

Geoff Marshall embarks on the first part of this series, taking us on a walking tour of London's 19 disused tube stations. These hidden locations are no longer on the Underground map but still very much findable. IF you know where to look, that is ...

1. Facebook: Police having fun at Notting Hill Carnival

Shimmying, twerking, hand-waving, slightly awkward side-stepping. It's all here on this compilation video which almost 2 million of you enjoyed over the summer, showing London's police officers getting stuck into the fun of Notting Hill Carnival. Opinions are strongly divided in the comments section (there's a surprise)... have a watch and see what you think.

Last Updated 20 December 2017