Admiring The Hitchcock Mosaics At Leytonstone Station

Alfred Hitchcock is one of Britain’s most famous film directors, often referred to as the ‘Master of Suspense’. Did you know though that he has his origins in Leytonstone in East London?

There are a few nods to the legendary director to look out for, including a series of brilliant mosaics inside Leytonstone Station. 

Alfred Hitchcock: Origins In Leytonstone

Alfred Hitchcock was born on 13th August 1899 at 517 High Road Leytonstone to William Edgar Hitchcock and Emma Jane, above his parents greengrocers shop. Leyton and Leytonstone were still part of Essex at that time, becoming part of London in 1965.

Alfred’s father was a strict disciplinarian. He apparently once sent little five year old Alfred to the local police station with a note saying that he had misbehaved. The Sergeant on duty locked Alfred in a cell for a few minutes on the instructions of his father. This then gave him a lifelong fear of enclosed spaces and strong interest in wrongful imprisonment and the justice system. 

Alfred then went to St. Ignatius College before attending the London County Council School of Marine Engineering and Navigation from 1913–14.

Becoming The Legendary Director

In 1916 he started drawing and design classes at the University of London. This was what gained him his route into the film world, because he was employed to design title cards for silent films.

He then worked his way up through various positions before directing his first film, the comedy Mrs Peabody in 1922. 

In 1939, Hitchcock relocated to Hollywood, where he produced his best known films, such as Rear Window (1954), Vertigo (1958), and Psycho (1960). He became known for innovative camera angles, dark humour, and a mastery of suspense.

Whilst being celebrated for his skills as a director, his legacy, as many will be aware, is scrutinised, with allegations of predatory, controlling behaviour and, at times, sadistic treatment of the female leads.

He was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1980 and died later that year on the 29th April. 

Leytonstone Station: A Vital War Purpose

Before we get into the mosaics, Leytonstone Station has an interesting history. It opened in 1856 as an Eastern Counties Railway stop. During World War Two, part of the tunnel system was used as a public air raid shelter. Remarkably, another 2.5 mile stretch of the tunnels between Leytonstone and Gants Hill was turned into a a secret underground aircraft factory. Following bomb damage to their Ilford factory, the Plessey defence electronics company moved production into the tube tunnels. Up to 4,000 workers, predominantly women, worked 24-hour shifts producing aircraft components, radio equipment, and parts for sites such as Bletchley Park. The facility even featured its own mini railway to shuttle materials.

In 1947, the station was incorporated into the London Underground when the Central line was extended. The station was also rebuilt at this time in a post-war Modernist style, by architect Thomas Bilbow.  There are a couple of old, surviving advertisement posters in the station to look out for.

The Hitchcock Mosaics 

In 1999, to mark the centenary of Hitchcock’s birth, the London Borough of Waltham Forest commissioned a series of mosaics. Some depict scenes from his most iconic films, including references to his famous cameos and others are nods to his own life. 

Unveiled in May 2001, were designed and crafted by the Greenwich Mural Workshop. The installation took seven months to put together, using over 80,000 tiles.

There are seventeen in total, below are a selection of some that stood out to me.

Thank you for reading, more below!