The
Royal Free Hospital is located a short distance to the north of the station.
It is the only London Underground station with the letter ‘z’ in its name.
History
The station was opened on 22 June 1907 by the
Charing Cross, Euston & Hampstead Railway as an intermediate station on its line from
Charing Cross to
Golders Green. It is served by three lifts which descend 33.2 metres (109 ft) to the platforms. The platforms can also be reached by stairs; there are 219 steps according to the sign in the station.
The station was designed by
Leslie Green in "
Modern Style" and has his familiar facade of ox-blood
faience with five round arched windows.[8] It remained largely untouched until the late 1980s when the lifts were replaced and a new ticketing system installed.
It was previously the site of the Trewint Industrial Home for Girls.[9]
Deep-level air-raid shelter
Belsize Park is one of eight London Underground stations which have
deep-level air-raid shelters underneath them.[10] The shelter was constructed in
World War II to provide safe accommodation for service personnel. Entrances to the shelter are at the junction of Haverstock Hill and Downside Crescent and off Haverstock Hill.
The staircase at Belsize Park tube station is the scene of the eponymous homicide in
Mavis Doriel Hay's 1934
murder mystery novel Murder Underground.[11] The station also appears in the
Coldplay pop video for the song "Paradise".
Standard design was also employed when an outside door was part of the build for access to the upper floor(s). A triangular pediment above the doorway and fanlight were the norm.
The cartouche employed at Belsize Park as a decorative touch along the first floor level is an identical design to those at Hampstead.
The complete design in the repeated platform frieze. As part of the station upgrade the platform tiling was replaced although the tone of the new tiles is darker than the originals.