Central Line, Saturday 27th January 2018

Nothing brings Londoners briefly together like an impromptu tube quiz.

A very old woman with a deflated face worries aloud that she may have missed her stop to get to Waterloo.

The serious looking girl opposite, a few pages into a Game of Thrones book: She should have got Jubilee at Bond Street though...

I offer weakly: But she can get the northern down from Tottenham court rd?

Voice from the back: Not if she gets Bakerloo from Oxford Circus!

GoT girl: Yeah good shout.

Eastern European smily lady: Right I’ll show you the way, off we go.

She takes the old woman carefully by the arm and helps her step cautiously across the gap. Our eyes follow until she is sturdy on the platform and then drift back to our screens and books. And we are all strangers once more