Although John Dobson is credited with the station which won the design at the Paris Exhibition, it was in fact Thomas Prosser who finished it off after Dobson had a stroke. The station roof over the platforms has the world's first curved girders made by Hawkes and Crayshay of Gateshead. Queen Victoria sayed in the hotel and was sent the bill. Everytime she passed through on her way to Scotland, she pulled the blinds down! Another building with fine history!..