station

BRUCE Springsteen’s classic Born in the USA is being censored for radio — with a lyric about “the yellow man” removed.

The Boss, now 76, is widely considered to be calling out racism in his 1984 hit, covering the struggles of war vets returning from Vietnam.

He belts out: “So they put a rifle in my hands, sent me off to a foreign land, to go and kill the yellow man, Born in the USA.”

However Absolute Radio will mute the song as he utters “yellow man”, considered an offensive slur for an Asian person.

The track, hailed for its scathing commentary on the treatment of Vietnam vets and working-class Americans, is ranked 275th in Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

The Born in the USA album sold over 30 million copies worldwide and was the world’s best-selling record in 1985.

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It was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2012 and includes other hits like Dancing in the Dark, Glory Days and I’m on Fire.

Bruce’s censorship comes after the Spice Girls’ 1997 track Spice Up Your Life — which includes the lyric “Yellow man in Timbuktu. Colour for both me and you” — was similarly altered last year on BBC Radio 2.

DJ Scott Mills played a version on his breakfast show which removed the word “yellow”.

Bauer Media, which owns Absolute Radio, declined to comment.

RAIL passengers can expect travel chaos as the UK’s busiest train station closes until the new year.

Commuters will have to take alternative routes as a number of services are impacted by the closure.

With less people commuting to and from work, the festive period has become a popular time for rail companies planning major engineering works.

However, closures at this time of year still cause a fair amount of bother for those that are still forced to rely on these services.

From those working through the festivities to people planning a visit to friends and family, there are still a lot of passengers hoping to take their train as normal.

However, anyone planning to travel through Liverpool Street Station between now and the new year will want to rethink their route.

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Planned works

Network Rail has revealed Liverpool Street will remain closed until Friday, January 2.

The closure will impact services like the Weaver line and Stansted Express, as well as routes operated by Greater Anglia and c2c.

Liverpool Street previously shut for eight days between Christmas and the New Year in 2024.

According to London transport expert IanVisits, the engineering works being carried out at the UK’s busiest train station will strengthen the Bishopsgate tunnel.

The station itself will see panelling replaced above the concourse over platforms 1-10.

And the drainage system at Liverpool Street will also be improved as part of the works.

Greater Anglia lines, including the Stansted Express as well as Great Eastern and West Anglia mainline services will be rerouted as a result of the closure.

From now until January 2, the routes will run from Stratford.

Meanwhile, c2c services will run from London Fenchurch Street via West Ham.

And Weaver line trains will run from London Fields to Chingford, Enfield Town, and Cheshunt.

London Underground impact

Underground services operating from Liverpool Street will also be affected by the closure.

The Elizabeth Line will have no service between Liverpool Street and Stratford from December 27 to January 1.

Meanwhile, the Central Line will still run between Liverpool Street and Stratford, but a ticket acceptance arrangement will be in place.

This means you can use your ticket on the Central Line to get between the two stations.

And other parts of the Tube network, including the Circle, Hammersmith & City, and Victoria lines, will operate normally with some closures.

Tube passengers are advised to check the TfL Journey Planner for specific details. 

A LONDON tube station has reopened after a huge £35million renovation.

Colindale tube station on the Northern Line reopened fully to the public this week with a grand new station entrance.

According to Ian Visits, it is London Underground’s first modern tube station built using a timber construction.

Replacing the former station building – which was much smaller – commuters will find the ticketing hall completely decked out with timber wood.

The wood is meant to reference the area’s aviation heritage as well, as the station sits where the London Aerodrome used to be and host air shows with early versions of planes which were made of wood.

The Aerodrome was then later turned into the RAF Hendon military base.

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The roof has also been designed so that it has a flat section and an arched section, so that the former collects rain and the latter lets rain water run off.

It has been designed this way to stop drains from overflowing.

Part of the roof is also a ‘green’ roof, which means it has plants and vegetation on it.

Inside the ticket hall is the old station clock as well, which has been cleaned up.

There is a new lift for commuters too, as well as large windows letting light flood in and the public to see the trains on the platforms.

Outside the station, pavements have been widened too.

During the construction work, the old platforms were destroyed but two ‘dinner plates’ at either end of the platforms were salvaged.

They were used as warning signals to train drivers during World War II to not stop too long at the station as it was a prime bombing location.

The ‘dinner plates’ were then donated to the local RAF museum.

The final bits of work on the station are currently being completed as passengers use the station once again, with hopes of everything being done by June 2026.

This includes demolishing the old station building, letting out a small retail space – most likely to a café and adding an accessible toilet.

The project on the station has taken place gradually over the past couple of years and has been carried out due to the rising population in the area.

The former station would have been at capacity by the end of 2026, but the new station means that the station will be large enough to accommodate for the new housing projects in the area.

London’s Deputy Mayor for Transport, Seb Dance, said: “The Mayor and I feel strongly that everyone should be able to enjoy everything our great capital has to offer, which means it’s vital we make our transport network as accessible as possible.

“I’m delighted that Colindale is now the 94th step-free Tube station and will benefit from a whole host of other improvements to not only improve accessibility but also support major housing developments in the local area, as well as boosting local businesses and inclusive economic growth.

“More than a third of Underground stations across the capital are step-free and we are determined to keep growing this number as we build a fairer, better London for everyone.”

In other rail news, the world’s most famous train is running services from a major UK city next year.

Plus, five abandoned UK railway stations set to reopen with new train routes – as part of £200million expansion.