The Tube map has been “re-imagined” to celebrate the arrival of Taylor Swift in London for a series of record-breaking concerts.
Friday’s Evening Standard’s newspaper, a collector’s edition, will contain a poster of the redrawn map, which replaces 11 lines with her 11 studio albums – though her four re-recorded “Taylor’s versions” are named in preference to the originals.
The map, based on the iconic original by Harry Beck, also includes 11 significant locations in the capital for Swift.
These are highlighted as giant gemstones to help her legion of fans explore the capital when visiting for her eight Eras Tour concerts at Wembley Stadium, the first of which takes place on Friday night. Hundreds of super fans camped overnight in a bid to to be the first in the stadium.Locations on the “Taylor tour” include Brixton, Camden market, Hampstead Heath and Highgate.
Appropriately, her album Red is shown in sequins as the Central line, which is normally illustrated as a red line, with each of its songs shown in turn instead of the stations.
1989, her pop masterpiece that arguably turned her into the world’s biggest pop star following its release in 2014, is shown in place of the Victoria line.
Her most recent album, The Tortured Poets Department, takes the place of the Northern line, while its predecessor, Midnights, replaces the Piccadilly line.
However, artistic licence is in use, as not all the stations are represented: for example, the Piccadilly line has 53 stations while the vinyl version of Midnights has 13 songs.
Her “lockdown albums”, Folklore and Evermore, are shown as the Elizabeth line and the Bakerloo line.
Her debut album, Taylor Swift, is shown in green, in place of the District line. Fearless (Taylor’s version) is shown in the yellow of the Circle line.
Speak Now (Taylor’s version) replaces the Metropolitan line. Reputation is shown in the place of the Jubilee line. Lover is shown in the pink of the Hammersmith and City line.
However, no attempt has been made to retain the original station names or to adapt them to link with her songs.
Almost 700,000 fans have tickets for the Wembley shows, which are estimated to deliver a £300m boost to the London economy.
The Taylor Swift version of the map will only be available as a “hard copy” in the Standard – Transport for London is not printing paper copies. However, some poster-size versions are expected to be on display at selected Tube stations.
In addition, giant murals celebrating Taylor Swift have been created at Wembley, including on “Swiftie steps” between the stadium and Wembley Arena.
Mayor Sadiq Khan, who has declared himself a “proud Swiftie” and is due to attend one of the concerts, said: “The Eras Tour has broken records and created huge excitement so I’m delighted that Taylor Swift has chosen to perform more nights in London than anywhere else in the world.
“Her eight performances will bring nearly 700,000 fans from across the country and beyond to Wembley Stadium, providing a huge boost to our hospitality industry and further proof that London is the greatest city in the world to watch live music.
“As Taylor prepares for Friday’s opening performance, we are proud to give her and her fans a big London welcome, with celebrations across the capital including a special Tube map, trail and murals in her honour.”
The Taylor trail (#LDNTaylorsVersion) will celebrate places across the capital that are referenced in her music, with venues displaying new vinyl stickers in their windows.
The trail will be available on the Visit London website and through QR codes at participating venues.
Her song London Boy includes the line “I enjoy walking Camden Market in the afternoon”, and makes references to the West End, Hackney, Camden Market, Shoreditch and nights out in Brixton.
Fans think Cruel Summer alludes to Hampstead pub the Garden Gate, and relates to the time she was dating Joe Alwyn.
She was also spotted at the Spaniards Inn, on the edge of Hampstead Heath, wearing a black wig in an effort to remain incognito, and at The Flask, the sprawling pub in the heart of Highgate village.
The London pub getting the most uplift from the Swift effect is the Black Dog in Vauxhall, due to a line in a song called The Black Dog on The Tortured Poets Department, though she is not thought to have visited the pub.
This week the Kentish Delight Kebab Shop took a £450 order for Swift and her crew. During her time in London during lockdown, she lived in Crouch End and Primrose Hill.
Swift plays Wembley for three consecutive nights until Sunday and then returns for five more dates in August, starting on August 15. The dates are her first London shows for six years.
Emma Strain, TfL’s customer director, said: “The London (Taylor’s version) Tube map brings two icons together, paying homage to Swift’s love of London and showcasing her extensive discography.”
In 2022, TfL marked International Women’s Day with a map that replaced the station names with those of trailblazing women, from Amy Winehouse to Virginia Woolf
Last year, the map was re-imagined for National Engineering Day, with stations named after Alexander Graham Bell and Alan Turing among others.
A Samsung advertising campaign earlier this year saw the Tube map redesigned in a circular format – earning TfL £830,000 in the process.
