'I'm Britain's oldest railway worker - I still wake up at 4am every day'

Meet the man believed to be Britain's oldest rail worker - who has been serving passengers for over 60 years.

Thameslink employee Siggy Cragwell, 85, from Hampstead, London, first started work in 1962 and still has no plans to retire.

He briefly tried to give things up at 65 but returned after just four weeks - as he missed his job too much.

The Elstree & Borehamwood station assistant initially came to the UK from Barbados as part of the Windrush movement - and began work the day after his ship docked in Southampton.

Six decades on, he still gets up at 4am every morning for the 6-11am shift, and then spends his afternoons playing cricket.

Over his career, Siggy has worked in Paddington, Marylebone, Cricklewood, St Albans, Bedford, and Luton, and has become so popular with passengers that some even take him on holiday.

He said: "I remember that I came to the UK on March 7 and started working on March 8.

"I remember it was a bit strange as it was cold here - and we didn't have trains in Barbados so I'd only seen them in films.

"Initially, I thought I'd go back to Barbados after a year. But my brothers were also here and they said I couldn't leave.

"So I stayed and then I never left because I loved my job."

Siggy, who is the youngest of 11 siblings, says the reason he loves his career so much is because he enjoys spending time with people.

"I enjoy meeting people and talking to people," he said. "I'm learning from people daily.

"I'm also the kind of person that finds that sitting at home and doing nothing isn't good for me.

"I tried to retire at 65 - they had a party for me and everything. But I came back after four weeks because I missed it."

Over the years, Siggy has seen trains change from steam to diesel to electric - and watched children from various families grow up. He said: "There's been a lot of change in the industry.

"But I've also seen changes with passengers.

"I've met parents and then watched their kids get older and start commuting themselves.

"And I've got to know certain people.

"There's one couple I became friendly with who actually took me on holiday to Portugal.

"That was nice. The gentleman has sadly since died, but I am still in contact with his wife."

Last year, Siggy was awarded a British Empire Medal (BEM) for his services to the railway, which he said was "really surprising" but "fantastic to receive".

He was also honoured at the National Rail Awards - known as the 'Railway Oscars' - following a vote by his community.

In his spare time, Siggy enjoys playing cricket and still takes wickets from players in their 20s.

He used to play for the British Railways team and once played for the England over-70s.

Discussing Siggy, Roger Perkins, Senior Media Relations Manager at Govia Thameslink, said: "Siggy is a model employee.

"He is brilliant at customer service and absolutely adored by all passengers. He's just super."

Siggy is believed to be Britain's oldest railway worker, after Don Buckley retired in 2021 aged 82.