Hannah Dadds ( Head, 16 October 1941 – 5 December 2011) was a British train driver known for being the first female train driver on the

London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or by its nickname the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent ceremonial counties of England, counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and He ...

Early life

Hannah Dadds (née Head) was from the

Forest Gate Forest Gate is a district in the London Borough of Newham, East London, England. It is located northeast of Charing Cross. The area's name relates to its position adjacent to Wanstead Flats, the southernmost part of Epping Forest. The town ...

area of Newham. Her mother was a home help and her father worked in the furniture trade. After leaving school at 15, she worked as a shop assistant at the Co-op, and later in the

Bryant and May Bryant & May was a British company created in the mid-19th century specifically to make matches. Their original Bryant & May Factory was located in Bow, London. They later opened other match factories in the United Kingdom and Australia, such ...

match factory and the Kensitas cigarette factory.

London Underground career

In 1969, Dadds joined the

, working as a 'railwoman' at Upton Park Underground station. She then worked as a ticket collector and in 1976 she became a

train guard A conductor (North American English) or guard (Commonwealth English) is a train crew member responsible for operational and safety duties that do not involve actual operation of the train/locomotive. The ''conductor'' title is most common in Nor ...

. Train guards were also emergency drivers in case something happened to the driver or if there was an accident. While male guards could train further in order to become a driver, female guards could not. The

Sex Discrimination Act 1975 The Sex Discrimination Act 1975 (c. 65) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which protected men and women from discrimination on the grounds of sex or marital status. The Act concerned employment, training, education, harassment, ...

removed this barrier, and many women applied to become Tube train drivers. Dadds was one of the first to qualify for the program. In 1978, Dadds completed a seven-week training course to qualify as a train driver, and became a driver on the District line. In doing so, she became the first female train driver on the

. This was big news and newspapers and radio stations wanted to interview her after news of her appointment was leaked from head office. Instead of completing her training in the usual way, she was asked to stay off work for a few days to allow staff at

55 Broadway 55 Broadway is a Grade I listed building close to St James's Park in London. Upon completion, it was the tallest office block in the city. In 1931 the building earned architect Charles Holden the RIBA London Architecture Medal. In 2020, it was ...

( London Transport's head office) time to organise a press conference. It has been suggested that Dadds could have been selected to drive the first Jubilee line train in 1979, she could not drive due to a foot injury. Hannah's sister Edna also joined the London Underground. Edna also worked first as a guard and then became a driver. Hannah and Edna became the first all-female crew on the London Underground. While the Dadds sisters were able to work in previously male positions, the working culture remained masculinized. A male coworker described them as being "like men... They swore more than we did, they smoked more than we did and they gave a lot of lip to the management, more than we did." Dadds worked as a driver with the London Underground until she took early retirement in 1993, after which she moved to Spain. The

London Transport Museum The London Transport Museum (often abbreviated as the LTM) is a transport museum based in Covent Garden, London. The museum predominantly hosts exhibits relating to the heritage of London's transport, as well as conserving and explaining the h ...

made an oral history recording with Dadds in 1993 in which she described her career. In 2004, she was invited to a Queen's Women of Achievement lunch at

Buckingham Palace Buckingham Palace () is a London royal residence and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and royal hospitality. It ...

; other women attending that year included

Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. S ...

, JK Rowling,

Kate Moss Katherine Ann Moss (born 16 January 1974) is a British model. Arriving at the end of the "supermodel era", Moss rose to fame in the early 1990s as part of the heroin chic fashion trend. Her collaborations with Calvin Klein brought her to fas ...

and

Charlotte Church Charlotte Maria Church (born Charlotte Maria Reed, 21 February 1986) is a Welsh singer-songwriter, actress, television presenter and political activist from Cardiff. Church rose to fame in childhood as a classical singer before branching i ...

Death and tributes

Dadds died on 5 December 2011 after a long illness. Speaking after her death, Howard Collins, chief executive of London Underground, said: "Hannah Dadds changed the working life of women on the Tube and the way in which many people viewed Tube drivers" and that "She was an esteemed member of our workforce." A plaque was unveiled in her honour at

Upton Park station Upton Park is a London Underground station on the District line, District and Hammersmith & City line, Hammersmith and City lines, on Green Street, London, Green Street in the Upton Park, London, Upton Park area of the London Borough of Newham, ...

on 31 May 2019.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dadds, Hannah 1941 births 2011 deaths 20th-century British women History of the London Underground People from Forest Gate People associated with transport in London Conductor (rail) Train drivers British train drivers

Early life

London Underground career

Death and tributes

See also

References