Freedom of Information request - Who is the new voice over artist on the Northern Line 1995 stock that announces the newly opened extension stations?
Request ID: FOI-1877-2122 Date published: 07 December 2021
You asked
Can you please advise what the name is of the new voice over artist on the Northern Line 1995 stock that announces the newly opened extension stations? Celia Drummond sadly died earlier this year and it is obviously not her. It is a different voice. The voice sounds like it could be Sarah Parnell (who does the 2009 stock and S stock) but i am not 100% sure. I can not find anything confirming who it is. You would have had to arrange for her to record these announcements at some point very recently so i believe you will know who this is. So under the FOI Act could you please just confirm the name of the new voice over artist on the Northern Line 1995 stock that announces the newly opened extension stations?
We answered
Our ref: FOI-1877-2122/GH
Thank you for your request received by Transport for London (TfL) on 21 November 2021 asking for information about the new voice over artist on the Northern Line.
Your request has been considered under the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and our information access policy. I can confirm that we do hold the information you require.
New announcements for the Northern Line Extension have been recorded and any existing announcements being altered with new messages have been re-recorded with a new voice. The new voice artist is Elinor Hamilton from ‘Sayer Hamilton Voices’ who is the Managing Director of eLearningVoices.co.uk. All other existing announcements remain on the line.
Elinor was chosen as her voice provides a good match to Celia Drummond’s. The Audio-Visual sub-contractor went through the process of taking the raw .WAV files and editing/processing them to make them sound as similar as possible to Celia. This is the same process undertaken with Celia’s recordings as her voice changed as she got older. While it isn’t feasible to achieve a 100% perfect match, the project’s view is that the voices are a good match and the announcements provide consistent delivery of customer information.
If this is not the information you are looking for please do not hesitate to contact me.
If you are not satisfied with this response please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal.
Yours sincerely
Graham Hurt FOI Case Officer FOI Case Management Team General Counsel Transport for London
