London

====Inter-city and international====
[[File:St Pancras Railway Station 2012-06-23.jpg|thumb|[[St Pancras railway station|St Pancras International]] is the main terminal for high-speed [[Eurostar]] and [[High Speed 1]] services, as well as commuter suburban Thameslink and inter-city [[East Midlands Railway]] services.]]

London is the centre of the [[National Rail]] network, with 70 per cent of rail journeys starting or ending in London.<ref>{{Cite web |year=2014 |title=Rail |url=http://londonfirst.co.uk/our-focus/londons-transport-infrastructure/rail/|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140407083946/http://londonfirst.co.uk/our-focus/londons-transport-infrastructure/rail/ |archive-date=7 April 2014 |access-date=5 April 2014 |website=London First}}</ref> [[London King's Cross railway station|King's Cross station]] and [[Euston railway station|Euston station]], both in London, are the starting points of the [[East Coast Main Line]] and the [[West Coast Main Line]] – the two main railway lines in Britain. Like suburban rail services, regional and inter-city trains depart from several termini around the city centre, directly linking London with most of Great Britain's major cities and towns.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Smithers |first=Andrew |date=8 December 2020 |title=Great Britain National Rail Train Operators |url=https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/TOCs%20AS%20v46%20Dec%202020.pdf |access-date=27 March 2021 |website=[[National Rail]] |archive-date=23 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210423051734/https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/TOCs%20AS%20v46%20Dec%202020.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> ''[[Flying Scotsman (train)|The Flying Scotsman]]'' is an express passenger train service that has operated between London and Edinburgh since 1862; the world famous steam locomotive named after this service, [[LNER Class A3 4472 Flying Scotsman|''Flying Scotsman'']], was the first locomotive to reach the officially authenticated speed of 100 miles per hour (161&nbsp;km/h) in 1934.<ref>{{cite news |title=The Flying Scotsman: How the first 100mph locomotive became the most famous train in the world |url=https://www.countrylife.co.uk/out-and-about/the-flying-scotsman-how-the-first-100mph-locomotive-became-the-most-famous-train-in-the-world-252287|access-date=22 April 2023 |magazine=[[Country Life (magazine)|Country Life]]}}</ref>

Some international railway services to [[Continental Europe]] were operated during the 20th century as [[boat train]]s. The opening of the [[Channel Tunnel]] in 1994 connected London directly to the continental rail network, allowing [[Eurostar]] services to begin. Since 2007, high-speed trains link [[St Pancras railway station|St. Pancras International]] with [[Lille]], [[Calais]], Paris, [[Disneyland Paris]], Brussels, [[Amsterdam]] and other European tourist destinations via the [[High Speed 1]] rail link and the [[Channel Tunnel]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=14 November 2007 |title=Eurostar arrives in Paris on time |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/london/7093761.stm |access-date=27 March 2021 |website=[[BBC News]]}}</ref> The first [[Southeastern (train operating company)|high-speed domestic]] trains started in June 2009 linking [[Kent]] to London.<ref name="Southeastern Highspeed">{{Cite web |url=http://www.southeasternrailway.co.uk/highspeed/ |title=Highspeed |publisher=Southeastern |access-date=5 February 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110501110057/http://www.southeasternrailway.co.uk/highspeed/ |archive-date=1 May 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref> There are plans for a [[High Speed 2|second high speed line]] linking London to the Midlands, North West England, and Yorkshire.<ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=11 February 2021|title=Phase 2a Act to bring HS2 to the north|url=https://www.gov.uk/government/news/phase-2a-act-to-bring-hs2-to-the-north|access-date=28 July 2022|website=gov.uk|language=en}}</ref>