'Tis this statistic which always sticks in my mind about LGW...what a swizz if it's not actually a single runway Well there you go, you learn something new every day! ^ I wonder if I've ever landed on/taken off from the 'other' runway.

So, why did they build them so close together? A throwback to the 'olden days' when planes were smaller and this was workable? Now I too am as curious as the OP on whether they did ever operate LGW with two active runways?