Boarded the sleeper from edinburgh to london last night.
knock on berth door at 4am - "breakfast's arrived early" I thought.........no.
A derailment ahead meant that we were going to disembark and be bussed to (that) london. Crewe not being blessed with 24hr coach services it was another 2 hrs+ in a freezing cabin before the coach arrived / departed, finally arriving into London Euston at lunchtime. west coast has been a wash out all day.
Total disaster avoided by cancelling all official meetings and organising an informal networking lunch with london based colleagues in licensed premises (the excellent Craft Brewing Co in Leather Lane) before heading for the train home, which is where I am now.
Now at Darlington heading north.
EDIT - grump factor restored by the fact that the train contains many rugby fans (*) heading north for the rugger tomorrow. You know, greater than normal numbers of dark green sweaters, pink shirts, mustard corduroys, upturned collars and general twattishness.
(*) at least the English watch and support club rugby, what was it, around 80,000 at Twickenham at Christmas. It's one man and his dog in Scotland for the whole year except when it's time for a bit of anti English sentiment when 60,000 ephemeral nationalists turn out. Idiots.