It was after I got to work at 07:45. I was looking at various information regarding late running on RTT^» (Real Time Trains - website) and wanted to clarified a cancellation on FGW^▸ (First Great Western).  That is when I picked up the details.

I saw it there this morning. The 07:34 (180) ex DID^» (Didcot Parkway - next trains) was shown as cancelled due to train fault. The 07:06 High Speed Train (HST^▸ (High Speed Train)) ex DID was shown as a 5 car rather than 8.

My interpretation was that the High Speed Train (HST) failed at OOC^▸ (Old Oak Common (depot)) - or rather was not available after yesterday's chaos - and the 180 was run in place of the High Speed Train (HST).  The up Bristol called additionally at DID (07:31) to make up for the cancelled 07:34

Edit: VickiS - Clarifying Acronym

In case tomorrow reflects today's situation...

When FGW^▸ (First Great Western) says Chiltern will accept FGW tickets between Banbury and Marylebone does that mean Chiltern will accept a CHO-PAD^» (Paddington (London) - next trains) season ticket from Princes Risborough to MYB^▸ (London (Marylebone))?  Notwithstanding a longer car journey at the start (and finish), it will be significantly quicker than crawling with SWT^▸ (South West Trains) via Staines to Waterloo.

It would need to honoured on the way home too, as my transport home would be in PRR^▸ (Princes Risborough)!

I remember the morning well.  I was undertaking a business trip to America that day and was staying overnight at a hotel in London.  I now work in London and I walk pass this same hotel on my way back to Paddington for my evening commute.  At that time, the Heathrow Express had just started and the airlines had check-in desks at Paddington Station in the area that is now the shops ^ Yo Sushi! bar, M & S, etc. I checked my luggage in there and caught the HEX to Heathrow where some hours later I caught my flight to Chicago.

On arrival there after U.S. immigration, I was waiting in the baggage hall for my luggage when I heard my name being called over the Tanoy ^ never a good sign.  I made myself known and was told my bags had not made it to Chicago.  ^How?^, I protested. I had checked them in three hours before boarding at Paddington.

^Have you not heard about the train wreck?^, I was asked. ^What train wreck?^, I replied.

It was the days before mobile internet.  I had heard nothing at Heathrow and had to wait to get to my final destination before the full horror of the day made itself clear.

Apparently, I was on the last HEX ^ and possibly the very last service of any kind ^ that passed through Ladbroke Grove before the collision that morning.  My bags were on the following HEX and never left Paddington.

Every evening as I walk past The Leonard, I remember that day.

OK, Got my Sunday seat for Colnbrook but the Didcot site states that the Brentford ticket sales are currently suspended.  Has anyone an idea of what might be going on?

Ah! a final chance to be signalled by the new semaphore up starters at Banbury, plus check out Princes Risborough and Greenford boxes all for the price of a cheap day return Oxford-Cholsey ! ... plus my season ticket, of course - and a spot of parking at OXF^» (Oxford - next trains).

My 2d worth:-

Thank-you for this opportunity to consult and I wish you the very best with this exciting new venture.
 
I understand that Oxford, Oxford Parkway and Bicester are the main economic drivers for this branch but Islip has been left drawing the short straw; more so than I expected with huge multi-hour gaps in the service.  I understand the need to path fast services through the station to maintain both overall capacity and sub-hour timings to London, but I feel that improvements can be made within the current stopping frequency.
 
May I please suggest that you consider staggering the stopping times at Islip in the up and down directions so that there is a more even arrivals and departures pattern throughout the day. By way of new Routing Guide Easements, Islip customers may be encouraged to back-track via either Oxford Parkway or Bicester Town to reach their intended destination, and at a time closer to the hour their choosing.  These backward connections should be positively engineered, and very importantly, advertised. 
 
With the improved overall running speeds on the railway, the end-to-end timings for Islip passengers might remain similar to the previous 2012 service interval, whilst doubling the effective access frequency to and from the station.

... submitted tonight.

@TaplowGreen, please check your PMs

The road name says it all: Invicta

... and also I see, there are certain Up Main Line services that are held for late inbound GVL branch trains. 1A02 must be one of these. I assume there must be others.

Don't get me wrong, I believe that held connections are part of a healthy integrated railway/transport system.  When planning a journey, it would be nice to know which connections will be held and which would not. On a down journey I made from Reading to Cheltenham last month 2G82 (SWI^» (Swindon - next trains)-CNM^» (Cheltenham Spa - next trains)) was held for a late arriving 1C06 (PAD^» (Paddington (London) - next trains)-BRI^» (Bristol Temple Meads - next trains)).

My usual 1A02 (Bristol TM^‡(resolve)-Paddington) was late into Didcot this morning as it was apparently held at Swindon awaiting a connection - I suspect the late running 2M02 (Gloucester-Southampton). No doubt some pleased GVL commuters but I didn't think holding for connections was fashionable on today's railway - maybe because both services were FGW^▸ (First Great Western). Just curious if this is more common than I had assumed.

With the First Class crush on certain trains in the morning rush, I foresee the removal of these tickets which sell at a relatively small premium over the Standard Class seasons.  Either that or a limitation as to which services these tickets are valid on.

These products appear to be sold merely to mop up unused First Class demand. And I well know that now there are considerably less FC^‡(resolve) seats - as well as my well loved quiet coach.  The latter hurts more than the loadings.

So how about a six inch high double leaf bascule bridge that folds down on to the railway tracks. It is not a level crossing but a bridge! 

And the bridge-leaves act as an additional barrier to people and vehicles, but without a significant height penalty.

This is of course an expensive tongue in cheek solution , but it might demonstrate the ridiculousness of an entrenched position by the ORR^» (Office of Rail and Road formerly Office of Rail Regulation - about).

Many open pit metal mines use these vehicles for rock haulage out of the (often quite deep) mines using electric on the incline and switching over to conventional diesel on the level pieces - both in and out of the pit.

Click here for an article on such vehicles.  From personal observation (on the job), as soon as these trucks hit the electric juice, they speed up tremendously.  Very impressive in their scale too - the tyre height alone towers above a man.  Then there is the wheel hub, the top of the tyre and then the rest of the truck.  Hybrid monsters indeed.

Is this what you are looking for?
http://www.networkrail.co.uk/browse%20documents/rus%20documents/route%20utilisation%20strategies/rus%20generation%202/london%20and%20south%20east/consultation%20responses/s/spencer,%20philip%201.pdf
Proposal to take over the Electric Lines to Watford Junction by tunnelling from OOC^▸ (Old Oak Common (depot)).