The question is in the topic really.

Does this fall under some central location such as didcot ?

Many thanks

BB

Wow ! I did ask ! Is it available in hardback form ?

I used to live in a shoebox in middle of t'road

It's good to see that the coffee shop doesnt get distracted from the OP^▸ (Original Poster / topic starter)

Not 8 track then !

Yet another new term I have to learn !

Yes that's the place. They are a lovely couple and it is a lovely house and grounds

I think I passed through Melksham back in September when the wife and I took a post wedding break at a lodge in devizes and then went to a national trust property. I think the route back to the M4 took us through Melksham which - if my geography services me right - would be possible.

Holiday sounds interesting ...is there a trip report on the Forum?

BB

I know Adstock very well! It would be very ironic if your Sister was called Helen and she lived in a georgian house as we had our wedding reception there back in September.

In all my other replies to my OP^▸ (Original Poster / topic starter) I've added some train content but have failed referencing Adstock!

What is really interesting about the replies you lot have posted is that I have connections with quite a few of the places mentioned.

I worked in Banbury (on the old Alcan Extrusions site) and lived in a small village south of the town called Adderbury. I am old enough to remember steam trains running through the village on the Banbury to Cheltanham line!

As far as I know "Bicester Town" is now "Bicester North" and of course it's now possible to get from Bicester Village to Marylebone on the "new" route.

I was beginning to get offended that no-one had welcomed me back and then thought about looking in my spam folder and there you all were!

Yes, Buckingham. I left Thatcham in about August 2018 although still go down there to see the kids. I have seen the SNT's (Shiny new trains) pass through but I have never been on one from Newbury/Thatcham although have caught many from Reading.

My daily commute (when I am working in London) has changed.

In my Thatcham days I would catch the bus to Reading station (I got fed up with the walk to the station as it always seemed to chuck it down when I needed to do it) and then mainline into London. So probably door to office door about 2 hours - maybe a bit more.

So now I drive to Milton Keynes Central (MKC^▸ (Milton Keynes Central)) which takes about 15 minutes and if I catch a Pendilino (sp?) I can be in London in a further 35 just in time to do battle with the northern line. We do have a good choices of services from MKC and apart from when there are very high winds or major signalling problems the service is pretty good. The good thing about my journey from home in Buckingham to MKC it is so simple. Off the estate, onto the A422 and in about 17 minutes I'm parked up at the station.

I can't remember what a weekly travel card was from Thatcham but from MKC it costs about £159

Coming back to MKC in the evening it's always a challenge getting a seat on the services but that's the nature of the commute. It's often a decision between getting a later, slower train with a seat or a non-stop and standing like I did last night. As I'm sure a lot of you know Euston is underdoing changes at the moment as they have started on the work to be HS2^▸ (The next High Speed line(s)) compatible and there have been some ground works in the Buckingham area.


I like Buckingham - the only problem is that unless you want a coffee or a take out (sounds a bit like Thatcham!) there isn't much else there but there is a very good community spirit. Unlike a like alot of all towns you will have all head of our MP^▸ (Member of Parliament) (Mr John Bercow)

I think the price of housing here reflects the fact there aren't any major employers in the town (I'm guessing the University is the single biggest employer) and also no rail links. There are plans to open an east-west link which I believe will pass through Winslow which isn't far from here.

Hardly suprisingly there isn't alot left of the railway in town. Over the weekend we went for a walk along the trackbed which the local council have turned into a walk way. The only clue it was ever a railway is probably the straightness of the path and the few red brick bridges that are left.


So anyway enough of my ramblings...it's always good to catch up!

BB

I may be getting my Worcester stations mixed up but seem to remember that one of them had a mini supermarket more or less next to it? It has been a few years.

It seems like ages since I used to frequent the coffee shop on my journey from Thatcham into London but a quick search of my posts revealed that the last real activity (ignoring 3 in 2018) was in 2017.

So as the title says what have I missed? I guess "Reading Station Improvements" has probably settled down now and I seem to remember long discussions about the "half platform signalling" used by the cross country sets.

I do realise that technically I am a foreigner now as I have moved out of the FGW^▸ (First Great Western)/GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) region into a town that used to have a railway but not longer has.It does have an old prison (now a museum) and a University. In the middle of July the prices of even the cheapest hotel goes through the roof and it gets veru noisy nearby.

Does this sound like the beginning of a "where do I live now?" competiion? Oh go on then...just for fun.

I suspect this may be too easy but if there is any take up I will let it run for a while.

Take care everyone!

During the line closures through Thatcham I have been driving to Theale and catching the train there. An added bonus that because the services are starting from there you can normally be guaranteed a seat. But I digress.

There are lots of helpful staff there - don't get me wrong - but there doesn't seem to be anybody with overall responsibility which I don't think helps matters. Some passengers were confused by the service arrangements this morning and when they excoriated staff  they got replies such as "I don't know I'm just here to <insert job function here>"

As a relatively frequent passenger I tend to know where I am going but not sure how clear things are for the more ad-hoc travellers.

I'm not sure if this is the same as what Oxonhutch was saying but I found the platforms at Paddington extremely slippery this morning when I arrived about 730. I'm not sure what the flooring is made of (it seems to be of a marble consistency) but the combination of a lot of wet feet and this surface did not go together well.

Take extra care everyone!