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Class 800 - Updates


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I'd like to get me laughing gear around that, makes me feel hungry just looking at it.

 

S.T Arved

 

As inviting as it looks, if it is being marketed as a 'Full English or Full Welsh' a purist might argue against the inclusion of baked beans and, if it's being marketed as a Welsh breakfast, there is one notable omission.

 

It should come with laverbread in Wales and, for both recipes, fried diced potatoes or kidneys are acceptable optional extras.

 

In Wales another optional extra is cockles.

 

I've nothing against baked beans, just not as part of a Full Monty, noting that Virgin do not include them and Arriva Wales only offer them as optional.

 

Also noting that Gordon Ramsey, Delia Smith, Hairy Bikers, Rick Stein and the Ritz Hotel all exclude baked beans from their classic British breakfast recipes.

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At least, even if the 800s can't get past Maidenhead on the juice, I see that the 387s are now running all the way to Didcot.

 

Jim

 

 

Yes, and lots of them are doing that; if my recent viewing of the Slough webcam is anything to go by. They are now operating in both 4 and 8-car variations, whereas all the previous Maidenhead services that I saw were 8-car. 

 

I'm sure that I saw a 9-car 800 flash by on the fast lines, but I wasn't paying 100% attention, and it may have been 2x5-cars. 

 

Are there any 9-car formations ready for service?

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Surely laver bread only with cockles. Had it every week for a year when I was in digs as a student in Swansea - fresh from Swansea market. I don't think anyone has ever defined a full Welsh breakfast! For a shepherd, a coal miner, a bard, a saint?

Jonathan

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Surely laver bread only with cockles. Had it every week for a year when I was in digs as a student in Swansea - fresh from Swansea market. I don't think anyone has ever defined a full Welsh breakfast! For a shepherd, a coal miner, a bard, a saint?

Jonathan

 

I suspect it's one of those things that has been around for so long and in so many variations it defies definition but I do have a thing about baked beans being included, an American import, they themselves use more to accompany barbecues than breakfast.

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Yes, and lots of them are doing that; if my recent viewing of the Slough webcam is anything to go by. They are now operating in both 4 and 8-car variations, whereas all the previous Maidenhead services that I saw were 8-car. 

 

I'm sure that I saw a 9-car 800 flash by on the fast lines, but I wasn't paying 100% attention, and it may have been 2x5-cars. 

 

Are there any 9-car formations ready for service?

 

There are 9 Car Class 800/3 and Class 802 formations running as test trains, that might have been what you saw?

 

Simon

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We're rivet-counting the on-board breakfast that GWR offer?

Makes a change from talking in circles about their performance on diesel, I guess...

 

Beans, beans, they're good for your heart

The more you eat them, the more you fart,

The more you fart the better you feel

So eat your beans with every meal.

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We're rivet-counting the on-board breakfast that GWR offer?

Makes a change from talking in circles about their performance on diesel, I guess...

Is there still not mushroom in the peak with these longer trains? 

It's not just the electrification they've made a hash of.

Compensating for the lack of juice.

The bean-counters have won again.

Shows a can-do attitude under difficult circumstances.

etc. etc. continued on page 57

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Yes, and lots of them are doing that; if my recent viewing of the Slough webcam is anything to go by. 

 

Indeed, for me they've gone from "What's that silhouette I can see in the dark?" at just after 8pm on Tuesday, to being a familiar sight(thanks to having a desk where I can (just) see Vastern Road bridge!) by Thursday evening. By Saturday they'll probably be "Oh, it's just another one..."  

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As inviting as it looks, if it is being marketed as a 'Full English or Full Welsh' a purist might argue against the inclusion of baked beans ...

 

Also noting that Gordon Ramsey, Delia Smith, Hairy Bikers, Rick Stein and the Ritz Hotel all exclude baked beans from their classic British breakfast recipes.

 

Baked beans are an abomination (or, at least, the catering company versions). They are usually included because they are, weight-for-weight, the cheapest thing on the plate, and they provide a lot of bulk - so it looks like you're getting loads of food and, therefore, superb value for money.

 

The fact they taste disgusting seems incidental.

 

I used to love eating breakfast in the BR restaurant car of a 125 as it pounded southwards along the Northumbrian cliff-edge through wild storms, the sea swelling angrily below, heather blown about in the gale. Inside the car was calm and hushed, everything ordered and as it should be, the train whisking through it all and not a bloody baked bean in sight... Lovely.

 

Paul

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Baked beans are an abomination (or, at least, the catering company versions). They are usually included because they are, weight-for-weight, the cheapest thing on the plate, and they provide a lot of bulk - so it looks like you're getting loads of food and, therefore, superb value for money.

 

The fact they taste disgusting seems incidental.

 

I used to love eating breakfast in the BR restaurant car of a 125 as it pounded southwards along the Northumbrian cliff-edge through wild storms, the sea swelling angrily below, heather blown about in the gale. Inside the car was calm and hushed, everything ordered and as it should be, the train whisking through it all and not a bloody baked bean in sight... Lovely.

 

Paul

 

 

The Yanks mostly eat the freshly prepared version flavoured with all sorts that can involve anything from maple syrup to wondrously fragrant herbs and spices guaranteed to blow your head off and quite possibly (likely) provide a whole day's supply of fat and calories in just one portion.

 

Their tinned version contains twice the sugar (corn syrup) to our's but you can also get our version of tinned beans, imported from the UK, just about everywhere.

 

A case of selling sand to the Arabs.

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I have no problem with beans, in fact that gives me my pulses portion for the day and saves me having to take a pill, the only thing I'm not struck on is black pudding, anything else is fair game.

Given that a black pudding is essentially a deep fried blood clot with a bit of bran/sawdust filler, I can see your point.

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I've been checking Real Time Trains to follow the 800s on the Cotswold line.  Unfortunately, yesterday and today, 1W14 London Paddington to Great Malvern was terminated at Oxford.  1P25 Great Malvern to Paddington, which is formed from 1W14 at Great Malvern, started from Oxford.  The evening trains, 1W33 London Paddington to Great Malvern and 1P47 Great Malvern to London Paddington, were cancelled throughout.  I don't know anything about the cause of these cancellations, or even if they were planned in advance and not being shown on Real Time Trains.

 

Neat video on the GWR Twitter feed of a 10 coach train arriving at Swansea: https://twitter.com/GWRHelp/status/948641675307638785

 

The caption is "Today we ran the first Carmarthen to London Paddington Intercity Express Train and added more IETs for Swansea and Cardiff. These are providing 1,800 more seats a day between South Wales and London as we continue to introduce our #GWRNewTrains"

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Baked beans are an abomination (or, at least, the catering company versions). .....

 

 

They used to serve industrial grade, catering supplier's baked beans in our staff canteen (when I was still working).

Yuk.

After many protests, the catering company started buying in a much better tasting version.

Much nicer.

 

 

.

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You can't beat Heinz beans - made in Wigan of course !!!!!

 

Factory motto - "Every little bean must be heard as well as seen" !!!

 

Brit15

Equally good (some might say better) tasting baked beans are made in North Cambridgeshire / South Lincolnshire...

 

It all depends on the can...

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Nout wrong with black pudding, after all it underpins the ancient and noble martial art of ecky thump.

 

 

I first had black pudding many years ago at my brother's house. I didn't mind the taste, but my brain objected to the texture - given that I knew the ingredients. 

 

In 2016 after a period of at least a quarter of a century, one of my sons cooked his speciality fry-up one morning on a family get together. This included black pudding and although I had my reservations I thought I would give it a try. In fact I was quite surprised because I really enjoyed it. Whether this was because of the pudding recipe, or the way it had been fried that day, I can't say; but I consider myself a black pudding convert. 

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