Gruffalo

As for Rugby positions, I was one of the tallest in my school year and one of the slowest runners so it was 2nd row for me - also known as "the boiler-house". Funny how years on I became the possessor of a Department of Transport (Board of Trade) 1st Class Certificate of Competency in Steam! The game today is so much more demanding than half a century ago but there are some nice guys playing. I have a season ticket at Northampton Saints and the players are always approachable, so are the visiting TV commentators. There is no segregation of fans, all mix together and hopefully it will always be so in this game. Today I am mainly trying to close my ears to the (very) loud noises from our three youngest grandchildren - we are babysitting yet again whilst parents take eldest two grandkids skiing. Why they are out of school during term time - well, their father cannot get time off next week due to business commitments and the trip is also in celebration of daughter's certain milestone birthday. So much for railway modelling! Edit for auto-correction mistake

Containers being 20', 30' and 40' long, the ones shown look like they are 20fters end to end. You could add another row if you used 30 or 40fters laid across and locked end-on. Ultimately, they would probably get in the way of the main repairs so not really a great lot of use. The basic box will however provide a good bit of protection for the time being.

Re the Torygraph report, this highlights the ridiculous "old boys network" that exists in Westminster. The view that someone with politically correct views is more valued than simple common sense pervades the appointments to a variety of QANGOs. I saw a quote that the Chair of the EA gets £70k PA for 1 day a week and I think the head exec gets almost £300K. No wonder they needed to sell the dredging units from the Parrett.

Thanks Mark, yes I did have those in mind but there are others around too. Our Royal Navy has significant numbers to be disposed of (bit ironical in the county of Drake fame!). Edit for spelig

Adrian, clearly you and others disagree with the suggestion and that is fine. A little more thought did go into my initial post and I answer your points in what I hope is a constructive and not aggressive manner thus: re Point 1 - anchor chains stretching out to seaward only have to resolve the issue for a relatively short time. And Point 2 - Yes, it would be better if it didn't break up in situ I agree but it is worth a try. The container ship that went aground near Bridport a year or two back was as exposed as this location and that stayed relatively intact through a winter IIRC. Then Point 3 - When I initially made it, I suggested that a ship that was about to be broken up was used - there are a few in the Tees area at the moment I believe that are already clean and gas-free (no oil residues remaining). NR need say 6-8 weeks, this would buy that long. Point 4 - yes, but unlikely to exceed the danger from the present situation. Point 5 - yes, that is possible but already scour seems to have removed a lot of the beach and seawall foundations and the rest of these foundations need some help ASAP to avoid that extending. We all want something that allows a speedy restoration and THEN a real solution.

Ian I made the scuttling suggestion knowing that this was never a long term solution, simply a stop-gap to provide a bit of a breakwater to protect the weakened section AND I assumed it would be relatively easy to remove - lets face it, the Mary Rose was safely lifted after resting on the seabed for 400 years. There is a weakened section of some 80 meters to protect and this would also protect the engineers who are tasked with getting it working again. Community survival surely would count more than a rare and as yet undiscovered sea urchin - which was probably dredged up by inshore fishermen anyways.

Devenish is / was a reasonable pint IIRC.

In response to The Stationmaster's contribution - with which I am in total agreement - there are too many vested interests around Westminster and in the regions. In hindsight, most people studying our history in 100 year's time will wonder why the population failed to call these decision makers to account given the irreparable damage they are doing to this country. And for Barry O's suggestion, I would love to see one of HM Navy's older H-K subs moored in the upper River Nene to supply power to this area that is devoid of any reliable generation yet is deemed suitable to grow its population by 100% in 25 years (without employment opportunities, of course). Just heard that a self-important radio presenter with initials JV will be discussing the rail route between Exeter and Plymouth after midday. I for one will not listen to the tripe that he and his tame and cozy group of so-called experts spout with little knowledge of the real world, preferring to get my updates from the knowledgable crowd on RMWeb.

Actually, there is a rumour that Kernow County Council and Alex Salmond are getting together to promote Option 3 All joking aside, the matter of funding illustrates the crazy situation of Network rail. They have to repair the Cambrian Coast and now Dawlish whilst our politicos all argue about whether it will cost £40Bn, £50Bn or £60Bn for HS2. In the meantime local residents, train and NR staff are at risk and all deserve something better. A "new" route avoiding the sea wall would take a couple of years to get approved and started, South Devon & Cornwall cannot be without a rail service for that length of time. Should we wind up The Environment Agency and reinstate local accountable bodies so Somerset, Dorset, Devon and Cornwall would be better served?

A well argued position which requires "Like", "Agree" and "Informative" notations from me, hence my response. Your angry emoticon deserves cooling but I wouldn't throw cold water at your arguments at all!

Tony, I fear it is another example of what I refer to as a "sloped shoulder" culture. Try and shift something you could do onto someone else and it ceases to be an issue for you but is then something added to the load of another person. If you can't do something, admit it and seek guidance / training. Don't just try and avoid the matter hoping it will go away. I thought e-learning meant that you didn't print off reams of paper? I admit to being a dinosaur (unrelated to the Crow family ) and do prefer to have a hard-copy document that I can annotate for my own benefit and that is perhaps part of why I recognise I should be put out to pasture .

If the comments from the head of the Environment Agency are anything to go by, he would like to see no action as, in his terms, this is rural and he prefers to focus all assistance upon urban sites. It wouldn't surprise me if EU bureaucrats will have to be involved in the contract proposals - delaying things further. Get a large ship which is ready for breaking up in front of the sea wall PDQ and sink it to prevent too much more damage and give time to address the situation properly.

Reminds me of a NTNO'CN sketch about Windscale providing central heating for kids when your porridge is mixed there. As for Thorium and fission, fusion rules; it has kept our local star running since time immemorial.

Rant warning!!! Unlike many on the Atlantic side of the country, I have power so I can use my computer and light to illuminate the dark from such an overcast day. I look out of my window and see our local wind farm has shut down - too much wind? I am all for a balanced energy policy but I am tired of hearing the supporters of wind deriding any other source of energy and claiming their's is "the one true way". Clearly it is one true way to ramp up our bills and harvest subsidies for the owners whilst arguing that we have to reduce (to zero?) our consumption. Rant mode off!

Sympathies with all you guys and girls on the western side as the forecasts aren't promising. As for 7m cruise ship draft and 11m waves, that would suggest that El Capitano should track across the waves (not along them) rather than head into them or risk over-stressing the hull. Such motion will be quite uncomfortable so I would therefore NOT recommend any bag from the midnight curry club. I bet Ashers is happy her cruise is not sailing across the bay!

There are plenty of skilled modellers on here who will airbrush different hues and provide exquisite lining. Just get a sand coloured blazer first. Alternatively, perhaps The Stationmaster can "acquire" one from around his town?

...and me! As per AndyB's comment, I have a target date and it is so I have time to acquire new clothes before I take SWMBO to Australasia at the end of September but I fear that date will loom too soon. Perhaps I should not restock the Wheatibangs when this box is empty. Edit for tryping erer

That's a good loss Bob, I would fear for managing to keep it off as I have always gradually regressed when I managed such losses before. The extra exercise tending to Chris's needs will help, Madam Gruff likes to be waited upon so no change for me!

Breakfast is a meal I always enjoy(ed) and used to be enough to carry me through to the evening. The ageing process has meant I am less comfortable with larger or rich food intakes in the evening. I'm not allowed grapefruit or derivatives and normally just have a couple of wheats bangs and semi-skimmed milk, occasionally supplemented with a round of toast. There is something about the smell of cooking bacon that I find attractive, offal is great at the same sitting, nice eggs are very tasty, I love poached fish and kedgeree so a couple of wheaties is me being very controlled in a dietary manner. I must resist the urge, I must resist the urge, I must resist the urge, I must res........

Won't be wielding a sledge hammer against your neighbour's shed for a while then Andy!

Nice to see the return of Ashers; sorry it wasn't a great trip for you. At least your weather was better than ours although we have (relative) stillness and blue sky above Gruff Towers this morning. Friends from way back due in an hour or so and SWMBO requires a roaring fire to greet them - that'll be us all snoring this afternoon then particularly as I have a rather nice bottle of Chateauneuf du Pape to share with the oppressed male part of the couple visiting. I must record some rugby for later perusal. Back to my place under the thumb, catch up later.

Colin I must first say that I am no relation to Mr Clarkson. Our District and County Councils have seen a need to grow almost exponentially over the past 15-20 years and no longer act as public servants but as petty meddling dictators who take no responsibility for their actions and remain unaccountable. Were they to return to providing only the key services as tasked by central government, the cost would be much lower and the service level so much higher. I could list a dozen "initiatives" our local lot do that should be ended to save money but each function has a senior manager who will fight to preserve his/her own empire. Sadly their actions leave the vulnerable (children and the very old) even worse off.

Just weighing up an appropriate response...

Even fewer lifeboats!

The two jobs for today have not been without their difficulties! First was the emptying of four years worth of Gruffalo excreta (we aren't on mains drainage) which seemed to be proceeding ok until the final stage of sucking out the outflow chamber - at which point we found sludge had accumulated over the level of the outflow land drainage pipes. Our nice and helpful sh1t man did manage to clear it and prove the outfeed pipes but we won't know for sure until much passing of waste matter has been achieved and the ground water level sinks a little. The second job was the replacement of my car's windscreen. A helpful fitter arrived with a new screen, checked it was the correct version (tick) and then checked the existing installation (cross). He hadn't been supplied with the surround trim! They will now come tomorrow and collect the car, returning it several hours later. The fitter himself was great and checked the tiny marks on the MG Midget's windscreen, satisfying us that the screen is fine and will pass the forthcoming MOT - if only that was our only worry! Still, there-occupation of GWRS (Gruff's Wonderful Railway Shed) is now looking to take place before I pop my clogs. Very light snow has made an appearance whilst out on septic tank duties, now just very cold and dull. Two reports to analyse then a bit of RM time this evening if I'm lucky. Stay warm and dry all.