3rd Rail Exile

Most definitely! I'm sure it will be announced in due course, but it's actually very kind of Accurascale not to announce all the different liveries I want all at once - I couldn't afford it! Patience is a virtue (yes, even in this "I want it now" world we seem to inhabit these days!)

Exactly what I've been using with my rake of six - handles them no problem!

Similar activity in the Camborne area, resulting in a hefty hit to my credit card... Now to patiently await delivery to Didcot...

Is it a Mk1 Suburban CL?

Not personally - it's almost all flexitrack with approx 900 mm minimum radius curves, plus a variety of short and long Streamline turnouts. I wasn't saying I had a problem, but I was envisaging that a sizeable number of people might. I fully agree with your comments regarding the necessity of ensuring that kinematic coupling linkages are rigidly connected, and concur that set track which is too tight for current-spec models to traverse reliably should eventually phased out! But I don't think we're yet at a point where that is feasible...

Something more appropriate and better-looking provided as an option would certainly be great, but providing it as standard would cause problems for those who have tight Setrack (or equivalent) curves (even if hidden in fiddle yards). I've managed to get "one Roco one Hornby" to work well with these on my layout, but can imagine other people having issues. Given that a fair number of these sets might be bought on the basis of "that's a nice, short, pretty train" it's probably still best to cater for the worst case scenario as standard and leave coupling modifications to those with sufficient knowledge and understanding of the potential pitfalls (and/or the time and patience to experiment).

It took me a little while to work that out, until I eventually noticed that the Torquay Manor depicted was in GWR Shirtbutton whereas the Accurascale Torquay Manor (which I have on order - it's making a return trip to Cornwall before arriving in Didcot) is in BR Late Crest. Then I noticed the tyres... A very interesting direct comparison.

Chester...

Also being discussed here... I've also had a similar email as the auto-renewal has just gone through - looks like the same email might be sent to anyone who makes a payment, either new Premium member or renewal...

Which is why their Class 40 EoI announcement is so bizarre... I'm in for a Leader and a 4DD precisely because they are obscure, but I probably would go elsewhere for a Class 40...

Because the picture looks that good with six lattices in it...

That's if you call 12 years "fairly rapidly". I last moved house before photocard licences came in, and won't hit 70 for just over 12 years. Assuming I don't have to send it away for points to be applied, I'm still OK with the paper licence... But at least I have a passport for ID purposes...

Judging by overhearing conversations whilst waiting in the ticket office queue at Didcot Parkway, "these people" still ask for train times at ticket offices. Which, of course, they won't be able to do if all the ticket offices get closed... For whatever personal reasons, there seems to be a surprisingly large number of people who are very unwilling to join the herd-like rush towards compulsory technology, or at the very least will do it to their own level of comfort/security, and at their own pace. And that's in addition to those for whom modern technology poses very genuine difficulties in use. I know people who think a smartphone is just something else they are likely to get mugged for, and that's without it having banking apps, train tickets and the like on it. Also, it only took one sudden catastrophic battery failure to convince me of the need to carry printed out backups of tickets wherever possible...

I thought there were two in close proximity in Steventon, or have I misunderstood something?

F/ Neither 😁