The Railway: First Great Western on Channel 5

[Temple Meads]

So does Jodie "deadhead" back to Swansea (on another train) after terminating at Cardiff Central? Or does she "overnight" in Cardiff on the company's dime?

Taxi I suspect.

 

[Flamingo]

So does Jodie "deadhead" back to Swansea (on another train) after terminating at Cardiff Central? Or does she "overnight" in Cardiff on the company's dime?

Neither. She beams up into the mothership for reprogramming in her stasis pod until required again, just like the rest of us.

 

[Michael.Y]

More horrendous editing - the bloke who kissed Jodie at Bristol Parkway then walked up the escalator at Reading.... Jodie's HST suddenly turns into the Night Riviera sleeper, and her final stop sees her arrive at Cardiff, only to walk down the platform at Swansea.

 

[Trainfan344]

More horrendous editing - the bloke who kissed Jodie at Bristol Parkway then walked up the escalator at Reading.... Jodie's HST suddenly turns into the Night Riviera sleeper, and her final stop sees her arrive at Cardiff, only to walk down the platform at Swansea.

Plus the revesring of clips happens again, first time the camera is out of the window around the curve in the cutting on the way to London, on the way back, the Train is travelling on the same line, but the scenery is going the other way.

 

[Cletus]

Wow, it took until Sunday afternoon for the hst/sleeper error to be pointed out. I'm shocked!

 

[BestWestern]

So does Jodie "deadhead" back to Swansea (on another train) after terminating at Cardiff Central? Or does she "overnight" in Cardiff on the company's dime?

I think calling Jodie a deadhead is a little harsh!

 

[Crossover]

Jodie is nice

Was only a matter of time before someone mentioned this :P
I would have to agree, of course!

Having a film crew there does nothing to improve your personal safety. It can, in fact, aggravate the situation.

Having seen only a few weeks ago, the aftermath of a guard kicking some passengers out of FC (On a TPE service, so pretty tight for space too) I don't blame Jody for not trying to oust them (besides, a couple of them, they said, had paid for upgrades, so it would mean trying to split them up and causing more hostility) from First Class.

 

[loiner91]

Finally a good show on channel 5. Sadly I missed the 2nd and I think 3rd episode so will have to catch-up.

 

[Flamingo]

Jodie was following instructions - don't delay the train, and don't put yourself at risk, as a lone worker (being cynical, this may because if the guard gets ****ted, the train is delayed).

Revenue duties are always secondary to these two mantras.

This is not how most of us want to work, and is open to abuse by lazy staff, but there is no point in having an argument with some ****ed-up punter if in the back of your mind you know that if something kicks off, your manager is going to turn around and say it's your own fault, you weren't following instructions and follows it up with a bollocking for delaying the train.

 

[Late Trains uk]

The BBC's Beeching series(anyone see BBC 4's One in Wales last night?),Michael Portillo,and the similar show to this one that was on earlier this year have been extremely popular not just among the enthusiast's but the general public who will find the history or travel aspect of interest rather than the Trains.
Who knows where it will lead?The Antique,Cookery and DIY makeover shows have shown how popular ''hobby programmes'' can get.
These shows seem to be following a trend and if they are popular and relatively cheap to produce it will interest the likes of Channel 5 and TV executives looking for a decent cheap Programme to fill daytime slots for example.It may then will lead to ''copycat''programmes being produced by all the other TV stations.
We may see the Discovery Channel bringing back enthusiast orientated programmes like Trainspotting.Or one I would welcome a Railway version of The Diceman.

The main criticism of this and other similar C5 shows(Eddie Stobart for one) is that they tend to be far too biased in favour of the company(which the BBC and possibly SKY wouldn't accept)represented.
In this one you would hardly know that there are alternatives too First Great Western on theses routes or that they ever do things wrong although I believe that this programme is First Great Westerns response to it's negative press and so invited and chose CH5 as they were the most likely broadcaster to produce such a biased show that looks to have cost very little to make.

 

[DDB]

Do we know who approached who?

The "Great Western" franchise strikes me as a very good franchise as in one franchise you get:
Both commuter services and long distance intercity travel
Rural branch lines some of which are very scenic indeed
Sleeper services
Dawlish sea wall (not quite as famous as the Harry Potter viaduct but up there for famous bits of track)
Major disruption potential with Reading being completely rebuilt at the moment (although that doesn't seem to have featured much so far)
Glastonbury

Also I bet that several Ch5 executives or the executives of their advertisers live in the franchise area!

DDB

 

[bnm]

It's worth remembering that this show is not made by Channel 5. It's made by a production company, Twofour, and funded by another company, GroupM Entertainment. Both of whom executive produce the show.

It would have been pitched and sold to Channel 5 and may well have been pitched to other broadcasters, both domestically and internationally.

I doubt that Channel 5 or their executives would have had much input in the production of the programme.

 

[Karl]

Last minute 'heads up' for tonight's episode on Channel 5 now!

 

[GodAtum]

Did the family going to Por get on the wrong train or given wrong advice by the manager?

 

[1e10]

Did the family going to Por get on the wrong train or given wrong advice by the manager?

They wanted to go somewhere else (Colin Road or something, wasn't listening well enough) and asked the train manager how to get there and she said they could travel on her service. She intended for them to change and they thought it was a direct service and realised en-route and then complained that if they knew that they would have taken the bus because it's quicker. Deborah then apologised and sat them in First Class free of charge, offered them free drinks and refunded their ticket costs.

 

[GodAtum]

In my unscientific method, FGW has been the worst TOC out of SWT and Southern in my commute. I have never had a service on time.

 

[tony6499]

I can understand the frustration if you turn up at 20.29-40 for the 20.30 departure to see it leaving the platform

 

[A-driver]

I can understand the frustration if you turn up at 20.29-40 for the 20.30 departure to see it leaving the platform

Really? Personally I can't, and even before I became rail staff I could never understand how people could turn up less than a minute before a train and become frustrated that the doors had closed. By all means chance it but if you cut it that fine then you should be half expecting to get the next one. If the connection is that tight then you either need to start with an earlier train or seriously consider how practicle your commute actually is!

 

[tony6499]

Really? Personally I can't, and even before I became rail staff I could never understand how people could turn up less than a minute before a train and become frustrated that the doors had closed. By all means chance it but if you cut it that fine then you should be half expecting to get the next one. If the connection is that tight then you either need to start with an earlier train or seriously consider how practicle your commute actually is!

When you advertise something at 0802 people turn up at 0801 and expect to catch it, it is one of the things that cause conflict for on the ground staff

 

[1e10]

I can understand the frustration if you turn up at 20.29-40 for the 20.30 departure to see it leaving the platform

Why? As that woman was ranting there is a sign in shot clearly informing passengers doors may be locked up to 40 seconds before departure. It's also announced over the speakers something like every 15 minutes at Bristol TM.

 

[A-driver]

When you advertise something at 0802 people turn up at 0801 and expect to catch it, it is one of the things that cause conflict for on the ground staff

If they turn up at 0801 they stand a good chance of catching it. Turning up at 0801 and 30 secs is rather more dodgy. If nothing else once you start arguing over less than a minute it is down to how exact peoples watches are and how in sync clocks are. It just becomes silly when people start complaining 'that clock says I have 8 seconds to go' whilst it's realistic for the guards watch to suggest 2 seconds to go etc.

If you cut it that fine to catch a train and are turning up to the platform with only 30 secs then you should expect to miss it-I have no sympathy with those who complain over seconds I'm afraid.

 

[Mojo]

This debate was held in the last few months - this really isn't the place to start it again please!

 

[thelongestroad]

I have heard this discussed recently. Apparently there are a few people who try and make a 3 minute connection onto the 0800 on a regular basis.

The MCT is definitely more than that.

 

[ModernRailways]

There is a whole thread here with regards to the door closing time. Sadly it was locked by a mod - unsurprising really. Maybe it could be unlocked though.

I must say, tonight seemed to be much better than previous. There seemed to be a flow to it. They seemed to keep focus on what was being shown instead of drifting. Also, there were no trains going backwards (other than the intro) which makes a change - unless I didn't see any :P

Really quite enjoyed tonight's episode.

 

[FGW_DID]

There is a whole thread here with regards to the door closing time. Sadly it was locked by a mod - unsurprising really. Maybe it could be unlocked though.

Was it locked 40 seconds before? If you don't wish to travel please do not board

 

[jon0844]

The clock on the platform suggested they were locked about 35-40 seconds before departure time.

I think there was one train going backwards today, and the usual swapping of stock (but that's to be expected as what might seem like a constant dialogue from a member of staff could be over a much longer time, or even different days).

 

[Flamingo]

In my unscientific method, FGW has been the worst TOC out of SWT and Southern in my commute. I have never had a service on time.

What line are you commuting on? According to the independent figures, our worst performing lines average around 88% on time, so out of every 10 trains, around 9 will be on-time.

Or do you only notice the ones that are late?

 

[GodAtum]

What line are you commuting on? According to the independent figures, our worst performing lines average around 88% on time, so out of every 10 trains, around 9 will be on-time.

Or do you only notice the ones that are late?

From Paddington-Marlow changing at Maidenhead. It was more of a problem on the way back when there was a tight connection between the marlow train and the fast service to Paddington. i would often miss that and have to get the stopping service. On a few occasions there was no Marlow train at all or had to get a taxi.

 

[jon0844]

I doubt anyone has ever had no train ever on time, but given some weird things with the differences between the working timetable and public timetable, I am sure there are a fair few people that might reasonably think so.

Such as the example I gave a while back where trains at Hatfield are timetabled to arrive a minute earlier than the WTT. In other words, the train will nearly always be late and shown on the display as being so. It's not unreasonable for some people to always see the screen showing a delay and think their trains are ALWAYS delayed.

Very bad PR for the TOC, as I doubt people make much of an effort to look up and see that their train still got them to where they wanted to be on time, or even early.

 

[Captain Chaos]

From Paddington-Marlow changing at Maidenhead. It was more of a problem on the way back when there was a tight connection between the marlow train and the fast service to Paddington. i would often miss that and have to get the stopping service. On a few occasions there was no Marlow train at all or had to get a taxi.

Tight? Is it even a connection? The Marlow is booked in @ 1729 on platform 5. The HST on 2 is out @ 1730