Recent content by CharlieSpotted

The one at Birmingham New Street (Grand Central) has closed, replaced by one not much further away at Bullring, and there's one opening soon on Colmore Row in what used to be the Halifax branch - virtually opposite Snow Hill station.

It seems to me that the industry needs to agree to either: 1. Allow the taking of screenshots of railcards in official apps, and accept the consequent risk of fraud, or 2. Remove the requirement to provide a 'copy' of the railcard as proof that one is held, and provide some other method of...

Wow, loved that video! Kinda hypnotic just floating down the route. Loved seeing the container crane doing it's thing too! And the final shot of the Birmingham skyline in the distance... cinema.

Can I interest you in some magic beans, Jon? ;) I can offer you a very good price if you have a Beanscard.

They do also offer seats on a minibus, a safari truck, and you can even hire a 'VIP' jeep for a group of 6, with guides.

Small, yes, but an attractive place to spend a few hours especially in good weather.

Worth noting that Sainsburys do exactly the same thing, with a cheaper 'Nectar price' on many items for Nectar card holders, and even a 'My Necar price' on a handful of items personalised to your shopping history. Everyone knows it's a nonsense - the 'Nectar price' / 'Clubcard price' is the...

I think that's still part of all this - if this trial is successful, I suspect we'll see the idea of a Safari Park station on the SVR pop up again.

Yes, except as I understand it only the first floor is the Hammerson-owned 'Grand Central', the retail units on the ground floor (concourse level) being let by Network Rail as part of the station. Most of the entrances are on the ground floor so I'm not sure you could say that it is...

Whichever way you cut at it, having stock of bacon sandwiches to serve to customers, and not telling customers about them is a special kind of madness only the UK rail industry can boast!

Citation needed! Certainly, nobody seems to have told them this...

Bournville village is dry - but the other side of the railway bridge is Stirchley, one of my absolute favourite parts of Birmingham, home to many excellent bars and restaurants and no fewer than 3 breweries. Attic brewery is right outside Bournville station, and (for my money) the best brewery...

Although of course there are a number of good options very close to New Street station - Bacchus (underneath the Burlington Hotel, right outside on Stephenson Street) springs immediately to mind - beware though, being underground, mobile signal is sketchy if you want to check train times! Also...

Wait, does "well heeled" come from having expensive shoes? I had never made that linguistic connection before, though it makes perfect sense!

The Lego Game Boy is a superb set! I've got slightly into Lego myself recently, my entry point was a McLaren F1 car, and I've since done more F1, the Game Boy, Wall-E and Eva, and the BTTF Delorean! All smaller sets, haven't yet got the courage to stump up for a proper big boy one! I bought a...