Was losing Stagecoach/Virgin bad for the railway?

[Dr Hoo]

Did these 158s sometimes operate some Edinburgh -> Manchester workings in the early days of Virgin's franchise? Seem to remember they were rather cramped and noisy for what was a three hour + service.

The simple answer is 'yes'. They were designed and built for BR for just that sort of duty and, of course, that basic offering continues to operate that way on various routes through to this day. E.g. Waterloo-Exeter, Birmingham-Aberystwyth, Norwich-Liverpool and Inverness-Wick.