Best Of

Why would anyone us Royal Mail????? target for first class now only 90pc and second class will turn up when they can fit it in...

Why would anyone use snail mail?

Emails are free and instantaneous.

I don't think I've posted any letters in years, only parcels.

To send a birthday card, Christmas cards, postcards etc. Lots of companies still use it for bills.

Plus of course Royal Mail also send parcels and are the only company with the network to cover even the most remote rural areas, even Amazon use Royal Mail for the final mile and the only company that provides the universal service obligation so it costs the same to post to a rural hamlet as an inner city

I'm curious if there's an age split on the sending of cards. The only people I know who send cards nowadays are either old people, or young fogies who are old at heart.

My wife and I don't send or expect cards, with the exception of family living overseas. The only people we get cards for are people whom we're close enough to see in person to celebrate their birthday/Christmas and we'll give the cards in person then.

If you're not close enough to see them in person, why send a card?

Don't send postcards to anyone. My wife will upload pictures to Facebook which family and friends can keep in touch with. I mostly just don't bother.

Yes so older people still send cards and will use RM to send them. I tend to send online Christmas cards now and put holiday pictures on Facebook too but my parents still send Christmas and birthday cards and postcards by post. I also send birthday cards by post still and if the friend or relative having the birthday is not nearby and it is not a big birthday we won't see them in person for it

My family have stopped sending all cards

We tend to express happy birthday, anniversary etc on our Whats app or facebook pages

Most everything we do today is by e mail and bcs payments

Indeed my daughters house sale and purchase, plus survey is done entirely by e mail

We receive virtually no post and to be honest, for a couple of oldies, we are quite proud how we have embraced modern tech communications

You still can't send parcels online

Yes, you can

Many parcel companies offer an online service to book and collect from your home

So as I said you can't send parcels online, you have to get them collected and delivered even on that example

What a bizarre response

As has been said by other posters you book online and it is collected

Amazon is an online company who deliver to your door

Are you saying they are not an online business

I really do wonder about your thought processes

So as I said the parcels are not sent online are they? You cannot send a parcel over the internet it has to be collected and delivered by hand

By hand to your door is online.

You don't need to go to a shop/post office/postbox.

No it isn't, you may order it online but it is delivered by hand not over the internet like email

What on earth are you rabbiting on about?

I am on holiday in some distant EU hinterland so the only UK News available is Sky. Although I have Sky at home SkyNews is not a channel I watch. But man alive, is it poor?

My main observation is the Chief Anchor, a characterless droid, is David Frost's son. I also note that David Dimbleby's son is a reporter on ITN. It's not what you know but who you know.

It’s terrible, luckily the party of the people is absolutely against this nepotism going on in politics.

https://labourheartlands.com/british-politics-nepotism-cronyism-and-the-failing-democracy/

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/32234495/labour-nepotism-rachel-reeves-wes-streeting-mcfadden/

https://www.newstatesman.com/comment/2023/05/celebrating-labour-party-nepo-babies

Wow.

I wasn't being politically partisan. However being as you couldn't resist, the traffic is not all one way. Your future Tory leader could be Aphra Brandreth the daughter of Gyles.

https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/sn04809/

Yep, but I don’t really have a problem with nepotism, it’s been the case for most of humanity that people follow their family trades and get into roles and places because of their family connections - generations of farmers sons becoming farmers, children of teachers becoming teachers, lawyers the same, politicians was ever thus, look at the Romans.

I don’t think newsreaders following their parents footsteps is remotely an issue. More of a problem when BBC presenters write books which are then pushed on every BBC programme for example.

It’s anti aspiration, it leads to a de facto caste system.

Will you be encouraging or discouraging your children to go into law?

I will support whatever they choose, I’ve told them if they work hard they can achieve anything, look at me, the grandson of humble immigrants and how much I’ve achieved with hard work.

FWIW my eldest is thinking about becoming a doctor like his grandfather, my youngest is thinking about something physics/maths/F1 related, like me he loves physics, numbers, and F1.

I’ve told them if they are lazy, only the University of Oxford will accept them and they’ll spend the rest of their lives flipping burgers at McDonalds.

Absolutely right, and I would do the same but criticising people for following their parents’ careers is a bit blinkered as, in that case, we have no idea if Sir David Frost told his boy “you must become a journalist or else” or he put him in a position to choose their own way with the best possible preparation and he chose journalism as he had seen it from the inside and liked what he saw.

It’s very easy to cry “nepotism” but usually it’s a lot less sinister than nepotism implies.

I have skin in this game. My son has a distinction in his MA from the very prestigious Cardiff School of Journalism, but his dad is a scumbag filth pessant. Up against even a tongue tied media royalty Dimbleby, the Dimbleby gets the gig.

My lad is doing OK, but all the cards are stacked against him.

I wish your son well but I never understand why people do degrees in journalism. You can learn the skills of the trade in a few weeks. And on the job

And most of it is raw talent. A nose for a story and the ability to tell it. I would never advise anyone to “study” journalism

My best mate shunned Sixth Form in favour of weekdays in the Magistrate Courts, week nights and ends watching non-league football, and second and third tier RL, and attempting to receive payment for anything that he saw worthy of reporting.
He ended up commentating on the World Cup.

I get the impression a lot of the newer Racing Post writers have journalism degrees. One big problem with journalism as a career is the demise of local papers and increasingly chain publishers paying a pittance for clickbait articles. ETA that's two.

I live in rural Cumberland. a couple of weeks ago I was passing through Victoria station and nipped into WHSmith's there. Before me were hundreds and hundreds of magazines, weekly and monthly, all of which I manage without, each with a massive number of pages. Every page, presumably was written by someone. This must furnish almost an infinity of opportunity, but with the downside that almost all of it is boringly specialist or boringly vapid.

While it would be fun to be the Economist's person in Washington, there must be less demand to be space fillers for the rest. Who on earth would want to do it instead of a proper job?

Why would anyone us Royal Mail????? target for first class now only 90pc and second class will turn up when they can fit it in...

Why would anyone use snail mail?

Emails are free and instantaneous.

I don't think I've posted any letters in years, only parcels.

To send a birthday card, Christmas cards, postcards etc. Lots of companies still use it for bills.

Plus of course Royal Mail also send parcels and are the only company with the network to cover even the most remote rural areas, even Amazon use Royal Mail for the final mile and the only company that provides the universal service obligation so it costs the same to post to a rural hamlet as an inner city

I'm curious if there's an age split on the sending of cards. The only people I know who send cards nowadays are either old people, or young fogies who are old at heart.

My wife and I don't send or expect cards, with the exception of family living overseas. The only people we get cards for are people whom we're close enough to see in person to celebrate their birthday/Christmas and we'll give the cards in person then.

If you're not close enough to see them in person, why send a card?

Don't send postcards to anyone. My wife will upload pictures to Facebook which family and friends can keep in touch with. I mostly just don't bother.

Yes so older people still send cards and will use RM to send them. I tend to send online Christmas cards now and put holiday pictures on Facebook too but my parents still send Christmas and birthday cards and postcards by post. I also send birthday cards by post still and if the friend or relative having the birthday is not nearby and it is not a big birthday we won't see them in person for it

My family have stopped sending all cards

We tend to express happy birthday, anniversary etc on our Whats app or facebook pages

Most everything we do today is by e mail and bcs payments

Indeed my daughters house sale and purchase, plus survey is done entirely by e mail

We receive virtually no post and to be honest, for a couple of oldies, we are quite proud how we have embraced modern tech communications

You still can't send parcels online

Yes, you can

Many parcel companies offer an online service to book and collect from your home

So as I said you can't send parcels online, you have to get them collected and delivered even on that example

What a bizarre response

As has been said by other posters you book online and it is collected

Amazon is an online company who deliver to your door

Are you saying they are not an online business

I really do wonder about your thought processes

So as I said the parcels are not sent online are they? You cannot send a parcel over the internet it has to be collected and delivered by hand

By hand to your door is online.

You don't need to go to a shop/post office/postbox.

I am on holiday in some distant EU hinterland so the only UK News available is Sky. Although I have Sky at home SkyNews is not a channel I watch. But man alive, is it poor?

My main observation is the Chief Anchor, a characterless droid, is David Frost's son. I also note that David Dimbleby's son is a reporter on ITN. It's not what you know but who you know.

It’s terrible, luckily the party of the people is absolutely against this nepotism going on in politics.

https://labourheartlands.com/british-politics-nepotism-cronyism-and-the-failing-democracy/

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/32234495/labour-nepotism-rachel-reeves-wes-streeting-mcfadden/

https://www.newstatesman.com/comment/2023/05/celebrating-labour-party-nepo-babies

Wow.

I wasn't being politically partisan. However being as you couldn't resist, the traffic is not all one way. Your future Tory leader could be Aphra Brandreth the daughter of Gyles.

https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/sn04809/

Yep, but I don’t really have a problem with nepotism, it’s been the case for most of humanity that people follow their family trades and get into roles and places because of their family connections - generations of farmers sons becoming farmers, children of teachers becoming teachers, lawyers the same, politicians was ever thus, look at the Romans.

I don’t think newsreaders following their parents footsteps is remotely an issue. More of a problem when BBC presenters write books which are then pushed on every BBC programme for example.

It’s anti aspiration, it leads to a de facto caste system.

Will you be encouraging or discouraging your children to go into law?

I will support whatever they choose, I’ve told them if they work hard they can achieve anything, look at me, the grandson of humble immigrants and how much I’ve achieved with hard work.

FWIW my eldest is thinking about becoming a doctor like his grandfather, my youngest is thinking about something physics/maths/F1 related, like me he loves physics, numbers, and F1.

I’ve told them if they are lazy, only the University of Oxford will accept them and they’ll spend the rest of their lives flipping burgers at McDonalds.

Absolutely right, and I would do the same but criticising people for following their parents’ careers is a bit blinkered as, in that case, we have no idea if Sir David Frost told his boy “you must become a journalist or else” or he put him in a position to choose their own way with the best possible preparation and he chose journalism as he had seen it from the inside and liked what he saw.

It’s very easy to cry “nepotism” but usually it’s a lot less sinister than nepotism implies.

I have skin in this game. My son has a distinction in his MA from the very prestigious Cardiff School of Journalism, but his dad is a scumbag filth pessant. Up against even a tongue tied media royalty Dimbleby, the Dimbleby gets the gig.

My lad is doing OK, but all the cards are stacked against him.

Yes, he went to Cardiff not Oxford when graduates of the latter like Dimbleby Jr and Cambridge dominate national news media, nothing to do with his parentage otherwise

No. You know nothing!

ALL those with media ambitions like Susannah Reid, Emma Barnett , Jason Mohammed and many, many more do their post graduate degree at Cardiff School of Journalism. Perhaps you don't need to attend if your dad interviewed Richard Nixon.

Susannah Reid presents lifestyle and morning programmes and Emma Barnett Woman's Hour and Jason Mohammed Final Score none are allowed to present the news.

Huw Edwards was ironically one of the few non Oxbridge types to anchor the BBC news and he had a Cardiff degree

FFS

It's not their Mickey Mouse first degree from Cardiff like mine in politics. It is a prestigious post graduate qualification from a World renowned school of journalism. It compares to whatever you did at Aber, only much, much more prestigious.

Although after Huw you might have a point.

If you have an Oxbridge arts or PPE degree you are more likely to get a top top at the BBC or a broadsheet newspaper (and to a lesser extent Sky or ITV) in news or current affairs whether you did a Cardiff journalism course or not.

Though GB News seems to have much broader range of news presenters and commentators as suits its anti establishment and pro Reform agenda

BBC News - Royal Mail given go-ahead to scrap second-class post on Saturdays - BBC News
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c36x8k2612ko

Quite right, if you only pay for a second class stamp you should expect only a second class service.

If you want your mail to arrive quicker and a first class service pay for first class stamps and postage

We had about twenty items of post two days ago after days with nothing. Note we do not live in Wick, or the Isles of Scilly. We live in Southern England. The postal service is broken.

So you still get post then

We still have an excellent postal service. Every morning our postie empties the nearby postbox, drives round delivering bulky items, then walks round delivering letters and small packages, normally around the same time each day? Are we just lucky?

No, often that is the case here too.

When we order from Amazon etc often they will ring the bell, wait 5 or 10 seconds at most then dump the delivery and sod off.

Royal Mail posties however if you are not in will leave a note and leave the package at the backdoor where it is less likely to be stolen.

There are exceptions but I still prefer the heirs of Postman Pat to the timed to the second employees of postman Bezos

As I was about to turn the corner into my rather lengthy drive I noticed a large Amazon box in the middle of the road (it is a quiet country road). I retrieved the parcel and checked the name and a partial company address. I found a phone number on the Companies House Beta site and texted the guy. It was rope he needed for work, and he was working locally. He was very grateful and collected from my porch. That was the third time it had been lost by Jeff's posties.

Crawley goes for 18. Disastrous start for England.

Its not disastrous. The openers have used up an hour of the openers bowling and added 40 runs. Its not great, but its not 0-2 after 2 balls.

To be hoped that the Ollie Pope who scores massive hundreds has turned up, not the one who gets out for not-a-lot.

Its odd - England have Pope and Crawly who are similar in this regard. A usual series seems to be one or two huge scores and a lot of barely into the teens. Now that can work for a team, but you do need the more reliable scorers in your team too. Happily England have Root, Brook and now Smith who are more consistent (thats my perception, at least).

I am on holiday in some distant EU hinterland so the only UK News available is Sky. Although I have Sky at home SkyNews is not a channel I watch. But man alive, is it poor?

My main observation is the Chief Anchor, a characterless droid, is David Frost's son. I also note that David Dimbleby's son is a reporter on ITN. It's not what you know but who you know.

Wilfred Frost has a PPE degree from Oxford, he just chose media rather than being an MP or a banker (his grandfather was also the 17th Duke of Norfolk so he has blue blood as well as being media royalty).

Fred Dimbleby edited Cherwell, the Oxford University student newspaper

WTAF!

In a funny way, this ties into our discussions about the Norman Conquest. The more aristocratic Norman ancestry you have, the better you will do in life, in general.

Just ask Danny Dyer and Frank Gardiner!

I know that HS2 is the shittiest of shit sandwiches. It should be a study in how to fuck up infrastructure projects so that we do it differently next time. Because there has to be a next time. We have stopped investing in new infrastructure. We're not building new railways, we're barely electrifying and modernising the old ones. We're not building airports or motorways. And everyone else is.

A few obvious gimmes to avoid next time:
1) A deliverable objective. 225mph made no sense yet is responsible for large amounts of the cost
2) Decouple from daily politics. We're building this infrastructure, here is the market price for the land, no we won't be swayed by legal idiocy or political bunfights. How much of the cost overruns have been caused by internal political rows inside the various Tory governments?
3) Don't be zealots. HS2 has an absurd contract for infrastructure which leaves the contractor liable for all kinds of lunacy decades into the future. Which means design choices costing vast amounts now to mitigate down the line private sector risk. This is a government project - we bear the risk regardless of how evil certain politicians thought state subsidy was

If Starmer wants to actually get things done, get Road Construction Units formed and actually get on with these stalled for decades projects. Cut the costs by having RCUs permanently busy. Never mind "we're stopping wiring the Midland Mainline because it costs money now". Wires means cheaper trains, lower running costs and higher economic activity. Just get on with the frakking thing already.

This is why a change of government is needed. No, not back to the Jake Berry's of this world who utterly arsed things up. We are broken and we are lost. Unable to do the things that France and Spain and Belgium and Germany do, falling further and further behind whilst still claiming to be better than them.

Ask Macron for ideas how to get things built.

It’s been discussed on here before and links provided showing that there is a bit of a myth about us being singularly bad at infrastructure projects compared to Germany etc.

https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20250216-late-trains-old-bridges-no-signal-germany-s-infrastructure-woes

https://www.iwkoeln.de/en/studies/thomas-puls-the-next-german-challenge-eng.html

We also have the disadvantage compared to France, Germany and Spain for example of having a smaller country with a large population and high land costs which doesn’t help at all.

The thing that annoys me most about infrastructure is that you know that the price when first mooted will always be inflated hugely by the end. There are reasons for this, such as making (expensive) changes during construction and gold plating stuff, but its so inevitable.

Not always the case - some of our biggest projects in Scotland have come in under budget, and early. There is quite a lot of work on optimism bias, and I think our anticipation of issues is a bit better than elsewhere.

A9 dualling is an interesting example - it's taking a lot longer to deliver than suggested, and there have been some delays on the actual construction of the segments, but they tend to be minor and recognised very early in the process - like Tomatin/Moy extending from end '27 to start '28.

Most delays have been political, such as A9 and A96 being delayed when the Greens were in government, or when politicians and civil servants get involved in decisions that should have been left to engineers, such as ferries.

A9 dualling is a disgrace to Holyrood politicians

As far back as the 70's it was talked about, and for anyone who knows the road from Perth to Inverness it is shockingly dangerous

Mind you, why should the Highlands receive road improvement benefits when the important voters are in the central belt ?