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Nathan Slake's avatar

Grinned through this, Terry!

Ahh yes, platform and train announcements. The platforms aren't too bad here, but what's really rubbish are the within-train announcements. For some reason, despite us having a decent fleet of pretty new trains in the last few years, they seem to have inserted the most tinny and annoying speakers into them.

Your musical notation of the announcements is both very clever and very true.

Also, major chuckles are your face gif of reaction to new Substack features! I feel much the same.

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Terry Freedman's avatar

😁 Great minds, Nathan! Weird about cr*p speakers on new trains. Maybe they ran out of money. Do they also make inane announcements?

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Nathan Slake's avatar

Oh yes, 90% of announcements are inane. For example: "It's raining today. The platforms will therefore be wet, so don't run."

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Terry Freedman's avatar

😂

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Rebecca Holden's avatar

An absolute hoot - what a fantastic start to the week! You've given me hideous flashbacks of my past commute to work - of which the District Line section was the absolute pits - accompanied by immense gratitude that I don't DO that any more.

Curious choice of words by the TfL announcements team to encourage passengers to always carry a bottle of water with them to avoid getting thirsty. Is there a next-level-up announcement suggesting that if their thirst is extreme they should actually DRINK the water? I jolly well hope so.

Having not travelled in London for years and years and years I was deeply impressed by the improvements I'd noticed on my first trip to visit a certain Lord & Lady Freedman. The Elizabeth Line is fantastic, and the fact that I don't need a paper ticket makes things considerably easier (because I lose everything, as well as myself).

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Terry Freedman's avatar

Lol. Glad you enjoyed it. Good point: I was wondering why I still get thirsty even though I carry water around with me. Chortle

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Rebecca Holden's avatar

🤣

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Lisa Marks's avatar

Thank you for including me in the persiflage! By the way, I used to find taking the District Line to Barking and then - heaven forfend! - Upminster, the most frustratingly slow train journey EVER. Thank goodness for West Ham glow up (so to speak).

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Terry Freedman's avatar

The c2c to Sarfend is pretty good these days, though I tend to go by the other route. And yes, it was really slow. What did you do in Upminster? I was a teacher!

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David Perlmutter's avatar

The announcer made me think of the guy in the same position Mel Blanc played on Jack Benny's radio show: "Engine now arriving from Las Vegas....boy, did that conductor have bad luck!"

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Terry Freedman's avatar

😂

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Sharron Bassano's avatar

I loved the comment of the announcer on the Earl's Court train. So quintessentially, delightfully British. Also impressed by the animated piece of you receiving yet another feature from Substack. Excellent, Mr Freedman

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Terry Freedman's avatar

hahaha!! Isn't it just. Thanks, Sharron :-)

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Lucy Johnson's avatar

Keepie uppie as they say! I read a somewhat dire article on making a successful connection with the opposite sex using the technique you describe and this I believe is known as 'negging'. Unless I have got it completely wrong which is of course possible.

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Terry Freedman's avatar

Negging? Sounds horrible! 😆

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Lucy Johnson's avatar

Well it didn't leave a very nice taste in my mouth. That's the Internet for you!

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Terry Freedman's avatar

Lol

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Sep 23, 2024
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Terry Freedman's avatar

I do love a dangling modifier!

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Sep 23, 2024
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Terry Freedman's avatar

🤣🤣

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Sep 23, 2024
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Terry Freedman's avatar

I haven't seen the pillar for a long time but then I usually emerge from the Lizzie line. I disagree about the central line. Air con would be good, but the noise of the trains is literally deafening. Plus the Lizzie line has through carriages. The only saving grace of the central is that it's incredibly fast.

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Terry Freedman's avatar

Ps Chased by husband: 🤣

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