Local Terrorism?
I got to the end of one of my amazingly interesting journeys to the ar*e end of Kent, when the guard on the train runs full pelt up the platform to tell me there is a metal case on a luggage rack with wires hanging out of it.

"Bugger!" I think, looking at the date on my watch:

Friday 8th July 2005

The station is closed and all hell breaks loose, exclusion zones, sniffer dogs, annoyed passengers and 6ft+ policemen with rather automatic looking weapons...

Anyhew, turns out a local photographer had left his equipment on the train, £2k+ worth of camera, flash, laptop.etc and a memory card with someone's wedding photos on it. Once the boys in blue had 'made it safe' (i.e. kicked it a couple of times to see if it ticked) I was handed the case and went off to fill in the paperwork, by which time a rather sheepish photographer had turned up, having got all the way home from the station before realising.

I handed the case over and happily pointed to the rather senior police-bod who wanted a chat with this fellow. The guys only words to me were "Who's been messing with my laptop?" Not "sorry" or "Bloody Hell, have a £10 for your trouble" - no - "Who's been messing with my laptop?"

And I got more paperwork the next day to write up the delay to the service. That's the thanks I got - and one of the many reasons railway staff are always in a bad mood.
( HSDriver was probably still at work on, Tue 29 May 2007, 9:08, Reply)