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Unusually this week we are nominating both a Wanker and a non-Wanker. As a contributor to our Guestbook pointed out, Good Samaritans do still exist. People can still be kind, and common-sense can still be found. But not, it seems, on a Virgin train from Manchester to London the other day. Lena Ainscow, 75, was travelling to see her daughter and her family. Her £11.50 pre-booked ticket for the trip to Bromley was for the 10.45am Manchester to Euston service but her Virgin travel itinerary said she had been booked on the 10.15am service, so Virgin staff at Manchester told her to get on that train instead. Couldn't resist the chance to use a picture of a train, although it has to be said this one looks for all the world like a gigantic dildo. Nice tidy track, though. Despite the fact that the train was far from full, the ticket collector (we think they're called "train managers" now) saw an opportunity to show the world how important he is, demanded that Mrs.Ainscow pay the full fare - £115, no less - because her ticket wasn't valid on that train, and threatened to throw her off the train if she didn't. Nice going, Mr.Virgin Train Manager, how impressed we are with your importance, your self-righteous rectitude, your pompous arse-licking adherence to every nook and cranny of the rulebook, and your determination to bully helpless old ladies. You're not just our Wanker of the Week, but thanks to the national press your name, did we but know it, would be a byword for Wankerdom in every household in the country. You are a total tosser, and so say all of us. Fellow passenger Tom Wrigglesworth (yes, Wrigglesworth. Only in Manchester, only in Manchester …) stepped in to help. When his pleas for leniency, common-sense, decency etc. were rejected, he got a paper bag from the buffet and went up and down the train telling people what had happened and asking them for donations. He told them that if they each gave £1, Mrs.Ainscow's fare would be covered easily. And they did - one even put in £30. But the Train Manager (may his name be filth under our feet, may the rulebook he has swallowed swell up and choke him) couldn't brook this challenge to His Authority. He accused Mr.Wrigglesworth of begging, and when the train arrived at Euston there were police officers waiting to arrest him. Luckily two more Samaritans, other passengers, intervened and the police took no action. A spokesman for Virgin Trains said 'All I can do is apologise for the distress that has been caused to both these people. We will contact them to get full details.' So, Tom Wrigglesworth - who is a standup comedian, by the way, so we may dare hope that this incident will yet be immortalised as part of his act - for your compassion and initiative, you are our non-Wanker of the Week. Congratulations. As for that other Wanker, if any reader can find out the actual name of this despicable little jobsworth, do let us know … either on this site or on the World Wide Web. Copyright © 2008 The GOS This site created and maintained by PlainSite |
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