Great Western Coffee Shop

The 04.34 Reading - Gatwick also forms the 05.56 Gatwick - Reading. The latter train left Gatwick 25 minutes late and missed North Camp, Blackwater and Wokingham. The FGW website said this was due to a 'unusually large passenger flow'. I'm guessing this was for the 04.34 Reading - Gatwick service that was delayed. I know the Reading festival ended today, but did all hell really break loose at 4.30am this morning? To delay the Gatwick service???

Most probably - yes!

The festival finishes on Sunday evening and immediately a thousand or more make their way to the station. I have no doubt the 0434 Gatwick would have been full and standing leaving Reading.

Extra services were put on through the night for Paddington. But I would think that there would still have been a queue forming by 0800. On past experience, by 1100 the queue to get in the station would have been quarter of a mile long.

If you never seen the Monday morning operation at Reading after the festival, its well worth a look.

Something like this:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/clivester/2822656240/#/photos/clivester/2822656240/lightbox/

Ecky thump. Last time I saw a station looking like that was Tornado's first arrival at King's Cross...took about half an hour to get out of there.

http://www.zimbio.com/pictures/86VOr4aE6_g/New+Tornado+Steam+Train+Makes+First+Journey/r7My5BQCsyS (http://www.zimbio.com/pictures/86VOr4aE6_g/New+Tornado+Steam+Train+Makes+First+Journey/r7My5BQCsyS)