Great Western Coffee Shop

Daily Mail reporting Ed Miliband travelled first class on his "meet the people tour".  What amused me most was not the fact he travelled first class - as I do when I have the chance and the price is right - but that his aides tried to hide the fact!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1377051/Ed-Miliband-happy-pose-council-estate-seen-travelling-class.html (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1377051/Ed-Miliband-happy-pose-council-estate-seen-travelling-class.html)

I've noticed quite a bit over the last year or so whenever leading politicians travel by train in First, that antimacassars are routinely removed for TV interviews. How stupid. Why should anyone have a problem when the prime minister, deputy primeminister, leader of the opposition travel first class? It's political correctness which I detest  >:(

All Ed Milliband's team have done by doing this is give the Daily Mail a story.

Last year when Gordon Brown travelled down to Dorset on SWT he travelled in Std. He is was the prime minister, I would expect him to travel first class.

Gosh how times have changed when you have the UK prime minister using a budget airline to get away for a few days. Which I don't have a problem with if that is the best way to get from A to B. But to do it just to make a point, like taking a holiday in the UK rather than abroad is silly.

He was interview by the BBC in relation to the nurses vote of no confidence whilst sat in a Pendolino first class carriage.

Last year when Michael Portillo did some of his pieces to camera on FGW HSTs (in standard class), the FGW antimacassars were routinely removed from the seats. I assume that in the BBC's case they're being careful not to give undue prominence to the brand name, rather than trying to hide the fact that someone's travelling in first class (especially given that Portillo wasn't). Obviously that's not possible with exterior shots of trains, but my impression is that the producers did generally try to "frame out" commercial logos on the railway system as far as was reasonably possible.

From that Daily Mail article: "A spokesman for Mr Miliband insisted that he had only been travelling first class 'because train companies ask us to not disturb passengers in second class when we have a film crew accompanying us'."

So that 'spokesman' couldn't even get the terminology right in his excuse?  ::)

First Class passengers, of course, don't mind being 'disturbed'.  ;D

Phaha don't disturb standard, the first class rabble paid more go bug them!