The quiet coach

I've found myself on the "quiet coach" in a train heading from Leeds to Newcastle. I've never sat in a quiet coach before, and it's a revelation! It's so quiet that I felt embarrassed just to open a packet of crisps, and I've now had to turn off the tapping noise my iphone makes when I send a text! People were staring and tutting. They're proper vigilantes! 

A woman opposite me is knitting, and I can hear the clickety-click of her needles above the sound of the train! Oh no, I just turned around and stared at a man whispering into a mobile phone! I've become one of those people I was previously writing about! 

I've bought myself a salad from M and S, which I'm going to have to eat with my fingers... And in such refined company. I might as well vomit all over the knitting lady's patent leather wedge-heeled shoes with a delicate ankle strap. 

I'm not feeling very well. Yesterday's filming pretty much wiped me out, probably as much a result of the dreadful food I've been chowing down on during the shoots. People see me getting irritable and literally shove food in my mouth! 

Keith, the camera man was pre-warned about my tendency to get shirty when hungry, and filled my monitor bag with all sorts of lovely little treats, which is incredibly kind of him. On several occasions I've found myself having a guilty secret rummage and pulling out a chocolate bar. Not good for me, but it's perfect for the shoot!

I was in Leeds today discussing the symphony project. It was great to see Penny and Alison, but I'm not sure any of us were able to add anything particularly useful to the sorry situation. We can't officially move forward with the BBC Nations for nearly a month. Plenty of time, in my experience, for the idea to go completely cold and for those who loved it when it first got discussed, to decide they love another idea just that little bit more! In the meantime, I'm looking at my bank balance and panicking! Happy days! 

Does anyone reading this ever get the desire to stay on a train, just to see where it goes? I know this train will eventually take me to Edinburgh, and part of me just wants to go! With everything so up in somewhere, I'm feeling somewhat restless and reckless. If I didn't start shooting at 7.30am tomorrow morning, I'd probably take myself on a little adventure! I could call in on Tanya in Glasgow...

350 years ago, Pepys went to Westminster with Sir William Penn, and on their way through the City, they saw that scaffolding towers were already being erected for people to watch the Coronation procession, scheduled to happen 2 months from that date.

In the evening, and after another day of drinking, Pepys returned home and found his old mate Mr Moore waiting for him. The two men stayed up late, reading books and talking to one another. Sounds like a perfect evening!