SWT quiz guard

[cjohnson]

According to my better half, and a few other acquaintances, there's a guard on SWT suburban services who regularly offers evening commuters a quiz on their way home - mainly a series of "guess the year" questions. Somehow he also manages to put up the questions/answers on the 455s digital information boards and is a big hit on Twitter.

Sadly despite a daily SWT suburban commute I've managed to miss this treat

According to Twitter he comes up with lines such as
"Sorry there are no prizes because I cannot afford them, this is just as a break from the sudoku" and "Expect the unexpected on my train"

Just wondering if:
- anyone else has travelled on services with this guard with his quizzes;
- any chance I can time my commute to/from Waterloo to enjoy said quizzes; and
- how easy it is to tweak the display of a 455/456 to run a pub quiz

 

[Mojo]

Yes there's a few videos of him "in action" on the Facebook group "S*** London."

All the videos I've seen are on the 450s though; although there is a newspaper story from 2012 that if you search for it will reveal a photo taken on a 455.

 

[Bletchleyite]

This I guess:

http://www.standard.co.uk/news/lond...mutes-with-mid-journey-pub-quiz-a2917271.html

 

[TheNewNo2]

I'm quite surprised the Standard didn't demand the guard be fired or the railway replaced by a motorway or something.

 

[HarleyDavidson]

Oh you've experienced him, you ought to try working with him. Some people call him thrush, as he's highly irritating.

 

[embers25]

Had the pleasure of his company from Petersfield to London a while back and he had the whole train in stitches with some of his questions and answers. His efforts certainly seemed appreciated and up and down the carriage I was in, almost everyone was taking part and as he checked tickets everyone was talking with him and it created a real relaxed and happy atmosphere on board.

 

[asylumxl]

Oh you've experienced him, you ought to try working with him. Some people call him thrush, as he's highly irritating.

I'm sure the feeling is mutual.

 

[Greenback]

There are always people that an individual will find irritating, and there always will be. We can't all like everyone else, it's enough to just get on with them as best you can in a working environment!

 

[Deepgreen]

Oh you've experienced him, you ought to try working with him. Some people call him thrush, as he's highly irritating.

Well, he would certainly annoy me. I would prefer that SWT got their passenger information right more often, but perhaps I'm being unreasonable!

 

[RichardN]

I've been on his services a couple of times.. Proof it's possible to love and hate something at the same time!

 

[Minilad]

I am sure there are certain TOCs where this guy would be in the office sharpish for not adhering to laid down announcement protocol or some such corporate gobbledegook

 

[ainsworth74]

I am sure there are certain TOCs where this guy would be in the office sharpish for not adhering to laid down announcement protocol or some such corporate gobbledegook

I was thinking that. This sort of passenger friendly nonsense really must be cut down on. After all how will he make his quote of warning us that our bags may be removed or destroyed by the security services if he's trying to ensure his passengers have a pleasant journey?!

 

[Bletchleyite]

I am sure there are certain TOCs where this guy would be in the office sharpish for not adhering to laid down announcement protocol or some such corporate gobbledegook

That was my thought, but SWT do very much seem to have a different attitude to guards than other TOCs - one that seems, from a passenger's point of view, to let them get on with being professionals within the railway Rule Book rather than laying down a load of extra stuff.

 

[Clip]

Thres a rather happy guard who works for Northern who made some great and funny announcements when I was on the train to Saltburn the other week - everyone enjoyed it and was a credit to Northern for even making the mundane announcements happy.

Not everyone's cup of tea, granted but you cant please everyone all the time.

 

[Peter Mugridge]

The story has been picked up by the Daily Telegraph ( print edition - can't find it online yet ) today and the report quotes SWT as being unaware of this, the exact wording of which doesn't sound too good for the guard in question unfortunately.

 

[Clip]

#How can they be unaware of it when the standard showed a couple of tweets with them mentioned in it? Unless their CS team didn't pass it on?

 

[swtandgw]

That was my thought, but SWT do very much seem to have a different attitude to guards than other TOCs - one that seems, from a passenger's point of view, to let them get on with being professionals within the railway Rule Book rather than laying down a load of extra stuff.

In all honesty, it's at least showing a more human side to guards as opposed to the more "corporate drone/minion" mentality that's often prevalent in today's society.

 

[misterredmist]

Well good luck to the geyser , nice to see a bit of initiative shown in what's become a very sterile environment for senses of humour

 

[najaB]

#How can they be unaware of it when the standard showed a couple of tweets with them mentioned in it? Unless their CS team didn't pass it on?

There's knowing about something, and then there's being 'made aware' of it.

 

[Master29]

Last year there was a train manager on an FGW HST announcing his own verbal additional quirks to station announcements. Train will shortly be arriving at Titillating Tiverton Parkway, Excellent Exeter, Terrific Taunton sort of thing. Not sure any of these town residents would agree with these descriptions however.

 

[bearhugger]

Thres a rather happy guard who works for Northern who made some great and funny announcements when I was on the train to Saltburn the other week - everyone enjoyed it and was a credit to Northern for even making the mundane announcements happy.

Not everyone's cup of tea, granted but you cant please everyone all the time.

That's probably Graeme. He's been in the local paper earlier in the year - the article focused on his use of rhyming couplets to make the announcements. Makes the journey much more interesting and seems to have the unofficial backing of Northern as it generates more positive comments from passengers.

 

[SPADTrap]

seems to have the unofficial backing of Northern as it generates more positive comments from passengers.

Which is where the issue lies, that 'backing' goes out the window when it doesn't.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Last year there was a train manager on an FGW HST announcing his own verbal additional quirks to station announcements. Train will shortly be arriving at Titillating Tiverton Parkway, Excellent Exeter, Terrific Taunton sort of thing. Not sure any of these town residents would agree with these descriptions however.

I'm reminded of a VT guard ages ago: "We are now arriving at Preston. Change here for Colne, Windermere, Barrow in Furness and Ormskirk[1]. You can also change here for Blackpool, though why you would want to is anybody's guess".

[1] or a similar list.

 

[RichardN]

There are some Southern Metro drivers who are known for their quirky announcements too. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJFm6ehZkTQ

 

[Paul180]

Well I remember been on an EC train back in 2012 around the time they must have been filming they TV program and the tunnel was flooded and my train was heavy delayed and the guard said over the tannoy that the buffet car was out of arm bands and rubber rings it brightened up my trip and put a smile on some of the grumpy people aroun myself.

 

[Bletchleyite]

There are some Southern Metro drivers who are known for their quirky announcements too. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJFm6ehZkTQ

There are a few of them on the Tube as well. Better in every way than the verbal diarrhoea exhibited by LUL platform staff, mainly those on the subsurface lines. There is no need for a running commentary when it would suffice to have an autoannouncer announcing the destination (and that only[1]), then "bing bong"[2] and "beepbeepbeepbeepbeep" get the idea across. It's as bad as those buses that used to announce "bus stopping at next bus stop, please stand clear of doors", when everyone knows full well that that information can be conveyed adequately with a simple "ding".

[1] "All stations to X" is spurious unless a Metropolitan Line train is involved, and even then only if it is westbound[3]. Indeed, it actively causes confusion, as it gets people thinking that there are LUL trains (other than the aforementioned westbound Metropolitan Line trains) that *don't* call at all (open) stations.

[2] Must admit I quite like the S-stock bing-bong, it almost sounds like a violin playing it. Classy, and very London.

[3] from central London

 

[Minilad]

There are a few of them on the Tube as well. Better in every way than the verbal diarrhoea exhibited by LUL platform staff, mainly those on the subsurface lines. There is no need for a running commentary when it would suffice to have an autoannouncer announcing the destination (and that only[1]), then "bing bong"[2] and "beepbeepbeepbeepbeep" get the idea across. It's as bad as those buses that used to announce "bus stopping at next bus stop, please stand clear of doors", when everyone knows full well that that information can be conveyed adequately with a simple "ding".

[1] "All stations to X" is spurious unless a Metropolitan Line train is involved, and even then only if it is westbound. Indeed, it actively causes confusion, as it gets people thinking that there are LUL trains (other than the aforementioned westbound Metropolitan Line trains) that *don't* call at all (open) stations.

[2] Must admit I quite like the S-stock bing-bong, it almost sounds like a violin playing it. Classy, and very London.

Oxymoron klaxon

 

[greatkingrat]

That's probably Graeme. He's been in the local paper earlier in the year - the article focused on his use of rhyming couplets to make the announcements. Makes the journey much more interesting and seems to have the unofficial backing of Northern as it generates more positive comments from passengers.

There is a Virgin Trains attendant who went through the entire buffet menu in rhyming couplets. Got a bit annoying the third time round.

 

[Matt Taylor]

Frstly, it's not me. Secondly, SWT are well aware of the guard in question and this has been going on for a couple of years at least, I believe he is based at Woking or Guildford.

SWT in general do give us quite a bit of freedom to add the personal touch etc to the retail side of the job fortunately.

 

[RichardN]

Frstly, it's not me. Secondly, SWT are well aware of the guard in question and this has been going on for a couple of years at least, I believe he is based at Woking or Guildford.

SWT in general do give us quite a bit of freedom to add the personal touch etc to the retail side of the job fortunately.

What I mean by love and hate... I don't care for the quizzes, but I absolutely don't want him to stop. I'd ather see personality I don't really care for, than corporate communication that leaves no room for personality whatsoever.