WHICH is worse; a) being on a station when a train is late; b) being sat on a train which isn’t moving; c) being stood on a train which is late, packed and moving slowly.

The answer if you were me on Tuesday night is all three as it took almost three hours to get back to Huddersfield from Manchester.

My train was late into Manchester from Birmingham so I missed my connection, had to wait 30 minutes for the next service to Huddersfield.

Which was late.

We then got on the train and were told a train had ‘failed’ and was blocking the track so we couldn’t leave.

About 10 or 15 minutes later we got the all clear. Then stopped 400 yards away as the ‘failed’ train hadn’t been cleared.

We sat there for a while then chugged back into Manchester and scampered across to another platform for another train which could avoid the failed train.

This was catering for about three or four services that were delayed as a result of the stuck train so was rammed.

We went from Piccadilly to Oxford Road – and then back again I think.

Either way I was due to catch the 19.11 and I didn’t get home until 10pm.

It’s fair to say I, and hundreds of my fellow passengers, were extremely displeased.

It’s fair to say we were all late and had teas burned and appointments missed.

It’s fair to say that, in the main, we were all good-natured and relatively smiley on the outside at the prospect of edging ever nearer to our houses, families and friends.

I sometimes think we British are mad with all the rubbish we put up with.