(Accompanied by SWTSMBO who indulged in some ‘Retail Therapy’ while I was at Edgbaston.)

10/09/26 - Exeter To Birmingham
DIG 1342 (OT) > EXD 1354 (OT) : 2T20 EXM > PGN : 1 x 166/2 (3 Cars)
EXD 1427 (1429) > BHM 1655 (1658) : 1S53 PNZ > EDB : 1 x 221/1 + 1 x 220/0 (9 Cars)

Tickets (All With Senior Railcard, 2 Pax, Price Per Person):
DIG > BRI Advance Single £7.35
BRI > BHM Advance Single £11.55

2T20 not busy. Tickets/railcards not checked.
At EXD the usual PIS Train Formation display for 1S53 was absent. We, along I suspect with lots of other pax, used RTT (or similar) to ascertain approximately where to stand on P5. Big mistake - when the train arrived it proved to be in the reverse order of what RTT showed resulting in a passenger melee on the platform. (NB. On RTT the information has since been corrected). Our coach (D) was virtually full.Tickets but not railcards checked. In the front unit (221135) the catering trolley only provided a static service in the first coach F.
At BRI there was a PA announcement instructing any pax without a reservation to head for the rear 4-car unit which was apparently completely unreserved.
Having left PLY on time 1S53 started to lose time after Teignmouth and, despite timetabled extended stops of 6 minutes at BRI and 5 at BPW, still arrived at BHM 3 late. A delay leaving CNM seems to have been the main culprit.

(Overnight stay - HIE City Centre - with dinner at the rather splendid Tamatanga restaurant)

11/09/26 - Cricket/Shopping + Birmingham To Exeter
BHM 1912 (1920) > EXD 2145 (2151) : 1V66 EDB > BRI/PLY : 2 x 220/0 BHM > BRI, 1 x 220/0 BRI > PLY
(EXD 2152 (2151) > DIG 2203 (2202) : 2F35 Missed Connection)
EXD 2240 (2244) > DIG 2256 (OT) : 2F36 PGN > EXM : 1 x 165/1 (3 Cars)

Tickets (All With Senior Railcard, 2 Pax, Price Per Person):
BHM > BRI Advance Single £11.55
BRI > DIG Advance Single £7.35

1V66 had been previously delayed after Tamworth and arrived at BHM 8 down. The timetabled 5 minute wait did not produce any delay reduction. Nothing much changed until an obvious longer wait than expected at BPW led to a departure 10 down and an 8 minute late arrival at BRI. No matter; the booked 13 minute stop, where the rear unit was detached, resulted in a departure delay of only 2 minutes. Various presumed signal checks delayed the train to a 6 minute late arrival at EXD where GWR managed, not for the first time in similar circumstances, to annoy the hell out of me.
1V66 was scheduled for a 2145 arrival. 2F35 was timetabled to leave for Exmouth at 2152. The actual numbers were 2151 & 2151. So we, and other pax with Avocet Line destinations, were 2/3rds of the way across the footbridge from P4 > P1 when the GWR dispatcher evidently decided it would be OK to let 2F35 go slightly early. One can only hope that the full implementation of GBR will stop this sort of thing (fat chance). So we patiently waited for the subsequent 2F36 2240 Exmouth departure. Which, just to annoy everybody even more, was held for nearly 5 minutes to collect pax from the 12 late 1C96 ex-PAD GWR service.
I think the behaviour of the EXD platform staff qualifies as completely crap customer service. National Rail? Really?

BTW we made the entire BHM >DIG journey without any ticket or railcard checks.