This thread is for talking about railways, and things related to railways, in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Let's talk about trips we've made, journeys we've taken and would like to take, and trains and stations that we like, without being freaks about it.

The usual interesting links:
~Trainline (thetrainline.com/) - probably the best option for overseas visitors wishing to purchase tickets.
~National Rail Enquiries (nationalrail.co.uk/) - will show you the possible options for travelling by train, and link you to the train operator's website to buy a ticket. It doesn't matter which train operator you buy a ticket from, they'll all sell you a ticket from anywhere to anywhere for the same price.
~Realtimetrains (realtimetrains.co.uk/) - track your train in real-time: ideal for keeping on top of your ETA and platform numbers.
~Openrailwaymap (openrailwaymap.org/) - for finding existing and disused railway infrastructure.
~The Man in Seat 61 (seat61.com/) - the best UK & EU (and beyond!) rail travel resource out there.

What's happening?
~Phase One of High Speed 2 (Birmingham-London): hs2.org.uk/
~Belfast Great Victoria Street re-construction as Belfast Grand Central: weaverscross.co.uk/belfast-transport-hub/
~The Transpennine Route Upgrade (electrifying the Liverpool-York mainline): thetrupgrade.co.uk/
~The Midland Main Line electrification (no website!)
~The East Coast Digital Programme: nextgenerationrailway.co.uk/

What's kind of happening, but not quite yet?
~Great British Railways: quietly pushed under the rug. Maybe smothered, or maybe it'll be brought out and dusted off after next year's general election?...
~Avanti's Class 805 and 807 trains are undergoing testing ahead of introduction this year; one or two of EMR's Class 810s are also 'on test', due to appear in 2024
~East West Rail (Oxford-Cambridge rail link) is still in the planning stage
~Crossrail 2 (north-south London rail link) is ... not likely to happen for a few decades