Cable thieves and clean cars

This week, I am once again up in arms but this time, against the copper cable thieves who have left us without phone and internet for the foreseeable future - the BTC, incredibly, with the extended Christmas holiday almost on us, having no reserve stock on hand and being unable to commit itself to any timetable for reinstating its twin services.

When a phone is knocked out like this, it is essential that anyone calling it hears a distinctive ring tone. For something like a quarter of a century I have been vainly urging the totally deaf leadership of Telecomms Corporation to effect this small technical change which would immediately advise the caller that the phone is out of order and would eliminate a host of unnecessary misunderstandings and frustrations.