And so, to set the scene, Willard has been invited to one of bmi's increasingly rare "Gold Cardmember Events" (actually, Ken and Pat were invited, but we're always having difficulty explaining to the little fella that these invitations aren't addressed to him!). Having had the last event cancelled on us at the last minute, due to sudden budget restraints, we were especially keen to take up our "home" airline's offer of an evening at Manchester United Football Club, watching England play Sweden. - And so, if you are a regular reader, you will know that Willard is currently with Ken working on the South Coast, and so this trip starts with a flight out of London Heathrow to Manchester, and Willard (and Kens) first expereince of BD's much maligned "Modular Service". Like any such trip, this starts with the (compulsory) self check-in kiosk. Hoewever Willard is happy to report that this process has gotten a lot better since it was first introduced, and he managed to get a self-printed boarding pass (and a reciept!) with relatively little trouble.

At least as BD Gold Willard is still allowed to use the BD lounge at T1 Domestic (If BD had not backed down on this I think that their HQ would have been set-upon by a lynch-mob of angry BD*Gs - probably led by AJameson!). Here he is checking in at the desk like a good little bear. This is probably also a good time to point out that Willard felt the need to be patriotic and dress up for the occasion!

And he didn't think he'd get a chance to have another ride on a BD A330 on this trip! Yeeeeee-Haaaaaaaah, Yeeaaaaaaaaa-Hawwwwwwwww!

So it's up in the lift to the virtually deserted Diamond Club lounge. At one point, even at this time of the day it would have been pretty full, now Willard has his pick of seats.

Since it's been over a year since he's been here, Willard takes a look around the facilities. He's sad to see that the drinks are no longer on free-pour, and, generally the range of snacks has diminished!