http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/10170185.stm

I was interested to read this report on first class rail travel fares, especially since it concerns Southeastern, the company I use every day. I have always maintained since they brought in the new trains that first class was a con on Southeastern, because there is no difference whatsoever between first class seating and the rest of the seating on the train. It's just that they've stuck '1st class' on the partition. In the old slam-door trains you'd have whole carriages that were 1st class, or at least sections that were properly separated with doors. They had compartments where at most 8 people could sit and shut a door. They had nicer seats, curtains on the windows, and reading lamps above each seat. You actually felt you were getting something for the extra fare. When I was in Cambridge, the WAGN trains had 1st class sections that were separated by glass doors and had more legroom and bigger tables. On Southeastern there is nothing to distinguish the 1st class section from anything else, so why on Earth would anyone pay up to 63% more for their ticket to travel in it?