The story so far...

[GuyBarry]

(BTW, I'm taking the view that every contribution on the thread will be considered copyright-free; let me know if that's not the case )

As long as I get a credit, I'm happy for you to use my material. I'd have thought that a general list of credits at the end would suffice.

[GuyBarry]

Only 55 stations left to do now, plus six dodgy ones to redo - a total of 61 by my reckoning (or 63 if Hammersmith and Paddington have to be duplicated). My latest instalment is going on rather a lot though, so please feel free to step in with your own ideas!

[RobbieM]

Wow - back after a few busy days (and before the next busy few!). I see someone's been busy; about time I added a twist...

[GuyBarry]

Got a bit carried away there I'm afraid! There are some really nasty ones left though - I think it's going to get a lot harder.

[RobbieM]

Got a bit carried away there I'm afraid! There are some really nasty ones left though - I think it's going to get a lot harder.

We'll get there! Where there's a will, there's a way!

[GuyBarry]

Phew! I think I'm going to end up finishing this off single-handed, but I'm still grateful for all contributions. There are 22 stations left, including one to be redone:

Barons Court, Bermondsey, Buckhurst Hill, Canary Wharf [to be redone], Croxley, Earl's Court, East Putney, Euston Square, Harrow and Wealdstone, Hyde Park Corner, Kilburn Park, North Wembley, Northolt, Putney Bridge, South Harrow, Sudbury Hill, Sudbury Town, Tottenham Court Road, Totteridge and Whetstone, Wembley Central, Westbourne Park, Westminster

The three duplicates (Edgware Road, Hammersmith, Paddington) have been taken care of.

Quite apart from the problem of fitting in all the hardest names, there are at least five separate plot lines that need to be resolved somehow. What a nightmare!

[GuyBarry]

All done now! Sorry for hogging the end like that, but once I'd started I just couldn't stop. It was quite a challenge tying up all the plot-lines with the last few stations. I hope people enjoyed reading it.

If RobbieM wants any help in editing the whole thing to make it into a coherent narrative, I'd be delighted to assist. It's been great fun!

[GuyBarry]

Just re-reading the whole story and I've noticed something rather odd. On page 2, the narrative jumps straight from

"And this event proved so popular that it was repeated right across London at various local open spaces, ranging from EALING COMMON, Ruislip WOODS, 'YDE PARK and KEW GARDENS." to
"Wes went on the run to the countryside location of BRILL, where THEY DON BOISterous Hawaiian shirts, hoping that he would fit in..."

The crucial plot-establishing post that introduces Wes, where he steals the birds, is absent. I can't remember who posted it but is there any reason why it would have been withdrawn?

EDIT: Actually that's not the only post - I think there were 202 posts in the thread originally, now there are only 189, so it looks as though someone's withdrawn their entire contribution. Oh dear. Does that mean the whole thing is now unusable?

[greatkingrat]

Scrxisi appears to have deleted his account and all his posts have gone with it.

[tractakid]

Scrxisi appears to have deleted his account and all his posts have gone with it.

That's really sad. He made a lot of great contributions.

[GuyBarry]

Yes, that's a shame. I was going to check through the whole thing anyway to make sure that all the stations had been used, but now it seems that some will have to be redone (and bits of the plot will have to be reconstructed). I'll try to make a list of missing stations today - then RobbieM will have to decide what to do about them. Just when I thought it was all finished!

[GuyBarry]

Fortunately I made a list of tube stations in the order they were used in the earlier part of the story, so here are all the omissions I've noted. (I didn't keep a full record of non-tube station posts though, so there may be others.)

[after "makinG ALL ION'S REACH maximum velocity for improved results"] Waterloo
[after "the long darK NIGHTS BRIDGEd the gap between them"] Chesham, Whitechapel
[after "EALING COMMON, Ruislip WOODS, 'YDE PARK and KEW GARDENS"] West Acton, King's Cross St Pancras
[after "ON GARdening leave"] Queen's Park
[after "passing thRU ISLIP station"] Stockwell
[after "1963 GREEN FORD Anglia"] Royal Oak
[after "1000 Saudi riyAL PER TON"] Canning Town
[after "Doctor iS OUT HEALING the sick"] North Ealing
[after "CIRCUS people all around them had been parading through the city centre"] Wanstead, Epping, Borough
[after "TURN 'EM GREEN with envy"] Redbridge
[after "GROVElling to the others, he asked if they could lend him a few bob..."] Farringdon

Now all we need to do is exercise sufficient ingenuity to reconstruct the original posts (or come up with alternative ones that fit the plot). Anyone want to try? I've got a few ideas...

[RobbieM]

Recovering some lost parts:

22 Jun 2012, 00:48
Desperate, they tried to blame the result of the drugs test on contaminated WATER. "LOOk in the supply in the school canteen" they urged.
23 Jun 2012, 19:59
This strange daytime avian choir attracted people from all over the world; they stood and watched in several bunCHES - HAM sandwiches were provided by Patrick WHITE, CHAPEL caretaker, to ensure the masses were well fed.
23 Jun 2012, 22:32
An enterprising local, WES TACTON, decided to capture the strange choking birds with a view to charging worldwide royalty to see them perform - a move that made many KINGS CROSS. ST PANCRAS then, for Wes was now a man on the run!
23 Jun 2012, 23:05
A few weeks passed before one evening a drinking buddy forced him to the ground - "the QUEEN'S PARKed up outside" he said, "you need to hide until the danger has passed.
24 Jun 2012, 00:15
It wasn't a very nice; insects were abundant and he had nothing with which he could sWAT. FOR Dozens of days he remained, until his aforementioned drinking buddy - COLIN DALE came and rescued him.

[RobbieM]

Recovering more lost parts:

24 Jun 2012, 14:04
At PADDINGTON they were able to rest for a few moments and take STOCK. "WELL my bird pilfering plan hasn't gone well" stated Wes. As they boarded the Islip train, they hoped the heat would be off - but they weren't to know what would happen next...
24 Jun 2012, 21:27
Once again they were on the run - they slipped into a random pub where several tube enthusiasts were meeting. After introductions, one such geek remarked how strange it was that they all seemed to have tube station like names - a fact they had never considered. They then explained their plight and one man - ROY ALOAK - offered to help; but it would come at a price...
25 Jun 2012, 19:49
The only problem now was inventory. They had made their train but were now stuck in rural Oxfordshire. They stole a car and began sCANNING TOWNs for tube maps.
25 Jun 2012, 21:38
Beth & Al were selling them cheap, but they still had to visit the BANK to get the funds. Unfamiliar with the area, they asked for directions - they were told to head for where the DOLL IS. HILLy terrain was no impediment and soon they were ready to buy.
26 Jun 2012, 19:52
The techniques employed by the witch doctor appeared strange to the untrained eye - patients were made to sNORT HEALING OAK - WOOD being his ingredient of choice.
27 Jun 2012, 18:36
At that moment, things took an unexpected turn for the worse. Their car was newly fixed but from out of nowhere a sWAN STEADily attacked the cars bonnet, breaking through and once again disabling the engine.
27 Jun 2012, 19:28
They fled, tube maps flying everywhere, on foot. Their GREEN FORD had finally be caught by WARREN STREET's GREEN FORD, in what was becoming an ever more complex situation. After roaming for what nmust have been hours, they fell onto a train at Oxford station and ended up in Sheffield. With no car, or maps, or money, they decided for no apparent reason to break into the lEPPINGs Lane End at Sheffield Wednesday's HillsBOROUGH ground and watch a match - it would give them 90 minutes to come up with a new plan.
29 Jun 2012, 13:45
The match did no favours for the fleeing trio however - they had failed to use the game to think of a plan B, instead debating how Ledley King had suddenly become Dutch for 90 minutes. They wanted to stay out of the way - they saw a RED BRIDGE in the distance. They sought shelter beneath it until they could come up with a plan.

[RobbieM]

Final one?

25 Sep 2012, 22:45
The others sighed - it had been so long since he asked, they had forgotten most of what happened before. Colin recapped - not easy as the story had come so FAR. RING DON they said - he might be able to help...

I think that's it - let me know if I've missed any!