A big woo-hoo for China's latest batch of choo-choos

"Uh-oh. That's not normal." We had only just left Brussels Midi station, and already the Eurostar train's emergency brakes had locked on and we'd screeched to a halt.

From underneath us came the sound of huffing, clanking and electricity buzzing - all to no effect. Sure enough, two minutes later came the announcement. "We apologize, but the train appears to have a technical fault."

"Hit it with a spanner!" someone shouted back.