Christmas Getaway 2012, travel updates: live 2.41pm There are severe delays up to 90 minutes on trains in the Brighton area after an overnight fire caused major signalling problems and disruption at Preston Park. 2.39pm Are British Airways taking credit for Father Christmas? It seems so. 2.32pm Scottish ski resorts - some of which opened early due to good snowfall - are also feeling the misery of chilly weather, with some having to temporarily close due to high winds. Nevis Range: Currently closed due to 90mph winds. High winds are expected to continue into the weekend. Snow cover is decent though. Glencoe: Nine of the resort's 16 runs are currently open, with five of its seven lifts also in operation. It has reported a "good covering of soft fresh snow." Glenshee: Closed. Cairngorm: Currently closed due to 70mph winds. Blizzard conditions are expected to continue into the weekend as snow continues to fall and winds reach 100mph. The Lecht: Around half the resort's runs are open, with more expected to open soon. Some fresh snow can be found nearer the top. 2.31pm There are delays of nearly an hour for some flights departing Stansted Airport. Arrivals do not seem to be significantly disrupted. 2.26pm Proof (well, "proof") of aforementioned ELVES: 2.20pm TfL says there is "good service" on ALL tube lines this afternoon. 2.12pm If you're stuck in a traffic jam, I'm afraid you may be missing out on this: 2.05pm Currently, National Rail are reporting the following disruptions: Buses replace trains between Liskeard and Looe until further notice - Delays between Crewe and Chester until further notice - No trains between Stourbridge Junction and Birmingham Snow Hill until further notice - No trains between Ellesmere Port and Hooton until further notice - Major disruption in the Brighton area until further notice - Delays between Doncaster/ Sheffield and Leeds until further notice - Delays between Manchester Piccadilly and Warrington Central until further notice - Delays between Stirling / Kirkcaldy and Perth until further notice - Delays between Derby and Nottingham / East Midlands Parkway until further notice - Major delays to and from London Paddington expected until 16:00 2pm The Met Office have announced a severe weather warning for the north west, saying: "Persistent, and often heavy rain will continue to affect much of eastern Scotland and parts of NE England on Friday. The public should be aware of the risk of localised flooding and travel disruption. 1.28pm If you need to break some important news to your family, Christmas is apparently the most popular time to do it. Well, at least according to a survey by Barclays bank. Their extensive research of 2,000 British adults found millions "use a festive family get-together to reveal their life-changing news," including announcing their homosexuality, plans to propose, splits from partners and requests for money from parents. They claim: 11 per cent of people ask for money - eight per cent discuss a family will - five per cent "announce their previously undisclosed sexual orientation" - four per cent of women announce a pregnancy - another four per cent will "reveal news of a break-up or new relationship" - two per cent of men will ask their in-laws for their daughter's hand in marriage Andy Gray, Barclays managing director, said: Many use this occasion, when spirits are high, to have these somewhat difficult conversations with our family. 1.27pm The northbound exit slip on the A19 for the A139 near Cleveland is closed due to surface water, the Highways Agency have reported. It isn't expected to re-open until 6pm. 1.24pm Even MPs are taking time our of their busy schedules to spread a little Christmas cheer: 1.12pm National Rail says trains from Paddington station will continue to be disrupted until 4pm. Latest updates include: London Paddington - Greenford services are cancelled - London Paddington - Reading local services are reduced to an hourly service - London Paddington - Bedwyn services are running between Reading and Bedwyn only - London Paddington - Cardiff Central services are cancelled. - London Paddington - Bristol Temple Meads route has a reduced service. Trains depart London Paddington on the hour, and depart Bristol Temple Meads at 30 minutes past the hour - First Great Western ticket restrictions have been lifted for today - Services on all other routes may be delayed by up to 60 minutes. 1.07pm Apparently there are luggage-lifting, snow-dancing, mince pie-wielding ELVES at Marylebone Station. The Press Association reports: Elves greeted travellers with mince pies and danced in the snow at Marylebone Station as the annual Christmas getaway got into full swing. The elves - hired actors and Chiltern Railways staff in disguise - helped passengers with bags and tickets on the busiest travel day of the year. Thomas Ableman, Chiltern Railways commercial director, said: "We have got eight elves throughout the station. I've got my head of sales as Santa. "We put extra people at the station during the Olympics and had them wear pink vests, but now it's elf outfits," Mr Ableman said. Some people have been quite surprised. They are not used to seeing that level of service anyway, especially during Christmas. 1pm A Boxing Day strike by London Underground drivers is still planned to go ahead and will cause "significant disruption."Howard Collins, London Underground's chief operating officer, said: Train drivers are paid a salary that reflects some bank holiday working, but the Aslef leadership is demanding to be paid twice for the same work and has rejected our attempts to resolve the matter. The scandalous actions of the Aslef leadership are an attempt to hold Londoners to ransom and demonstrate a wholesale disregard for our customers, making life harder for shoppers, sports fans, retail workers and businesses at an important time. Arsenal have already called off their Premier League game with West Ham because fans would have faced huge problems getting to the ground. 12.58pm Aww. The Olympic volunteers are back at Heathrow, trying to keep the masses entertained. Paul Wright reports: Heathrow bosses afraid of the Christmas getaway crush have had to ship in 150 of the volunteers who helped the airport during the 2012 Olympic Games. They will be trying to keep the flow of passengers going by offering advice on baggage and hand luggage restrictions, including Christmas crackers, and by keeping the kids quiet with children "fun packs." Nancy Baines, a 19-year-old student, said: "Everyone is really grateful and appreciative of our help. So many passengers have said that they wish we were here all year round to help. 12.53pm Have Coral bookmakers got the exclusive on the Queen's outfit for her Christmas appearance at Sandringham? They claim to have taken a flurry of bets in the Windsor area as people place money on the colour of her hat. They cite an "almighty gamble on green," as they slash odds from 10/1 to just 2/1. Blue and peach appear to be the next most popular choices, with gold being the least likely. 12.49pm Alastair Campbell, on the other hand, is having a lovely time: 12.44pm It is one of the busiest days of the year on airlines, with Heathrow Airport expecting 123,000 passengers to depart and 104,000 to arrive. There will be a further 114,000 departures on Sunday and 88,000 on Christmas Eve. David Millward writes: