You join me fishing in the cheap and cheerful end of the lake.

I’ve had my broadband (VDSL/FTTC) from Sky for 18 months, but they wanted to increase the monthly from £28 to £35 per month.

I rather think not.

Threatening to leave didn’t make a dent, probably because with no Sky TV services and no phone connected to the line, there is very little profit to be had out of me.

YouFibre (Netomnia) have run ducts and cabinets into the village, but there’s still no sign of being able to buy their service, so what to do in the meantime?

Well, Shell Energy Broadband is an inflation-beating £25 monthly, so let’s give it a go. They have a decent attitude to people using their own equipment - the website says “call us and we’ll give you the credentials” and sure enough, a nice chap on the phone did exactly that.

Their supplied router looks interesting - it includes WiFi 6 - but other than a quick speed test, I haven’t used it and don’t expect to unless my own kit lets go at an awkward moment.

Only time will tell if it’s as reliable as Sky, but the speed is pretty comparable and close to the line’s maximum. There’s no IPv6, which is a shame, but Hurricane Electric’s tunnels are easy to configure on a Mikrotik router, so that’s no big deal.

I’m hoping this is the last copper-based ISP I need before some form of actual glass fibre reaches me, but we shall see.