So, let me get this right, Keg.
To start with you claim the BA aircraft was about 1:45 ahead of schedule. I've done that route more times than I care to mention and have never been more than 5 minutes before the curfew. That time has, of course, been rectified by slowing down or ATC vectors to arrive after the curfew. Your suggestion is more than 'quite early' and makes me suspicious of your story.
You then base most of your maligning on the basis of forecasts and only refer to the actual winds once (in a disparaging way).
"We can take a knot or two more than that" is clearly totally unacceptable......IF it happened.
You then tell us that ATC reported a downwind component of 15 knots i.e. NOT out of limits. Your claim that they "played the game" is entire supposition and only serves to insult the professionalism of ATC AND the BA crew. If ATC tell me the tailwind is 15 knots then I'm going to believe what they're telling me and I don't assume they're making it up in order that I can get in.
IF the BA crew later reported the tailwind was 22 knots on landing then that, too, is unacceptable and they should have gone around. However, your claims on timing and the 'guess' that ATC were feeding them a line makes me suspect the rest of your story. However, even if it is all true, then I can guarantee this was truly a 'rogue' crew and does not reflect the standards of the airline or the rest of their colleagues. I do not know of ANYONE who would exceed the limitations, outside of an emergency situation that couldn't avoid doing so, and it is certainly not endemic of the BA culture. The same cannot be said of "we know better than everyone" attitude that exists in a good number of Australian pilots both at home and overseas and the subject of this thread.