Many thanks for the replies, all very interesting.
I was only diagnosed officially almost a week ago, and HbA1c was then 58 from a test a few days prior (up from 51 3-months prior). Since then (due to G.I. problems and issues i've heard regarding Metformin) I have (with NHS clinic nurse approval) gone down the MM 800 calorie diet and lost 5-6 Lbs thus far, and invested in a blood glucose meter that with pre and post prandial measurements each day, are seemingly always within the Type 2 guidelines (or non-diabetic range) as published on various websites and NHS site. Hopefully a step in the right direction!. Will admit that finding foods that are low fat, low (to zero) sugar and also low carbohydrates - seem to now spend more time reading food labels than anything else ha.