I suspect that "out over the North Sea" I might be following a VOR or ADF track most of the time (or RNAV or GPS). Don't recall long, oversea VFR nav legs being part of the training.............
Seriously, I would like to know the %age error incurred when using MDR as opposed to the nav comp. I postulate that any such error is probably offset by the ability of the MDR trained pilot to re-think when the met mans best forecast of the 2000' wind turns out to be a tad inaccurate.