Baseturn,
I wasn't on the 748, I was on the Shorts fleet out of Coventry. (Ex Streamline)
Pluses.
Crew's pretty good to work with.
Flying is challenging and you'll get a lot of night hours.
You get a real appreciation of the art of flying because of the lack of automatics.
Good exposure to weather
Night ops seem to try pretty hard to smooth out problems.
Minuses.
Not the best of support from some of the day staff.
(eg hotels not being booked, taxi's not being booked, hire cars left in difficult to find places)
Rang up just a few too many times whilst on rest.
Not the best pay (esp if on a "new" contract, Shorts fleet).
Heaters won't keep you warm in winter.
Hotels can be a bit noisy, don't put up with it, complain.
To keep yourself happy, decide if you're going to work on your days off. If you do and get called, don't expect any thing back. If you don't want to work on your days off ever, don't say yes or answer the phone. Easiest way to stay calm and happy.
You may have to pay for your rating or you'll be bonded.