Donkey Duke, with respect to 'hold a better schedule' by that I assume you mean from a ‘bid’ ?
If so, the problem is that UK airlines don't normally use 'bidline' rostering (coz it's expensive on crews), so we are not able to bid for certain preferred routes (and you can re-read Lovely Day's post above for the effects of that), and whether you live around the corner, or 90 miles away, it still doesn't get around the fact you can be awake all day (as per Katie C's post above) and get called in off standby for a heavy night flight - with little or no prior warning, such that you could avail of some sleep, even if you could have actually achieved some - the with effect being that you might still have to be awake for 24 hours, albeit that’s just slightly better than 26.
E.g. Monday - drive to work to start mid afternoon with 5 sectors, finish close to midnight, stay in hotel.
Tuesday - wake up at 6am (other guests making noises), leave hotel at midday, do 5 more sectors, finish back at base at about 10pm and drive home (at least the roads nice and quite), in bed by midnight.
Wednesday - wake up at 6am (just can't sleep) and spend rest of day doing the normal stuff that we all do prior to starting standby at 5pm - the rest you know.
So let's say that I don't manage to get any shuteye during the afternoon (I tried but couldn't)..... should I call in sick ? or plead fatigue ? .... but it was a 'legal' roster, and the company 'assumes' that I should have got some sleep..... now is that my fault, or the rosters ?
Perhaps I should now take the view that if I’m even the slightest bit tired I should call in sick, and let some other poor schmuck do it instead ? So what’s to do ?