The last time I heard ATC asking an aircraft if they were "ops normal" was at Stansted a few years back, when they were about to reduce the runway length for WIP overnight.
I assumed at the time that they were checking the aircraft wasn't intending to return to the field before they let the work teams onto the runway?
I think a couple of the London airports (including EGSS) are doing night runway works at the moment?
DH