Uncle Fred - because of the RMA and the fact you were departing 09R, there would have been more than
...a couple on the Director's frequency
if the headings you were given were
220, 225, 240, 245, 260, 275
The earliest you would have been transferred to London Control (134.125) would have been after the 245 heading, but more likely after the 265 headng instruction...
So either you didn't get all those headings, or more than a couple were on Directors frequency. Explanations of why (apart from the general ones above),cannot be gleaned unless facts are known!!
A visit to Swanwick would be great, for you and your colleagues - I'm sure your company has a telephone number for liaison. If you manage it, try to visit both AC and TC (both have their own sets of different problems and completely different ways of operating)- and sit in on Dir and TMA within TC as that is again, two different methods of operation.
Any visit you make would be great, as it gives a good chance for both pilots and controllers to learn from each other
