does anyone else think that it would be much better to have some way of publishing the places you are physically not allowed to fly?
Not available as such officially, but in the summer a good start is to print off that pink or mauve or whatever AIC which contains all the airshows. These all have TRAs.
There is always the airspace restrictions number on 0500 354 802. It's a recorded message, and if saved in your mobile is a very easy way of checking you haven't missed anything major. They only mention temporarily restricted airspace and airspace upgrades, so you still need the Notams for stuff that is not officially restricted but you still want to stay clear of (airshow practices, BBMF flypasts, amateur rocketry, etc.)