1985 - No-one's having a go at controllers worldwide. Personally I never ask for directs in UK airspace because I know that you will do your very best for us and get us the most expeditious and commercial routing that you can.
Spain, however, is a very different matter even at the best of times. As an example, I regularly have to call twice or even 3 times to get a response on 1st contact, have heard pop music playing in the background (from the ATC end) and usually can't understand half of what's being said.