Thanks for your information guys. I have a mate who is a BA captain and his advice to me was to just enjoy your PPL and first 150 hours because from then on the whole thing gets very tough and demanding. He seemed to suggest that it was the ATPL, CPL, and IR that was the most important parts of the course.
I have a tricky decision to make as to whether I do my PPL and 150 hours in South Africa, where the weather and scenery are great or spend the money with Oxford and presumably do it state side.
Thanks for your views