SATCOS WHIPPING BOY,
Good memory!!! It was in a clean F2 and it was just about technically night. The plan was to fly over precisely as the band stopped playing. The pilot had declared that once past the IP (near Andover) he would be committed. The call of 'Leaving the IP' was made but then a '2 minute delay' request came about 5 secs later. Pilot thinks 'I can do that'. The 'back on time' call from ATC came after almost exactly 180 deg of turn. Significant use of reheat, g, manoeuvre flaps and slats and expletives ensued. The run had been planned for 350 KCAS to allow for timing adjustments. Other than expletives (and wholly unjustified cursing of ATC!) the next thing said was ".98" from the back seat. Reheat cancelled, pull up over OM, select max reheat again (but only one lights due to short time since cancelling it), remember something being said about "150" but reply transmitted that well above that by then! And despite that only 25 secs late overhead.
The suspicion was that the SAOEU had set this up as a spoof but it was a genuine misjudgement by the gentleman making the timing call with respect to how long the band had left to play.
Happy days.