I don't know what "the whole exercise" means but my ancient Nokia
phone has connected happily since WiFi was launched so the
infrastucture seems to be working. What browser(s) did you use to
try to connect?

I don't use a browser on my Android phone, the connectivity is
required by apps (like Facebook, Twitter, Skype, Journey Planners
etc) which are all free-standing.

It appears you did not RTFM. Quelle surprise.
http://my.virginmedia.com/wifi/using...tml#how-to-get

I appreciate that you may think that the service should not require you
to use a browser but I don't see why they shouldn't be allowed to make
the rules as it's their system. It is also by no means the only "free"
wi-fi service I have used which requires a browser page first.
--
Robin
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