Itys not as bad as people make out
Ive got the 8 Meg service in Hull, £28.99 per month, unlimited for all practical purposes. I get 6Meg connection speed and get ~620Kb/s most of the time.
Ive found the technical support better than any other technical support helpline ive had to deal with.
Yes they are a little over priced but you do get a good service now. They did have some problems a few years ago but it seems to be sorted.