[stewartm]

Errr ... https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-11420790

[gsnedders]

Right, it actually depends on the terms of the ticket. Advance tickets, which are linked to a specific train (or sequence of trains), don't allow you to break your journey or start/end short.

[BuildTheRobots]

apologies, this does depend on ticket type:

http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/times_fares/ticket_types/46590...

I've updated my comment above with more information.

[gpvos]

Still seems counterproductive. Why would they do that?