Okay, BT line is booked, though they can't do it until 1st October.
Slight problem, they don't believe there's ever been a BT line there, even though there's a BT socket in the house. Hmm, exactly what NTL said when I got hooked up with them :suspect:.
I'm 99% certain the person there before me had BT as when I moved in I got NTL put in (the NTL cable was up to the house but not to my flat), and so there was only a BT socket at the time. It says 'BT' on it and unless the person before had been living there for 9 years without ever having activated it, it must have been BT.
So anyway, they're charging me £75
Porting the number was easy, although they've said I'll never be able to use Call Minder, 1471 or Call Return with a ported number. Still, at least I get get Caller Display and know it'll work with my phone which is more than can be said for NTL.