When did BA become RyanAir?

I haven’t flown with British Airways (BA) for a couple of years, but the last time I did they still allowed you to pick a seat when checking in and provided a complimentary drink and snack en route. 

Just back from a short trip to Oxford (via London Heathrow) and was seriously disappointed that BA wanted £7-15 each way to change the preallocated seat and now charge for their Marks and Spencer branded in-flight service. Given they are generally more expensive than RyanAir, EasyJet, Jet2, FlyBe, etc. what are BA planning to do to differentiate their service from any of the others? (more…)