In reply to Jacob Eagles:
I've just bought a new rope - I know, crazy, huh! Impulse purchase, £60 from the bargain bin in a shop I just happened to wander into.
Anyway, I should probably now stop using the other 3 ropes I've got, which are all nearly 30 years old - but only being used for top-roping the kids, so hardly being stressed (I would have bought a new one sooner, if I was leading anything I thought I might fall on).
Where are you based - if you're not local, it's going to be expensive to post them!