On the offchance that I may WTFU and get back on a road bike, are there any tyres that can cope with the odd bit of mud on the road?
Where I live even the main roads seem to be used by farm vehicles who deposit lumps of various sizes and consistencies.
Would I be better off going for something that's wider? Safety rather than speed is the name of the game!
As always, thank you so much. 
You could always use some CX tires. I've never had any problems with Conti GP4000s tires, even on lake district roads (which arent great)
Would I be better off going for something that's wider?
Yes. A wider road that is. Ice and mud? Stick to the main roads. I'm pretty happy with gp4000s for all year riding. But I've never found a road tyre that's not sketchy on mud and ice and such.
GP4000s for me too. Offer good grip in the wet too.
Avoid gatorskins. They tend to be made with a harder compound and are sketchy in the wet.
Best winter tyre I ever used for stickiness was Pro race3 but they cut up easily but mrs K has had one on the front wheel for the last year and a half, People widely rate gp4000's so they'll be ok. I use a mis- match of those, michelin lithions, schwalbe blizzards and on various bikes and they've all been much ok. I ride 23's except on the fixed commuter which has 25's on it but then I ride Surrey mainly and there's a fair amount of gravel, leaf mulch and general slime whereas you seem to have something like the Somme nearby You could go up to 28's or more if the frame will take them, not sure about cx tyres never used them.
Not wishing to patronise, you probably know all this, but with mud and crap on road firstly try and ride around, if not possible smooth straight lines, no sudden braking, death swereves etc,, try like on a hardtail not to tension up, let the bike geometry work. For me with any threat of ice, don't road ride seen a clubmate, early 30's break a hip; one replacement op already and they'll be more as he ages -go mouuntain biking.
Hope it goes well.
I do rate GP4000s' for summer riding but I cut up two rear tyres in short succession last winter and in the end went for conti GP 4 seasons. They possibly lack some of the outright grip of the GP4000s' but I found them to be much more durable and so I'll be switching back to them again this winter. Sitting on the roadside changing a tube with numb fingers isn't fun.
As above, I'd avoid gatorskins. Plenty durable but don't provide enough grip with it's greasy.
Just looked at the price of GP4000s, *gulp* id hope they'd be good for that
[returns to cave of bah humbug]
Ribble had them for £22 for ages not that long ago. £29 now.
http://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/sp/road-track-bike/Continental-GP4000S-Folding-Tyre/CONTTYRF321
Have a look round, you can usually find them for less then £25 each somewhere.
edit: A little cheaper here
http://www.shinybikes.com/continental-gp4000s-folding-tyre.html
Yeh, you can usually get a pair for £50. Ebay usually a good spot for them. Worth spending the cash on I think.
GP4000's here too. Both my road bikes have them. They may be expensive but when you can get over 3000 miles out of them easy then I think they're a good buy. Great in summer and winter IME.
ok fair enough, another item for the christmas list
Just run 23c slicks all year round, some cheap, some expensive. Never really found much performance difference in any. Contact area is so small then tread, compound etc. makes so little difference to conditions anyway.
As stated previously line is much more more relevant.
Thanks very much for your replies.
Well, I have learned a lesson with line choice having spent 3 days in hospital and currently awaiting surgery. 
My thoughts are that the road bike will be in hibernation until Spring but, if by any chance I'm fixed before then, it's as well to be prepared.
Asking another silly question - could I just stick a narrow 29er tyre on?
afaik and stand to be corrected a road 700c tyre is the same inner diameter as a 29'er but the outer diameter - at the tyre tread is a lot greater, a lot would depend if the tyre would fit a) on you rim b) in your frame. There are wider threadier road tyres available so perhaps a little trawl through crc road tyres might throw up something suitable ie; http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=24624
Thanks kilo.
Cycling Plus has a review of winter tyres this month. For dodgy surfaces there are plenty of 'canal path' type tyres that wouldn't be quite as extreme as CX tyres that might suit mucky roads better than slicks. Go for 25c or even 28c.
GP4000's for me too, ride them all year always impressed with traction, defineately worth the money.
Rode up 12% with a torrent coming down it, hit a white line whilst standing and it didn't even spin out
Same RB tyres all year round, no dramas, reduce pressures very slightly dependent upon conditions.
I'm bloody sick or punctures I'll tell you that much. Ordered a gatorskin as ive had enough.
Some how two tubes have multiple punctures in a small area even though tyre has nothing inside it, all my remaining patches don't fit and no spare tubes for tomorrows commute.
Hedge cutting is enough to put you off commuting and back into a car.
If your frame can take it, then something like a Marathon 700x25 might do the job. A bit slower rolling of course, but for winter riding they're not a bad choice. But, as has been said above, I favour the GP4000S (the Black Chilli one) for all-year round use.
There was another thread here a couple of weeks ago which suggested the GP 4 seasons, so I've ordered a pair. Hopefully I won't regret it.
Heal soon CG.
Another vote for GP4000 here. I use the 25mm versions on the rural roads here in France. They last well, and work well. I usually get through one front and two rears per year.
SB
Loving these at the moment.
http://www.veloflextires.com/veloflex_master%2022_clincher.htm
Picked mine up from ribble cycles if i remember. I used conti GP4k last winter, no probs.
I normally use Schwalbe Ultremo DD's for winter (25's being preferable) although just stuck some 28mm Conti GP4season's on another bike and they seem decent to although I've only done one ride on mostly dry roads... I've avoid anything with pronounced tread if you're mostly on tarmac as although it might help for muddy sections of road you'll be compromising your grip everywhere else.
it's all relative. The C+ winter tyre winner is my summer tyre. Go as big as you can. I use 38mm Contis at 80psi or even less. Hugely more grippy and tough than 25mm stuf. Yeah they are heavier but so is the waterproof, mudguards etc.
my gp4000 did not last long at all before showing signs of cracking 
my choice now is Panaracer Paselas
For dodgy surfaces there are plenty of 'canal path' type tyres
Yeah, if your frame has the clearance, even something like a 32c can offer far greater grip and confidence than a 23c or whatever. I use some cheapo Vittoria 'Adventure Touring' tyres I got from Decathlon, run them at 60psi on my Hybrid 29er, they can go up to 90psi and are surprisingly very good on towpaths and looser surfaces yet still fairly quick.
Conti 4 seasons for me in the winter (23c). When i commuted on the road bike i thought about going for a slightly wider tyre, but didn't in the end. Have bought studded tyres for snow/ice road riding.
Have been super impressed with my cx tyres (35c) but i don't know if your frame would have clearance for them?
Really do hope your crash hasn't put you off and you manage to get a shorter time for your op than originally thought.
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