diff --git a/StarterNG.Tests/LegacyDecodingTests.cs b/StarterNG.Tests/LegacyDecodingTests.cs
index 4325bf5..c37e438 100644
--- a/StarterNG.Tests/LegacyDecodingTests.cs
+++ b/StarterNG.Tests/LegacyDecodingTests.cs
@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+using System.Runtime.ExceptionServices;
 using System.Text;
 using StarterNG.Infrastructure.Adapters;
 using StarterNG.Tests.Fakes;
@@ -22,6 +23,40 @@ public class LegacyDecodingTests
         Assert.Equal(Polish, LegacyText.Decode(Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes(Polish)));
     }
 
+    [Fact]
+    public void A_byte_order_mark_does_not_stick_to_the_text()
+    {
+        byte[] bytes = Encoding.UTF8.GetPreamble().Concat(Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes("$a\n" + Polish)).ToArray();
+
+        Assert.Equal("$a\n" + Polish, LegacyText.Decode(bytes));
+    }
+
+    [Fact]
+    public void Telling_the_two_apart_does_not_throw()
+    {
+        // Decoding used to try strict UTF-8 and catch the failure: a first-chance
+        // exception for every 1250 file, hundreds of them on a load.
+        int thread = Environment.CurrentManagedThreadId;
+        int thrown = 0;
+        EventHandler<FirstChanceExceptionEventArgs> count = (_, e) =>
+        {
+            if (e.Exception is DecoderFallbackException && Environment.CurrentManagedThreadId == thread)
+                thrown++;
+        };
+
+        AppDomain.CurrentDomain.FirstChanceException += count;
+        try
+        {
+            LegacyText.Decode(LegacyText.CodePage1250.GetBytes(Polish));
+        }
+        finally
+        {
+            AppDomain.CurrentDomain.FirstChanceException -= count;
+        }
+
+        Assert.Equal(0, thrown);
+    }
+
     [Fact]
     public void Plain_ascii_reads_the_same_either_way()
     {
diff --git a/StarterNG/Infrastructure/Adapters/LegacyText.cs b/StarterNG/Infrastructure/Adapters/LegacyText.cs
index 8997cfe..5eebd01 100644
--- a/StarterNG/Infrastructure/Adapters/LegacyText.cs
+++ b/StarterNG/Infrastructure/Adapters/LegacyText.cs
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 using System;
 using System.Text;
+using System.Text.Unicode;
 
 namespace StarterNG.Infrastructure.Adapters;
 
@@ -24,23 +25,21 @@ public static class LegacyText
     /// <summary>
     /// Decodes a game file. Most are code page 1250, but a few have been re-saved
     /// as UTF-8 over the years, and reading those as 1250 turns "Zakład" into
-    /// "Zakład". Valid UTF-8 is taken at its word; anything that fails a strict
-    /// decode is 1250, which cannot fail.
+    /// "Zakład". Valid UTF-8 is taken at its word; anything else is 1250, which
+    /// cannot fail. Checked up front rather than by catching a failed strict decode:
+    /// most files are 1250, and that was an exception per file on every load.
+    /// A byte order mark is dropped, or it would stick to the first token.
     /// </summary>
     public static string Decode(byte[] bytes)
     {
-        try
-        {
-            return Utf8Strict.GetString(bytes);
-        }
-        catch (DecoderFallbackException)
-        {
-            return CodePage1250.GetString(bytes);
-        }
+        ReadOnlySpan<byte> text = bytes;
+        if (text.StartsWith(Utf8Bom))
+            text = text[Utf8Bom.Length..];
+
+        return Utf8.IsValid(text) ? Encoding.UTF8.GetString(text) : CodePage1250.GetString(text);
     }
 
-    private static readonly Encoding Utf8Strict =
-        new UTF8Encoding(encoderShouldEmitUTF8Identifier: false, throwOnInvalidBytes: true);
+    private static ReadOnlySpan<byte> Utf8Bom => [0xEF, 0xBB, 0xBF];
 
     private static Encoding Resolve()
     {
diff --git a/StarterNG/Views/Scenarios.axaml.cs b/StarterNG/Views/Scenarios.axaml.cs
index a55b984..99a992a 100644
--- a/StarterNG/Views/Scenarios.axaml.cs
+++ b/StarterNG/Views/Scenarios.axaml.cs
@@ -709,7 +709,7 @@ public partial class Scenarios : UserControl
 
         try
         {
-            timetableContent.Text = File.ReadAllText(path, LegacyText.CodePage1250);
+            timetableContent.Text = LegacyText.Decode(File.ReadAllBytes(path));
             UpdateTimetableTab(true);
         }
         catch