And the final heat should be scheduled at 14:15. 😐

A few months ago this white man went on a rampage in London with a sword. He brutally murdered this child & seriously injured both members of the public & police officers trying to help. Strangely, the right wing thugs didn't riot to protect this English child. I wonder why...

🧵1/ Thread on the #Southport anti-migrant and anti-Muslim disinformation and propaganda. In this thread I highlight key spreaders of disinformation, the chronology, and some points about some of the inauthentic activity evident. I will focus on X.

Naughty I know, but you can tell who is/was better able to communicate with soldiers... @BritishArmy @RUSI_org

Randy does it again!

Deep Joy.

Ma is 92 today. And this is one of my favourite speeches in history.

So powerful to see. I marched in Ukraine’s first official pride march in Kyiv in 2016. We were warned of nail bomb attacks and excrement being thrown in condoms. These people are trailblazers.

Such a great book: Vassall is treated with dignity and humanity. A spy, but victim too. One of my best reads this year.

If anyone would like to hear me in an online conversation about my Vassall book on Sunday afternoon (tomorrow) - look no further! Details below.

Lovely evening at @Foyles last night for @PParkerWriting conversation with #DiarmudHester for #SomeMeninLondon Monumental! ♥️

Prepping the next podcast, on Cello Nightingale centenary, putting to rest claims (on R3's Private Passions in 2022) the nightingale was faked. The '1924 recording' they talk of was actually a 1927 HMV gramophone recording. I just spotted this correction on the BBC prog page:

Been watching the original LOTR trilogy lately. In my opinion, the greatest cinematic achievement of the 21st century (so far). One thing I noticed is that Peter Jackson didn't dumb down the dialogue for the audience, at least compared to more recent films. Consider lines like these: "I now go to the halls of my ancestors, in whose mighty company I shall not be ashamed" (Theoden on his deathbed) "Have you ever seen it Aragorn? The White Tower of Ecthelion, glimmering like a spike of pearl and silver, its banners caught in the morning breeze... One day our paths will lead us there, and the Tower Guard will take up the call - the Lords of Gondor have returned!" (Boromir talking about Minas Tirith). The type of language you would see in Beowulf or Shakespeare, and said with complete sincerity. No snark, sarcasm, post-modern self-consciousness or attempts to turn everything into a witty one-liner. I think Jackson stayed as true as he could to the source material while still making a mass market movie for a 21st century audience.

Piece from me on how Russian victory will embolden every illiberal demagogue from Trump to Le Pen and prove to the world that the West is a weak and unreliable ally. open.substack.com/pub/nickco…

A superb edition guys! So interesting to hear from two very different advisors - ex-army & academic - and how they worked. One of the best FoF to date. Congrats.

Prunella Scales is trending, and for no other reason than she's much loved and rather marvellous. Forza Pru 👊

Any #Brighton peeps! I’m singing with #resoundmalevoices as part of Brighton Choir Fest on the Pier this Sunday 15/10. Loads of local choirs & it’s FREE! Pop along from 12 (we’re at 1pm)

The first man I fell in love with – long before I understood the feeling – was Ilya Kuryakin from The Man From U*N*C*L*E aka David McCallum. He was handsome, cool and, basically, Dish of Dish Hall. And now he’s gone. RIP.