Well, that was quick. #notmycat

This is not my cat. Why is it in my kitchen?

As a young dog, Fergus always dreamt of travelling.

It's Saturday but it's also #RespectYourCatDay so if you're ever sitting in front of a cannon with a cat near the firing mechanism then you better make sure you show it some respect. #Caturday A real life Tom & Jerry cartoon from our Photographic Archive.

Reader, I googlied him

Garden news: two handsome gentlemen escaped the guns this year. This one has been named Forrest because he runs, and runs, and runs.... Probably PTSD but charming nonetheless. #nature #wildlife #Rutland

The Sodoffskaya relaxing last night and joyfully anticipating her 20th birthday next month. She still has all her teeth, as my ankles will testify. #CatsofBluesky

This is magnificently contemptuous www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...

Good morning! Yes, this is he

Actual art in front of the now-shuttered and desecrated palace of the arts. STUNNING.

We've all been there...

Slightly terrifying/ultimately quite revelatory about re-reading/re-listening-to writings done 15 years ago by yr younger self. 'SO, that's who I was then' is the redux. These - first broadcast 2010 - are listenable for 28 days if you have 3 x 15 minutes for fiction. www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b...

Finally! Yes!

I can strongly recommend both for your holiday reading. Start with My Father's House and follow on with The Ghosts of Rome. What a storyteller.

'Priorities, darling. Priorities.' As an aunt always used to say.

Yup. But I think if I'd been told that years ago, I'd still do it. Almost 1/4 a century of hammering away at this now. 15 published books. First few weren't great, tbh. Most recent 7 I'm hugely proud of and I'm aware a lot of people love them. Still not enough to give me a living wage, on its own.

Well, this is pretty terrifying. The Daily Mail is buying the Telegraph. One massive consolidated right-wing media empire controlled by off-shore interests at a critical moment in global politics. What could go wrong? www.theguardian.com/media/2025/n...

Note from my notebook (2018). Still relevant.

Half cat, half Wolverine. The Sodoffskaya says: Happy Caturday!

I’ve said it once, I’ll say it again. Ignore the haters, London is the 🐐

£2000 - £12,000 available from the Arts Council to Develop Your Creative Practice. Online application in link below. Please share :)

Submit 5,000 words of your manuscript and a synopsis with the aim of jumping the publication slush pile and meeting agents and publishers face-to-face for the Debut Novel Competition at the Irish Writers Centre. Closes 14th September. Details in link. Please share :)

The struggle is real

Sorry... what?

Sunday morning and all is peacful UNTIL the fecking neighbour [they of the massive 18 months to build extension and attendant mental torture] brings out the industrial strimmer. This is a regular occurrence and I may cry.

Harvest time in Rutland. #ColourADay #ColorADay #OrangeSun

We're investigating reports of a large number of mice missing in this area. You match the description of someone we'd like to talk to.

No one.

An amazing opportunity for 10 writers to spend up to a month for free at seaside cottage to write. All details in the link below. Please share :)

Remembering when Matt Hancock showed his contrition and deep reflection on all those lost to covid on his watch by going on "I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here". #CovidInquiry #MattHancock

Remade bread, yesterday's being massively over-proved by reason of a 12 hour power cut. Such fun. But I did listen to Ed Reardon's Week, which I missed on account of 12 hour power cut, along with 1st day of Wimbledon, electric light, working on book synopsis etc etc. Did I mention the power cut?

Are there any recent-ish books studying the phenomenon of women with auto-immune illnesses, specifically the link between being in a toxic relationship (work, family, marriage) and getting/being ill?

"Analysis finds domestic abuse training for staff in England and Wales ‘sporadic and inconsistent’" Every time I think we're making progress... #coercivecontrol #domesticabuse www.theguardian.com/society/2025...

‘Bees do have a smell, you know, and if they don't they should, for their feet are dusted with spices from a million flowers.’ ~ Ray Bradbury, Dandelion Wine. 🐝 🖼️ Naturalist's library, Jardine, 1840.

[insert caption here]

Yay! Shout out for Rutland - a small county packed with large and wonderful things.

Can't help but notice how very *perpendicular* everything is at the moment.

Millions more counted as domestic abuse victims as definition widens. #coercivecontrol #domesticabuse www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

My current gardening bestie is this handsome chap. Whilst his vocabulary is perhaps lacking, what he does say makes perfect sense, especially his remarks about slugs.

Flying duck caught in Swiss speed trap believed to be repeat offender

Any Stamford [UK] friends feeling pizza-ish? On 23 May a friend is launching a new enterprise. I've been on the tasting panel and when he says 'authentic' he means it. Epic pizza. [Also the canine model is my grand-dog, Guillermo.]

TANK vs TESLA "We've crushed fascism before and we'll crush it again" - ⁠WW2 veteran Ken, 98, in the tank

An [unsolicited] AI view of the English Civil War... dear lord.

🤣🦅🤣

My mother killed my father. The justice system saw a murder. I saw years of abuse and stood by her to lead a campaign that freed her from prison. Now I’ve written the book about what that took. And what it cost. 🧍🏼👩🏼‍🤝‍👨🏻🧍🏼‍♂️🏠 Out 5 June Pre-order here ➡️ www.hachette.co.uk/titles/david...

Virginia Giuffre hailed as ‘fierce warrior’ for women who ‘gave voice to the silenced’

It was almost impossible to write but when there's message like this, absolutely worth it. #coercivecontrol #DomesticAbuseAwareness

This feels like a very good time to post a picture from the inaugural Bring Your Cat to Work Day, c.1906.

Harvard has set an example for other higher-ed institutions - rejecting an unlawful and ham-handed attempt to stifle academic freedom, while taking steps to make sure students can benefit from an environment of intellectual inquiry, rigorous debate and mutual respect. Let’s hope others follow suit.