michaelscollinswriter.blogspot.com/2026/06/worl... World Cup team rankings as suggested by @jonarnold.bsky.social #worldcup #Scotland

I've watched the full Series 1 of The X-Files for the first time so the only sensible thing was to rank the episodes from Worst to Best! michaelscollinswriter.blogspot.com/2026/05/x-fi...

@davidbloomberg.bsky.social Catching up on Traidar podcast so: did you notice one of your all time favourite Faithfuls (sarcasm preceded) from S1 America has kept their dubious Traitors record, due to the UK Celebs finale? (Hopefully oblique enough to avoid spoiling randomers but understandable!)

Forgot to mention @jonarnold.bsky.social - Sarah is enjoying her first Target novel, Lux by James Goss. Has already interrupted her mums podcast thrice last night to read out her favourite injokes so far!

I hear from the publisher (me) that this an incredible thriller you will all want to buy and read! www.amazon.co.uk/Running-Sam-... #thriller #pyschological #mystery #London #Spain #booksky

@davidbloomberg.bsky.social Don't know if you've heard but we're apparently getting a NZ Traitors Season 3 after public funding saved the show.

@jonarnold.bsky.social @oneeffinjef.bsky.social @chris-egb.bsky.social @totalkhaos.bsky.social @brucetherobert.bsky.social @cm283.bsky.social @firesparkuk.bsky.social @inverseratio.bsky.social So...did you guys officially sign Wirtz in the GB hiatus yet? (Also it was 30C in Govan earlier. Urgh.)

michaelscollinswriter.blogspot.com/p/kindle-unl... Find out about Other Side Books collection on Amazon Kindle Unlimited! Featuring books by @journeymouse.bsky.social @jonarnold.bsky.social @ihaveanopinion.bsky.social and others.

Announcing: Dragon Queen by @journeymouse.bsky.social with art by Mark Hetherington. michaelscollinswriter.blogspot.com/2025/05/anno...

Dying, not of this flu though it's godawful but of laughter because watching an early episode of Wipeout with Paul Daniels where someone won that nights special prize....not the usual holiday or car or what not, but a bottle of soy sauce from the local supermarket! 🤣🤣🤣🤣

Play 24 years ago. Me backstage, props and FX: first night smoke machine wouldn't turn off. Entire hall full of smoke, fire alarm briefly on and off. Audience silences, show must go on, Act 1. First actors line? "Remarkably clear night". Audience roared with laughter. I stuck to lighting afterwards.

I have finished the complicated first draft of a novella I've been planning/writing/headaching over for 18 months. SUCCESS! Well, Step One in a longer process (editing/etc etc) still to do but still....success!

John Abineri has just bravely stepped into the pipeline. I'm sure he'll be ok... and he didn't even give me a chance to finish this sentence. Damn that sentient seaweed. #doctorwho 😀

My favourite Doctor Who story? Tis a mystery... (I really bloody love The Moonbase.)

Etymology of the day: to be ‘blowing a hoolie’ (or ‘hooley’) was probably inspired by the Orkney word ‘hoolan’, a howling gale, with a touch of the ‘hooley’ that is a very noisy party thrown in.

My better half, Mandy, has joined Blue Sky. You can follow her here:

Bad news - this cold has caught me. Urgh. Good news - The Sea Devils is still amazing.

Also watched Mark of the Rani. First time in 25+ years. The Sixth Doctor being nice/getting on with people v. refreshing. Casting universally good. Love the Rani/Master/Doctor bickering. The trees are daft but treated seriously, there's a dinosaur, and Stevenson shows up. Lots of (unexpected) fun.

Last night I watched Power of Kroll (because a @tobyhadoke.bsky.social podcast told people to give it another go - subliminally persuasive!). It's...OK. Better than remembered. Fun to see Philip Madoc in his moody role, but as a "good guy". Location work great, finally understood the guns plot.

Partick Thistle 5-1 winners? Jeez these painkillers must be strong.

1 - Vicki 2 - Jamie 3 - Jo 4 - Leela 5 - Nyssa 6 - Peri 7 - Ace 8 - Charley 9 - Rose 10. - Wilf (to avoid repeats and also Cribbins) 11 - Amy 12 - Bill 13. - Ryan 14 - Donna 15 - Ruby I am apparently very predictable. 😀

@ihaveanopinion.bsky.social How are you keeping? Well, I hope.

@jonarnold.bsky.social tbh I still don't quite understand the Uncool 50 concept because to my mind people keep posting amazing music. 😀

The Dave Brubeck/Donald Sutherland version of Agatha Christie's Ordeal by Innocence is on Sky Arts (Freeview) on Sunday night. Absolutely bonkers and probably right up a few folks street here.

So many old friends have suddenly shown up again on this, it's like an old episode of This Is Your Life. Well, hopefully that and not The 12 Days of Christine/Michael. 😮😂

Watched a film I'd never seen, Cash on Demand (1961), Andre Morell threatens timid Peter Cushing into helping him rob a bank, or else Cushing's family will die. Great stuff. A young Richard Vernon shows up looking exactly like he did as an old man in Yes Minister. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cash_on...

With everyone now transferring to Blue Sky it would probably help if I remembered I had an account now and then.

@davidbloomberg.bsky.social Caught up on NZ s2 (Traitors) last few days. You should have seen my reaction when I found out there was ANOTHER clairvoyant. 😂

michaelscollinswriter.blogspot.com/2024/06/elec... My seat by seat predection for the election, which I wasn't going to do until @jonarnold.bsky.social asked where it was!

I was lifting up the printer for Mandy and then stopped for a moment so I could say "in theatre this is known as a Printer Pause."

@davidbloomberg.bsky.social Someone gave me links to the original US Survivor series from 20+ years ago. Two episodes in, I feel like I already knew half the cast from your Survivor comments on Traitors podcasts over the last 18 months. 😀

Best Doctor Who Stories (Final part) (youtube.com) With Mr @jonarnold.bsky.social

@davidbloomberg.bsky.social I am slowly getting through the podcasts so this may be backing up points you are yet to make. (I held off till I knew you'd seen it!)

@davidbloomberg.bsky.social One of Michael's many rules of Traitors. Never ever let an alliance make the final 5, unless it is YOUR alliance. Another rule (which I nicked off you) - if you have any doubt in the final, you must vote to banish again. (See rules subsection under "Don't Quentin it!")

@davidbloomberg.bsky.social enjoy the finale. Mon the Sandra! Question for the podcast btw. Lots of complaints elsewhere that the fun in US S2 has been hurt by big characters going early. Do you think the boot order in The Traitors can negatively effect your opinion of the season quality? ...

@davidbloomberg.bsky.social Traitors s7 USs2 - def they need to murder Kate or MJ. Sandra's plotting against Peter's Pals, them being "shielded" looks suspicious. Sandra smart enough to work out that 4D chess if you keep her alive, but that's the rock/hard place spot production has left traitors in.

@davidbloomberg.bsky.social Entry form for UK Survivor Season 2 was taken offline and is now off the BBC website entirely nearly a fortnight before the original closing date. This is apparently grim, in the know folk tell me. The weekend scheduling is being blamed but the ratings were awful. Shame.

@davidbloomberg.bsky.social Stat I thought you'd like. Evie in UK s2 has voted for Traitors at over 50% of her roundtables, and quantity wise from 20 series, I've only seen 4 Faithful players in franchise history do better: 2 from Holland, 1 from Germany, and a NZ winner you've interviewed.

@davidbloomberg.bsky.social I have a thought on UK Survivor which came to mind during Episodes 13/14 this weekend, but am keeping it to myself until you confirm you've seen them. (No unintentional spoilers from me if I can help it!)

Still unable to get this Blue Sky thing to log in on my phone. Says the account doesn't exist. Hah. So its a laptop only social media for now...

youtu.be/rd7U9Tu6UlU Me and @jonarnold.bsky.social on your favourite Doctor Who stories. If you're a fan of the Pertwee/McCoy (with a dash of Hartnell and a Dalek, err, cutaway) this is the episode for you!  Including childhood terrors, shades of grey, evil clowns and Davros. Whoever that guy is...

@pseudlit.bsky.social I’m here!

To the surprise of no one, I love The Moonbase, a SF warning of climate change, complete with a base under siege on the moon. With jump scares, Glasgow references, surprisingly intelligent bosses, Cybermen, and lots of Kit Pedler love. michaelscollinswriter.blogspot.com/2023/11/the-...

Another in my slow ranking of charting songs (UK) per year. 1994, the charts seemed to include the new, old and future all at once. Inside: Kylie, Simpsons,The Boss, half of Shakespears Sister, odes to the dead, ad music, and Louis fn Armstrong. michaelscollinswriter.blogspot.com/2023/11/top-...

@pickmanpaintbrush.bsky.social Ah, there you are. One of the genuine losses from the downfall of Twitter. Hope you are keeping well.

I have finally finished writing about every Columbo story so here is Part 1 of an attempt to rank every episode of the series. michaelscollinswriter.blogspot.com/2023/10/colu...

Can now officially confirm that my haunted house story, "I, Millbrae House", will appear in Curious Blue's December Tales II, due out late November. (Link will be promoted at the time.) This makes 2023 my most successful writing year to date.

A fun Hallowe'en season trivia fact. Tim Curry...is terrified of clowns.

Hello. This is Michael's Blue Sky thingy.