Sam
@samkarlharrison.bsky.social
đ€ 131
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Sporadic writer & editor at Lion & Unicorn
https://thelionandunicorn.com/
Tonight on YouTube, Michael Cockerell's documentary LIFE IN THE WHIPS OFFICE (1995).
youtu.be/m-t-iRQOSeQ
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'Life in Whips Office' (1995) featuring Geoffrey Dickins MP
YouTube video by Daniel Hope
https://youtu.be/m-t-iRQOSeQ
3 days ago
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"Given events in Ukraine since 2022, the liberties taken with the events it portrays, and the wrapping around it of the Orwell sub-plot, may be forgiven. It is a powerful piece of work" Our Simon Matthews on MR JONES (2019)đŹ directed by Agnieszka Holland
thelionandunicorn.com/2026/05/09/f...
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Final cut: Mr Jones (2019)
A film about George Orwell, Lloyd George, Maxim Litivinov and the Ukraine famine? SIMON MATTHEWS has a look.
http://thelionandunicorn.com/2026/05/09/final-cut-mr-jones-2019/
5 days ago
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Apropos Makerfield
youtu.be/ldnpX70IcN4
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Gordon Walker Defeated (1965)
YouTube video by British Pathé
https://youtu.be/ldnpX70IcN4
8 days ago
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Iain Mansfield
4 days ago
Remember: if you think Brexit cut GDP per capita by 8%, you implicitly believe that, without Brexit, the UK would have grown c. 1% a year faster than France or Germany. A growth profile closer to the US. That's simply not a remotely tenable position. H/t
@julianhjessop.bsky.social
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"Given events in Ukraine since 2022, the liberties taken with the events it portrays, and the wrapping around it of the Orwell sub-plot, may be forgiven. It is a powerful piece of work" Our Simon Matthews on MR JONES (2019)đŹ directed by Agnieszka Holland
thelionandunicorn.com/2026/05/09/f...
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Final cut: Mr Jones (2019)
A film about George Orwell, Lloyd George, Maxim Litivinov and the Ukraine famine? SIMON MATTHEWS has a look.
http://thelionandunicorn.com/2026/05/09/final-cut-mr-jones-2019/
5 days ago
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Tom Reaganâs Hat
8 days ago
The greatest Bond audition ever
youtu.be/skxRJAeHiUY?...
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Steven Toast - The name is Bond, James Bond.
YouTube video by atom heart mother
https://youtu.be/skxRJAeHiUY?si=zKx82yZ4PvP6TbYZ
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Lion & Unicorn
8 days ago
Surely now is the time for David Miliband to 'fuel speculation over a return to frontline British politics'âą?
#Makerfield
thelionandunicorn.com/2015/11/17/w...
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Mili bruv songs
ALWYN TURNER wonders whether anyone still remembers David Miliband.
http://thelionandunicorn.com/2015/11/17/who-luvs-mili-bruv/
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Apropos Makerfield
youtu.be/ldnpX70IcN4
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Gordon Walker Defeated (1965)
YouTube video by British Pathé
https://youtu.be/ldnpX70IcN4
8 days ago
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John Rainđ„
9 days ago
The paper-bag trick, the hanky over the face, the glasses at a funny angle, tricks in the arsenal for dads all over the country for years to come. He was fashioned from the funniest of funny bones and could light up the darkest of rooms. Happy 100 to Eric Morecambe.
youtu.be/8FYZ5Y4PONM?...
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Morecambe and Wise - Eric mugs for the camera
YouTube video by Athrun Talan
https://youtu.be/8FYZ5Y4PONM?si=z73aI_Q3OfDjbxTi
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The grotesque chaos of a Labour mayor â a Labour mayor â hiring taxis to scuttle round a city asking for a winnable by-election.
9 days ago
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Robert Saunders
9 days ago
I'm not anti-Burnham, but he chose to leave Parliament, he chose not to run in 2024 & he chose to seek re-election as Mayor. The idea he should jack this in 2 years early, that someone should give up their seat for him & that the PLP should sit on its hands until he's arrived feels rather entitled.
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christhebarker
9 days ago
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Iain Mansfield
13 days ago
The party of the affluent also being the party of high taxes and redistribution doesn't feel sustainable, long-term. One short term possibility is that we get more policies which feel left wing, but in practice benefit the middle classes: universal FSM, student debt relief, etc.
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"It became a self-fulfilling prophecy. It has also shaped perceptions of subsequent contests, and may even have had the effect of staying the hand of more than one would-be assassin, fearful of what might come next" On wielding the knife â đ belowđ
14 days ago
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"After Patersonâs death from lung cancer in 1999, Dickson Wright remembered one person yelling âone dead Fat Lady, one to goâ. Apparently, killing animals is heinous, but wishing for the demise of hilarious food presenters is fair game"
@benfinlay74.bsky.social
on TV chefs â đ belowđ
13 days ago
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LL CLIFF J
10 days ago
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Lion & Unicorn
11 days ago
"How do you know when a woman is married? Her husband comes around and punches you." It's the anniversary of Tony Hancock's birth. He was Britain's biggest comedian in the 1950s. Not so much the 1960s, though...
thelionandunicorn.com/2016/07/03/b...
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Bloater paste and brown ale
ALWYN TURNER on Tony Hancockâs forgotten 1963 TV series.
https://thelionandunicorn.com/2016/07/03/bloater-paste-and-brown-ale/
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"Iâm really not the Mary Poppins of the Labour Party" Forty-two quotes by and about Wes Streetingđ
thelionandunicorn.com/2022/05/14/a...
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âAn accidentâ â Wes Streeting
Wes Streeting: a career in 42 quotes.
http://thelionandunicorn.com/2022/05/14/an-accident-wes-streeting/
10 days ago
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Darth Marenghi
11 days ago
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Jonny Morris
11 days ago
Labour party latest!
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Maire Davies
12 days ago
Innocent Sinners is a fabulous film.
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Lion & Unicorn
12 days ago
"The plot has holes in it, of course, but who watches Agatha Christie for logical plot development?" On the anniversary of Dame Margaret Rutherford's birth in 1892, it's a good day to revisit "Murder, She Said".
thelionandunicorn.com/2023/03/04/f...
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Final Cut: Murder, She Said (1961)
SIMON MATTHEWS on Miss Marple, The Mousetrap and Margaret Rutherford.
https://thelionandunicorn.com/2023/03/04/final-cut-murder-she-said-1961/
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Lion & Unicorn
13 days ago
"There are a hundred assassins lurking in the bushes, prime minister. Those people will come back and kill youâŠ"
thelionandunicorn.com/2019/12/05/t...
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The donkeyâs not for stalking
ALWYN TURNER on Anthony Meyerâs 1989 leadership challenge to Margaret Thatcher.
https://thelionandunicorn.com/2019/12/05/the-donkeys-not-for-stalking/
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John Rainđ„
12 days ago
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"Without a big slug of bourbon to fortify you against what amounts to substandard Quantum Leap, 'The Gunfighters' is misconceived at best, at worst, total hogwash" â Radio Times, 2009
@finlay24.bsky.social
on the 60th anniversary of a rootinâ tootin' classicđ
thelionandunicorn.com/2026/05/02/l...
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Last Night on iPlayer: Doctor Who
FINLAY McLAREN has a ticket to Tombstone and an appointment with the Gunfighters.
http://thelionandunicorn.com/2026/05/02/last-night-on-iplayer-doctor-who/
14 days ago
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Lion & Unicorn
14 days ago
"Pursued through a frozen, snow-covered forest, he escapes and takes photographs of grain being deliberately exported out of the area. He finds people who have starved to death in their beds. There are horrific scenes, including cannibalism..."
thelionandunicorn.com/2026/05/09/f...
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Final cut: Mr Jones (2019)
A film about George Orwell, Lloyd George, Maxim Litivinov and the Ukraine famine? SIMON MATTHEWS has a look.
https://thelionandunicorn.com/2026/05/09/final-cut-mr-jones-2019/
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Relationship advice for straight men: Find yourself a woman who understands you the way the Labour Party understands Gordon Brown.
14 days ago
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"Simply to be Labour was to be radical, right and romantic, rather as being a political grandee in Mexico carried with it the status of a revolutionary." RIP Welsh Labour, "the reservoir to which the party could always turn after an electoral drought".
thelionandunicorn.com/2016/08/31/o...
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Owen Smith: The end is Nye
DAN ATKINSON isnât convinced by the Pontypridd hero of the Partido Revolucionario Institucional.
http://thelionandunicorn.com/2016/08/31/owen-smith-the-end-is-nye/
14 days ago
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My Mum on the BBC's Attenborough celebrations: "People talk about him like he invented wildlife. It's been around for millions of years."
14 days ago
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"After Patersonâs death from lung cancer in 1999, Dickson Wright remembered one person yelling âone dead Fat Lady, one to goâ. Apparently, killing animals is heinous, but wishing for the demise of hilarious food presenters is fair game"
@benfinlay74.bsky.social
on TV chefs â đ belowđ
13 days ago
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"Without a big slug of bourbon to fortify you against what amounts to substandard Quantum Leap, 'The Gunfighters' is misconceived at best, at worst, total hogwash" â Radio Times, 2009
@finlay24.bsky.social
on the 60th anniversary of a rootinâ tootin' classicđ
thelionandunicorn.com/2026/05/02/l...
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Last Night on iPlayer: Doctor Who
FINLAY McLAREN has a ticket to Tombstone and an appointment with the Gunfighters.
http://thelionandunicorn.com/2026/05/02/last-night-on-iplayer-doctor-who/
14 days ago
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"It became a self-fulfilling prophecy. It has also shaped perceptions of subsequent contests, and may even have had the effect of staying the hand of more than one would-be assassin, fearful of what might come next" On wielding the knife â đ belowđ
14 days ago
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Big McCarthy Stone energy
14 days ago
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Relationship advice for straight men: Find yourself a woman who understands you the way the Labour Party understands Gordon Brown.
14 days ago
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So Keir Starmer's cunning plan to save his premiership is reviving our memories of 2007-2010? Looking forward to the next tranche of appointments...
14 days ago
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Lion & Unicorn
14 days ago
"The greatest actor of our time? Quite possibly." Glenda Jackson was born 90 years ago today.
thelionandunicorn.com/2023/09/03/f...
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Final Cut: Glenda Jackson
SIMON MATTHEWS pays tribute to Glenda Jackson, award-winning actress and mayor manqué.
https://thelionandunicorn.com/2023/09/03/final-cut-glenda-jackson/
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"And that was Crazy Gremolata with 'Mozzarella'"
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14 days ago
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My Mum on the BBC's Attenborough celebrations: "People talk about him like he invented wildlife. It's been around for millions of years."
14 days ago
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"Simply to be Labour was to be radical, right and romantic, rather as being a political grandee in Mexico carried with it the status of a revolutionary." RIP Welsh Labour, "the reservoir to which the party could always turn after an electoral drought".
thelionandunicorn.com/2016/08/31/o...
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Owen Smith: The end is Nye
DAN ATKINSON isnât convinced by the Pontypridd hero of the Partido Revolucionario Institucional.
http://thelionandunicorn.com/2016/08/31/owen-smith-the-end-is-nye/
14 days ago
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Happy birthday Sir David Attenborough â commissioner of groundbreaking documentary television.
thelionandunicorn.com/2026/03/11/a...
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A Lost World (pt 1)
BEN FINLAY remembers the golden age of factual TV.
http://thelionandunicorn.com/2026/03/11/a-lost-world-pt-1/
14 days ago
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Lion & Unicorn
15 days ago
It being VE Day, here's a reminder of the 50th anniversary and the worldâs largest hokey-cokey. Also: Polly Toynbee being grumpy about the whole thing.
thelionandunicorn.com/2020/05/08/f...
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âFearful of the futureâ
Spam fritters, Vera Lynn & a grumpy Polly Toynbee â ALWYN TURNER remembers the 50th anniversary of VE Day.
https://thelionandunicorn.com/2020/05/08/fearful-of-the-future/
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David Brown
16 days ago
This is now happening. BBC Four to repeat A Very Peculiar Practice for its 40th anniversary on Wednesday 20 May. Includes a new intro from Andrew Davies.
#AVeryPeculiarPractice
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Robert Shrimsley
17 days ago
The Greens are enjoying the upsides and downsides of rapid expansion (one downside - importing a lot of serious undesirables). It is, I guess, unrealistic to expect much before the elections. But the key question after is whether they actually want to address the downsides. Can't say I'm confident
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Doctor Who - Ghost Light (1989)
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18 days ago
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Iain Coleman
20 days ago
Glad to see more and more people realising that it's one of the best.
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Lion & Unicorn
19 days ago
"When I started making money, I started to appreciate just how good Margaret Thatcher and her policies were to me." â Ian Wright Thatcher became prime minister 48 years ago today.
thelionandunicorn.com/2017/04/08/b...
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âBarmy but brilliantâ: Visions of Thatcher
Everyone had a view on Margaret Thatcher, from Adrian Mole to Ian Wright.
https://thelionandunicorn.com/2017/04/08/barmy-but-brilliant-visions-of-thatcher/
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Robert Saunders
19 days ago
Painful but true. "May the Fourth Be With You" was originally a Tory campaign slogan, coined for Margaret Thatcher on election day in May 1979...
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John Hodson
19 days ago
Saul Enderby: "It isnât some Russian plot to lure us to our destruction is it George?" George Smiley: "Iâm afraid weâre no longer worth the candleâŠ" A reminder that SMILEY'S PEOPLE is still up on iPlayer; my Letterboxd review...
boxd.it/cSbtj1
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A â â â â â review of Smiley's People (1982)
Saul Enderby: "It isnât some Russian plot to lure us to our destruction is it George?" George Smiley: "Iâm afraid weâre no longer worth the candleâŠ" Utterly sublime; writing, pacing, acting, direction...
https://boxd.it/cSbtj1
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Lion & Unicorn
20 days ago
On 3 May 1979 the nation went to the polls and elected Margaret Thatcher as prime minister. It was, said Tony Benn, "a counter-revolution against democracy".
thelionandunicorn.com/2019/03/30/w...
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âWhere there is discordâ: The 1979 election
ALWYN TURNER on the arrival of Margaret Thatcher in Downing Street.
https://thelionandunicorn.com/2019/03/30/where-there-is-discord-the-1979-election/
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