"Emergency podcasts, sir. Thousands of 'em"

Seen a couple of posts comparing prices of things like the new Steam computer to things like Spectrums and Commodore 64 at launch. Implication is always "look how much more expensive it is!!" Which just shows how much we mentally don't compute on inflation. £200 in 1982 is roughly £1,000 today.

I love how the 6th PM in 6 years resigns, and everybody is like "This only happened because this particular guy was incompetent because… “ Britain‘s political media has a very short attention span, and a very short memory. What if, and stay with me now, this is a symptom of a deeper issue?

i assume banning kids from social media will be accompanied by a huge investment in teen-friendly communtiy spaces (like youth clubs) and social activities? No? Huh.

Relistening to “Monstrous Regiment” for the millionth time and just caught the “commander Vimes holds to a no-first-use policy for magic” Terry Pratchett using magic as a substitute for nukes in Discworld is just perfection and I am so deeply happy we got to share a world with him

Ground. That. Flight.

Hilarious and deeply insightful writing by @brianphillips.lol.

*sets the 'days since tech bros reinvented the bus' sign back to zero.

Pope Leo quoting Tolkien in his encyclical on AI seems like a pointed reference for the tech oligarchs who have appropriated LOTR for their own ends.

i mean she's just made it incredibly hard for traffic to accurately gauge the cow's direction of travel and speed.

This ends with Ross Kemp trying to tell a hard-man story about hanging out with the SAS to James Blunt, with ZERO knowledge of his pre-music career.

This is so, so well-articulated.

You asked and we listened! For years, the community has been asking for a new design in Home Assistant. Something modern and timeless, something to match the power of the platform. We’re pleased to announce that an improved UI trial is now available. 👇

I mean, once you've missed the Friday 13th you only have one other date to aim for if you want to maximise the charge on your secret experimental What Can Possibly Go Wrong Drive.

Nick Clegg unveiled a portrait of himself at the National Liberal Club yesterday and it's hard to tell which one looks less like Nick Clegg, the portrait of Nick Clegg or the actual Nick Clegg

Tell you what. When we get 250 subscribers to the untitled-history.com podcast i'll do "You'll Be Back" from Hamilton as a subscriber video. In costume. At 500 i'll try and bully @pptsapper.bsky.social into doing Cabinet Battle with me. He gets to pick whether he's Hamilton or Jefferson.

On 8th Oct 1952 the worst civilian rail disaster in UK history happened in London. 112 deaths. 340 wounded. That accident, and the actions of one woman from Florida have saved THOUSANDS of lives since. That disaster helped lead to the creation of paramedics. /1 🧵 www.youtube.com/watch?v=YU60...

To mark International Women's Day, meet Lt Cmdr. Madeleine Barclay. First Officer on HMS Fidelity. To my knowledge, the first woman to officially serve as First Officer on a Royal Navy vessel deployed on combat duty. Achieving this involved a three-way war between Navy, SOE and the WRNS /1 🧵 #IWD

...anyone?

Tax exiles stuck in London desperately trying to get *back* to Dubai to avoid becoming tax resident in the UK? Just great stuff. giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...

Important news! I am delighted to announce the launch of my new podcast: The Untitled History Podcast. It's me, and guests, falling down all the history rabbitholes you can imagine. Please, please spread the word, subscribe and listen. Because... SHIPS CATS!! cms.megaphone.fm/channel/the-...

Nothing has highlighted just how technically illiterate the senior business management and political classes are right now as the whole AI thing. Just an entire generation of "leaders" incapable of spotting a bad sales pitch because of some woo woo tech words that sound cool.

Cat wandered in front of the camera during the #aurora long exposure

Yeah sure why not. Nothing can go wrong with this plan.

If I were a politician planning to defect to another party, I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t do it while The Traitors was on.

Ban cities

Guys guys guys, I found the archive of the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures (it's not an achievement, they've not hidden them) - you can watch every single one since they started televising them in the 60s: www.rigb.org/christmas-le... I love watching them every year, now I can see them all!

I once facilitated Eric Knowles filming a piece to camera for some BBC antique programme or other, which involved starting and taxiing a light aircraft.

I see the Brexit-backing owner of Dyson, who offshored himself and the firm for tax reasons, is moaning about having to pay tax on the extensive farmland that he bought here as a way to avoid inheritance tax. Hang on. I'll find my violin.

The manager of Hilbert's Grand Hotel, hearing the Christmas story and thinking "Fucksake - it's easy. You move the guest from room one..."

Sir Terry Pratchett is best understood as one of the most interesting, deeply ethical practical (I would say Pragmatist but I cede to actual experts) philosophers of the late 20th Century who just happened to work in deconstructed fantasy literature as his medium.

FAQ for torties: Q: What is this?! A: A tail Q: When did I get a tail? A: You've always had one Q: Why does my tail taste of porridge? A: Because you left it resting in my breakfast Q: OMG SHINY! What is THAT?! A: The Xmas tree. Same as yesterday Q: OMG A SNEK! A: No, that's your tail again

Today marks the anniversary of Graf Spee being scuttled, and a unique victory for the British diplomatic service

@catboycdr.bsky.social any weird system failures recently?

Streeting to next launch inquiry into “over-diagnosis” of left-handedness. “Never used to be like this,” he insists.

Happy "Cloudflare is fucked again" day to all who celebrate. Seems to come round earlier every month these days.

🌲 THE BIG CHRISTMAS GIFT THREAD! 🌲 If you are a creator or small shop/business, reply to this post with: - pics and a brief description of what you do (don't forget the alt text!) - a link or details on how people can buy I will boost you! Everyone else: buy the cool things! Repost this post! ⛄

Adding alt text to this because this is fucking amazing and everyone deserves to read it.

A friend asked for book suggestions, and honestly I'll concede on this one... Anyway, check out The Atrocity Archives by @cstross.bsky.social if you somehow haven't read it and James Bond the IT guy fights Eldritch horrors sounds up your alley.

Gosh.

I'm not the first to say it, but I think we should absolutely start a campaign to convince all the worst people that K2 is a *much* more impressive mountain to climb than Everest and we would all be much more impressed by that achievement

So apparently the correct response to shopping centre Santa ringing his bell is not to shout "bring out your dead!" No sense of humour, some people...

JA BITTE. Lufthansa's fantastic 100th anniversary livery will be painted on SIX aircraft types — the 787, 747-8, A380, A350-1000, A350-900 and A320neo. More of this please.

Absolutely thrilled by how successful Bazball has become. We should totally continue with this. Just wonderful stuff. The ability to adapt and learn lessons is second to none. Greatest thing to happen to English cricket of all time. Long may it continue.

if the telegraph can’t find a new buyer maybe it should just be towed out into the north sea and sunk

It’s the exclusive everyone wanted, the story that will win next year’s Pulitzer… I can reveal London’s giant AI generated Christmas artwork, the subject of much online mockery, is being torn down - and I honestly *genuinely* think you’ll never guess why. www.londoncentric.media/p/ai-artwork...

This is just someone making “I remember the corned beef of my childhood” into a column (and approximately as accurate).

Zadie Smith.

Jesus christ people the UK government are not banning VPNs stop getting caught out by dogshit headlines on social media sharing cards.

I think organisations should take unsolicited, murkily-funded 'reports' from people who used to work for a rival that has made your destruction a life's mission a little more sceptically.