The fact that a man like Farage who praised Putin, made himself Mr Brexit, and campaigned for Trump is considered anything other than a crank is a fairly damning indictment of the political climate in Britain.

It’s a real shame that Nigel Farage is too unwell to do interviews the morning after Donald Trump threatens us with sanctions. Here he is with “the bravest man he ever met”. He campaigned to make Trump President, and has spent the last year enjoying all the chaos he has caused.

ICE are bog standard child kidnappers.

Lib Dem source: “Just 45 more Tory defections until Ed becomes Leader of the Opposition.”

😚👌

So a perfect fit

Three guys on the pitch who've scored in the Conference League final and two who've scored in the Champions League final.

Have you seen the draw for the fifth round of the Scottish Cup? Did you see what happened to Rangers in the Scottish Cup last season? Did you hear this fat git after Friday night's game...?

"You're all just uptight Presbyterians" Yeah. Course we are, mate...

Incredible that Arsenal have now gone four years longer without the English title than they do in the main plot line of Fever Pitch.

Annan Athletic, Aberdeen, St Mirren, Livingston.

Friday night was Ibrox, Saturday was Prey, the 2022 Predator prequel movie, last two and a half episodes of the latest Harlan Koben on Netflix, The Rip (Matt Damon & Ben Affleck Netflix movie), 2nd half of Manc derby, 1 roast chicken, 6 cheese n onion, 4 Jack Daniels: Palermo v Dortmund at hockey.

It will not surprise you to learn that Toby Youngs 'Free Speech Union' has obtained a High Court injunction banning the publication of a list of its donors open.substack.com/pub/democrac...

Three Scottish Cup ties involving Edinburgh clubs. Only one to progress is the only club of the six involved in those ties who haven't won the Scottish Cup. Well done, Spartans.

Don't see enough John Hegley these days.

I'm so old I was there the last time Hibs won the Scottish Cup.

How to Ruin a Perfectly Lovely Night, by the man who puts the "You fu**ing Tube!" into podcasting.

When Finchy and Brent won the pub quiz because Finchy threw Tim's shoe over the roof.

Take a 7-day free trial at Scottishfootball.info Auchinleck Talbot manger of 23 years, Tommy Sloan, will take his 55th Scottish Cup match as manager on Sunday Vs Celtic. That's one more than the 54 achieved by Walter Smith, Tommy McLean, Jerry Kerr & Jim Duffy. Only Dick Campbell (63) has more

It's been a busy week. In the loveliest way. Annan Athletic bringing memories of lower league pain, supplied both by themselves in the Third Division and by Queen's Park in last season's Scottish Cup, surely can't ruin the nice vibes. Surely. Tell me they can't. Please.

Sometimes they just tell us they are weaponizing the criminal justice system to push their political agenda.

The Story of a Dissapearance and an Appearance. 21st of 33 stories in here I've read over the last 13 Xmases, between repeats of the TV adaptations. Started nice, got silly, then, despite confusion re plot, it became arguably the most horrifying MR James I've read yet. The Mezzotint has a rival.

Everyone who’s read M.R. James going “for feck’s sake don’t blow it”.

even aside from the casual racism this nitwit deploys, imagine how dumb you'd have to be to not understand why people might more readily protest a murder carried out by their government, for which their government is unrepentant, than than a murder by an individual.

Absolutely phenomenal run from Rangers - hell, a phenomenal week from Rangers - completed at dinner time on Sunday. I ranted on about it til breakfast time on Monday.

Attended to help "save The Ton" I remember the future Airdrie chairman on the street below the back of this terrace, responding to a bit of banter with "Don't you want our money, then??" threatening not to attend if the precious Diamonds weren't given safe passage. Steve Archibald's foreign stars.

Been an eventful week and we're in for an eventful game today AND this is the second leg of the Scottish European Cup-Winners' Cup Winners Cup final: this is the pod that dares to attempt to cover it all. Truth be told I'm still recording it. Hop on, hop off.

Great BBC stat: Port Vale now off the hook for most league places between FA Cup giant and their killer (117 V 108). Even better is that the last non-league side to eliminate the holders was in 1909... and it was Crystal Palace. They beat Wolves, who won the 1908 final at... The Crystal Palace

Gary Neville says Martinelli was so out of order, getting physical with an injured player, that a Liverpool player should have punched him. Two injured players is more moral than one. Highlight of the game.

Who could have thought an innocent operation to kidnap children from daycare centers could have turned so tragic?

Really fucking weird that all the "We just want to protect the kids." people are in favor of a pedophile President.

The end goal of Grok sexual harassment is to make women afraid to be visible. It’s a punishment for daring to exist in a way the perpetrators can’t control. There’s no one solution to this, because the problem isn’t just technological. It’s cultural. It’s misogyny. This is just one expression of it.

He's really fine with burning the entire world down rather than face any consequences for his crimes

How we should all refer to Twitter from now on

Mad Men. I hate to do the "not even close" thing but it isn't even. Mad Men by a mile.

Thinking I might abandon pod titles as the thumbnail images of my coupon are becoming perfect summaries of the matter discussed therein. Rangers win is ugly, cold and massive.

Perfect description of this type. A type so horrifically emboldened - and catastrophically empowered - over the last decade. The kind of bloke most people used to know as a wanker at best, a nonce at worst. Now they're actually believed, proudly followed or hailed for "gaming the system".

Just after 2:00 p.m., on the west front, the police - bloodied, battered, and overwhelmed - blasted this message, ordering people to leave. The Capitol was breached minutes later.

NEW POD. I had trouble with the title. Rangers have too. But now only as much as Celtic.

That's us got rid of three Celtic managers* AND Peter Lawwell by the 5th of January. 49ers dominating Scottish football instantly. *Okay, O'Neill was an interim but I'm still claiming a treble.

It accelerates the slide from a mostly rules-based world to one of competing spheres of influence, to be determined by armed might and the readiness to use it. What @djrothkopf.bsky.social calls the “Putinization of US foreign policy”

The thumbnail looks like a fat old man praising the lord in a charismatic church style, feeling the spirit flowing through him. Pretty accurate illustration of the content therein.

Going for it.

My slant on the holiday season service is to lay on even more of a service but run it all far too late in the day for anyone to catch it. An old man being pessimistic in a revealingly optimistic tone. Asking for trouble. We are all just asking for trouble.

Farage confirms he’s glad his (schoolboy) racism has been exposed, that he’s enjoying the electoral kickback it’s given him amongst his racist supporters and expresses absolutely no shame or guilt about it at all. Racist man. Racist party. Racist voters. (iPaper)

Might look like I spent December on the sofa but, as of 1am, Jan 2nd, I've watched all three seasons of Mr Mercedes ACTUALLY. And now I'm free to enjoy the final series of Stranger Things right to the end of the festive break Cry all you want. Not my fault You didn't put the work in.