I don't think I've been as cup-droppingly shocked at a piece of news for a while as Israel inviting Tommy Robinson on an official visit Tone deaf doesn't even come close. Wonder if this is Netenyha attempting to hit back for Palestinian recognition? Either way, it's batshit

Can't help feeling that Mahmood's suggestion is actually good advice. The aim of protests is to draw attention to what's happening in Gaza and build opposition to it. Giving Netanyahu a free excuse to call protestors antisemites and be treated more seriously than usual doesn't help that.

Just so you know, digital ID is soon to be in general use in most European countries. It is already in use in some non-European countries.

Ronald Blythe on the Spanish Civil War but feels relevant: “The world press continued to harp on atrocities and so reduced their impact. Eventually it required an effort of will to be as appalled as one felt one should be. Journalists everywhere, in their sincere efforts… debased the coin of agony.”

Seeing him and the conference finally rise to this is quite something. You can see the surge of confidence in the speech as he realises, hey basic antiracist rhetoric is popular and I believe it too! Glad the message has sunk in.

I think that was Keir Starmer’s best speech as Labour leader, in part because he clearly believed most of it and the argument actually cohered and had some policy substance to it.

Farage says Go home, I say You are home Creeping towards good messaging… this is an eminently winnable fight, Labour need to fight it. This week at least they’ve entered the engagement

My goodness me. American white Christians continue to outdo themselves. I thought it couldn’t get any more heretical after Vance’s order of love This time it’s taking a swipe at that most unchristian concept *checks notes*, piety And of course the golden rule for good measure

We need to grasp the nettle. This is a very good start, the best I’ve seen Starmer speak for a long time. 4 years is a long time in anything, never mind politics. Farage is eminently beatable and it’s time for the government to go on the offensive and start making the weather

Very very funny, given Trump has attended and his comments about Europe this week, if the Ryder Cup plays out as it currently going Americans getting absolutely toasted overall and currently losing all 4 fourballs

From the 1931 election. J H Thomas, having been expelled from the Labour Party for joining the National Government, explains his actions to his Derby constituents Hard to imagine today a cabinet minister listening to hecklers and answering their questions youtu.be/H2ZT859cSfI?...

This media framing is mad - when Labour was polling 50% in 2023 were news channels running “Keir Starmer on course to be prime minister”? Equally, if the Tories had a 10 point lead atm (I know, stay with me), would it be reported as Badenoch on road to be PM? Would it be headline worthy full stop?

Might it be possible that the gulf states backing this have a different view of Tony Blair than British people. The gulf states of course very much not fans of Iraq so not such a stain for them? www.bbc.com/news/article...

We wouldn't consider responsible any expert who said "I have heard enough, I want to see no more studies, ever", would we? We probably won't have to vote until 2029. Why self-impose a 2025 cut-off? Keep the receipts. Argue. Fight. Rage. But also reflect. Review. Listen. Leave yourself room. 9/

On the left there is an excess of negative vetting. Did you say "this phrase" in one interview? You are dead to me. Did you do "this daft thing" trying to scratch a living ten years ago? I could never give you a hearing. We whittle our options down to zero, then rage about the lack of options. 4/

It's obviously true unless something unexpected happens, but a) the incumbent government needs to actually have *delivered for its coalition* to lead a republican front b) the leader needs to be a plausible leader of it and c) they do need to actually be able to say 'Vichy was bad'.

Gen Z’s worst crime. And according to this article something they share with boomers

UPDATE: Sultana has called in the defamation lawyers against Corbyn I suppose in her defence they do need something to spend all that membership money on now Your Party’s not happening

As soon as a tweeted this I realised it’s the easily the most Partridge thing I’ve ever said/typed

It’s taken some practice but the wife has finally nailed sourdough baking. She’s delighted with what is apparently called the ‘ear’. Now I’m on creamy scrambled eggs duty and we’ve got the perfect weekend brunch

We used to be a real country

Nearly finished my first day as the person in charge of email communications at YourParty, hope I did a good job!

This morning: Zarah Sultana launched Your Party membership This afternoon: Jeremy Corbyn says he taking legal advice and members should cancel their direct debits immediately You couldn’t make this up, absolute leftist speed run

Had some conversations about free speech over the last few days To paraphrase the best point: Should gay people have to debate whether they are a disease? Should women have to debate whether they are second class citizens? Should black people have to debate if they’d be better off as slaves?

Just finished a Gun for Sale by Graham Greene - would highly recommend At times horrifying, at times hilarious and a great thriller, full of twists and turns. Also an earthy insight into 1930s British society - war paranoia, rampant sexism & causal sexual assault, class resentment, provincialism

EXC - @allymcgovern.bsky.social talks to the Guardian about her deputy leadership bid She says Labour should be defending diversity and must make a far more “emotional argument." "The progressive cause is at risk of being lost unless we can tell that story”. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

4K version just came out in the UK and hit my mat yesterday. I shall be indulging this evening!

£240,000 for 45 minutes with Boris Johnson... At that rate you'd hope he was a bit more concise than usual www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

Yvette Cooper from Home to Foreign Office one year into the term surprises me - is she going to become a great-offices-of-state-hopper? John Simon was Home, Foreign and Chancellor between 1931-40 Rab Buttler held those 3 in the 1950-60s Jim Callaghan the only one to have held all 4 in the 60-70s

Another AI success… 9 November 1940 is of course the date of death of Chamberlain himself. Dilks is, as far as I can tell, still alive

Had no idea about the Rayner scandal beyond the headlines until I saw this BBC explainer Once you’ve familiarised yourself with even this cursory level of detail it seems far less shady. Also the fact the trust is for the care of her disabled son

Friday night Bundesliga on the BBC is such a novelty

Morning walk to clear the head Jays, buzzards, bullfinches and peace. Haven’t come across a soul since leaving the front door and walking up Whittle Dene I’m extremely biased but Northumberland is obviously the most beautiful county in England

This is such an easy win attack line, we need to hear this from the govt: Taxpayers money paid to the Islamic extremists who killed X number of British servicemen & women. And we're paying *them* to torture their enemies? This Reform policy is an open goal to counter on so many levels...

Anyway, in brighter news, it’s bloody lovely on Costa del Toon

Low level, long term irritation Why on earth are Newcastle, South Africa and Newcastle, Australia the first results on BBC Weather?? Then 3 small Newcastle’s before the actual city that surely the vast majority of searches on their app will pertain to? It’s been like this for years

Bank holiday weekend

Returning to the banks of the Tweed, where we were married last year. The sun even came out for us

On the anniversary of H.P. Lovecraft's bday I implore you to put down the works of a feeble little wasp terrified of non-english people and instead pick up those of Arthur Machen. A C19th Welsh author whose works are cosmic-horrory, sinister as hell and rooted in the horror of the Welsh landscape

Love this speech from Lord De La Warr (prounouced Delaware) from December 1938. He was Education Secretary in Chamberlain's government but here he breaks his silence and gives appeasement both barrels After Kristallnacht, buyer's remorse about Munich was setting in and he didn't get sacked for this

“Corbynism was too conciliatory and I didn’t like the bit where he listened to the Holocaust folks” is quite the opening pitch

Would recommend

This is my favourite passage from Nicolson's diary, from Feb 1939 When asked if Britain has consulted the Spanish Republican govt, Chamberlain smirks "They were... not there" (having fled into exile) Nicolson let's fly, he "loathes" Chamberlain, "a cad... a bourgeois shit... He is 100% shit"

Can't think why I'm reminded of this today... This is The Times, 20 Sept 1938: Britain & France telling the Czechs to give up a huge chunk of their country (largely inhabited by a linguistic minortiy) and agree to neutrality in return for a joint guarentee of independence in order to sate Hitler 🤔

This feels very Weimar Republic In July 1932, the increasingly authoritarian Hindenburg regime federalised the Social Democrat-run govt of Prussia The Soc Dems took it to court and won but it didn’t change anything. Prussia remained in federal hands, ruling was ignored www.bbc.com/news/article...

A good excuse for my favourite 'Conservatism in the UK in 2025' image: first story is from 2022, second is from autumn of last year.

Rachel Reeves: You know you’d be personally richer and the economy would be better and you wouldn’t have to fix strangers’ boilers if you just put any savings you have in a stock tracker rather than buy to lets. Everyone in the UK with any money: all my life I have dreamed of being a landlord.

Crime is half what it was 20 years ago, stabbings even lower Our greenhouse gas emissions have gone off a cliff since the 2000s The 1%’s share of Britain’s wealth is declining and is close to its lowest ever level Emigration is at the lowest level ever recorded archive.ph/2025.08.08-1...

Cricket, bloody hell