Your cat when you're choking to death in your apartment

New review of Red Duchess! This time in Parliament’s in house magazine, with a readership of people I hope will enjoy a story of rebellion on a matter of principle…

"Gray’s compelling narrative brings this fascinating lady to life" 📚 Baroness Eleanor Laing reviews @amygraywrites.bsky.social 'Red Duchess: Kitty Atholl, A Rebel in Westminster' bit.ly/43eQUWN

"We all want to put the small boat gangs out of business. But without the new Dubs Amendment, parents separated from their children... face a heartbreaking choice: stay apart – or pay up and see the child take their chances with a smuggler" ✍️ Lord Kerr @alfdubs.bsky.social bit.ly/47mxfqe

"Another military scandal – yet again, it’s women who bear the scars." ✍️ Sarah Atherton on why the MoD must confront its dark legacy on sexual abuse of servicewomen bit.ly/4nyo3np

"It is an unsettling work... systematic, often damming" 📚 Jon Cruddas reviews Paul Holden's 'The Fraud: Keir Starmer, Morgan McSweeney, and the Crisis of British Democracy' | @orbooks.bsky.social #TheFraud bit.ly/43Gmv3C

"A gripping, genre-busting 162-minute epic, prepare to be entertained by Paul Thomas Anderson's morally complex and glorious film" 🎬 Baroness Shami Chakrabarti reviews 'One Battle After Another' | #OneBattleAfterAnother bit.ly/42Yud9a

"A powerful depiction of the life of Tourette’s campaigner John Davidson, this emotionally honest and witty film will restore your faith in humanity" 🎬 @tracygilbertmp.bsky.social reviews 'I Swear' | @studiocanal.com bit.ly/3J9gCVP

"I warn you not to fall in love with someone from another country. And if you do, I very specifically warn you that she mustn't take maternity leave."

"This wonderful book is an essential reminder of the vitally important role popular protest has played in securing our parliamentary democracy" 📚 @johnmcdonnellmp.bsky.social reviews @johnwrees.bsky.social 'The Fiery Spirits' | @versobooks.bsky.social bit.ly/470LbGe

"This rich, meticulously researched chronicle – history at its finest – underlines the power of personal relationships and deft diplomacy. It should be essential reading in No 10 and, above all, the White House" 📚 Lord Guy Black reviews Tim Bouverie's 'Allies at War' | #AlliesatWar bit.ly/4774xZb

"Olympian, parliamentarian, King’s Counsel. The list of achievements is formidable...but it only shows a fraction of the whole picture. What it doesn’t show is a man capable of enormous loyalty and kindness to his friends" 🕊️ @amcarmichaelmp.bsky.social pays tribute to Menzies Campbell bit.ly/479OUjG

"Whale interviewed a large number of whips and ex-whips, enabling him to write an accurate and sympathetic account" 📚 Lord George Young reviews @sebwhale.bsky.social 'The Usual Channels: Inside the Mysterious World of Political Whips' | @bitebackpublishing.bsky.social bit.ly/431Mrq7

Reform likely to raise Kent council tax after cost-cutting drive falters on.ft.com/4pTvJ62

It was an honour to visit The Purpose of Light exhibition by the incredible @misanharriman.bsky.social at Hope 93 gallery. An unforgettable experience, unlike anything I’ve ever encountered - it must be seen in person. Runs til 30th Oct. My review👇🏾 www.politicshome.com/opinion/arti...

"In terms of their XR work, there is so much insight to be gained here about events that were only a few years ago – but divided from today by a sea change in authoritarianism towards civil disobedience" 🎥 @sianberry.bsky.social reviews 'Ackroyd & Harvey' | @tullstories.bsky.social bit.ly/4gWHcOg

"He takes us through a fascinating journey, and he does it with charm and wit" 📚 Lord Chris Smith reviews @chrisbryant1962.bsky.social's 'A Life and a Half: The Unexpected Making of a Politician' | @bloomsburybooksuk.bsky.social bit.ly/46C069C

A collection of extraordinary photographs, Misan Harriman’s work needs to be seen in person in order to appreciate how truly impressive it is 📸 @dawnbutlerbrent.bsky.social reviews @misanharriman.bsky.social's 'The Purpose of Light' | #Hope93 gallery bit.ly/3VOahBP

A brutal and electric documentary following a Ukrainian brigade as it attempts to liberate a strategically important village, Chernov’s film is breathtaking and unmissable 🎥 @tomthescribe.bsky.social reviews Mstyslav Chernov’s '2000 Meters to Andriivka' | @dogwoofdocs.bsky.social bit.ly/46tDzfa

A significant re-examination of the Labour leader’s legacy, Steve Richards’ insightful book is worth buying just for the chapter looking at Tony Blair’s self-entrapment over Iraq 📚 Jon Cruddas reviews @steverichards.bsky.social's 'Tony Blair' | @swiftpress.bsky.social bit.ly/4mSeIqs

Very good stuff from Sadiq Khan at the Labour Irish society event. He said there are two reasons he loves coming to Labour Conference. “One is the reception at the Labour Party Irish Society reception. “The second is to get away from all the Sharia Law in London”

'Iron Ladies' is a sensitive and respectful portrayal of women whose stories are too rarely told 🎬Baroness O’Grady reviews 'Iron Ladies' | @sotl-films.bsky.social #IronLadies #MinersStrike bit.ly/4nVZMZg

'An aristocratic maths wizard, with an infectious smile and hair like Don King, Meghnad Desai was impossible to ignore. I grieve the loss of my friend, professor of Marxist economics, secular socialist – and Bollywood aficionado' 🕊️ Lord Glasman pays tribute to Lord Desai bit.ly/485c4K1

Every Brilliant Thing is well worth seeing. Here’s my review about it. Lenny was amazing ❤️ www.politicshome.com/opinion/arti...

"I left the theatre reassured, not just having watched a play, but having participated in an optimistic and hopeful experience, feeling a renewed sense of gratitude" 🎭 @floellabenjamin.bsky.social reviews #EveryBrilliantThing at @SohoPlace theatre| @lennyhenryofficial.bsky.social bit.ly/4pvw3bf

"Rachel Reeves must start treating Scotch Whisky like the national asset it is" ✍️ @wendychambld.bsky.social bit.ly/48kvoD6

Elizabeth Buchanan has produced a well-written and timely study of this hotly contested, gigantic frozen island 📚 Brendan O'Hara MP reviews Elizabeth Buchanan’s 'So You Want to Own Greenland? Lessons from the Vikings to Trump' | @hurstpublishers.bsky.social bit.ly/3K3htaB

"Perhaps it is because she is still in politician mode and does not want to damage her party. Whatever the reason, 'Frankly' could do with a touch more frankness" 📚 @kieranandrews.bsky.social reviews Nicola Sturgeon's 'Frankly' | @panmacmillan.bsky.social bit.ly/46eTuwj

"The whole volume is suffused with wit, forensic detail and shrewd political judgement." Natch - it's by @qmpoliticsir.bsky.social's @philipjcowley.bsky.social

🚨 The latest edition of The House magazine is out now in Parliament! Sample it here: www.politicshome.com/house-magazi... If you want the latest interviews, opinion, political analysis and more sent to your door, get 25% off using the code HOUSE25 here: www.tpgroupshop.com/store/produc...

"I challenge any parliamentarian – however nerdish – not to discover new facts which help explain why our democracy operates as it does and how it is changing" 📚 Lord Dick Newby reviews @philipjcowley.bsky.social 'The Smallest Room in the House' | @bitebackpublishing.bsky.social bit.ly/4m8fDSY

Reminds me of how Warren Buffett emphasizes how he spends 80% of his working day reading. Significantly, this is business school faculty expressing enough concern to lead to this @financialtimes.com story.

Nationalise Sienna Rodgers, she’s actually an essential service to our body politic at this point

"Annette didn’t just serve her community – she shaped it, and those of us who follow in her footsteps do so in the hope of honouring her example" 🕊️ @vikkislademp.bsky.social‬ pays tribute to Annette Brooke bit.ly/4lEF3aB

Agree with all this but also, when Cummings et al say they'd like to *sink* the small boats, who do they imagine is going to do the sinking? Cummings seems to think it's the Navy, but the Royal Navy does its best to stop *enemy sailors* from drowning. Are they going to let asylum seekers drown?

Japan’s unconditional surrender on 15 August 1945 coincided with the state opening of a new parliament following the Labour government’s election just three weeks before ✍️ Lord Lexden looks back on a day when patriotic pride dove-tailed with a promise of national renewal #VJDay bit.ly/4mFzE3Z

Letter of the day (in the Times)

🚨 Exclusive: Ed Davey has met with BBC boss Tim Davie to complain about the broadcaster’s coverage, which the Liberal Democrats claim is weighted too heavily in Reform UK’s favour www.politicshome.com/news/article...

"With their vastly different temperaments, the two artists don’t sit well in the same space. But does that matter? The more you look, the more you see the similarities" 🎨 @nicktrench.bsky.social reviews 'Kiefer / Van Gogh' | @royalacademy.bsky.social #AnselmKiefer #VanGogh bit.ly/3TU8zOo

"It is not often possible to recommend a TV series as compelling as Adam Curtis’ Shifty" 📺 Baroness Tessa Blackstone reviews 'Shifty' | #BBCiPlayer #shifty bit.ly/4nXuNg4

Go and see this provocative and irreverent exhibition showcasing the radical contributions of disabled people to contemporary culture at the V&A – if you can actually get there, that is... ✍️ Baroness (Tanni) Grey-Thompson reviews 'Design and Disability' | #V&A bit.ly/3TJOxG8

"If you found Netflix’s 'Adolescence' to be eye-opening, then James Bloodworth’s 'Lost Boys' is the perfect companion piece: an in-depth, personal and authoritative account" 📚 @sarahowen.org.uk reviews @jamesbloodworth.bsky.social‬ 'Lost Boys' | @atlanticbooks.bsky.social bit.ly/44NXlQn

Michelle Clement has produced a brilliant account of the creation of the No 10 Delivery Unit and the travails of the Blair government to implement its public service reforms 📚 Lord Francis Maude reviews @mlclem.bsky.social's 'The Art of Delivery' | @bitebackpublishing.bsky.social bit.ly/4lVOmnk

"He lived for two Margarets, but he never had any doubt which Margaret came first. His devotion to her was total. Skinhead turned Saviour; Bruiser turned Carer" 🕊️ Michael Dobbs pays tribute to Norman Tebbit bit.ly/4lmOtbH

"We enter a quirky world in the best tradition of the old Ealing comedies. It’s the kind of beautifully conceived small-budget British film that we all need more of" 🎬 @kevinbrennanexmp.bsky.social reviews 'The Ballad of Wallis Island' @focusfeatures.bsky.social bit.ly/3IbyChp

"Iran has been the loser in this conflict... If Iran’s leadership has any sense, they will now agree a deal with Mr Trump. But they may not. Khamenei is 86, isolated, and paranoid" ✍️ Jack Straw bit.ly/4lCRNPz

"Amar Singh, whose gallery it is, was told that the ‘George Floyd era’ was over and he should exhibit something else. I don’t think that could be any more wrong" 📸 @dawnbutlerbrent.bsky.social‬ reviews the Amar Gallery's, 'Black Panthers & Revolution: Stephen Shames' #StephenShames bit.ly/3GsNIyr

"Despite being on opposite sides in politics, we both share experiences that with hindsight we would have avoided at all costs" 📚 @jowhitemp.bsky.social reviews @westminsterwag.bsky.social's 'How Not to Be a Political Wife' | @harpernonfic.bsky.social bit.ly/3TO8HyK

NEW: A sneak preview in @thetimes.com of my interview with Leader of the House of Commons Lucy Powell. 📰 Full interview coming on Monday in @thehousemag.bsky.social 👇 www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...