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Betting on a Tory poll lead in September – politicalbetting.com

SystemSystem Posts: 11,002
edited July 2022 in General
imageBetting on a Tory poll lead in September – politicalbetting.com

I have just had a bet at about 4/1 that the Tories will have a poll lead at some stage during September.

Read the full story here

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Comments

  • IshmaelZIshmaelZ Posts: 21,830
    Not tempted

    Winter Will Be Coming
  • rkrkrkrkrkrk Posts: 7,881
    God I hope not. Probably a smart bet though
  • eekeek Posts: 24,797
    It's a big jump from a Labour 10% or so lead to the Tories having a poll lead in September.

    I can't see it and even if the Tories get one by December it will be gone as the CoL crisis hits everyone.
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 116,709
    Either leader may well get a bounce but the polling suggests it will not be a big one. Probably less than May or Brown or Major got and maybe not even enough to take the lead
  • IshmaelZIshmaelZ Posts: 21,830
    Ordered a log burning stove today. will be installed late November.

    Winter Is Coming.
  • DecrepiterJohnLDecrepiterJohnL Posts: 23,926
    Betfair next prime minister
    1.11 Liz Truss 90%
    9.8 Rishi Sunak 10%

    Next Conservative leader
    1.11 Liz Truss 90%
    10 Rishi Sunak 10%
  • PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 75,842

    Betfair next prime minister
    1.11 Liz Truss 90%
    9.8 Rishi Sunak 10%

    Next Conservative leader
    1.11 Liz Truss 90%
    10 Rishi Sunak 10%

    THE COMEBACK IS ON
  • eek said:

    It's a big jump from a Labour 10% or so lead to the Tories having a poll lead in September.

    I can't see it and even if the Tories get one by December it will be gone as the CoL crisis hits everyone.

    Doesn't have to be average poll, though. Kantar and Opinium have recently shown leads of 3 or 4% so much more credible with those.
  • ClippPClippP Posts: 1,667
    HYUFD said:

    Either leader may well get a bounce but the polling suggests it will not be a big one. Probably less than May or Brown or Major got and maybe not even enough to take the lead

    I think you are right, young HY. Neither Sunak nor Truss holds a candle in comparison with Brown, May and Major. I say this sadly, thinking of the interests of the country as a whole.
  • ydoethurydoethur Posts: 66,751
    IshmaelZ said:

    Ordered a log burning stove today. will be installed late November.

    Winter Is Coming.

    A Stark warning.
  • RogerRoger Posts: 18,891
    IshmaelZ said:

    Not tempted

    Winter Will Be Coming

    I'm tempted. There must be some devilish punishment for asylum seekers that Starmer can devise which will trump sending them to Rwanda.
  • kyf_100kyf_100 Posts: 3,911
    IshmaelZ said:

    Not tempted

    Winter Will Be Coming

    It amazes me how much people are sleepwalking into this. Gonna be a shock to a lot of people when those heating bills start coming through.
  • ydoethurydoethur Posts: 66,751
    Roger said:

    IshmaelZ said:

    Not tempted

    Winter Will Be Coming

    I'm tempted. There must be some devilish punishment for asylum seekers that Starmer can devise which will trump sending them to Rwanda.
    Every asylum seeker who arrives in a small boat to watch Liz Truss talking about cheese for one hour if they agree to be deported, or three hours if they don't. Allowed to change their mind at any time up to 45 minutes in.

    Funeral expenses to be born by the state.

    Any people traffickers caught to watch that speech on a loop for two days.
  • ydoethurydoethur Posts: 66,751
    kyf_100 said:

    IshmaelZ said:

    Not tempted

    Winter Will Be Coming

    It amazes me how much people are sleepwalking into this. Gonna be a shock to a lot of people when those heating bills start coming through.
    I think I've got enough wooden pallets to keep me going for a bit. Just need to cut them up.
  • PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 75,842
    edited July 2022
    kyf_100 said:

    IshmaelZ said:

    Not tempted

    Winter Will Be Coming

    It amazes me how much people are sleepwalking into this. Gonna be a shock to a lot of people when those heating bills start coming through.
    I was quite late to the party fixing my energy, catching just about the very last decent deal going - the upside is I'm locked in till late 2023. So being tardy about it in the second half of 2021 has worked to my advantage.
  • MISTYMISTY Posts: 1,594
    kyf_100 said:

    IshmaelZ said:

    Not tempted

    Winter Will Be Coming

    It amazes me how much people are sleepwalking into this. Gonna be a shock to a lot of people when those heating bills start coming through.
    The people sleepwalking into this are the conservatives.
  • SandpitSandpit Posts: 49,614
    4/1 sounds about right.

    There will be a lot of high-profile changes in government led by the new PM, and probably a lot of legislation brought forward. The oil price is slowly falling, about 15% down in the last month, so people will start to see things move in the right direction. Ukraine also seems to be making progress in the war, which will make people optimistic.

    By October though, almost everything will have flipped, as energy bills skyrocket and interest rates keep going up. It’s going to be a really terrible winter for an awful lot of people.
  • bigjohnowlsbigjohnowls Posts: 21,723
    Roger said:

    IshmaelZ said:

    Not tempted

    Winter Will Be Coming

    I'm tempted. There must be some devilish punishment for asylum seekers that Starmer can devise which will trump sending them to Rwanda.
    Thought you were an SKS fan Roger?
  • PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 75,842
    edited July 2022
    Sandpit said:

    4/1 sounds about right.

    There will be a lot of high-profile changes in government led by the new PM, and probably a lot of legislation brought forward. The oil price is slowly falling, about 15% down in the last month, so people will start to see things move in the right direction. Ukraine also seems to be making progress in the war, which will make people optimistic.

    By October though, almost everything will have flipped, as energy bills skyrocket and interest rates keep going up. It’s going to be a really terrible winter for an awful lot of people.

    In Kherson, but the Russians are pushing against the Ukr stronghold of Adviika.
  • PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 75,842
    edited July 2022
    Sandpit said:

    4/1 sounds about right.

    There will be a lot of high-profile changes in government led by the new PM, and probably a lot of legislation brought forward. The oil price is slowly falling, about 15% down in the last month, so people will start to see things move in the right direction. Ukraine also seems to be making progress in the war, which will make people optimistic.

    By October though, almost everything will have flipped, as energy bills skyrocket and interest rates keep going up. It’s going to be a really terrible winter for an awful lot of people.

    The mortgage is going to be a series of 2 year fixes for me when it's due in 2025 or I might head to a tracker. The 5 year deals will probably still be more expensive, but unneccasarily so as people will be worried about further rises, though rates may fall with hopefully Ukraine sorted.
  • bondegezoubondegezou Posts: 7,168
    Sandpit said:

    4/1 sounds about right.

    There will be a lot of high-profile changes in government led by the new PM, and probably a lot of legislation brought forward. The oil price is slowly falling, about 15% down in the last month, so people will start to see things move in the right direction. Ukraine also seems to be making progress in the war, which will make people optimistic.

    By October though, almost everything will have flipped, as energy bills skyrocket and interest rates keep going up. It’s going to be a really terrible winter for an awful lot of people.

    Legislation may be announced, but there won’t be much time in September to get in passed, and it seems to me unlikely that new legislation will be able to have much effect in that time frame.

  • bigjohnowlsbigjohnowls Posts: 21,723
    Sandpit said:

    4/1 sounds about right.

    Ukraine also seems to be making progress in the war, which will make people optimistic.

    .

    I would be a lot happier if the War was done and energy bills plummeting
  • SandpitSandpit Posts: 49,614

    Sandpit said:

    4/1 sounds about right.

    There will be a lot of high-profile changes in government led by the new PM, and probably a lot of legislation brought forward. The oil price is slowly falling, about 15% down in the last month, so people will start to see things move in the right direction. Ukraine also seems to be making progress in the war, which will make people optimistic.

    By October though, almost everything will have flipped, as energy bills skyrocket and interest rates keep going up. It’s going to be a really terrible winter for an awful lot of people.

    Legislation may be announced, but there won’t be much time in September to get in passed, and it seems to me unlikely that new legislation will be able to have much effect in that time frame.

    Yes, the legislation itself will be spread over the coming year, but the discussion of ideas from a lot of new ministers eager to make a mark, will dominate September.
  • LostPasswordLostPassword Posts: 14,772
    kyf_100 said:

    IshmaelZ said:

    Not tempted

    Winter Will Be Coming

    It amazes me how much people are sleepwalking into this. Gonna be a shock to a lot of people when those heating bills start coming through.
    Muddling through is a very British trait. And it rarely gets *very* cold, certainly compared to the continent.

    Easy for me to say, I guess, since I'll be living with the in-laws this winter, so sharing the utility bills. And it's even milder in Ireland.
  • Sunil_PrasannanSunil_Prasannan Posts: 48,920
    FPT
    Carnyx said:

    Leon said:

    TOPPING said:

    Leon said:

    TOPPING said:

    Leon said:

    What are the Telegraph’s criteria for beauty? How the fuck do you end up with Canada 3rd?

    The only thing I can think of is “vast impressive tracts of ice and snow that almost no one wants to visit” but in that case Greenland should be in the top 3 because it is all of that and more magnificent

    Nah they've got this one - the Rockies are stupendously fabulous, fantastic, majestic, awesome.

    I remember going in short order from the Candadian Rockies to Mull. Very interesting contrast. The Rockies are enormous, vast in scale, very overwhelming; Mull, meanwhile was in comparison no less awesome but you realised on a much more restrained level, much more understated.

    Such a list, that said, is ridiculous.
    I’ve seen the rockies. Several times. The alps in all their manifestations are infinitely more beautiful - nothing in Canada matches the dolomites, for example

    Plus at the foot of the Dolomites you get utterly exquisite towns with gorgeous medieval castles. To put it politely this is not the case in Canada

    The rockies are quite meh
    Nah - you're wrong on this. The rockies are breathtaking. I certainly look out over the alps and think that's nice but the rockies are on a different scale.

    As for the towns, that is another reason why the list is bonkers. Are we talking Broadway, Worcestershire or Hartlepool - what's included here? You would have to assign a value to every element of a country, add it up and give it a final score. It is not even like a 10 best films or mini-series so absurd is the idea.
    No, I’m right. And I’ve travelled much much more then you so you must yield. I am simply right. Sorry
    With last week's rail trips north and west of Inverness, plus Barking Riverside this week, I've done the entire Great British "National Rail" network. All of it!

    What have YOU done, Leon?

    You've done nothing!

    [shrieking] NOTHING!!
    I was going to ask if you remembered the Vale of Rheidol but that isn't part of BR any more in any sense is it??
    No, not for many years.
  • StuartinromfordStuartinromford Posts: 14,087

    kyf_100 said:

    IshmaelZ said:

    Not tempted

    Winter Will Be Coming

    It amazes me how much people are sleepwalking into this. Gonna be a shock to a lot of people when those heating bills start coming through.
    Muddling through is a very British trait. And it rarely gets *very* cold, certainly compared to the continent.

    Easy for me to say, I guess, since I'll be living with the in-laws this winter, so sharing the utility bills. And it's even milder in Ireland.
    Though the flip side of that is that we are horribly unprepared for extreme weather when it does come round (see early last week... was it really so recent?)
  • ydoethurydoethur Posts: 66,751

    Sandpit said:

    4/1 sounds about right.

    Ukraine also seems to be making progress in the war, which will make people optimistic.

    .

    I would be a lot happier if the War was done and energy bills plummeting
    That would be a considerable improvement for the Ukrainians too.

    And probably the Russians.
  • ydoethurydoethur Posts: 66,751

    FPT

    Carnyx said:

    Leon said:

    TOPPING said:

    Leon said:

    TOPPING said:

    Leon said:

    What are the Telegraph’s criteria for beauty? How the fuck do you end up with Canada 3rd?

    The only thing I can think of is “vast impressive tracts of ice and snow that almost no one wants to visit” but in that case Greenland should be in the top 3 because it is all of that and more magnificent

    Nah they've got this one - the Rockies are stupendously fabulous, fantastic, majestic, awesome.

    I remember going in short order from the Candadian Rockies to Mull. Very interesting contrast. The Rockies are enormous, vast in scale, very overwhelming; Mull, meanwhile was in comparison no less awesome but you realised on a much more restrained level, much more understated.

    Such a list, that said, is ridiculous.
    I’ve seen the rockies. Several times. The alps in all their manifestations are infinitely more beautiful - nothing in Canada matches the dolomites, for example

    Plus at the foot of the Dolomites you get utterly exquisite towns with gorgeous medieval castles. To put it politely this is not the case in Canada

    The rockies are quite meh
    Nah - you're wrong on this. The rockies are breathtaking. I certainly look out over the alps and think that's nice but the rockies are on a different scale.

    As for the towns, that is another reason why the list is bonkers. Are we talking Broadway, Worcestershire or Hartlepool - what's included here? You would have to assign a value to every element of a country, add it up and give it a final score. It is not even like a 10 best films or mini-series so absurd is the idea.
    No, I’m right. And I’ve travelled much much more then you so you must yield. I am simply right. Sorry
    With last week's rail trips north and west of Inverness, plus Barking Riverside this week, I've done the entire Great British "National Rail" network. All of it!

    What have YOU done, Leon?

    You've done nothing!

    [shrieking] NOTHING!!
    I was going to ask if you remembered the Vale of Rheidol but that isn't part of BR any more in any sense is it??
    No, not for many years.
    Wasn't it 1987 they sold it off? Initially as the first ever rail franchise but then it was fully privatised.
  • MalmesburyMalmesbury Posts: 43,624

    Sandpit said:

    4/1 sounds about right.

    Ukraine also seems to be making progress in the war, which will make people optimistic.

    .

    I would be a lot happier if the War was done and energy bills plummeting
    Which is why I advocate giving the Ukrainians really long range weapons.

    How much is Jericho 3? Asking for a friend.
  • bondegezoubondegezou Posts: 7,168
    Sandpit said:

    Sandpit said:

    4/1 sounds about right.

    There will be a lot of high-profile changes in government led by the new PM, and probably a lot of legislation brought forward. The oil price is slowly falling, about 15% down in the last month, so people will start to see things move in the right direction. Ukraine also seems to be making progress in the war, which will make people optimistic.

    By October though, almost everything will have flipped, as energy bills skyrocket and interest rates keep going up. It’s going to be a really terrible winter for an awful lot of people.

    Legislation may be announced, but there won’t be much time in September to get in passed, and it seems to me unlikely that new legislation will be able to have much effect in that time frame.

    Yes, the legislation itself will be spread over the coming year, but the discussion of ideas from a lot of new ministers eager to make a mark, will dominate September.
    It will dominate the political news and be noticed by <10% of the population who reads such. The polls move slowly in general or in response to stories dominating the front pages.
  • StuartDicksonStuartDickson Posts: 12,146
    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
  • ydoethurydoethur Posts: 66,751

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
  • RochdalePioneersRochdalePioneers Posts: 27,013
    On topic, the bet feels like poor value. We're having the summer of discontent which is going to be quickly followed by the autumn of pain and the winter of hell. Whilst I accept that new leaders can expect a honeymoon, this one will not.

    Whilst the Tories spend the summer attacking each other, nobody is running the government and the crises we face are getting worse. Which means that the Trusster will enter Downing Street with a mountain of "oh fuck" problems that need her immediate attention. And she has neither the tools nor the inclination to do anything about them.

    Even Labour coming under attack from the hard left loons can't damage the poll lead. Which I think is why Starmer is just brushing off the mouth foam from the likes of Owen Jones.
  • Nigel_ForemainNigel_Foremain Posts: 13,766

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Whereas your semi-racist Anglophobe posts are 100% nondescript, 100% tedious and 100% prejudiced. What a silly hate-filled little man you are. If you have a wife, I feel deeply sorry for her.
  • dixiedeandixiedean Posts: 27,837
    On topic.
    Not sure I can price this.
    But if I did have to guess 4-1 may around where I'd land. So no bet for me at this stage.
    Also. Isn't there the possibility that any bounce may come later?
    The country at large doesn't know Liz Truss well. And she doesn't always give off the best first impression.
    Maybe a few weeks of populist policies and relentless propaganda will take time?
  • pingping Posts: 3,724
    edited July 2022
    Unleaded 170.7p/L at the Asda over in my part of the WM, according to the “PetrolPrices” app.

    17p/L more at a shell service station within a mile. Crazy difference.

    Shop around, people.
  • OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Scotland's a bit more than 5% of England
  • Nigel_ForemainNigel_Foremain Posts: 13,766
    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
  • LeonLeon Posts: 46,249
    FPT for @OllyT


    "UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside."

    ++++


    I wouldn't demur with any of that. This is why I put France at #1 and the UK at #9. Plus the French climate is superior (for now) and their urbanism less spoiled

    But the UK is still beautiful in parts, and splendidly varied, with an often-glorious coastline and some divine cityscapes - Cambridge! - and on a world ranking is right up there. It's just not as impressive as France, but France is number 1

    Which brings us to the bigger point. European countries crowd the top spots of "Most Beautiful Countries", which is why Europe, as a whole, gets more tourists than anywhere on earth. The tourists aren't dumb

    There are some natural landscapes that, individually, are more breath-taking than anywhere in Europe - the Antarctic Peninsula for sure, perhaps the wilds of the American West, Greenland, Ethiopia, bits of Oz, central Asia, NZ (apparently, haven't been), and so on, but for overall beauty, Europe sweeps the prizes

    The Telegraph list is bonkers, and is merely designed to stir up arguments. Which it has done. So well done that editor
  • Sean_FSean_F Posts: 35,765

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    There are all sort of places that are beautiful, but completely off the tourist trail. Most of North Hertfordshire and rural Bedfordshire, for example.
  • LostPasswordLostPassword Posts: 14,772
    Sandpit said:

    4/1 sounds about right.

    There will be a lot of high-profile changes in government led by the new PM, and probably a lot of legislation brought forward. The oil price is slowly falling, about 15% down in the last month, so people will start to see things move in the right direction. Ukraine also seems to be making progress in the war, which will make people optimistic.

    By October though, almost everything will have flipped, as energy bills skyrocket and interest rates keep going up. It’s going to be a really terrible winter for an awful lot of people.

    October is when the prices go up, but the amount of the increase will be announced earlier, I think towards the end of August. The timing of this could be crucial for the bet, as it really could derail any positive impetus from a new government, though it also provides an opportunity for the new PM to make a break with the past and win some early plaudits.

    On Ukraine we will have a decent idea by September whether Ukraine have managed to turn the tide on the course of the war. That might have more impact on US politics than British, though. Biden's failure over Afghanistan was when it first started going badly wrong for his Presidency, and Americans sure like supporting the winning side a whole lot more than the alternative.
  • MikeLMikeL Posts: 7,281
    edited July 2022
    Want an example of some totally absurd "journalism"?

    Dan Roan (BBC News Sports Editor) said yesterday that the Commonwealth Games Opening Ceremony would get a global TV audience of 1 billion - ie over 12% of the world's population.

    Well the BARB rating for last night was 4.5m - under 7% of the UK population.

    If it only got 7% in the UK where the event is being held, it certainly couldn't have got 12% worldwide given most of the world isn't even in the Commonwealth - the TV audience in China and the US must have been effectively zero (*).

    Saying that it would get 1 billion is totally and utterly absurd and destroys any pretence at serious journalism.

    I would be surprised if it even got close to 100m.

    (*) A useful point of reference - the Wimbledon Mens Final shown which is shown live in the US on ESPN got between 2m and 3m - under 1% of the US population.
  • StuartinromfordStuartinromford Posts: 14,087
    dixiedean said:

    On topic.
    Not sure I can price this.
    But if I did have to guess 4-1 may around where I'd land. So no bet for me at this stage.
    Also. Isn't there the possibility that any bounce may come later?
    The country at large doesn't know Liz Truss well. And she doesn't always give off the best first impression.
    Maybe a few weeks of populist policies and relentless propaganda will take time?

    First time for everything, but isn't the usual pattern a honeymoon glow that dissipates as the blank screen becomes covered with specific realities?
    If the Conservatives don't get a lead this autumn, when?
  • LeonLeon Posts: 46,249

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    It does seem to be an absolutely massive inferiority complex vis a vis England, perhaps the worst case I've ever seen, even amongst Scot Nits

    @StuartDickson is like the Elephant Man of Scottish Anglophobia. What is merely an unsightly pimple on the face of @Theuniondivvie, or a large hairy wart on the otherwise kindly face of @malcolmg, is a grotesque facial tumour on @StuartDickson, so bad he can barely see past it with his tiny, haunted, fearful, pig-like little eyes
  • GardenwalkerGardenwalker Posts: 20,812
    edited July 2022
    Sean_F said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    There are all sort of places that are beautiful, but completely off the tourist trail. Most of North Hertfordshire and rural Bedfordshire, for example.
    This is the first time in the history of ever that I’ve heard someone rhapsodise about rural Bedfordshire.

    I’m not saying you’re wrong (I don’t know), but it certainly belies its reputation.
  • FossFoss Posts: 694
    MikeL said:

    Want an example of some totally absurd "journalism"?

    Dan Roan (BBC News Sports Editor) said yesterday that the Commonwealth Games Opening Ceremony would get a global TV audience of 1 billion - ie over 12% of the world's population.

    Well the BARB rating for last night was 4.5m - under 7% of the UK population.

    If it only got 7% in the UK where the event is being held, it certainly couldn't have got 12% worldwide given most of the world isn't even in the Commonwealth - the TV audience in China and the US must have been effectively zero (*).

    Saying that it would get 1 billion is totally and utterly absurd and destroys any pretence at serious journalism.

    I would be surprised if it even got close to 100m.

    A useful point of reference - the Wimbledon Mens Final shown which is shown live in the US on ESPN got between 2m and 3m - under 1% of the US population.

    I believe that's fairly down on Glasgow as well.
  • ydoethurydoethur Posts: 66,751
    Leon said:

    FPT for @OllyT


    "UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside."

    ++++


    I wouldn't demur with any of that. This is why I put France at #1 and the UK at #9. Plus the French climate is superior (for now) and their urbanism less spoiled

    But the UK is still beautiful in parts, and splendidly varied, with an often-glorious coastline and some divine cityscapes - Cambridge! - and on a world ranking is right up there. It's just not as impressive as France, but France is number 1

    Which brings us to the bigger point. European countries crowd the top spots of "Most Beautiful Countries", which is why Europe, as a whole, gets more tourists than anywhere on earth. The tourists aren't dumb

    There are some natural landscapes that, individually, are more breath-taking than anywhere in Europe - the Antarctic Peninsula for sure, perhaps the wilds of the American West, Greenland, Ethiopia, bits of Oz, central Asia, NZ (apparently, haven't been), and so on, but for overall beauty, Europe sweeps the prizes

    The Telegraph list is bonkers, and is merely designed to stir up arguments. Which it has done. So well done that editor

    We should also remind ourselves of the old saying, 'beauty is in the eye of the beholder.'

    I mean, there are people who find London aesthetically pleasing. As it happens, I don't, but that doesn't mean it doesn't have a few impressive buildings in among the squalor.
  • Leon said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    It does seem to be an absolutely massive inferiority complex vis a vis England, perhaps the worst case I've ever seen, even amongst Scot Nits

    @StuartDickson is like the Elephant Man of Scottish Anglophobia. What is merely an unsightly pimple on the face of @Theuniondivvie, or a large hairy wart on the otherwise kindly face of @malcolmg, is a grotesque facial tumour on @StuartDickson, so bad he can barely see past it with his tiny, haunted, fearful, pig-like little eyes
    He hates the fact that he's basically English. Because that's what British means to him. Even though he's moved to Sweden, he's still living under the emotional yoke of the English Empire until he can get a Scottish passport.
  • GardenwalkerGardenwalker Posts: 20,812
    FPT:

    France also has both a Northern (rolling pastures) and a Southern (cypress trees and sand) zone, and indeed Alps.

    And better preserved towns and villages.

    And it’s much bigger.

    If you look at a map though, quite a bit of England is either National Park or AONB.
    And there’s more coastline. England could probably do more with its coastline.
  • LeonLeon Posts: 46,249

    Leon said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    It does seem to be an absolutely massive inferiority complex vis a vis England, perhaps the worst case I've ever seen, even amongst Scot Nits

    @StuartDickson is like the Elephant Man of Scottish Anglophobia. What is merely an unsightly pimple on the face of @Theuniondivvie, or a large hairy wart on the otherwise kindly face of @malcolmg, is a grotesque facial tumour on @StuartDickson, so bad he can barely see past it with his tiny, haunted, fearful, pig-like little eyes
    He hates the fact that he's basically English. Because that's what British means to him. Even though he's moved to Sweden, he's still living under the emotional yoke of the English Empire until he can get a Scottish passport.
    I hate to imagine the breakfast table chez @StuartDickson if one of the kids unfortunately says something positive about "the UK"
  • RochdalePioneersRochdalePioneers Posts: 27,013
    Foss said:

    MikeL said:

    Want an example of some totally absurd "journalism"?

    Dan Roan (BBC News Sports Editor) said yesterday that the Commonwealth Games Opening Ceremony would get a global TV audience of 1 billion - ie over 12% of the world's population.

    Well the BARB rating for last night was 4.5m - under 7% of the UK population.

    If it only got 7% in the UK where the event is being held, it certainly couldn't have got 12% worldwide given most of the world isn't even in the Commonwealth - the TV audience in China and the US must have been effectively zero (*).

    Saying that it would get 1 billion is totally and utterly absurd and destroys any pretence at serious journalism.

    I would be surprised if it even got close to 100m.

    A useful point of reference - the Wimbledon Mens Final shown which is shown live in the US on ESPN got between 2m and 3m - under 1% of the US population.

    I believe that's fairly down on Glasgow as well.
    Have the Commonwealth Games started? Wasn't even aware they were on.
  • MarqueeMarkMarqueeMark Posts: 49,958
    edited July 2022
    MikeL said:

    Want an example of some totally absurd "journalism"?

    Dan Roan (BBC News Sports Editor) said yesterday that the Commonwealth Games Opening Ceremony would get a global TV audience of 1 billion - ie over 12% of the world's population.

    Well the BARB rating for last night was 4.5m - under 7% of the UK population.

    If it only got 7% in the UK where the event is being held, it certainly couldn't have got 12% worldwide given most of the world isn't even in the Commonwealth - the TV audience in China and the US must have been effectively zero (*).

    Saying that it would get 1 billion is totally and utterly absurd and destroys any pretence at serious journalism.

    I would be surprised if it even got close to 100m.

    (*) A useful point of reference - the Wimbledon Mens Final shown which is shown live in the US on ESPN got between 2m and 3m - under 1% of the US population.

    It would have required India, Pakistan and Bangladesh to have largely stayed up all through the night to get to that number.

    Three nations that have won a hockey silver and a squash bronze between them in the whole history of sport.

  • ydoethurydoethur Posts: 66,751

    Sean_F said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    There are all sort of places that are beautiful, but completely off the tourist trail. Most of North Hertfordshire and rural Bedfordshire, for example.
    This is the first time in the history of ever that I’ve heard someone rhapsodise about rural Bedfordshire.

    I’m not saying you’re wrong (I don’t know), but it certainly belies its reputation.
    I've always had a soft spot for Berkshire too. Nobody I've heard of goes there on holiday but it's got some gorgeous countryside. The North Wessex Downs are better known but I've had some fabulous walks near Bracknell.
  • LostPasswordLostPassword Posts: 14,772
    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    Partly that's because France has roughly the same population spread over more than twice the area, but it's also because the population in the UK is concentrated much more in some areas, with the relatively empty picturesque bits more towards the extremities. There's loads of Scotland north of Perth, or Wales north-west of Cardiff, but you're not going to drive through them in the way you drive through empty bits of France between populated bits.

    I do think we have some beautiful small towns and cities, though, like Durham, so beauty is not all about empty countryside.
  • dixiedeandixiedean Posts: 27,837

    dixiedean said:

    On topic.
    Not sure I can price this.
    But if I did have to guess 4-1 may around where I'd land. So no bet for me at this stage.
    Also. Isn't there the possibility that any bounce may come later?
    The country at large doesn't know Liz Truss well. And she doesn't always give off the best first impression.
    Maybe a few weeks of populist policies and relentless propaganda will take time?

    First time for everything, but isn't the usual pattern a honeymoon glow that dissipates as the blank screen becomes covered with specific realities?
    If the Conservatives don't get a lead this autumn, when?
    Sure.
    I meant it might not be September. Could be October before the real bounce comes.
  • Sunil_PrasannanSunil_Prasannan Posts: 48,920
    ydoethur said:

    FPT

    Carnyx said:

    Leon said:

    TOPPING said:

    Leon said:

    TOPPING said:

    Leon said:

    What are the Telegraph’s criteria for beauty? How the fuck do you end up with Canada 3rd?

    The only thing I can think of is “vast impressive tracts of ice and snow that almost no one wants to visit” but in that case Greenland should be in the top 3 because it is all of that and more magnificent

    Nah they've got this one - the Rockies are stupendously fabulous, fantastic, majestic, awesome.

    I remember going in short order from the Candadian Rockies to Mull. Very interesting contrast. The Rockies are enormous, vast in scale, very overwhelming; Mull, meanwhile was in comparison no less awesome but you realised on a much more restrained level, much more understated.

    Such a list, that said, is ridiculous.
    I’ve seen the rockies. Several times. The alps in all their manifestations are infinitely more beautiful - nothing in Canada matches the dolomites, for example

    Plus at the foot of the Dolomites you get utterly exquisite towns with gorgeous medieval castles. To put it politely this is not the case in Canada

    The rockies are quite meh
    Nah - you're wrong on this. The rockies are breathtaking. I certainly look out over the alps and think that's nice but the rockies are on a different scale.

    As for the towns, that is another reason why the list is bonkers. Are we talking Broadway, Worcestershire or Hartlepool - what's included here? You would have to assign a value to every element of a country, add it up and give it a final score. It is not even like a 10 best films or mini-series so absurd is the idea.
    No, I’m right. And I’ve travelled much much more then you so you must yield. I am simply right. Sorry
    With last week's rail trips north and west of Inverness, plus Barking Riverside this week, I've done the entire Great British "National Rail" network. All of it!

    What have YOU done, Leon?

    You've done nothing!

    [shrieking] NOTHING!!
    I was going to ask if you remembered the Vale of Rheidol but that isn't part of BR any more in any sense is it??
    No, not for many years.
    Wasn't it 1987 they sold it off? Initially as the first ever rail franchise but then it was fully privatised.
    I have an Ian Allan "Motive Power Recognition" book from c.1984 that lists the Rheidol steam engines as "Class 98". Looks like the railway was sold in 1989.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vale_of_Rheidol_Railway
  • LeonLeon Posts: 46,249
    ydoethur said:

    Sean_F said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    There are all sort of places that are beautiful, but completely off the tourist trail. Most of North Hertfordshire and rural Bedfordshire, for example.
    This is the first time in the history of ever that I’ve heard someone rhapsodise about rural Bedfordshire.

    I’m not saying you’re wrong (I don’t know), but it certainly belies its reputation.
    I've always had a soft spot for Berkshire too. Nobody I've heard of goes there on holiday but it's got some gorgeous countryside. The North Wessex Downs are better known but I've had some fabulous walks near Bracknell.
    Possibly the first time someone has put "fabulous" and "Bracknell" in the same sentence
  • ydoethurydoethur Posts: 66,751

    Foss said:

    MikeL said:

    Want an example of some totally absurd "journalism"?

    Dan Roan (BBC News Sports Editor) said yesterday that the Commonwealth Games Opening Ceremony would get a global TV audience of 1 billion - ie over 12% of the world's population.

    Well the BARB rating for last night was 4.5m - under 7% of the UK population.

    If it only got 7% in the UK where the event is being held, it certainly couldn't have got 12% worldwide given most of the world isn't even in the Commonwealth - the TV audience in China and the US must have been effectively zero (*).

    Saying that it would get 1 billion is totally and utterly absurd and destroys any pretence at serious journalism.

    I would be surprised if it even got close to 100m.

    A useful point of reference - the Wimbledon Mens Final shown which is shown live in the US on ESPN got between 2m and 3m - under 1% of the US population.

    I believe that's fairly down on Glasgow as well.
    Have the Commonwealth Games started? Wasn't even aware they were on.
    They're taking over Cannock next Wednesday. For, of all things, mountain biking.
  • GardenwalkerGardenwalker Posts: 20,812
    ydoethur said:

    Sean_F said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    There are all sort of places that are beautiful, but completely off the tourist trail. Most of North Hertfordshire and rural Bedfordshire, for example.
    This is the first time in the history of ever that I’ve heard someone rhapsodise about rural Bedfordshire.

    I’m not saying you’re wrong (I don’t know), but it certainly belies its reputation.
    I've always had a soft spot for Berkshire too. Nobody I've heard of goes there on holiday but it's got some gorgeous countryside. The North Wessex Downs are better known but I've had some fabulous walks near Bracknell.
    Berks is all creamy and buttery and Thames-y though.

    Beds is stony and largely flat; it’s the on-ramp to the Midlands.
  • rottenboroughrottenborough Posts: 58,040
    There's a whole thread header right there me thinks:


    Andrew Lilico
    @andrew_lilico
    ·
    3h
    It's an illustration of how poor political betting markets can be that [Sunak] was ever seen as favourite.

    https://twitter.com/andrew_lilico/status/1552972340992016384
  • Sean_FSean_F Posts: 35,765

    Sean_F said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    There are all sort of places that are beautiful, but completely off the tourist trail. Most of North Hertfordshire and rural Bedfordshire, for example.
    This is the first time in the history of ever that I’ve heard someone rhapsodise about rural Bedfordshire.

    I’m not saying you’re wrong (I don’t know), but it certainly belies its reputation.
    Much of it is chalk downs, which are outliers to the Chilterns. And, there are a lot of very pretty villages.
  • LeonLeon Posts: 46,249
    edited July 2022

    ydoethur said:

    Sean_F said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    There are all sort of places that are beautiful, but completely off the tourist trail. Most of North Hertfordshire and rural Bedfordshire, for example.
    This is the first time in the history of ever that I’ve heard someone rhapsodise about rural Bedfordshire.

    I’m not saying you’re wrong (I don’t know), but it certainly belies its reputation.
    I've always had a soft spot for Berkshire too. Nobody I've heard of goes there on holiday but it's got some gorgeous countryside. The North Wessex Downs are better known but I've had some fabulous walks near Bracknell.
    Berks is all creamy and buttery and Thames-y though.

    Beds is stony and largely flat; it’s the on-ramp to the Midlands.
    The Chilterns extend into Bedfordshire

    eg Whipsnade Zoo. The views from there are lovely: across the rolling hills. Indeed I'd go so far as to say: beautiful. In a quiet, Bedfordshire way
  • TimSTimS Posts: 9,163

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    Partly that's because France has roughly the same population spread over more than twice the area, but it's also because the population in the UK is concentrated much more in some areas, with the relatively empty picturesque bits more towards the extremities. There's loads of Scotland north of Perth, or Wales north-west of Cardiff, but you're not going to drive through them in the way you drive through empty bits of France between populated bits.

    I do think we have some beautiful small towns and cities, though, like Durham, so beauty is not all about empty countryside.
    The coffin shaped corridor that encases London, Reading, Birmingham, Liverpool/Manchester and Leeds is the bit most people drive through and is the bit that looks most nondescript. It's also where the majority not only of England but of Britain lives. Most areas outside it are reasonably pretty.

    LOL at the Scot Nat post below about England - proper old school "my country's prettier than yours" jingoism.
  • dixiedeandixiedean Posts: 27,837
    FPT.
    Go to Canada. You are vanishingly unlikely to be attacked by a bear. They keep their distance from humans. And they can smell you from a long way off. You'd have to be seriously trying to harass one with cubs.
    You're far more statistically likely to be killed by a dog there.

    https://petkeen.com/canada-bear-attack-statistics/#:~:text=Surprisingly, there are very few,a bear attack in Canada.
  • RogerRoger Posts: 18,891
    I'm sure this has been seen but he's always good fun.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-Ax3weNyK8
  • After a few dull days my tomatoes have been swelling in the sun today

  • SandpitSandpit Posts: 49,614
    ydoethur said:

    Sean_F said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    There are all sort of places that are beautiful, but completely off the tourist trail. Most of North Hertfordshire and rural Bedfordshire, for example.
    This is the first time in the history of ever that I’ve heard someone rhapsodise about rural Bedfordshire.

    I’m not saying you’re wrong (I don’t know), but it certainly belies its reputation.
    I've always had a soft spot for Berkshire too. Nobody I've heard of goes there on holiday but it's got some gorgeous countryside. The North Wessex Downs are better known but I've had some fabulous walks near Bracknell.
    The fabulous walks mean you get to avoid Bracknell.
  • MalmesburyMalmesbury Posts: 43,624
    ydoethur said:

    Sean_F said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    There are all sort of places that are beautiful, but completely off the tourist trail. Most of North Hertfordshire and rural Bedfordshire, for example.
    This is the first time in the history of ever that I’ve heard someone rhapsodise about rural Bedfordshire.

    I’m not saying you’re wrong (I don’t know), but it certainly belies its reputation.
    I've always had a soft spot for Berkshire too. Nobody I've heard of goes there on holiday but it's got some gorgeous countryside. The North Wessex Downs are better known but I've had some fabulous walks near Bracknell.
    Bedfordshire - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Warden

    A beautiful little village, just round the corner from the Shuttleworth Collection. Lots of lovely country walks in the surrounding area.
  • boulayboulay Posts: 3,773
    Leon said:

    ydoethur said:

    Sean_F said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    There are all sort of places that are beautiful, but completely off the tourist trail. Most of North Hertfordshire and rural Bedfordshire, for example.
    This is the first time in the history of ever that I’ve heard someone rhapsodise about rural Bedfordshire.

    I’m not saying you’re wrong (I don’t know), but it certainly belies its reputation.
    I've always had a soft spot for Berkshire too. Nobody I've heard of goes there on holiday but it's got some gorgeous countryside. The North Wessex Downs are better known but I've had some fabulous walks near Bracknell.
    Possibly the first time someone has put
    "fabulous" and "Bracknell" in the same sentence
    Unless there is a theatre review “and Dame Maggie Smith didn’t disappoint with her fabulous Lady Bracknell, how the audience laughed as she delivered the handbag line, it was worth the entry alone”. Or some such bollocks.

  • GardenwalkerGardenwalker Posts: 20,812
    Leon said:

    ydoethur said:

    Sean_F said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    There are all sort of places that are beautiful, but completely off the tourist trail. Most of North Hertfordshire and rural Bedfordshire, for example.
    This is the first time in the history of ever that I’ve heard someone rhapsodise about rural Bedfordshire.

    I’m not saying you’re wrong (I don’t know), but it certainly belies its reputation.
    I've always had a soft spot for Berkshire too. Nobody I've heard of goes there on holiday but it's got some gorgeous countryside. The North Wessex Downs are better known but I've had some fabulous walks near Bracknell.
    Berks is all creamy and buttery and Thames-y though.

    Beds is stony and largely flat; it’s the on-ramp to the Midlands.
    The Chilterns extend into Bedfordshire

    eg Whipsnade Zoo. The views from there are lovely: across the rolling hills. Indeed I'd go so far as to say: beautiful. In a quiet, Bedfordshire way
    I seem to have stumbled into the Bedfordshire Tourism Board’s website.

    DUNSTABLE: YOU KNOW IT MAKES SENSE
  • MikeLMikeL Posts: 7,281
    edited July 2022
    Foss said:

    MikeL said:

    Want an example of some totally absurd "journalism"?

    Dan Roan (BBC News Sports Editor) said yesterday that the Commonwealth Games Opening Ceremony would get a global TV audience of 1 billion - ie over 12% of the world's population.

    Well the BARB rating for last night was 4.5m - under 7% of the UK population.

    If it only got 7% in the UK where the event is being held, it certainly couldn't have got 12% worldwide given most of the world isn't even in the Commonwealth - the TV audience in China and the US must have been effectively zero (*).

    Saying that it would get 1 billion is totally and utterly absurd and destroys any pretence at serious journalism.

    I would be surprised if it even got close to 100m.

    A useful point of reference - the Wimbledon Mens Final shown which is shown live in the US on ESPN got between 2m and 3m - under 1% of the US population.

    I believe that's fairly down on Glasgow as well.
    Yes indeed. UK TV ratings:

    Glasgow 2014 - average 7.6m, peak over 9m

    Birmingham 2022 - average 4.5m, peak 5.3m

    (Source: Digital Spy Ratings Thread)

    So average and peak both down over 40%.

    Someone with time on their hands should collate the ratings from major countries and make formal complaint to OFCOM.

    It's childish primary school standard spin - the BBC literally just making stuff up to promote their content.
  • MalmesburyMalmesbury Posts: 43,624

    Leon said:

    ydoethur said:

    Sean_F said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    There are all sort of places that are beautiful, but completely off the tourist trail. Most of North Hertfordshire and rural Bedfordshire, for example.
    This is the first time in the history of ever that I’ve heard someone rhapsodise about rural Bedfordshire.

    I’m not saying you’re wrong (I don’t know), but it certainly belies its reputation.
    I've always had a soft spot for Berkshire too. Nobody I've heard of goes there on holiday but it's got some gorgeous countryside. The North Wessex Downs are better known but I've had some fabulous walks near Bracknell.
    Berks is all creamy and buttery and Thames-y though.

    Beds is stony and largely flat; it’s the on-ramp to the Midlands.
    The Chilterns extend into Bedfordshire

    eg Whipsnade Zoo. The views from there are lovely: across the rolling hills. Indeed I'd go so far as to say: beautiful. In a quiet, Bedfordshire way
    I seem to have stumbled into the Bedfordshire Tourism Board’s website.

    DUNSTABLE: YOU KNOW IT MAKES SENSE
    For The Greater Good
  • RogerRoger Posts: 18,891

    Roger said:

    IshmaelZ said:

    Not tempted

    Winter Will Be Coming

    I'm tempted. There must be some devilish punishment for asylum seekers that Starmer can devise which will trump sending them to Rwanda.
    Thought you were an SKS fan Roger?
    I was before I realised that like you he's a Brexiteer. Having been in France for a while and understood the problems of getting there I've realised quite how barking mad you both must be.
  • SandpitSandpit Posts: 49,614

    ydoethur said:

    Sean_F said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    There are all sort of places that are beautiful, but completely off the tourist trail. Most of North Hertfordshire and rural Bedfordshire, for example.
    This is the first time in the history of ever that I’ve heard someone rhapsodise about rural Bedfordshire.

    I’m not saying you’re wrong (I don’t know), but it certainly belies its reputation.
    I've always had a soft spot for Berkshire too. Nobody I've heard of goes there on holiday but it's got some gorgeous countryside. The North Wessex Downs are better known but I've had some fabulous walks near Bracknell.
    Bedfordshire - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Warden

    A beautiful little village, just round the corner from the Shuttleworth Collection. Lots of lovely country walks in the surrounding area.
    Ooh, the Shuttleworth Collection. To anyone who hasn’t been, go. The most astonishing living museum of aviation, go on a nice day in the summer and watch the Tiger Moths flying.
  • GardenwalkerGardenwalker Posts: 20,812

    ydoethur said:

    Sean_F said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    There are all sort of places that are beautiful, but completely off the tourist trail. Most of North Hertfordshire and rural Bedfordshire, for example.
    This is the first time in the history of ever that I’ve heard someone rhapsodise about rural Bedfordshire.

    I’m not saying you’re wrong (I don’t know), but it certainly belies its reputation.
    I've always had a soft spot for Berkshire too. Nobody I've heard of goes there on holiday but it's got some gorgeous countryside. The North Wessex Downs are better known but I've had some fabulous walks near Bracknell.
    Bedfordshire - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Warden

    A beautiful little village, just round the corner from the Shuttleworth Collection. Lots of lovely country walks in the surrounding area.
    I have no desire to denigrate Bedfordshire.
    My experience consists entirely of avoiding the Delice de France kiosk at Luton Airport.
  • LeonLeon Posts: 46,249
    Sandpit said:

    ydoethur said:

    Sean_F said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    There are all sort of places that are beautiful, but completely off the tourist trail. Most of North Hertfordshire and rural Bedfordshire, for example.
    This is the first time in the history of ever that I’ve heard someone rhapsodise about rural Bedfordshire.

    I’m not saying you’re wrong (I don’t know), but it certainly belies its reputation.
    I've always had a soft spot for Berkshire too. Nobody I've heard of goes there on holiday but it's got some gorgeous countryside. The North Wessex Downs are better known but I've had some fabulous walks near Bracknell.
    The fabulous walks mean you get to avoid Bracknell.
    Bracknell used to be a lovely little country town. Breaks my heart what we did to it

    See, and weep:


  • boulayboulay Posts: 3,773

    After a few dull days my tomatoes have been swelling in the sun today

    My plums are swelling in the sun.


  • LostPasswordLostPassword Posts: 14,772
    MikeL said:

    Want an example of some totally absurd "journalism"?

    Dan Roan (BBC News Sports Editor) said yesterday that the Commonwealth Games Opening Ceremony would get a global TV audience of 1 billion - ie over 12% of the world's population.

    Well the BARB rating for last night was 4.5m - under 7% of the UK population.

    If it only got 7% in the UK where the event is being held, it certainly couldn't have got 12% worldwide given most of the world isn't even in the Commonwealth - the TV audience in China and the US must have been effectively zero (*).

    Saying that it would get 1 billion is totally and utterly absurd and destroys any pretence at serious journalism.

    I would be surprised if it even got close to 100m.

    (*) A useful point of reference - the Wimbledon Mens Final shown which is shown live in the US on ESPN got between 2m and 3m - under 1% of the US population.

    The population of the Commonwealth is 2.5bn, roughly one-third of the global population.

    The London Olympics 2012 opening ceremony was said to have a TV audience of 900 million, including 27 million in the UK.

    So the UK audience was one-sixth of 2012 levels, and fair to assume it would be zero outside the Commonwealth, so my best guess rough estimate would be a global audience of 50 million.
  • Nice tweet from the US Embassy. The video in it is quite funny


    U.S. Embassy London
    @USAinUK
    United States government organization

    Oh, the cheek from our own office Russo! This is no time for diplomacy. Let’s go, @Lionesses
    ⚽️
    @alessiarusso7
    #Lionesses #WEURO2022 #ENG #GER

    https://twitter.com/USAinUK/status/1552937908490964992
  • IshmaelZIshmaelZ Posts: 21,830
    ping said:

    Unleaded 170.7p/L at the Asda over in my part of the WM, according to the “PetrolPrices” app.

    17p/L more at a shell service station within a mile. Crazy difference.

    Shop around, people.

    Get the app

    https://www.petrolprices.com/
  • MarqueeMarkMarqueeMark Posts: 49,958
    Sandpit said:

    ydoethur said:

    Sean_F said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    There are all sort of places that are beautiful, but completely off the tourist trail. Most of North Hertfordshire and rural Bedfordshire, for example.
    This is the first time in the history of ever that I’ve heard someone rhapsodise about rural Bedfordshire.

    I’m not saying you’re wrong (I don’t know), but it certainly belies its reputation.
    I've always had a soft spot for Berkshire too. Nobody I've heard of goes there on holiday but it's got some gorgeous countryside. The North Wessex Downs are better known but I've had some fabulous walks near Bracknell.
    Bedfordshire - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Warden

    A beautiful little village, just round the corner from the Shuttleworth Collection. Lots of lovely country walks in the surrounding area.
    Ooh, the Shuttleworth Collection. To anyone who hasn’t been, go. The most astonishing living museum of aviation, go on a nice day in the summer and watch the Tiger Moths flying.
    Although, those expecting it to be dedicated to the works of John Shuttleworth may be a tad disappointed......
  • LeonLeon Posts: 46,249
    SUFFOLK!

    I forgot to mention SUFFOLK

    For lush rolling countryside - not majestic or jaw-dropping or FUCK IT'S ANTARCTICA - but deeply and aesthetically pleasing, parts of Suffolk are hard to beat. Amazing medieval villages, too

  • Sean_FSean_F Posts: 35,765

    ydoethur said:

    Sean_F said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    There are all sort of places that are beautiful, but completely off the tourist trail. Most of North Hertfordshire and rural Bedfordshire, for example.
    This is the first time in the history of ever that I’ve heard someone rhapsodise about rural Bedfordshire.

    I’m not saying you’re wrong (I don’t know), but it certainly belies its reputation.
    I've always had a soft spot for Berkshire too. Nobody I've heard of goes there on holiday but it's got some gorgeous countryside. The North Wessex Downs are better known but I've had some fabulous walks near Bracknell.
    Bedfordshire - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Warden

    A beautiful little village, just round the corner from the Shuttleworth Collection. Lots of lovely country walks in the surrounding area.
    I have no desire to denigrate Bedfordshire.
    My experience consists entirely of avoiding the Delice de France kiosk at Luton Airport.
    Although I live there, no one would claim Luton is one of England's beautiful towns. Dunstable is fairly unappealing, as is Houghton Regis. Bedford has its grotty areas, and some horrible redevelopment in the town centre, but parts of it, by the River Ouse and heading Northwards are quite splendid.

    It's the villages and hills that are charming.
  • Sean_FSean_F Posts: 35,765
    Leon said:

    SUFFOLK!

    I forgot to mention SUFFOLK

    For lush rolling countryside - not majestic or jaw-dropping or FUCK IT'S ANTARCTICA - but deeply and aesthetically pleasing, parts of Suffolk are hard to beat. Amazing medieval villages, too

    Seeing entire medieval villages in this country is extraordinary (although, it would be common enough in France).
  • GardenwalkerGardenwalker Posts: 20,812
    edited July 2022
    Sean_F said:

    ydoethur said:

    Sean_F said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    There are all sort of places that are beautiful, but completely off the tourist trail. Most of North Hertfordshire and rural Bedfordshire, for example.
    This is the first time in the history of ever that I’ve heard someone rhapsodise about rural Bedfordshire.

    I’m not saying you’re wrong (I don’t know), but it certainly belies its reputation.
    I've always had a soft spot for Berkshire too. Nobody I've heard of goes there on holiday but it's got some gorgeous countryside. The North Wessex Downs are better known but I've had some fabulous walks near Bracknell.
    Bedfordshire - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Warden

    A beautiful little village, just round the corner from the Shuttleworth Collection. Lots of lovely country walks in the surrounding area.
    I have no desire to denigrate Bedfordshire.
    My experience consists entirely of avoiding the Delice de France kiosk at Luton Airport.
    Although I live there, no one would claim Luton is one of England's beautiful towns. Dunstable is fairly unappealing, as is Houghton Regis. Bedford has its grotty areas, and some horrible redevelopment in the town centre, but parts of it, by the River Ouse and heading Northwards are quite splendid.

    It's the villages and hills that are charming.
    There is - or was? - a house in a Beds village which housed various Georgian and Victorian bric-a-brac assembled by an eccentric collector.

    A kind of amateur John Soane Museum.

    Ring any bells? Does it still exist?
  • MalmesburyMalmesbury Posts: 43,624

    ydoethur said:

    Sean_F said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    There are all sort of places that are beautiful, but completely off the tourist trail. Most of North Hertfordshire and rural Bedfordshire, for example.
    This is the first time in the history of ever that I’ve heard someone rhapsodise about rural Bedfordshire.

    I’m not saying you’re wrong (I don’t know), but it certainly belies its reputation.
    I've always had a soft spot for Berkshire too. Nobody I've heard of goes there on holiday but it's got some gorgeous countryside. The North Wessex Downs are better known but I've had some fabulous walks near Bracknell.
    Bedfordshire - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Warden

    A beautiful little village, just round the corner from the Shuttleworth Collection. Lots of lovely country walks in the surrounding area.
    I have no desire to denigrate Bedfordshire.
    My experience consists entirely of avoiding the Delice de France kiosk at Luton Airport.
    Luton airport is shit. Utterly so.

    Old Warden is a lovely place to stay in summer. I went there for a wedding (held on the grounds of the Shuttleworth Collection). Lovely country walks all around, unspoilt tiny village. The B & B in the village is really nice and the local pub is good as well.
  • NigelbNigelb Posts: 61,575
    .
    boulay said:

    After a few dull days my tomatoes have been swelling in the sun today

    My plums are swelling in the sun.

    I'm glad you posted a benign picture alongside that admission.
  • LeonLeon Posts: 46,249
    Sean_F said:

    Leon said:

    SUFFOLK!

    I forgot to mention SUFFOLK

    For lush rolling countryside - not majestic or jaw-dropping or FUCK IT'S ANTARCTICA - but deeply and aesthetically pleasing, parts of Suffolk are hard to beat. Amazing medieval villages, too

    Seeing entire medieval villages in this country is extraordinary (although, it would be common enough in France).
    Yes, that's one of several places where France has us beat. They have kept the best. We destroyed so much of ours. And we are still doing it! GRRRR

    OK, time for a haircut. Later
  • NigelbNigelb Posts: 61,575
    Probably The Hill indulging in a little mischief, but what if she did run ?
    https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3578887-the-memo-no-really-what-if-alexandria-ocasio-cortez-runs-for-president/
  • CookieCookie Posts: 11,184

    ydoethur said:

    Sean_F said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    There are all sort of places that are beautiful, but completely off the tourist trail. Most of North Hertfordshire and rural Bedfordshire, for example.
    This is the first time in the history of ever that I’ve heard someone rhapsodise about rural Bedfordshire.

    I’m not saying you’re wrong (I don’t know), but it certainly belies its reputation.
    I've always had a soft spot for Berkshire too. Nobody I've heard of goes there on holiday but it's got some gorgeous countryside. The North Wessex Downs are better known but I've had some fabulous walks near Bracknell.
    Bedfordshire - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Warden

    A beautiful little village, just round the corner from the Shuttleworth Collection. Lots of lovely country walks in the surrounding area.
    Bedfordshire is ... pleasant-ish, I suppose. I wouldn't rhapsodise about it. But if I had to spend a few days looking at Bedfordshire it certainly wouldn't vet me down. And I'd rather look at Bedfordshire than the average bit of rural France.
  • StuartDicksonStuartDickson Posts: 12,146
    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    To quote arch-BritNat Leon on the previous thread: it came from my colon.
  • SandpitSandpit Posts: 49,614
    Leon said:

    Sandpit said:

    ydoethur said:

    Sean_F said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    There are all sort of places that are beautiful, but completely off the tourist trail. Most of North Hertfordshire and rural Bedfordshire, for example.
    This is the first time in the history of ever that I’ve heard someone rhapsodise about rural Bedfordshire.

    I’m not saying you’re wrong (I don’t know), but it certainly belies its reputation.
    I've always had a soft spot for Berkshire too. Nobody I've heard of goes there on holiday but it's got some gorgeous countryside. The North Wessex Downs are better known but I've had some fabulous walks near Bracknell.
    The fabulous walks mean you get to avoid Bracknell.
    Bracknell used to be a lovely little country town. Breaks my heart what we did to it

    See, and weep:

    Yes, used to be a lovely little town, until the ‘60s town planners turned it into a concrete monstrosity surrounded by nearly as many roundabouts as Milton Keynes.

    I spent too much of the late ‘90s and early 2000s in the little pub that was just about all that was left of the old High St, among many other watering holes in Bracknell and Wokingham. Looking at the map today, that little pub is an American steakhouse :disappointed:
  • CookieCookie Posts: 11,184
    Roger said:

    Roger said:

    IshmaelZ said:

    Not tempted

    Winter Will Be Coming

    I'm tempted. There must be some devilish punishment for asylum seekers that Starmer can devise which will trump sending them to Rwanda.
    Thought you were an SKS fan Roger?
    I was before I realised that like you he's a Brexiteer. Having been in France for a while and understood the problems of getting there I've realised quite how barking mad you both must be.
    I don't think it's barking mad to consider more than just how easy it is to get to one specific holiday location when you are deciding on membership or otherwise of a large and powerful supra-national organisation whose membership implies a complex mesh of obligations, responsibilities, costs and benefits.
  • BlancheLivermoreBlancheLivermore Posts: 5,129
    edited July 2022
    What's the English county outside London most visited by tourists?

    I guess Wiltshire must be quite high due to Stonehenge (and proximity to London)
  • RogerRoger Posts: 18,891

    Leon said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    It does seem to be an absolutely massive inferiority complex vis a vis England, perhaps the worst case I've ever seen, even amongst Scot Nits

    @StuartDickson is like the Elephant Man of Scottish Anglophobia. What is merely an unsightly pimple on the face of @Theuniondivvie, or a large hairy wart on the otherwise kindly face of @malcolmg, is a grotesque facial tumour on @StuartDickson, so bad he can barely see past it with his tiny, haunted, fearful, pig-like little eyes
    He hates the fact that he's basically English. Because that's what British means to him. Even though he's moved to Sweden, he's still living under the emotional yoke of the English Empire until he can get a Scottish passport.
    As I watched David Beckham on his £150 million rented cruiser take his extended family for a ride around Villefranche harbour yesterday I felt like shouting 'Get back to English waters you dirty TRAITORS. What's wrong with Morcambe?'
  • LostPasswordLostPassword Posts: 14,772
    Sandpit said:

    Leon said:

    Sandpit said:

    ydoethur said:

    Sean_F said:

    ydoethur said:

    OllyT said:

    Leon said:

    Leon said:

    fuck it here’s my list of the top ten most beautiful countries on earth based on criteria I’ve plucked from my colon


    1. France
    2. China
    3. India
    4. Italy
    5. Montenegro
    6. Japan
    7. USA
    8. Switzerland
    9. UK
    10. Chile

    I hope that settles things

    What kind of Socialist Remainer Traitor has France at one and England at nine?
    France is 100 times more beautiful than England. The only thing saving the Yookay from total humiliation in such a list is Wales, Scotland and the stolen bit of Ireland.
    The Lakes say hi. Likewise the Cotswolds the marches the dales the West Country the Thames valley Northumbria and Cornwall

    England is paradoxical. It has some shockingly ugly bits and some painfully banal bits, but it has managed to preserve some of the most stunning places on the planet

    And anyway this is about the UK

    UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside.
    England is 5% beautiful and 95% rough/nondescript.
    Can I just check - have you visited every single part of it, to check it out? Because if not your claim is worthless.
    He dare not. It is full of these uniform folk called the English, and they all make him feel very inferior.
    There are all sort of places that are beautiful, but completely off the tourist trail. Most of North Hertfordshire and rural Bedfordshire, for example.
    This is the first time in the history of ever that I’ve heard someone rhapsodise about rural Bedfordshire.

    I’m not saying you’re wrong (I don’t know), but it certainly belies its reputation.
    I've always had a soft spot for Berkshire too. Nobody I've heard of goes there on holiday but it's got some gorgeous countryside. The North Wessex Downs are better known but I've had some fabulous walks near Bracknell.
    The fabulous walks mean you get to avoid Bracknell.
    Bracknell used to be a lovely little country town. Breaks my heart what we did to it

    See, and weep:

    Yes, used to be a lovely little town, until the ‘60s town planners turned it into a concrete monstrosity surrounded by nearly as many roundabouts as Milton Keynes.

    I spent too much of the late ‘90s and early 2000s in the little pub that was just about all that was left of the old High St, among many other watering holes in Bracknell and Wokingham. Looking at the map today, that little pub is an American steakhouse :disappointed:
    I ended up spending far too much of the early 2000s in Bracknell (about 14 months), but we ended up visiting Reading or London to escape.
  • rcs1000rcs1000 Posts: 53,771
    Leon said:

    FPT for @OllyT


    "UK undoubtedly has some beautiful parts but mainly in protected National Park areas. Whereas France is 75% beautiful and 25% rough/nondescript the UK (is probably 25% beautiful and 75% rough/nondescript. As we are so overcrowded the beautiful areas tend to be overrun with people whereas in France you can drive for miles in glorious unspoilt countryside."

    ++++


    I wouldn't demur with any of that. This is why I put France at #1 and the UK at #9. Plus the French climate is superior (for now) and their urbanism less spoiled

    But the UK is still beautiful in parts, and splendidly varied, with an often-glorious coastline and some divine cityscapes - Cambridge! - and on a world ranking is right up there. It's just not as impressive as France, but France is number 1

    Which brings us to the bigger point. European countries crowd the top spots of "Most Beautiful Countries", which is why Europe, as a whole, gets more tourists than anywhere on earth. The tourists aren't dumb

    There are some natural landscapes that, individually, are more breath-taking than anywhere in Europe - the Antarctic Peninsula for sure, perhaps the wilds of the American West, Greenland, Ethiopia, bits of Oz, central Asia, NZ (apparently, haven't been), and so on, but for overall beauty, Europe sweeps the prizes

    The Telegraph list is bonkers, and is merely designed to stir up arguments. Which it has done. So well done that editor

    Yosemite
    Big Sur
    San Francisco (on a sunny day)
    Lake Tahoe
    Park City

    And that's just a tiny part of the South West corner of the US.

  • El_CapitanoEl_Capitano Posts: 3,870
    I see OGH has tweeted "So big brave Truss is scared of being interviewed by Andrew Neil and she wants to be PM. Chicken".

    He is right, but why would Truss agree? There is no upside to being interviewed by Andrew Neil. She's winning. Why put that at risk?
  • LeonLeon Posts: 46,249

    What's the English county outside London most visited by tourists?

    I guess Wiltshire must be quite high due to Stonehenge (and proximity to London)

    If you mean foreign tourists then Avon for Bath or Oxon for Oxford would be my guess - alongside Wilts

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