On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
I agree, I'd say there's a real risk the Tories become the UUP to Reform's DUP.
However, and it's a big however, the Tories can also fish for LD (home counties) and Labour (switchers and floating voters as well) so they can face and pull in multiple directions, if they get the mix and tone right.
Not sure Badenoch is quite the right candidate to go fishing for LD and centrist Labour votes. Davey is a more conservative leader and overall safer bet.
Not a bet for me. Even if Badenoch flops spectacularly, Farage is a worse choice.
Nothing would ensure a second Starmer government more certainly.
I'm not so sure. Farage strikes me as someone that the centrist Establishment often underestimate.
People might be annoyed enough with five years - well, actually by then about 20 - of mass immigration and economic stagnation to give Farage a whirl in 2029, especially if Kemi (and a successor?) disappoint. The Ukraine war might be over by then and Trump will be on his way out.
It's certainly not the likeliest scenario, and the logistics are daunting, but stranger things have happened ...
I can only speak for myself. But there is a growing thought in this country - and on here - that embraces shit like the Great Replacement Theory. I think that theory is nasty b/s, but politically it plays well amongst people who like conspiracy theories, are borderline or fully racist, and who want someone to blame for things they don't like.
And I can see Farage playing that sort of card to that crowd. After all, that card has helped Trump.
PB is just too upper middle class to understand the appeal of Farage.
Wrong. Long time political anoraks on this site of all political persuasions have sadly always understood the appeal of Farage and why in his previous role as UKIP leader he and his previous party were so successful in European elections, and far more so in Labour heartlands seats by 2015 than in previous heartland Conservative seats and also in particular in the Welsh Parliamentary elections around that time. So no surprise at how well Reform are performing in either Wales or Scotland right now.
But again, long time political anoraks are already recognising the negative signs of his previous modus operandi as leader of UKIP starting to appear on his new Reform bandwagon.
Are you saying that Farage is yesterday’s man, like Trump?
The difference is that we don't have a Presidential system. Farage might do well at that (though there would be a lot of tactical voting against), but in the UK he needs 326 MPs to become PM and the calibre of Reform candidates is very poor. He would need to take over the existing Tory party and for them to nearly treble their seats to become PM.
He is also ageing fast and is a bit too fond of long boozy lunches and media grandstanding to do the hard work needed, like constituency surgeries and committee work.
We are not America, and Farage has a strong unpopularity against him - like Le Pen does in France - but it's ridiculously complacent to assume he'd always be denied office just by tactical voting.
I'd have thought we'd have learned that lesson by now.
Looks utterly miserable outside. Bring back the cold !
At least the grid is having a good day. 15.45 GW or 58% of demand, including 1.26 being used for pumping water back up in pumped storage.
21.56GW of wind - the record is 21.81GW.
Massive change from the last few weeks where the High pressure area meant the windmills were barely turning.
Over the past week wind provided 33.4% of our energy, higher than the average for the last 12 months (31.1%).
That surprises me a little. When I have checked of late the numbers have been disappointing. We are still importing energy though. We really need to get ourselves to the point we are net exporters on days like this and, ideally, most days.
Not a bet for me. Even if Badenoch flops spectacularly, Farage is a worse choice.
Nothing would ensure a second Starmer government more certainly.
I'm not so sure. Farage strikes me as someone that the centrist Establishment often underestimate.
People might be annoyed enough with five years - well, actually by then about 20 - of mass immigration and economic stagnation to give Farage a whirl in 2029, especially if Kemi (and a successor?) disappoint. The Ukraine war might be over by then and Trump will be on his way out.
It's certainly not the likeliest scenario, and the logistics are daunting, but stranger things have happened ...
I can only speak for myself. But there is a growing thought in this country - and on here - that embraces shit like the Great Replacement Theory. I think that theory is nasty b/s, but politically it plays well amongst people who like conspiracy theories, are borderline or fully racist, and who want someone to blame for things they don't like.
And I can see Farage playing that sort of card to that crowd. After all, that card has helped Trump.
PB is just too upper middle class to understand the appeal of Farage.
Wrong. Long time political anoraks on this site of all political persuasions have sadly always understood the appeal of Farage and why in his previous role as UKIP leader he and his previous party were so successful in European elections, and far more so in Labour heartlands seats by 2015 than in previous heartland Conservative seats and also in particular in the Welsh Parliamentary elections around that time. So no surprise at how well Reform are performing in either Wales or Scotland right now.
But again, long time political anoraks are already recognising the negative signs of his previous modus operandi as leader of UKIP starting to appear on his new Reform bandwagon.
Are you saying that Farage is yesterday’s man, like Trump?
No, but I am saying he is just as easily able to become unstuck again for the same reasons both he and Trump came unstuck last time through falling out with and losing disullusioned key internal colleagues in their party campaign operation.
On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
I agree, I'd say there's a real risk the Tories become the UUP to Reform's DUP.
However, and it's a big however, the Tories can also fish for LD (home counties) and Labour (switchers and floating voters as well) so they can face and pull in multiple directions, if they get the mix and tone right.
Not sure Badenoch is quite the right candidate to go fishing for LD and centrist Labour votes. Davey is a more conservative leader and overall safer bet.
Davey is anything but conservative. He's a socialist in a yellow suit with a flying bird on it.
Looks utterly miserable outside. Bring back the cold !
At least the grid is having a good day. 15.45 GW or 58% of demand, including 1.26 being used for pumping water back up in pumped storage.
21.56GW of wind - the record is 21.81GW.
Massive change from the last few weeks where the High pressure area meant the windmills were barely turning.
Over the past week wind provided 33.4% of our energy, higher than the average for the last 12 months (31.1%).
That surprises me a little. When I have checked of late the numbers have been disappointing. We are still importing energy though. We really need to get ourselves to the point we are net exporters on days like this and, ideally, most days.
What's curious is that we are importing energy even while our domestic gas generation is down at only 5GW. I guess the spot price of gas is high enough that it's cheaper to import.
I use this: https://grid.iamkate.com. The reason the numbers for wind are so different is because the other monitors exclude onshore wind in England and Wales.
He already has captured the Thatcherite working class vote. He has serious investment in the Reform party machine and has already broke through the FPTP barrier. The Tory brand was Ratnered by Truss. Badenoch meanwhile presents no challenge and Starmer presents an opportunity.
I think merging Reform and the Tories with him as leader would give him a place in history. His ego would like that as the final capping stone to his career
In my lifetime only four politicians have taken their party from opposition into government and I am really reallyold!
Starmer Cameron Blair Thatcher
Each one started out by seriously challenging the orthodoxy and comfort zone within their own party and reaching out to new voters. Early doors for Badenoch, but no sign yet that she is following the winning path. If anything she is looking to the core,
On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
I agree, I'd say there's a real risk the Tories become the UUP to Reform's DUP.
However, and it's a big however, the Tories can also fish for LD (home counties) and Labour (switchers and floating voters as well) so they can face and pull in multiple directions, if they get the mix and tone right.
Not sure Badenoch is quite the right candidate to go fishing for LD and centrist Labour votes. Davey is a more conservative leader and overall safer bet.
Davey is anything but conservative. He's a socialist in a yellow suit with a flying bird on it.
He looks conservative. A safe bank manager type. Harmless and welcoming.
In my lifetime only four politicians have taken their party from opposition into government and I am really reallyold!
Starmer Cameron Blair Thatcher
Each one started out by seriously challenging the orthodoxy and comfort zone within their own party and reaching out to new voters. Early doors for Badenoch, but no sign yet that she is following the winning path. If anything she is looking to the core,
You must be under 50 if Wilson isn't on your list, and under 54 if Heath isn't.
Speaking as a 41 year old, I don't think of 50 as 'really really old.'
Is Badenoch better suited to be Reform leader? Perhaps they could swap.
Badenoch has that unfortunate combination of an abrasive personality combined with a thin skin, but unlike some of her predecessors as Tory leader has some interesting and internally consistent ideas of reforming the state.
Seeing the furore and pearl clutching from even the slightest changes to benefits and taxation these might be a hard sell to the British public. Our nation seems stuck in cognitive dissonance between wanting change and for nothing to change.
What is it about you lefties and people’s skin? Tories don’t give a damn 😉😂
Looks utterly miserable outside. Bring back the cold !
At least the grid is having a good day. 15.45 GW or 58% of demand, including 1.26 being used for pumping water back up in pumped storage.
21.56GW of wind - the record is 21.81GW.
Massive change from the last few weeks where the High pressure area meant the windmills were barely turning.
Over the past week wind provided 33.4% of our energy, higher than the average for the last 12 months (31.1%).
That surprises me a little. When I have checked of late the numbers have been disappointing. We are still importing energy though. We really need to get ourselves to the point we are net exporters on days like this and, ideally, most days.
Indeed. Right now (as of 09:50) we are still importing 14% of our energy through the interconnectors.
Not a bet for me. Even if Badenoch flops spectacularly, Farage is a worse choice.
Nothing would ensure a second Starmer government more certainly.
I'm not so sure. Farage strikes me as someone that the centrist Establishment often underestimate.
People might be annoyed enough with five years - well, actually by then about 20 - of mass immigration and economic stagnation to give Farage a whirl in 2029, especially if Kemi (and a successor?) disappoint. The Ukraine war might be over by then and Trump will be on his way out.
It's certainly not the likeliest scenario, and the logistics are daunting, but stranger things have happened ...
I can only speak for myself. But there is a growing thought in this country - and on here - that embraces shit like the Great Replacement Theory. I think that theory is nasty b/s, but politically it plays well amongst people who like conspiracy theories, are borderline or fully racist, and who want someone to blame for things they don't like.
And I can see Farage playing that sort of card to that crowd. After all, that card has helped Trump.
PB is just too upper middle class to understand the appeal of Farage.
Wrong. Long time political anoraks on this site of all political persuasions have sadly always understood the appeal of Farage and why in his previous role as UKIP leader he and his previous party were so successful in European elections, and far more so in Labour heartlands seats by 2015 than in previous heartland Conservative seats and also in particular in the Welsh Parliamentary elections around that time. So no surprise at how well Reform are performing in either Wales or Scotland right now.
But again, long time political anoraks are already recognising the negative signs of his previous modus operandi as leader of UKIP starting to appear on his new Reform bandwagon.
Are you saying that Farage is yesterday’s man, like Trump?
The difference is that we don't have a Presidential system. Farage might do well at that (though there would be a lot of tactical voting against), but in the UK he needs 326 MPs to become PM and the calibre of Reform candidates is very poor. He would need to take over the existing Tory party and for them to nearly treble their seats to become PM.
He is also ageing fast and is a bit too fond of long boozy lunches and media grandstanding to do the hard work needed, like constituency surgeries and committee work.
We are not America, and Farage has a strong unpopularity against him - like Le Pen does in France - but it's ridiculously complacent to assume he'd always be denied office just by tactical voting.
I'd have thought we'd have learned that lesson by now.
The people most motivated to vote tactically against Farage are concentrated in the sorts of urban seats where he doesn't have a chance of winning. It's not going to be enough to hold back the Faragist tide if he wins over the large proportion of Tory voters who wish he was Tory leader.
On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
I agree, I'd say there's a real risk the Tories become the UUP to Reform's DUP.
However, and it's a big however, the Tories can also fish for LD (home counties) and Labour (switchers and floating voters as well) so they can face and pull in multiple directions, if they get the mix and tone right.
Not sure Badenoch is quite the right candidate to go fishing for LD and centrist Labour votes. Davey is a more conservative leader and overall safer bet.
Davey is anything but conservative. He's a socialist in a yellow suit with a flying bird on it.
Not at all.
For example the LDs oppose the abolition of AR on farms and imposition of VAT on private schools.
Davey certainly wasn't a Socialist when in government either.
It will be tough to expand the number of LD seats at the next GE, as there will surely be some dead cat bounce for the Tories, but it isn't impossible. There is not a lot of love out there for either of the big two parties. We may well be in one of those decades where the tectonic plates of party politics shift.
Looks utterly miserable outside. Bring back the cold !
At least the grid is having a good day. 15.45 GW or 58% of demand, including 1.26 being used for pumping water back up in pumped storage.
21.56GW of wind - the record is 21.81GW.
Massive change from the last few weeks where the High pressure area meant the windmills were barely turning.
Over the past week wind provided 33.4% of our energy, higher than the average for the last 12 months (31.1%).
That surprises me a little. When I have checked of late the numbers have been disappointing. We are still importing energy though. We really need to get ourselves to the point we are net exporters on days like this and, ideally, most days.
What's curious is that we are importing energy even while our domestic gas generation is down at only 5GW. I guess the spot price of gas is high enough that it's cheaper to import.
I use this: https://grid.iamkate.com. The reason the numbers for wind are so different is because the other monitors exclude onshore wind in England and Wales.
Gas is stupidly expensive so anything else will be bought first - converting gas into electricity really is the absolute last resort - thankfully it can be turned on and off quickly..
In my lifetime only four politicians have taken their party from opposition into government and I am really reallyold!
Starmer Cameron Blair Thatcher
Each one started out by seriously challenging the orthodoxy and comfort zone within their own party and reaching out to new voters. Early doors for Badenoch, but no sign yet that she is following the winning path. If anything she is looking to the core,
OT but something one needs to know: not only are banks sometimes imposing an upper limit on scam refunds, many are now bringing in an £100 excess deduction.
I think there has to be at least a small element of personal responsibility for where you send your money. As long as the bank didn’t do anything wrong, why should they have to pay for your mistake?
I'm actually surprised at how many scams are for less than £100 - once it's set up, why settle for so little?
Easier to get many, many more people to fall for it, yielding a much higher return.
I'm currently getting dozens of emails from 'Evri' demanding £2,50 to deliver an unspecified 'parcel.'
Not sure whether they're hoping thousands of people fall for it or whether it's a Trojan horse to hack my card if I fall for it.
I can't help feeling they'd have more chance of fooling people if they didn't send three emails from different addresses within a minute of each other, but I'm assuming they use some kind of AI.
What you are seeing there is 3 different scammers of the fact you are on multiple lists being used by the same scammers.
Reality is that if we did have a parcel from Evri, Matthew would be delivering it as he uses our house as a loo stop if required
To pick up on @Jonathan 's point though, since universal suffrage in 1928 - indeed, since women got the vote in 1918 - the list of political leaders who have taken their parties from opposition into government by means of a general election win is quite short.
It runs:
Macdonald (1924 and 1929, both times with a minority government and on the first occasion not technically due to an election) Baldwin (1924) Attlee (1945) Churchill (1951) Wilson (1964 and 1974) Heath (1970) Thatcher (1979) Blair (1997) Cameron (2010) Starmer (2024).
Attlee of course had been in government with his party only one month previously, and probably therefore should be discounted from that list.
In my lifetime only four politicians have taken their party from opposition into government and I am really reallyold!
Starmer Cameron Blair Thatcher
Each one started out by seriously challenging the orthodoxy and comfort zone within their own party and reaching out to new voters. Early doors for Badenoch, but no sign yet that she is following the winning path. If anything she is looking to the core,
I would contend that Smith would have won in 97, albeit perhaps not by as much. If you threw him in from that parallel universe and included Heath, then your point would not look as definitive.
On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
I agree, I'd say there's a real risk the Tories become the UUP to Reform's DUP.
However, and it's a big however, the Tories can also fish for LD (home counties) and Labour (switchers and floating voters as well) so they can face and pull in multiple directions, if they get the mix and tone right.
Not sure Badenoch is quite the right candidate to go fishing for LD and centrist Labour votes. Davey is a more conservative leader and overall safer bet.
Davey is anything but conservative. He's a socialist in a yellow suit with a flying bird on it.
Not at all.
For example the LDs oppose the abolition of AR on farms and imposition of VAT on private schools.
Davey certainly wasn't a Socialist when in government either.
It will be tough to expand the number of LD seats at the next GE, as there will surely be some dead cat bounce for the Tories, but it isn't impossible. There is not a lot of love out there for either of the big two parties. We may well be in one of those decades where the tectonic plates of party politics shift.
I suggest you read the interviews with him on his background and political philosophy, which was so left-wing the interviewer even asked him why he didn't join the Labour Party then - to which he gave some weakish answer about how he didn't like its tradition.
He's a Lefty through and through.
Don't confuse political opportunism for where his real sympathies lie, and he'd be delighted to prop up a Labour administration that fell short next time.
Is Mr Musk may be becoming semi-detached from Mr Trump? Is DOGE actually inside the Government? Majorite Tayler-Green is proposed as the subcommittee chair for the DOGE subcommittee in Congress - how to announce you will be achieving things whilst announcing that you will not be achieving things.
Not a bet for me. Even if Badenoch flops spectacularly, Farage is a worse choice.
Nothing would ensure a second Starmer government more certainly.
I'm not so sure. Farage strikes me as someone that the centrist Establishment often underestimate.
People might be annoyed enough with five years - well, actually by then about 20 - of mass immigration and economic stagnation to give Farage a whirl in 2029, especially if Kemi (and a successor?) disappoint. The Ukraine war might be over by then and Trump will be on his way out.
It's certainly not the likeliest scenario, and the logistics are daunting, but stranger things have happened ...
I can only speak for myself. But there is a growing thought in this country - and on here - that embraces shit like the Great Replacement Theory. I think that theory is nasty b/s, but politically it plays well amongst people who like conspiracy theories, are borderline or fully racist, and who want someone to blame for things they don't like.
And I can see Farage playing that sort of card to that crowd. After all, that card has helped Trump.
PB is just too upper middle class to understand the appeal of Farage.
Wrong. Long time political anoraks on this site of all political persuasions have sadly always understood the appeal of Farage and why in his previous role as UKIP leader he and his previous party were so successful in European elections, and far more so in Labour heartlands seats by 2015 than in previous heartland Conservative seats and also in particular in the Welsh Parliamentary elections around that time. So no surprise at how well Reform are performing in either Wales or Scotland right now.
But again, long time political anoraks are already recognising the negative signs of his previous modus operandi as leader of UKIP starting to appear on his new Reform bandwagon.
Are you saying that Farage is yesterday’s man, like Trump?
The difference is that we don't have a Presidential system. Farage might do well at that (though there would be a lot of tactical voting against), but in the UK he needs 326 MPs to become PM and the calibre of Reform candidates is very poor. He would need to take over the existing Tory party and for them to nearly treble their seats to become PM.
He is also ageing fast and is a bit too fond of long boozy lunches and media grandstanding to do the hard work needed, like constituency surgeries and committee work.
We are not America, and Farage has a strong unpopularity against him - like Le Pen does in France - but it's ridiculously complacent to assume he'd always be denied office just by tactical voting.
I'd have thought we'd have learned that lesson by now.
The people most motivated to vote tactically against Farage are concentrated in the sorts of urban seats where he doesn't have a chance of winning. It's not going to be enough to hold back the Faragist tide if he wins over the large proportion of Tory voters who wish he was Tory leader.
There will be a lot in current LD seats and near misses keen to keep Reform out too.
Remember, if you feel miserable, life could be worse.
You could be a supporter of the Australian test team.
That s a truly bizarre test match. India skittled out for 150, Australia wiped out for 104 and then India 172/0. Did they change the wicket overnight?
From what I am seeing, it has got easier, but actually the key is Jaiswal and Rahul have batted really, really well. Hazlewood has crazy figures of something like 9-2-8-0 but he's not found a way through those two.
I do hope England's players are watching and learn that sometimes it's not all about playing shots.
Actual state sanctioned sexual assault on women by men. Also forcing women to change and shower with men.
With every vile policy like this, he can add a % or two. Someone yesterday questioned about the trans lobby having captured the police. Can't believe they questioned it.
Badenoch and Farage will gain a % or two every time this happens.
Good Morning everyone.
I would just point out, on topic, that it's in the Telegraph, so probably as reliable as if in the Star. Also, does anyone know how many trans male>female police 'persons' are actually employed by the Met?
Actual state sanctioned sexual assault on women by men. Also forcing women to change and shower with men.
With every vile policy like this, he can add a % or two. Someone yesterday questioned about the trans lobby having captured the police. Can't believe they questioned it.
Badenoch and Farage will gain a % or two every time this happens.
Good Morning everyone.
I would just point out, on topic, that it's in the Telegraph, so probably as reliable as if in the Star. Also, does anyone know how many trans male>female police 'persons' are actually employed by the Met?
That's rather an unkind statement.
The Star has some decent journalists among the indecent photos.
I see the MD of Jaguar, Rawdon Glover, has shown himself up to be a chronic dickhead with a markedly defensive interview in The Times today, calling the negative reaction to his ad - utterly predictably - a "blaze of intolerance". We see, now, how this idiocy was signed off in the first place.
Rattled doesn't come close.
Here's what will happen: he will lose his existing customer base, he won't gain the younger and wealthier one he craves, the brand will fail, and then he'll be sacked:
Is he claiming it's intolerant to mock an advert? ISTR the buffoon in charge of Aberdeen Asset Management tried a similar tack with criticism of their rebrand. Or is he trying to hint that the real reason people don't like the advert is that they're racists? Which rather overlooks the hundreds of non-shit adverts with black people in which people don't mock.
“The customer is always right, in matters of taste.”
If you produce a product that people don’t like, and don’t understand the market you are aiming at, that is on you, not the customers.
I see the MD of Jaguar, Rawdon Glover, has shown himself up to be a chronic dickhead with a markedly defensive interview in The Times today, calling the negative reaction to his ad - utterly predictably - a "blaze of intolerance". We see, now, how this idiocy was signed off in the first place.
Rattled doesn't come close.
Here's what will happen: he will lose his existing customer base, he won't gain the younger and wealthier one he craves, the brand will fail, and then he'll be sacked:
Is he claiming it's intolerant to mock an advert? ISTR the buffoon in charge of Aberdeen Asset Management tried a similar tack with criticism of their rebrand. Or is he trying to hint that the real reason people don't like the advert is that they're racists? Which rather overlooks the hundreds of non-shit adverts with black people in which people don't mock.
“The customer is always right, in matters of taste.”
If you produce a product that people don’t like, and don’t understand the market you are aiming at, that is on you, not the customers.
Has anyone on Twitter suggested 'your customers may be what you think of as intolerant longer than what your bank thinks of as you being solvent?'
In my lifetime only four politicians have taken their party from opposition into government and I am really reallyold!
Starmer Cameron Blair Thatcher
Each one started out by seriously challenging the orthodoxy and comfort zone within their own party and reaching out to new voters. Early doors for Badenoch, but no sign yet that she is following the winning path. If anything she is looking to the core,
I would contend that Smith would have won in 97, albeit perhaps not by as much. If you threw him in from that parallel universe and included Heath, then your point would not look as definitive.
Heath was a radical departure from the etonites than we care to remember and Smith started the Blair reforms abolishing the union block vote and introducing OMOV.
Actual state sanctioned sexual assault on women by men. Also forcing women to change and shower with men.
With every vile policy like this, he can add a % or two. Someone yesterday questioned about the trans lobby having captured the police. Can't believe they questioned it.
Badenoch and Farage will gain a % or two every time this happens.
Good Morning everyone.
I would just point out, on topic, that it's in the Telegraph, so probably as reliable as if in the Star. Also, does anyone know how many trans male>female police 'persons' are actually employed by the Met?
That's rather an unkind statement.
The Star has some decent journalists among the indecent photos.
Fair point. I did wonder if I was being unfair to the Star as I pressed Post!
On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
I agree, I'd say there's a real risk the Tories become the UUP to Reform's DUP.
However, and it's a big however, the Tories can also fish for LD (home counties) and Labour (switchers and floating voters as well) so they can face and pull in multiple directions, if they get the mix and tone right.
Not sure Badenoch is quite the right candidate to go fishing for LD and centrist Labour votes. Davey is a more conservative leader and overall safer bet.
Davey is anything but conservative. He's a socialist in a yellow suit with a flying bird on it.
Not at all.
For example the LDs oppose the abolition of AR on farms and imposition of VAT on private schools.
Davey certainly wasn't a Socialist when in government either.
It will be tough to expand the number of LD seats at the next GE, as there will surely be some dead cat bounce for the Tories, but it isn't impossible. There is not a lot of love out there for either of the big two parties. We may well be in one of those decades where the tectonic plates of party politics shift.
I suggest you read the interviews with him on his background and political philosophy, which was so left-wing the interviewer even asked him why he didn't join the Labour Party then - to which he gave some weakish answer about how he didn't like its tradition.
He's a Lefty through and through.
Don't confuse political opportunism for where his real sympathies lie, and he'd be delighted to prop up a Labour administration that fell short next time.
One of the interesting curiosities of modern politics is that Conservatives don’t look or act conservative. It’s all topsy turvey
Not a bet for me. Even if Badenoch flops spectacularly, Farage is a worse choice.
Nothing would ensure a second Starmer government more certainly.
I'm not so sure. Farage strikes me as someone that the centrist Establishment often underestimate.
People might be annoyed enough with five years - well, actually by then about 20 - of mass immigration and economic stagnation to give Farage a whirl in 2029, especially if Kemi (and a successor?) disappoint. The Ukraine war might be over by then and Trump will be on his way out.
It's certainly not the likeliest scenario, and the logistics are daunting, but stranger things have happened ...
I can only speak for myself. But there is a growing thought in this country - and on here - that embraces shit like the Great Replacement Theory. I think that theory is nasty b/s, but politically it plays well amongst people who like conspiracy theories, are borderline or fully racist, and who want someone to blame for things they don't like.
And I can see Farage playing that sort of card to that crowd. After all, that card has helped Trump.
PB is just too upper middle class to understand the appeal of Farage.
Wrong. Long time political anoraks on this site of all political persuasions have sadly always understood the appeal of Farage and why in his previous role as UKIP leader he and his previous party were so successful in European elections, and far more so in Labour heartlands seats by 2015 than in previous heartland Conservative seats and also in particular in the Welsh Parliamentary elections around that time. So no surprise at how well Reform are performing in either Wales or Scotland right now.
But again, long time political anoraks are already recognising the negative signs of his previous modus operandi as leader of UKIP starting to appear on his new Reform bandwagon.
Are you saying that Farage is yesterday’s man, like Trump?
The difference is that we don't have a Presidential system. Farage might do well at that (though there would be a lot of tactical voting against), but in the UK he needs 326 MPs to become PM and the calibre of Reform candidates is very poor. He would need to take over the existing Tory party and for them to nearly treble their seats to become PM.
He is also ageing fast and is a bit too fond of long boozy lunches and media grandstanding to do the hard work needed, like constituency surgeries and committee work.
We are not America, and Farage has a strong unpopularity against him - like Le Pen does in France - but it's ridiculously complacent to assume he'd always be denied office just by tactical voting.
I'd have thought we'd have learned that lesson by now.
The people most motivated to vote tactically against Farage are concentrated in the sorts of urban seats where he doesn't have a chance of winning. It's not going to be enough to hold back the Faragist tide if he wins over the large proportion of Tory voters who wish he was Tory leader.
There will be a lot in current LD seats and near misses keen to keep Reform out too.
Reform are second behind Labour in 89 constituencies. It's possible that anti-Labour tactical voting could be a more powerful boost to Reform than anti-Reform tactical voting is a liability.
On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
I agree, I'd say there's a real risk the Tories become the UUP to Reform's DUP.
However, and it's a big however, the Tories can also fish for LD (home counties) and Labour (switchers and floating voters as well) so they can face and pull in multiple directions, if they get the mix and tone right.
Not sure Badenoch is quite the right candidate to go fishing for LD and centrist Labour votes. Davey is a more conservative leader and overall safer bet.
Davey is anything but conservative. He's a socialist in a yellow suit with a flying bird on it.
Not at all.
For example the LDs oppose the abolition of AR on farms and imposition of VAT on private schools.
Davey certainly wasn't a Socialist when in government either.
It will be tough to expand the number of LD seats at the next GE, as there will surely be some dead cat bounce for the Tories, but it isn't impossible. There is not a lot of love out there for either of the big two parties. We may well be in one of those decades where the tectonic plates of party politics shift.
I suggest you read the interviews with him on his background and political philosophy, which was so left-wing the interviewer even asked him why he didn't join the Labour Party then - to which he gave some weakish answer about how he didn't like its tradition.
He's a Lefty through and through.
Don't confuse political opportunism for where his real sympathies lie, and he'd be delighted to prop up a Labour administration that fell short next time.
I’m not certain anyone joins the LibDems out of political opportunism.
I see the MD of Jaguar, Rawdon Glover, has shown himself up to be a chronic dickhead with a markedly defensive interview in The Times today, calling the negative reaction to his ad - utterly predictably - a "blaze of intolerance". We see, now, how this idiocy was signed off in the first place.
Rattled doesn't come close.
Here's what will happen: he will lose his existing customer base, he won't gain the younger and wealthier one he craves, the brand will fail, and then he'll be sacked:
Is he claiming it's intolerant to mock an advert? ISTR the buffoon in charge of Aberdeen Asset Management tried a similar tack with criticism of their rebrand. Or is he trying to hint that the real reason people don't like the advert is that they're racists? Which rather overlooks the hundreds of non-shit adverts with black people in which people don't mock.
“The customer is always right, in matters of taste.”
If you produce a product that people don’t like, and don’t understand the market you are aiming at, that is on you, not the customers.
Has anyone on Twitter suggested 'your customers may be what you think of as intolerant longer than what your bank thinks of as you being solvent?'
The Xodus from Twitter suggests that the company is well aware that pissing off your customers with a rebrand and unwanted innovations happens.
On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
I agree, I'd say there's a real risk the Tories become the UUP to Reform's DUP.
However, and it's a big however, the Tories can also fish for LD (home counties) and Labour (switchers and floating voters as well) so they can face and pull in multiple directions, if they get the mix and tone right.
Not sure Badenoch is quite the right candidate to go fishing for LD and centrist Labour votes. Davey is a more conservative leader and overall safer bet.
Davey is anything but conservative. He's a socialist in a yellow suit with a flying bird on it.
Not at all.
For example the LDs oppose the abolition of AR on farms and imposition of VAT on private schools.
Davey certainly wasn't a Socialist when in government either.
It will be tough to expand the number of LD seats at the next GE, as there will surely be some dead cat bounce for the Tories, but it isn't impossible. There is not a lot of love out there for either of the big two parties. We may well be in one of those decades where the tectonic plates of party politics shift.
I suggest you read the interviews with him on his background and political philosophy, which was so left-wing the interviewer even asked him why he didn't join the Labour Party then - to which he gave some weakish answer about how he didn't like its tradition.
He's a Lefty through and through.
Don't confuse political opportunism for where his real sympathies lie, and he'd be delighted to prop up a Labour administration that fell short next time.
One of the interesting curiosities of modern politics is that Conservatives don’t look or act conservative. It’s all topsy turvey
On the contrary they seem determined to trash the country rather than conserve it.
Actual state sanctioned sexual assault on women by men. Also forcing women to change and shower with men.
With every vile policy like this, he can add a % or two. Someone yesterday questioned about the trans lobby having captured the police. Can't believe they questioned it.
Badenoch and Farage will gain a % or two every time this happens.
Good Morning everyone.
I would just point out, on topic, that it's in the Telegraph, so probably as reliable as if in the Star. Also, does anyone know how many trans male>female police 'persons' are actually employed by the Met?
"The Rubber-Keyed Wonder charts the development and creation of the ZX Spectrum from concept through to its first release, and the financial and reputational success it brought Clive Sinclair. It also examines the impact of subsequent versions of the computer and features a huge array of games that were developed on the Spectrum including: Jet Set Willy, Knightlore, Chuckie Egg, Ant Attack, Saboteur and many more.
The film is highly nostalgic and features rare archive material combined with new interviews with the Spectrum’s original designers, Sir Clive’s son and nephew, and some of the Spectrum's greatest game developers, all sharing their memories of the spectacular rise of the ZX Spectrum and its extraordinary inventor, Sir Clive Sinclair."
Doesn't seem to be streaming anywhere yet sadly. But showing in various cinemas for now. Anyway - for some of us of a certain age I thought it would be a nice watch over Christmas.
"The Rubber-Keyed Wonder charts the development and creation of the ZX Spectrum from concept through to its first release, and the financial and reputational success it brought Clive Sinclair. It also examines the impact of subsequent versions of the computer and features a huge array of games that were developed on the Spectrum including: Jet Set Willy, Knightlore, Chuckie Egg, Ant Attack, Saboteur and many more.
The film is highly nostalgic and features rare archive material combined with new interviews with the Spectrum’s original designers, Sir Clive’s son and nephew, and some of the Spectrum's greatest game developers, all sharing their memories of the spectacular rise of the ZX Spectrum and its extraordinary inventor, Sir Clive Sinclair."
Doesn't seem to be streaming anywhere yet sadly. But showing in various cinemas for now. Anyway - for some of us of a certain age I thought it would be a nice watch over Christmas.
Thanks for sharing. Are you tempted to buy The Spectrum?
Actual state sanctioned sexual assault on women by men. Also forcing women to change and shower with men.
With every vile policy like this, he can add a % or two. Someone yesterday questioned about the trans lobby having captured the police. Can't believe they questioned it.
Badenoch and Farage will gain a % or two every time this happens.
Good Morning everyone.
I would just point out, on topic, that it's in the Telegraph, so probably as reliable as if in the Star. Also, does anyone know how many trans male>female police 'persons' are actually employed by the Met?
That's rather an unkind statement.
The Star has some decent journalists among the indecent photos.
But think of the opportunities this creates.
When male officers strip search black female teenagers (in breach of law and guidelines), all they need to do is…
On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
I agree, I'd say there's a real risk the Tories become the UUP to Reform's DUP.
However, and it's a big however, the Tories can also fish for LD (home counties) and Labour (switchers and floating voters as well) so they can face and pull in multiple directions, if they get the mix and tone right.
Not sure Badenoch is quite the right candidate to go fishing for LD and centrist Labour votes. Davey is a more conservative leader and overall safer bet.
Davey is anything but conservative. He's a socialist in a yellow suit with a flying bird on it.
Not at all.
For example the LDs oppose the abolition of AR on farms and imposition of VAT on private schools.
Davey certainly wasn't a Socialist when in government either.
It will be tough to expand the number of LD seats at the next GE, as there will surely be some dead cat bounce for the Tories, but it isn't impossible. There is not a lot of love out there for either of the big two parties. We may well be in one of those decades where the tectonic plates of party politics shift.
I suggest you read the interviews with him on his background and political philosophy, which was so left-wing the interviewer even asked him why he didn't join the Labour Party then - to which he gave some weakish answer about how he didn't like its tradition.
He's a Lefty through and through.
Don't confuse political opportunism for where his real sympathies lie, and he'd be delighted to prop up a Labour administration that fell short next time.
I’m not certain anyone joins the LibDems out of political opportunism.
"The Rubber-Keyed Wonder charts the development and creation of the ZX Spectrum from concept through to its first release, and the financial and reputational success it brought Clive Sinclair. It also examines the impact of subsequent versions of the computer and features a huge array of games that were developed on the Spectrum including: Jet Set Willy, Knightlore, Chuckie Egg, Ant Attack, Saboteur and many more.
The film is highly nostalgic and features rare archive material combined with new interviews with the Spectrum’s original designers, Sir Clive’s son and nephew, and some of the Spectrum's greatest game developers, all sharing their memories of the spectacular rise of the ZX Spectrum and its extraordinary inventor, Sir Clive Sinclair."
Doesn't seem to be streaming anywhere yet sadly. But showing in various cinemas for now. Anyway - for some of us of a certain age I thought it would be a nice watch over Christmas.
Thanks for sharing. Are you tempted to buy The Spectrum?
Does take one back. One of my staff built an in-pharmacy advertising display using a Spectrum and an old TV. It explained something about medicines..... can't recall what.
"The Rubber-Keyed Wonder charts the development and creation of the ZX Spectrum from concept through to its first release, and the financial and reputational success it brought Clive Sinclair. It also examines the impact of subsequent versions of the computer and features a huge array of games that were developed on the Spectrum including: Jet Set Willy, Knightlore, Chuckie Egg, Ant Attack, Saboteur and many more.
The film is highly nostalgic and features rare archive material combined with new interviews with the Spectrum’s original designers, Sir Clive’s son and nephew, and some of the Spectrum's greatest game developers, all sharing their memories of the spectacular rise of the ZX Spectrum and its extraordinary inventor, Sir Clive Sinclair."
Doesn't seem to be streaming anywhere yet sadly. But showing in various cinemas for now. Anyway - for some of us of a certain age I thought it would be a nice watch over Christmas.
Thanks for that.
I hope Jim Westwood will feature prominently - he's a really nice guy, and last I heard still in the industry. He later turned white-hat and joined a better company.
Sometimes great engineers can be really nice guys. There's this terrible meme that if you are good technically, you have to lack social skills and personal hygiene. Jim was one of those guys that belied that.
Actual state sanctioned sexual assault on women by men. Also forcing women to change and shower with men.
With every vile policy like this, he can add a % or two. Someone yesterday questioned about the trans lobby having captured the police. Can't believe they questioned it.
Badenoch and Farage will gain a % or two every time this happens.
Good Morning everyone.
I would just point out, on topic, that it's in the Telegraph, so probably as reliable as if in the Star. Also, does anyone know how many trans male>female police 'persons' are actually employed by the Met?
Are you at the 'it's only a few of them' stage in the argument? Your comment about the Telegraph can be ignored.
I see the MD of Jaguar, Rawdon Glover, has shown himself up to be a chronic dickhead with a markedly defensive interview in The Times today, calling the negative reaction to his ad - utterly predictably - a "blaze of intolerance". We see, now, how this idiocy was signed off in the first place.
Rattled doesn't come close.
Here's what will happen: he will lose his existing customer base, he won't gain the younger and wealthier one he craves, the brand will fail, and then he'll be sacked:
Is he claiming it's intolerant to mock an advert? ISTR the buffoon in charge of Aberdeen Asset Management tried a similar tack with criticism of their rebrand. Or is he trying to hint that the real reason people don't like the advert is that they're racists? Which rather overlooks the hundreds of non-shit adverts with black people in which people don't mock.
Missed this. Yes.
And you see, now, how this pasts muster in the Boardroom?
The Marketing Director makes a big play of how Jaguar stands for diversity and inclusion for all, and its future brand must reflect that. Maybe few jokes are made about its old-school image, of traditional Jag owners and how male, pale and stale they are. It's suggested there might be some opposition, but that would just be bigotry. The MD backs this message to the hilt, and says he has no time for intolerance.
Now, you're in that Boardroom. You're probably, but not necessarily, a White Male yourself. You've heard all this and you have very serious doubts about the logic of it all.
But, having heard all that, do you speak out? How concerned would be that it'd mark your own personal brand as being DEI-sceptic in the firm? What would that do to your career? Your reputation in the industry?
So, do you try but dress it up as something else, and actually make your input a bit of a cop-out? Or do you gently swallow your doubts, stay silent and wait for the car-crash?
"The Rubber-Keyed Wonder charts the development and creation of the ZX Spectrum from concept through to its first release, and the financial and reputational success it brought Clive Sinclair. It also examines the impact of subsequent versions of the computer and features a huge array of games that were developed on the Spectrum including: Jet Set Willy, Knightlore, Chuckie Egg, Ant Attack, Saboteur and many more.
The film is highly nostalgic and features rare archive material combined with new interviews with the Spectrum’s original designers, Sir Clive’s son and nephew, and some of the Spectrum's greatest game developers, all sharing their memories of the spectacular rise of the ZX Spectrum and its extraordinary inventor, Sir Clive Sinclair."
Doesn't seem to be streaming anywhere yet sadly. But showing in various cinemas for now. Anyway - for some of us of a certain age I thought it would be a nice watch over Christmas.
Thanks for sharing. Are you tempted to buy The Spectrum?
I am somewhat afraid to say I was a Commodore owner not a Spectrum one. But all my friends had Spectrum's and I was secretly jealous. So I will resist the urge to be in the in-crowd once again and just ogle them from afar.
Is Mr Musk may be becoming semi-detached from Mr Trump? Is DOGE actually inside the Government? Majorite Tayler-Green is proposed as the subcommittee chair for the DOGE subcommittee in Congress - how to announce you will be achieving things whilst announcing that you will not be achieving things.
Actual state sanctioned sexual assault on women by men. Also forcing women to change and shower with men.
With every vile policy like this, he can add a % or two. Someone yesterday questioned about the trans lobby having captured the police. Can't believe they questioned it.
Badenoch and Farage will gain a % or two every time this happens.
Good Morning everyone.
I would just point out, on topic, that it's in the Telegraph, so probably as reliable as if in the Star. Also, does anyone know how many trans male>female police 'persons' are actually employed by the Met?
Are you at the 'it's only a few of them' stage in the argument? Your comment about the Telegraph can be ignored.
No, Mr S. I'm suggesting that it's not a problem which is likely to arise often. Of course, such incidents shouldn't happen at all. In an ideal world trans officers would have the honesty to stand back on such occasions, without doing so causing problems for themselves.
On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
I agree, I'd say there's a real risk the Tories become the UUP to Reform's DUP.
However, and it's a big however, the Tories can also fish for LD (home counties) and Labour (switchers and floating voters as well) so they can face and pull in multiple directions, if they get the mix and tone right.
Not sure Badenoch is quite the right candidate to go fishing for LD and centrist Labour votes. Davey is a more conservative leader and overall safer bet.
Davey is anything but conservative. He's a socialist in a yellow suit with a flying bird on it.
Not at all.
For example the LDs oppose the abolition of AR on farms and imposition of VAT on private schools.
Davey certainly wasn't a Socialist when in government either.
It will be tough to expand the number of LD seats at the next GE, as there will surely be some dead cat bounce for the Tories, but it isn't impossible. There is not a lot of love out there for either of the big two parties. We may well be in one of those decades where the tectonic plates of party politics shift.
I suggest you read the interviews with him on his background and political philosophy, which was so left-wing the interviewer even asked him why he didn't join the Labour Party then - to which he gave some weakish answer about how he didn't like its tradition.
He's a Lefty through and through.
Don't confuse political opportunism for where his real sympathies lie, and he'd be delighted to prop up a Labour administration that fell short next time.
One of the interesting curiosities of modern politics is that Conservatives don’t look or act conservative. It’s all topsy turvey
On the contrary they seem determined to trash the country rather than conserve it.
It's to do now, with party loyalty running vertically through classes, rather than horizontally, across them.
People are still used to the idea of upper middle class people being overwhelmingly Conservative, and working class people being mainly Labour (with a substantial Conservative minority).
When in reality, the Conservatives have very little in common now, with much of the Establishment, and Labour have very little in common now, with broad swathes of working class Britain.
And, the same is true of the US, France, and other rich world democracies. Quite often now, the most solidly left-leaning constituencies are the most well-heeled.
"The Rubber-Keyed Wonder charts the development and creation of the ZX Spectrum from concept through to its first release, and the financial and reputational success it brought Clive Sinclair. It also examines the impact of subsequent versions of the computer and features a huge array of games that were developed on the Spectrum including: Jet Set Willy, Knightlore, Chuckie Egg, Ant Attack, Saboteur and many more.
The film is highly nostalgic and features rare archive material combined with new interviews with the Spectrum’s original designers, Sir Clive’s son and nephew, and some of the Spectrum's greatest game developers, all sharing their memories of the spectacular rise of the ZX Spectrum and its extraordinary inventor, Sir Clive Sinclair."
Doesn't seem to be streaming anywhere yet sadly. But showing in various cinemas for now. Anyway - for some of us of a certain age I thought it would be a nice watch over Christmas.
Thanks for sharing. Are you tempted to buy The Spectrum?
I am somewhat afraid to say I was a Commodore owner not a Spectrum one. But all my friends had Spectrum's and I was secretly jealous. So I will resist the urge to be in the in-crowd once again and just ogle them from afar.
RKW is a great documentary - nearly as good as their earlier "Bedrooms to Billions" which is streaming on Prime.
I went to the premier at the London IMAX. Never seen pixels so big.
As we left, there was a gaggle of film fans waiting outside because Martin Scorsese was arriving. I reckon we had the better film.
In my lifetime only four politicians have taken their party from opposition into government and I am really reallyold!
Starmer Cameron Blair Thatcher
Each one started out by seriously challenging the orthodoxy and comfort zone within their own party and reaching out to new voters. Early doors for Badenoch, but no sign yet that she is following the winning path. If anything she is looking to the core,
You must be under 50 if Wilson isn't on your list, and under 54 if Heath isn't.
Speaking as a 41 year old, I don't think of 50 as 'really really old.'
Is Badenoch better suited to be Reform leader? Perhaps they could swap.
If you have to ask that question, then you don't get Kemi Badenoch or chances her chances of staying the course as Conservative leader until the next GE. She gave a very good speech at the Farmers protest in London, she was totally on top her brief when it came to understanding and articulating the wider long term issues surrounding this terrible Labour tax policy for the farming community, far more so than Nigel Farage or even Jeremy Clarkson on the day.
Yes, she did a good job in the farmers' protest - to be fair it was the Tories' comfort zone, but Kemi made the most of it, and as you say, seemed the main political spokesperson on the day. I would like some follow up with a mini farming and food manifesto with some solid measures aimed at supporting farmers to deliver more good quality British food (about the only thing we still make here).
"The Rubber-Keyed Wonder charts the development and creation of the ZX Spectrum from concept through to its first release, and the financial and reputational success it brought Clive Sinclair. It also examines the impact of subsequent versions of the computer and features a huge array of games that were developed on the Spectrum including: Jet Set Willy, Knightlore, Chuckie Egg, Ant Attack, Saboteur and many more.
The film is highly nostalgic and features rare archive material combined with new interviews with the Spectrum’s original designers, Sir Clive’s son and nephew, and some of the Spectrum's greatest game developers, all sharing their memories of the spectacular rise of the ZX Spectrum and its extraordinary inventor, Sir Clive Sinclair."
Doesn't seem to be streaming anywhere yet sadly. But showing in various cinemas for now. Anyway - for some of us of a certain age I thought it would be a nice watch over Christmas.
Thanks for that.
I hope Jim Westwood will feature prominently - he's a really nice guy, and last I heard still in the industry. He later turned white-hat and joined a better company.
Sometimes great engineers can be really nice guys. There's this terrible meme that if you are good technically, you have to lack social skills and personal hygiene. Jim was one of those guys that belied that.
Rick Dickinson (who did the design work on the Spectrum) was one of the loveliest people. He used to be found in my favourite cafe in Cambridge.
Russia is certainly throwing everything it has at the Donbas. The cost is 80,000 casualties in two months, and economy which is now in freefall. Interest rates are 21%, and even so, well below the rate of inflation, the rouble is plummeting in value, and Russia has burned through all its foreign exchange reserves.
Russia might still get a breakthrough, but if it does not, then it is in deep trouble.
"The Rubber-Keyed Wonder charts the development and creation of the ZX Spectrum from concept through to its first release, and the financial and reputational success it brought Clive Sinclair. It also examines the impact of subsequent versions of the computer and features a huge array of games that were developed on the Spectrum including: Jet Set Willy, Knightlore, Chuckie Egg, Ant Attack, Saboteur and many more.
The film is highly nostalgic and features rare archive material combined with new interviews with the Spectrum’s original designers, Sir Clive’s son and nephew, and some of the Spectrum's greatest game developers, all sharing their memories of the spectacular rise of the ZX Spectrum and its extraordinary inventor, Sir Clive Sinclair."
Doesn't seem to be streaming anywhere yet sadly. But showing in various cinemas for now. Anyway - for some of us of a certain age I thought it would be a nice watch over Christmas.
Thanks for sharing. Are you tempted to buy The Spectrum?
I am somewhat afraid to say I was a Commodore owner not a Spectrum one. But all my friends had Spectrum's and I was secretly jealous. So I will resist the urge to be in the in-crowd once again and just ogle them from afar.
You can have both these days! Ultra nerd confession.
I have a spectrum, bbc and c64.
The spectrum was my own, rediscovered when I had to clear out my late parents place. The bbc was rescued from a skip. The c64 was a bored Covid eBay purchase.
I had to restore the bbc and fitted a raspberry pi co processor so I could play the secret executive version of elite. Very cool indeed.
In my lifetime only four politicians have taken their party from opposition into government and I am really reallyold!
Starmer Cameron Blair Thatcher
Each one started out by seriously challenging the orthodoxy and comfort zone within their own party and reaching out to new voters. Early doors for Badenoch, but no sign yet that she is following the winning path. If anything she is looking to the core,
You must be under 50 if Wilson isn't on your list, and under 54 if Heath isn't.
Speaking as a 41 year old, I don't think of 50 as 'really really old.'
Well, not any more.
All my 3 children are over 50 !!!!
Snap! Or would be if they were all live. Elder grandchildren are in their thirties, too.
On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
I agree, I'd say there's a real risk the Tories become the UUP to Reform's DUP.
However, and it's a big however, the Tories can also fish for LD (home counties) and Labour (switchers and floating voters as well) so they can face and pull in multiple directions, if they get the mix and tone right.
Not sure Badenoch is quite the right candidate to go fishing for LD and centrist Labour votes. Davey is a more conservative leader and overall safer bet.
The Lib Dem's fortunes always follow Labour's, and they are very tied in to the centrist, declinist agenda which is being cruelly laid bare by Sir Blackrock's incompetent goons at the moment. Of course you can never bet against the Lib Dems' ability to be shamelessly two-faced and get away with it, but I think GE2024 will be a high point for them.
On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
I agree, I'd say there's a real risk the Tories become the UUP to Reform's DUP.
However, and it's a big however, the Tories can also fish for LD (home counties) and Labour (switchers and floating voters as well) so they can face and pull in multiple directions, if they get the mix and tone right.
Not sure Badenoch is quite the right candidate to go fishing for LD and centrist Labour votes. Davey is a more conservative leader and overall safer bet.
The Lib Dem's fortunes always follow Labour's, and they are very tied in to the centrist, declinist agenda which is being cruelly laid bare by Sir Blackrock's incompetent goons at the moment. Of course you can never bet against the Lib Dems' ability to be shamelessly two-faced and get away with it, but I think GE2024 will be a high point for them.
On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
I agree, I'd say there's a real risk the Tories become the UUP to Reform's DUP.
However, and it's a big however, the Tories can also fish for LD (home counties) and Labour (switchers and floating voters as well) so they can face and pull in multiple directions, if they get the mix and tone right.
Not sure Badenoch is quite the right candidate to go fishing for LD and centrist Labour votes. Davey is a more conservative leader and overall safer bet.
Davey is anything but conservative. He's a socialist in a yellow suit with a flying bird on it.
Not at all.
For example the LDs oppose the abolition of AR on farms and imposition of VAT on private schools.
Davey certainly wasn't a Socialist when in government either.
It will be tough to expand the number of LD seats at the next GE, as there will surely be some dead cat bounce for the Tories, but it isn't impossible. There is not a lot of love out there for either of the big two parties. We may well be in one of those decades where the tectonic plates of party politics shift.
I suggest you read the interviews with him on his background and political philosophy, which was so left-wing the interviewer even asked him why he didn't join the Labour Party then - to which he gave some weakish answer about how he didn't like its tradition.
He's a Lefty through and through.
Don't confuse political opportunism for where his real sympathies lie, and he'd be delighted to prop up a Labour administration that fell short next time.
One of the interesting curiosities of modern politics is that Conservatives don’t look or act conservative. It’s all topsy turvey
That might depend on what there is to conserve and how it can be conserved.
For thing to stay the same, everything must change.
On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
I agree, I'd say there's a real risk the Tories become the UUP to Reform's DUP.
However, and it's a big however, the Tories can also fish for LD (home counties) and Labour (switchers and floating voters as well) so they can face and pull in multiple directions, if they get the mix and tone right.
Not sure Badenoch is quite the right candidate to go fishing for LD and centrist Labour votes. Davey is a more conservative leader and overall safer bet.
The Lib Dem's fortunes always follow Labour's, and they are very tied in to the centrist, declinist agenda which is being cruelly laid bare by Sir Blackrock's incompetent goons at the moment. Of course you can never bet against the Lib Dems' ability to be shamelessly two-faced and get away with it, but I think GE2024 will be a high point for them.
2010 says hello.
Who knows, they might do it. There are still Lib Dems in the South West running on a pro-Brexit platform afaik.
On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
I agree, I'd say there's a real risk the Tories become the UUP to Reform's DUP.
However, and it's a big however, the Tories can also fish for LD (home counties) and Labour (switchers and floating voters as well) so they can face and pull in multiple directions, if they get the mix and tone right.
Not sure Badenoch is quite the right candidate to go fishing for LD and centrist Labour votes. Davey is a more conservative leader and overall safer bet.
Davey is anything but conservative. He's a socialist in a yellow suit with a flying bird on it.
Not at all.
For example the LDs oppose the abolition of AR on farms and imposition of VAT on private schools.
Davey certainly wasn't a Socialist when in government either.
It will be tough to expand the number of LD seats at the next GE, as there will surely be some dead cat bounce for the Tories, but it isn't impossible. There is not a lot of love out there for either of the big two parties. We may well be in one of those decades where the tectonic plates of party politics shift.
I suggest you read the interviews with him on his background and political philosophy, which was so left-wing the interviewer even asked him why he didn't join the Labour Party then - to which he gave some weakish answer about how he didn't like its tradition.
He's a Lefty through and through.
Don't confuse political opportunism for where his real sympathies lie, and he'd be delighted to prop up a Labour administration that fell short next time.
One of the interesting curiosities of modern politics is that Conservatives don’t look or act conservative. It’s all topsy turvey
On the contrary they seem determined to trash the country rather than conserve it.
It's to do now, with party loyalty running vertically through classes, rather than horizontally, across them.
People are still used to the idea of upper middle class people being overwhelmingly Conservative, and working class people being mainly Labour (with a substantial Conservative minority).
When in reality, the Conservatives have very little in common now, with much of the Establishment, and Labour have very little in common now, with broad swathes of working class Britain.
And, the same is true of the US, France, and other rich world democracies. Quite often now, the most solidly left-leaning constituencies are the most well-heeled.
On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
I agree, I'd say there's a real risk the Tories become the UUP to Reform's DUP.
However, and it's a big however, the Tories can also fish for LD (home counties) and Labour (switchers and floating voters as well) so they can face and pull in multiple directions, if they get the mix and tone right.
Not sure Badenoch is quite the right candidate to go fishing for LD and centrist Labour votes. Davey is a more conservative leader and overall safer bet.
Davey is anything but conservative. He's a socialist in a yellow suit with a flying bird on it.
Not at all.
For example the LDs oppose the abolition of AR on farms and imposition of VAT on private schools.
Davey certainly wasn't a Socialist when in government either.
It will be tough to expand the number of LD seats at the next GE, as there will surely be some dead cat bounce for the Tories, but it isn't impossible. There is not a lot of love out there for either of the big two parties. We may well be in one of those decades where the tectonic plates of party politics shift.
I suggest you read the interviews with him on his background and political philosophy, which was so left-wing the interviewer even asked him why he didn't join the Labour Party then - to which he gave some weakish answer about how he didn't like its tradition.
He's a Lefty through and through.
Don't confuse political opportunism for where his real sympathies lie, and he'd be delighted to prop up a Labour administration that fell short next time.
One of the interesting curiosities of modern politics is that Conservatives don’t look or act conservative. It’s all topsy turvey
On the contrary they seem determined to trash the country rather than conserve it.
It's to do now, with party loyalty running vertically through classes, rather than horizontally, across them.
People are still used to the idea of upper middle class people being overwhelmingly Conservative, and working class people being mainly Labour (with a substantial Conservative minority).
When in reality, the Conservatives have very little in common now, with much of the Establishment, and Labour have very little in common now, with broad swathes of working class Britain.
And, the same is true of the US, France, and other rich world democracies. Quite often now, the most solidly left-leaning constituencies are the most well-heeled.
It's fascinating to consider why that's the case.
Luxury beliefs of the university educated, especially women. They have to distinguish themselves from the hoi poloi who have always had small-c conservative views. Used to be done by owning a Jaguar, etc.
On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
I agree, I'd say there's a real risk the Tories become the UUP to Reform's DUP.
However, and it's a big however, the Tories can also fish for LD (home counties) and Labour (switchers and floating voters as well) so they can face and pull in multiple directions, if they get the mix and tone right.
Not sure Badenoch is quite the right candidate to go fishing for LD and centrist Labour votes. Davey is a more conservative leader and overall safer bet.
Davey is anything but conservative. He's a socialist in a yellow suit with a flying bird on it.
Not at all.
For example the LDs oppose the abolition of AR on farms and imposition of VAT on private schools.
Davey certainly wasn't a Socialist when in government either.
It will be tough to expand the number of LD seats at the next GE, as there will surely be some dead cat bounce for the Tories, but it isn't impossible. There is not a lot of love out there for either of the big two parties. We may well be in one of those decades where the tectonic plates of party politics shift.
I suggest you read the interviews with him on his background and political philosophy, which was so left-wing the interviewer even asked him why he didn't join the Labour Party then - to which he gave some weakish answer about how he didn't like its tradition.
He's a Lefty through and through.
Don't confuse political opportunism for where his real sympathies lie, and he'd be delighted to prop up a Labour administration that fell short next time.
One of the interesting curiosities of modern politics is that Conservatives don’t look or act conservative. It’s all topsy turvey
On the contrary they seem determined to trash the country rather than conserve it.
It's to do now, with party loyalty running vertically through classes, rather than horizontally, across them.
People are still used to the idea of upper middle class people being overwhelmingly Conservative, and working class people being mainly Labour (with a substantial Conservative minority).
When in reality, the Conservatives have very little in common now, with much of the Establishment, and Labour have very little in common now, with broad swathes of working class Britain.
And, the same is true of the US, France, and other rich world democracies. Quite often now, the most solidly left-leaning constituencies are the most well-heeled.
It's fascinating to consider why that's the case.
It really is interesting. Unpacking and understanding these changes and perhaps even more importantly noting that this is all completely disrupted by the internet is the challenge of our time.
"The Rubber-Keyed Wonder charts the development and creation of the ZX Spectrum from concept through to its first release, and the financial and reputational success it brought Clive Sinclair. It also examines the impact of subsequent versions of the computer and features a huge array of games that were developed on the Spectrum including: Jet Set Willy, Knightlore, Chuckie Egg, Ant Attack, Saboteur and many more.
The film is highly nostalgic and features rare archive material combined with new interviews with the Spectrum’s original designers, Sir Clive’s son and nephew, and some of the Spectrum's greatest game developers, all sharing their memories of the spectacular rise of the ZX Spectrum and its extraordinary inventor, Sir Clive Sinclair."
Doesn't seem to be streaming anywhere yet sadly. But showing in various cinemas for now. Anyway - for some of us of a certain age I thought it would be a nice watch over Christmas.
Thanks for sharing. Are you tempted to buy The Spectrum?
Does take one back. One of my staff built an in-pharmacy advertising display using a Spectrum and an old TV. It explained something about medicines..... can't recall what.
I wrote a print estimating program for a ZX81. It had to be uploaded from a cassette tape every time you switched it on. You could input the number of pages, colours and a choice of paper and it would spit out a plausible-looking £price that was probably just about ballpark. And after every glitch (half-life 2 minutes) you had to start all over.
On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
I agree, I'd say there's a real risk the Tories become the UUP to Reform's DUP.
However, and it's a big however, the Tories can also fish for LD (home counties) and Labour (switchers and floating voters as well) so they can face and pull in multiple directions, if they get the mix and tone right.
Not sure Badenoch is quite the right candidate to go fishing for LD and centrist Labour votes. Davey is a more conservative leader and overall safer bet.
Davey is anything but conservative. He's a socialist in a yellow suit with a flying bird on it.
Not at all.
For example the LDs oppose the abolition of AR on farms and imposition of VAT on private schools.
Davey certainly wasn't a Socialist when in government either.
It will be tough to expand the number of LD seats at the next GE, as there will surely be some dead cat bounce for the Tories, but it isn't impossible. There is not a lot of love out there for either of the big two parties. We may well be in one of those decades where the tectonic plates of party politics shift.
I suggest you read the interviews with him on his background and political philosophy, which was so left-wing the interviewer even asked him why he didn't join the Labour Party then - to which he gave some weakish answer about how he didn't like its tradition.
He's a Lefty through and through.
Don't confuse political opportunism for where his real sympathies lie, and he'd be delighted to prop up a Labour administration that fell short next time.
One of the interesting curiosities of modern politics is that Conservatives don’t look or act conservative. It’s all topsy turvey
On the contrary they seem determined to trash the country rather than conserve it.
It's to do now, with party loyalty running vertically through classes, rather than horizontally, across them.
People are still used to the idea of upper middle class people being overwhelmingly Conservative, and working class people being mainly Labour (with a substantial Conservative minority).
When in reality, the Conservatives have very little in common now, with much of the Establishment, and Labour have very little in common now, with broad swathes of working class Britain.
And, the same is true of the US, France, and other rich world democracies. Quite often now, the most solidly left-leaning constituencies are the most well-heeled.
On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
I agree, I'd say there's a real risk the Tories become the UUP to Reform's DUP.
However, and it's a big however, the Tories can also fish for LD (home counties) and Labour (switchers and floating voters as well) so they can face and pull in multiple directions, if they get the mix and tone right.
Not sure Badenoch is quite the right candidate to go fishing for LD and centrist Labour votes. Davey is a more conservative leader and overall safer bet.
Davey is anything but conservative. He's a socialist in a yellow suit with a flying bird on it.
Not at all.
For example the LDs oppose the abolition of AR on farms and imposition of VAT on private schools.
Davey certainly wasn't a Socialist when in government either.
It will be tough to expand the number of LD seats at the next GE, as there will surely be some dead cat bounce for the Tories, but it isn't impossible. There is not a lot of love out there for either of the big two parties. We may well be in one of those decades where the tectonic plates of party politics shift.
I suggest you read the interviews with him on his background and political philosophy, which was so left-wing the interviewer even asked him why he didn't join the Labour Party then - to which he gave some weakish answer about how he didn't like its tradition.
He's a Lefty through and through.
Don't confuse political opportunism for where his real sympathies lie, and he'd be delighted to prop up a Labour administration that fell short next time.
One of the interesting curiosities of modern politics is that Conservatives don’t look or act conservative. It’s all topsy turvey
On the contrary they seem determined to trash the country rather than conserve it.
It's to do now, with party loyalty running vertically through classes, rather than horizontally, across them.
People are still used to the idea of upper middle class people being overwhelmingly Conservative, and working class people being mainly Labour (with a substantial Conservative minority).
When in reality, the Conservatives have very little in common now, with much of the Establishment, and Labour have very little in common now, with broad swathes of working class Britain.
And, the same is true of the US, France, and other rich world democracies. Quite often now, the most solidly left-leaning constituencies are the most well-heeled.
It's fascinating to consider why that's the case.
Luxury beliefs of the university educated, especially women. They have to distinguish themselves from the hoi poloi who have always had small-c conservative views. Used to be done by owning a Jaguar, etc.
I think that's what a lot of Jaguar fans have picked up on: the company is dominated by such types who deliberately want to triangulate against them for those reasons.
On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
I agree, I'd say there's a real risk the Tories become the UUP to Reform's DUP.
However, and it's a big however, the Tories can also fish for LD (home counties) and Labour (switchers and floating voters as well) so they can face and pull in multiple directions, if they get the mix and tone right.
Not sure Badenoch is quite the right candidate to go fishing for LD and centrist Labour votes. Davey is a more conservative leader and overall safer bet.
Davey is anything but conservative. He's a socialist in a yellow suit with a flying bird on it.
Not at all.
For example the LDs oppose the abolition of AR on farms and imposition of VAT on private schools.
Davey certainly wasn't a Socialist when in government either.
It will be tough to expand the number of LD seats at the next GE, as there will surely be some dead cat bounce for the Tories, but it isn't impossible. There is not a lot of love out there for either of the big two parties. We may well be in one of those decades where the tectonic plates of party politics shift.
I suggest you read the interviews with him on his background and political philosophy, which was so left-wing the interviewer even asked him why he didn't join the Labour Party then - to which he gave some weakish answer about how he didn't like its tradition.
He's a Lefty through and through.
Don't confuse political opportunism for where his real sympathies lie, and he'd be delighted to prop up a Labour administration that fell short next time.
One of the interesting curiosities of modern politics is that Conservatives don’t look or act conservative. It’s all topsy turvey
On the contrary they seem determined to trash the country rather than conserve it.
It's to do now, with party loyalty running vertically through classes, rather than horizontally, across them.
People are still used to the idea of upper middle class people being overwhelmingly Conservative, and working class people being mainly Labour (with a substantial Conservative minority).
When in reality, the Conservatives have very little in common now, with much of the Establishment, and Labour have very little in common now, with broad swathes of working class Britain.
And, the same is true of the US, France, and other rich world democracies. Quite often now, the most solidly left-leaning constituencies are the most well-heeled.
It's fascinating to consider why that's the case.
There's an age factor as well.
What we've seen are older and private sector working class moving rightwards while younger and public sector middle class have moved leftwards.
Not a bet for me. Even if Badenoch flops spectacularly, Farage is a worse choice.
Nothing would ensure a second Starmer government more certainly.
I'm not so sure. Farage strikes me as someone that the centrist Establishment often underestimate.
People might be annoyed enough with five years - well, actually by then about 20 - of mass immigration and economic stagnation to give Farage a whirl in 2029, especially if Kemi (and a successor?) disappoint. The Ukraine war might be over by then and Trump will be on his way out.
It's certainly not the likeliest scenario, and the logistics are daunting, but stranger things have happened ...
I can only speak for myself. But there is a growing thought in this country - and on here - that embraces shit like the Great Replacement Theory. I think that theory is nasty b/s, but politically it plays well amongst people who like conspiracy theories, are borderline or fully racist, and who want someone to blame for things they don't like.
And I can see Farage playing that sort of card to that crowd. After all, that card has helped Trump.
PB is just too upper middle class to understand the appeal of Farage.
Wrong. Long time political anoraks on this site of all political persuasions have sadly always understood the appeal of Farage and why in his previous role as UKIP leader he and his previous party were so successful in European elections, and far more so in Labour heartlands seats by 2015 than in previous heartland Conservative seats and also in particular in the Welsh Parliamentary elections around that time. So no surprise at how well Reform are performing in either Wales or Scotland right now.
But again, long time political anoraks are already recognising the negative signs of his previous modus operandi as leader of UKIP starting to appear on his new Reform bandwagon.
Are you saying that Farage is yesterday’s man, like Trump?
No, but I am saying he is just as easily able to become unstuck again for the same reasons both he and Trump came unstuck last time through falling out with and losing disullusioned key internal colleagues in their party campaign operation.
Morning fitalass. Really good to see you posting again. I know we disagree on various things but yours is a welcome voice on here.
Is Badenoch better suited to be Reform leader? Perhaps they could swap.
If you have to ask that question, then you don't get Kemi Badenoch or chances her chances of staying the course as Conservative leader until the next GE. She gave a very good speech at the Farmers protest in London, she was totally on top her brief when it came to understanding and articulating the wider long term issues surrounding this terrible Labour tax policy for the farming community, far more so than Nigel Farage or even Jeremy Clarkson on the day.
Yes, she did a good job in the farmers' protest - to be fair it was the Tories' comfort zone, but Kemi made the most of it, and as you say, seemed the main political spokesperson on the day. I would like some follow up with a mini farming and food manifesto with some solid measures aimed at supporting farmers to deliver more good quality British food (about the only thing we still make here).
Tbf there aren’t many competing countries in the good quality British food market. I hear US haggis is pretty meh (and haggis should never be meh).
Not a bet for me. Even if Badenoch flops spectacularly, Farage is a worse choice.
Nothing would ensure a second Starmer government more certainly.
I'm not so sure. Farage strikes me as someone that the centrist Establishment often underestimate.
People might be annoyed enough with five years - well, actually by then about 20 - of mass immigration and economic stagnation to give Farage a whirl in 2029, especially if Kemi (and a successor?) disappoint. The Ukraine war might be over by then and Trump will be on his way out.
It's certainly not the likeliest scenario, and the logistics are daunting, but stranger things have happened ...
I can only speak for myself. But there is a growing thought in this country - and on here - that embraces shit like the Great Replacement Theory. I think that theory is nasty b/s, but politically it plays well amongst people who like conspiracy theories, are borderline or fully racist, and who want someone to blame for things they don't like.
And I can see Farage playing that sort of card to that crowd. After all, that card has helped Trump.
PB is just too upper middle class to understand the appeal of Farage.
Wrong. Long time political anoraks on this site of all political persuasions have sadly always understood the appeal of Farage and why in his previous role as UKIP leader he and his previous party were so successful in European elections, and far more so in Labour heartlands seats by 2015 than in previous heartland Conservative seats and also in particular in the Welsh Parliamentary elections around that time. So no surprise at how well Reform are performing in either Wales or Scotland right now.
But again, long time political anoraks are already recognising the negative signs of his previous modus operandi as leader of UKIP starting to appear on his new Reform bandwagon.
Are you saying that Farage is yesterday’s man, like Trump?
No, but I am saying he is just as easily able to become unstuck again for the same reasons both he and Trump came unstuck last time through falling out with and losing disullusioned key internal colleagues in their party campaign operation.
Morning fitalass. Really good to see you posting again. I know we disagree on various things but yours is a welcome voice on here.
In a similar vein anyone heard of/from Carlotta? She could get fairly monomaniacal on certain subjects but I would like to think she’s hale and hearty.
Not a bet for me. Even if Badenoch flops spectacularly, Farage is a worse choice.
Nothing would ensure a second Starmer government more certainly.
I'm not so sure. Farage strikes me as someone that the centrist Establishment often underestimate.
People might be annoyed enough with five years - well, actually by then about 20 - of mass immigration and economic stagnation to give Farage a whirl in 2029, especially if Kemi (and a successor?) disappoint. The Ukraine war might be over by then and Trump will be on his way out.
It's certainly not the likeliest scenario, and the logistics are daunting, but stranger things have happened ...
I can only speak for myself. But there is a growing thought in this country - and on here - that embraces shit like the Great Replacement Theory. I think that theory is nasty b/s, but politically it plays well amongst people who like conspiracy theories, are borderline or fully racist, and who want someone to blame for things they don't like.
And I can see Farage playing that sort of card to that crowd. After all, that card has helped Trump.
PB is just too upper middle class to understand the appeal of Farage.
Absolutely and with that comes the sneering at left behind communities and people who support Reform.
At times it really is an upper middle class circle jerk here.
So what exactly has Trump/Farage/brexit/Boris offered the left behind communities, other than false hopes?
A leader going down on beach to get wet as tide comes in probably far more honest and constructive.
Would you like to list what the BSing populists have offered that actually turns back decades of erosion from globalisation? What actually reverses post industrial society? What turns back time on populations getting older and taking not paying in causing costs, inflation and poverty?
You need to list a few, as there is only one thing that partially helped UK with all this in recent decades I can think of - the pooled EU money for investment in infrastructure and re-skilling that places like Wales and North East definitely benefitted from.
On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
I agree, I'd say there's a real risk the Tories become the UUP to Reform's DUP.
However, and it's a big however, the Tories can also fish for LD (home counties) and Labour (switchers and floating voters as well) so they can face and pull in multiple directions, if they get the mix and tone right.
Not sure Badenoch is quite the right candidate to go fishing for LD and centrist Labour votes. Davey is a more conservative leader and overall safer bet.
Davey is anything but conservative. He's a socialist in a yellow suit with a flying bird on it.
Not at all.
For example the LDs oppose the abolition of AR on farms and imposition of VAT on private schools.
Davey certainly wasn't a Socialist when in government either.
It will be tough to expand the number of LD seats at the next GE, as there will surely be some dead cat bounce for the Tories, but it isn't impossible. There is not a lot of love out there for either of the big two parties. We may well be in one of those decades where the tectonic plates of party politics shift.
I suggest you read the interviews with him on his background and political philosophy, which was so left-wing the interviewer even asked him why he didn't join the Labour Party then - to which he gave some weakish answer about how he didn't like its tradition.
He's a Lefty through and through.
Don't confuse political opportunism for where his real sympathies lie, and he'd be delighted to prop up a Labour administration that fell short next time.
One of the interesting curiosities of modern politics is that Conservatives don’t look or act conservative. It’s all topsy turvey
On the contrary they seem determined to trash the country rather than conserve it.
It's to do now, with party loyalty running vertically through classes, rather than horizontally, across them.
People are still used to the idea of upper middle class people being overwhelmingly Conservative, and working class people being mainly Labour (with a substantial Conservative minority).
When in reality, the Conservatives have very little in common now, with much of the Establishment, and Labour have very little in common now, with broad swathes of working class Britain.
And, the same is true of the US, France, and other rich world democracies. Quite often now, the most solidly left-leaning constituencies are the most well-heeled.
It's fascinating to consider why that's the case.
Luxury beliefs of the university educated, especially women. They have to distinguish themselves from the hoi poloi who have always had small-c conservative views. Used to be done by owning a Jaguar, etc.
Luxury beliefs come a lot cheaper than luxury living or even traditional middle class living in southern England.
I wonder how much resentment there is among many recent graduates that they're not going to get the lifestyle they expected, that their parents had or what many of their age group who didn't go to university now has.
Is Badenoch better suited to be Reform leader? Perhaps they could swap.
If you have to ask that question, then you don't get Kemi Badenoch or chances her chances of staying the course as Conservative leader until the next GE. She gave a very good speech at the Farmers protest in London, she was totally on top her brief when it came to understanding and articulating the wider long term issues surrounding this terrible Labour tax policy for the farming community, far more so than Nigel Farage or even Jeremy Clarkson on the day.
Yes, she did a good job in the farmers' protest - to be fair it was the Tories' comfort zone, but Kemi made the most of it, and as you say, seemed the main political spokesperson on the day. I would like some follow up with a mini farming and food manifesto with some solid measures aimed at supporting farmers to deliver more good quality British food (about the only thing we still make here).
Tbf there aren’t many competing countries in the good quality British food market. I hear US haggis is pretty meh (and haggis should never be meh).
Sir Hopeless will find a way to lose our leadership in British food if he can.
OT but something one needs to know: not only are banks sometimes imposing an upper limit on scam refunds, many are now bringing in an £100 excess deduction.
Is Badenoch better suited to be Reform leader? Perhaps they could swap.
If you have to ask that question, then you don't get Kemi Badenoch or chances her chances of staying the course as Conservative leader until the next GE. She gave a very good speech at the Farmers protest in London, she was totally on top her brief when it came to understanding and articulating the wider long term issues surrounding this terrible Labour tax policy for the farming community, far more so than Nigel Farage or even Jeremy Clarkson on the day.
Not impressed. Badenoch backed government spending, but immediately attacks any way to pay for it. That’s not opposition, that’s empty protest and a dead end for her and her party.
She comes across as a tribal comfort zone politician, somewhere between Miliband and Corbyn. Maybe that’s what the Tories need right now.
I seem to remember you thinking Starmer was being canny with his “ming vase” strategy not realising that he was just an empty jar.
And yet you attack the opposition for not having a fully costed set of policies 4.5 years from an election…
OT but something one needs to know: not only are banks sometimes imposing an upper limit on scam refunds, many are now bringing in an £100 excess deduction.
OT but something one needs to know: not only are banks sometimes imposing an upper limit on scam refunds, many are now bringing in an £100 excess deduction.
If the banks (as they do) have to cover the entire cost it creates no incentive for customers to be careful
I think that's an excellent idea.
The only issue I can see is people not complaining about smaller frauds due to the "excess", like a scratch on your car. So you'll get thousands of £99 frauds, or fraudsters testing out methods unnoticed before going for the big one.
On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
I agree, I'd say there's a real risk the Tories become the UUP to Reform's DUP.
However, and it's a big however, the Tories can also fish for LD (home counties) and Labour (switchers and floating voters as well) so they can face and pull in multiple directions, if they get the mix and tone right.
Not sure Badenoch is quite the right candidate to go fishing for LD and centrist Labour votes. Davey is a more conservative leader and overall safer bet.
Davey is anything but conservative. He's a socialist in a yellow suit with a flying bird on it.
Not at all.
For example the LDs oppose the abolition of AR on farms and imposition of VAT on private schools.
Davey certainly wasn't a Socialist when in government either.
It will be tough to expand the number of LD seats at the next GE, as there will surely be some dead cat bounce for the Tories, but it isn't impossible. There is not a lot of love out there for either of the big two parties. We may well be in one of those decades where the tectonic plates of party politics shift.
I suggest you read the interviews with him on his background and political philosophy, which was so left-wing the interviewer even asked him why he didn't join the Labour Party then - to which he gave some weakish answer about how he didn't like its tradition.
He's a Lefty through and through.
Don't confuse political opportunism for where his real sympathies lie, and he'd be delighted to prop up a Labour administration that fell short next time.
One of the interesting curiosities of modern politics is that Conservatives don’t look or act conservative. It’s all topsy turvey
On the contrary they seem determined to trash the country rather than conserve it.
It's to do now, with party loyalty running vertically through classes, rather than horizontally, across them.
People are still used to the idea of upper middle class people being overwhelmingly Conservative, and working class people being mainly Labour (with a substantial Conservative minority).
When in reality, the Conservatives have very little in common now, with much of the Establishment, and Labour have very little in common now, with broad swathes of working class Britain.
And, the same is true of the US, France, and other rich world democracies. Quite often now, the most solidly left-leaning constituencies are the most well-heeled.
On topic, why would Farage want to lead the Tories? It is already a 50/50 toss up who will lead the forthcoming Tory-Reform administration. Reform could be running Wales soon. Kemi is going to have to be brilliant and make the most of all her opportunities not to see the Tories go the way of the Liberals.
I agree, I'd say there's a real risk the Tories become the UUP to Reform's DUP.
However, and it's a big however, the Tories can also fish for LD (home counties) and Labour (switchers and floating voters as well) so they can face and pull in multiple directions, if they get the mix and tone right.
Not sure Badenoch is quite the right candidate to go fishing for LD and centrist Labour votes. Davey is a more conservative leader and overall safer bet.
Davey is anything but conservative. He's a socialist in a yellow suit with a flying bird on it.
Not at all.
For example the LDs oppose the abolition of AR on farms and imposition of VAT on private schools.
Davey certainly wasn't a Socialist when in government either.
It will be tough to expand the number of LD seats at the next GE, as there will surely be some dead cat bounce for the Tories, but it isn't impossible. There is not a lot of love out there for either of the big two parties. We may well be in one of those decades where the tectonic plates of party politics shift.
I suggest you read the interviews with him on his background and political philosophy, which was so left-wing the interviewer even asked him why he didn't join the Labour Party then - to which he gave some weakish answer about how he didn't like its tradition.
He's a Lefty through and through.
Don't confuse political opportunism for where his real sympathies lie, and he'd be delighted to prop up a Labour administration that fell short next time.
One of the interesting curiosities of modern politics is that Conservatives don’t look or act conservative. It’s all topsy turvey
On the contrary they seem determined to trash the country rather than conserve it.
It's to do now, with party loyalty running vertically through classes, rather than horizontally, across them.
People are still used to the idea of upper middle class people being overwhelmingly Conservative, and working class people being mainly Labour (with a substantial Conservative minority).
When in reality, the Conservatives have very little in common now, with much of the Establishment, and Labour have very little in common now, with broad swathes of working class Britain.
And, the same is true of the US, France, and other rich world democracies. Quite often now, the most solidly left-leaning constituencies are the most well-heeled.
It's fascinating to consider why that's the case.
Luxury beliefs of the university educated, especially women. They have to distinguish themselves from the hoi poloi who have always had small-c conservative views. Used to be done by owning a Jaguar, etc.
I think that's what a lot of Jaguar fans have picked up on: the company is dominated by such types who deliberately want to triangulate against them for those reasons.
I think that "elite overproduction" is one reason. The Greens in particular, pick up support from people who are very well-educated, but in relatively poorly-paying occupations. Revolutions are almost always driven by people who are just outside the magic circle of power and wealth, rather than the genuinely poor.
So, you have a lot of elite-adjacent people who really detest their own society, along with its history and culture.
Also economics isn't really the dividing line it once was. No genuintely socialist party can expect to come to power now, and nor can any party that believes in radically cutting back the public sector. A form of social democracy prevails in most rich world democracies. So, people seek other dividing lines.
Not a bet for me. Even if Badenoch flops spectacularly, Farage is a worse choice.
Nothing would ensure a second Starmer government more certainly.
I'm not so sure. Farage strikes me as someone that the centrist Establishment often underestimate.
People might be annoyed enough with five years - well, actually by then about 20 - of mass immigration and economic stagnation to give Farage a whirl in 2029, especially if Kemi (and a successor?) disappoint. The Ukraine war might be over by then and Trump will be on his way out.
It's certainly not the likeliest scenario, and the logistics are daunting, but stranger things have happened ...
I can only speak for myself. But there is a growing thought in this country - and on here - that embraces shit like the Great Replacement Theory. I think that theory is nasty b/s, but politically it plays well amongst people who like conspiracy theories, are borderline or fully racist, and who want someone to blame for things they don't like.
And I can see Farage playing that sort of card to that crowd. After all, that card has helped Trump.
PB is just too upper middle class to understand the appeal of Farage.
Absolutely and with that comes the sneering at left behind communities and people who support Reform.
At times it really is an upper middle class circle jerk here.
So what exactly has Trump/Farage/brexit/Boris offered the left behind communities, other than false hopes?
A leader going down on beach to get wet as tide comes in probably far more honest and constructive.
Would you like to list what the BSing populists have offered that actually turns back decades of erosion from globalisation? What actually reverses post industrial society? What turns back time on populations getting older and taking not paying in causing costs, inflation and poverty?
You need to list a few, as their is only one thing that partially helped UK with all this in recent decades I can think of - the pooled EU money for investment in infrastructure and re-skilling that places like Wales and North East definitely benefitted from.
Full employment and pay rises have been achieved.
Together with a better environment and affordable housing.
People have the opportunities to get a skillset and then get a career and then get a home.
With those you can have a good life, without them you cannot.
Is Badenoch better suited to be Reform leader? Perhaps they could swap.
If you have to ask that question, then you don't get Kemi Badenoch or chances her chances of staying the course as Conservative leader until the next GE. She gave a very good speech at the Farmers protest in London, she was totally on top her brief when it came to understanding and articulating the wider long term issues surrounding this terrible Labour tax policy for the farming community, far more so than Nigel Farage or even Jeremy Clarkson on the day.
Not impressed. Badenoch backed government spending, but immediately attacks any way to pay for it. That’s not opposition, that’s empty protest and a dead end for her and her party.
She comes across as a tribal comfort zone politician, somewhere between Miliband and Corbyn. Maybe that’s what the Tories need right now.
I seem to remember you thinking Starmer was being canny with his “ming vase” strategy not realising that he was just an empty jar.
And yet you attack the opposition for not having a fully costed set of policies 4.5 years from an election…
They don’t need to be fully costed, just basically coherent. “Cake and eat it” isn’t good politics.
She didn’t have to say anything on spending, but she did. 🤷♂️
Comments
I'd have thought we'd have learned that lesson by now.
Next (working) week: nice, dry and sunny!
I use this: https://grid.iamkate.com. The reason the numbers for wind are so different is because the other monitors exclude onshore wind in England and Wales.
You could be a supporter of the Australian test team.
Starmer
Cameron
Blair
Thatcher
Each one started out by seriously challenging the orthodoxy and comfort zone within their own party and reaching out to new voters. Early doors for Badenoch, but no sign yet that she is following the winning path. If anything she is looking to the core,
Speaking as a 41 year old, I don't think of 50 as 'really really old.'
Well, not any more.
For example the LDs oppose the abolition of AR on farms and imposition of VAT on private schools.
Davey certainly wasn't a Socialist when in government either.
It will be tough to expand the number of LD seats at the next GE, as there will surely be some dead cat bounce for the Tories, but it isn't impossible. There is not a lot of love out there for either of the big two parties. We may well be in one of those decades where the tectonic plates of party politics shift.
Reality is that if we did have a parcel from Evri, Matthew would be delivering it as he uses our house as a loo stop if required
It runs:
Macdonald (1924 and 1929, both times with a minority government and on the first occasion not technically due to an election)
Baldwin (1924)
Attlee (1945)
Churchill (1951)
Wilson (1964 and 1974)
Heath (1970)
Thatcher (1979)
Blair (1997)
Cameron (2010)
Starmer (2024).
Attlee of course had been in government with his party only one month previously, and probably therefore should be discounted from that list.
So it is quite a rare feat.
(Cummins to take 10-0 tomorrow and Aus to win by eight wickets nailed on!)
He's a Lefty through and through.
Don't confuse political opportunism for where his real sympathies lie, and he'd be delighted to prop up a Labour administration that fell short next time.
What a miserable day.
Is Mr Musk may be becoming semi-detached from Mr Trump? Is DOGE actually inside the Government? Majorite Tayler-Green is proposed as the subcommittee chair for the DOGE subcommittee in Congress - how to announce you will be achieving things whilst announcing that you will not be achieving things.
News item:
https://thehill.com/homenews/house/5004314-marjorie-taylor-greene-government-efficiency/
Slightly sceptical commentary:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24Ej2haSijI
I do hope England's players are watching and learn that sometimes it's not all about playing shots.
Forlorn hope though.
I would just point out, on topic, that it's in the Telegraph, so probably as reliable as if in the Star.
Also, does anyone know how many trans male>female police 'persons' are actually employed by the Met?
The Star has some decent journalists among the indecent photos.
If you produce a product that people don’t like, and don’t understand the market you are aiming at, that is on you, not the customers.
He might even qualify for Trump’s cabinet!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWTkK4BjKeA
"The Rubber-Keyed Wonder charts the development and creation of the ZX Spectrum from concept through to its first release, and the financial and reputational success it brought Clive Sinclair. It also examines the impact of subsequent versions of the computer and features a huge array of games that were developed on the Spectrum including: Jet Set Willy, Knightlore, Chuckie Egg, Ant Attack, Saboteur and many more.
The film is highly nostalgic and features rare archive material combined with new interviews with the Spectrum’s original designers, Sir Clive’s son and nephew, and some of the Spectrum's greatest game developers, all sharing their memories of the spectacular rise of the ZX Spectrum and its extraordinary inventor, Sir Clive Sinclair."
Doesn't seem to be streaming anywhere yet sadly. But showing in various cinemas for now. Anyway - for some of us of a certain age I thought it would be a nice watch over Christmas.
https://arstechnica.com/health/2024/11/surgeons-remove-2-5-inch-hairball-from-teen-with-rare-rapunzel-syndrome/
(Basically: she ate her hair, and it blocked her up)
When male officers strip search black female teenagers (in breach of law and guidelines), all they need to do is…
I hope Jim Westwood will feature prominently - he's a really nice guy, and last I heard still in the industry. He later turned white-hat and joined a better company.
Sometimes great engineers can be really nice guys. There's this terrible meme that if you are good technically, you have to lack social skills and personal hygiene. Jim was one of those guys that belied that.
And you see, now, how this pasts muster in the Boardroom?
The Marketing Director makes a big play of how Jaguar stands for diversity and inclusion for all, and its future brand must reflect that. Maybe few jokes are made about its old-school image, of traditional Jag owners and how male, pale and stale they are. It's suggested there might be some opposition, but that would just be bigotry. The MD backs this message to the hilt, and says he has no time for intolerance.
Now, you're in that Boardroom. You're probably, but not necessarily, a White Male yourself. You've heard all this and you have very serious doubts about the logic of it all.
But, having heard all that, do you speak out? How concerned would be that it'd mark your own personal brand as being DEI-sceptic in the firm? What would that do to your career? Your reputation in the industry?
So, do you try but dress it up as something else, and actually make your input a bit of a cop-out? Or do you gently swallow your doubts, stay silent and wait for the car-crash?
The second problem is that Musk's policy agenda is different from Trump's and different again from VP JD Vance's (and so probably also the GOP's).
Of course, such incidents shouldn't happen at all. In an ideal world trans officers would have the honesty to stand back on such occasions, without doing so causing problems for themselves.
Russia has captured 150 this month.
That’s not momentum.
And at a huge cost.
People are still used to the idea of upper middle class people being overwhelmingly Conservative, and working class people being mainly Labour (with a substantial Conservative minority).
When in reality, the Conservatives have very little in common now, with much of the Establishment, and Labour have very little in common now, with broad swathes of working class Britain.
And, the same is true of the US, France, and other rich world democracies. Quite often now, the most solidly left-leaning constituencies are the most well-heeled.
I went to the premier at the London IMAX. Never seen pixels so big.
As we left, there was a gaggle of film fans waiting outside because Martin Scorsese was arriving. I reckon we had the better film.
Haydock 1.50 - Hillcrest
Ascot 2.45 - Blueking d'Oroux
Haydock 3.05 - Hewick
Haydock 3.40 - Monbeg Genius
Russia might still get a breakthrough, but if it does not, then it is in deep trouble.
I have a spectrum, bbc and c64.
The spectrum was my own, rediscovered when I had to clear out my late parents place.
The bbc was rescued from a skip.
The c64 was a bored Covid eBay purchase.
I had to restore the bbc and fitted a raspberry pi co processor so I could play the secret executive version of elite. Very cool indeed.
For thing to stay the same, everything must change.
Might apply.
What we've seen are older and private sector working class moving rightwards while younger and public sector middle class have moved leftwards.
I hear US haggis is pretty meh (and haggis should never be meh).
A leader going down on beach to get wet as tide comes in probably far more honest and constructive.
Would you like to list what the BSing populists have offered that actually turns back decades of erosion from globalisation? What actually reverses post industrial society? What turns back time on populations getting older and taking not paying in causing costs, inflation and poverty?
You need to list a few, as there is only one thing that partially helped UK with all this in recent decades I can think of - the pooled EU money for investment in infrastructure and re-skilling that places like Wales and North East definitely benefitted from.
I wonder how much resentment there is among many recent graduates that they're not going to get the lifestyle they expected, that their parents had or what many of their age group who didn't go to university now has.
Some SKS Fans (naively) voted for Labour because they wanted change from Tory neoliberalism, instead they're getting Tory neoliberalism on steroids.
In what SKS Fan universe is this "putting money into the pockets of ordinary people"?
If the banks (as they do) have to cover the entire cost it creates no incentive for customers to be careful
@Mylovanov
Russia’s economy is in worse shape than Ukraine’s. Russian Central Bank head Nabiullina admits it has nearly exhausted its resources.
Addressing parliament today, Nabiullina complained about
1. No people left. A record-low unemployment at 2.4%, worsening labor shortages 1/
https://x.com/Mylovanov/status/1859351261692428680
And yet you attack the opposition for not having a fully costed set of policies 4.5 years from an election…
The only issue I can see is people not complaining about smaller frauds due to the "excess", like a scratch on your car. So you'll get thousands of £99 frauds, or fraudsters testing out methods unnoticed before going for the big one.
So, you have a lot of elite-adjacent people who really detest their own society, along with its history and culture.
Also economics isn't really the dividing line it once was. No genuintely socialist party can expect to come to power now, and nor can any party that believes in radically cutting back the public sector. A form of social democracy prevails in most rich world democracies. So, people seek other dividing lines.
What Russia had in 1941/2, and does not have today, is a big reserve of young peasant women, who could be drafted into factories.
Together with a better environment and affordable housing.
People have the opportunities to get a skillset and then get a career and then get a home.
With those you can have a good life, without them you cannot.
She didn’t have to say anything on spending, but she did. 🤷♂️