A picture of a rather dilapidated copy of "The picture of Dorian Gray" There is visible water damage to the cover and the plastic cover is yellowing. Obviously, not evident from the picture but there is a truly foul musty smell emanating from it!

Last week, a gentleman returned this rather dilapidated copy of this famous book to us after 50 years. He had found it in his attic!
Presumably this means there is a pristine copy somewhere in our libraries....

Monday 20th April 2026:
I am still closed

Paul Rudnick had this good idea that can help Donald Trump:
"When Trump tries to read aloud from the Bible, someone should substitute the Epstein Files. He won't know the difference, but he'll be thrilled so see his name so many times."
#religion #politics

Arrived here safely on Thursday by plane and helicopter. Great experience. This is a lovely morning - very warm & sunny. We are all going to Croydon later this forenoon.

Feeling very young - i.e. not like an old lady.

Brexit didn't stop immigration or fix the economy.

Farage told his supporters to back Boris Johnson in the 2019 General Election, and he fully supported Liz Truss's budget himself.

So why are Reform MPs telling us that the wrong Brexit was delivered and complaining about Britain being broken?...

NEW: Richard Tice failed to pay almost £100,000 in corporation tax, benefiting his investment company which made large donations to Reform UK.

First time Reform's deputy leader's tax affairs can be directly linked to finances of Nigel Farage's party.

Half of all the world's bluebells are in the UK. I can't imagine living in a country where the woods don't turn into this every spring.

Effective 2025 federal tax rates paid by these corporations:

Alphabet: 8.01%
AT&T: 4.6%
Meta: 3.57%
General Motors: 3.09%
Amazon: 1.37%
Exxon Mobil: 1.31%
Disney: -1.57%
CVS Health: -3.88%

Income tax rate paid by the typical American: 14.5%

This is what a rigged system looks like.

Cartoon by @christokomar.bsky.social

Ever blow-dried a labrador?

If you don't laugh... 😂

Bit of a British TV reference that's probably lost on Bluesky 'Murica but here you go anyway 😉 😂

WE HAVE SOME FRENCH GIRLS NEXT DOOR AND I TOLD THEM MY NAME IS DAVE BIG DICK WHICH MAKES US LAUGH WHEN THEY CALL ME IT.

Peter Broelman n Canberra Times

Meet James Bembridge, the Reform candidate for Westminster in next month’s local elections.

As well as this tweet, Temu Lex Luthor here, has also been quoted as saying "Most NHS nurses look like they're eating food banks out of business."

Don’t let him get his deposit back.

Tice failed to pay £100,000 tax on profits of firms linked to Reform — story via The Sunday Times

Richard tax-cheat Tice.
And remember when Farage’s partner bought his Clacton house somehow, so he could avoid paying taxes on it?

That is all Reform UK Party Ltd exists for: money.

I miss the good old days of politics, when one poorly-judged tax dodge would be the end of your political career

I don’t think we talk nearly enough about the fact that corporations like Amazon, don’t pay a single cent to maintain the roads they use, the transportation system they use, the courts they use, they pay nothing for the infrastructure that is absolutely critical to their business.

WE Pay for

“Feud with the Pope” is BACK as a likely Wikipedia section heading after a 400-year gap.

The Press knew. They laughed.

The Tories knew. They didn’t care.

All I see now is hypocrisy.

It’s not that these people still exist. That’s just biology. It’s that they are still being paid to shit in their own hands & start clapping.

Richard Stupid Tice would like to clarify that the £100k in tax he hasn't paid is different to the £92k tax he hasn't paid or the £600k tax he hasn't paid. Just in case anyone didn't appreciate the extent of his tax dodging. I mean fiscal prudence.

Well sure, if you put it like *that* it sounds bad... 🙄

"We appear to have forgotten to pay £800k in tax by mistake"

So pleased Laura Kuenssberg is back this week. That means there is no chance Robert Jenrick will be asked about his promise to cut flight tax after a £40k donation from an airline owner.

Tax Dodge Tice

#TaxDodgeTice

It’s not just the remarkable 63% who say they’d vote to rejoin the EU. It’s also the fact that this figure continues to rise slowly but steadily.
Brexit has failed and is seen to have failed. And geopolitics brings Britain and its neighbours, with whom it shares interests & values, closer together.

It's an excellent museum with very good cinemas attached. Fine city, too. Ian, you should visit !