Saturday 12 April: Merit is the only factor that matters in the selection of police recruits

Posted on by Geoff Graham

An unofficial place to discuss the Telegraph letters, established when the DT website turned off its commenting facility (now reinstated, but we prefer ours),
Intelligent, polite, good-humoured debate is welcome, whether on or off topic. Differing opinions are encouraged, but rudeness or personal attacks on other posters will not be tolerated. Posts which – in the opinion of the moderators – make this a less than cordial environment, are likely to be removed, without prior warning.  Persistent offenders will be banned.

Today’s letters (visible only to DT subscribers) are here.

528 thoughts on “Saturday 12 April: Merit is the only factor that matters in the selection of police recruits”

    1. Morning Johnny, it's a bit chilly in the wind but the washing's out, a shop's been done for Monday, book finished – it ended well, but there seemed 200+ pages of filler going over the same events… but as it's about living in a simulation where repetition is the premise maybe that was the point.

    2. A lot of vitriol below the line in the Speccy article on these gongs, too.

    3. Grant Shapps? Really? I mean really?
      Pathetic doesn't even begin to cover this list of nonentities, incompetents and malign servants of darkness.

    4. They must be effin kidding! Rhyming Slang, Sh!tts, the oxymoron … Really? Shirley some mistake??

      And on 432 likes at present, a BTL ""Biggest list of b?ankers I've seen for a while, bar Jimmy Anderson"

    1. And the term “misogyny” being totally overused…along with the term “racist”…

    2. "Modern misogyny"
      that's why they are desperately promoting the Andrew Tate story so that they don't have to call it what it mostly is, islamic teachings.

  4. Stuffing the Lords with cronies and chums.

    There should be a limit on no more than 200 peers in the upper house, all unaligned.

      1. Not a bad idea but I do like the 'life peers' as they don't have to bother with the idiotic popularity contest so have no skin in the game and can properly scrutinise legislation objectively.

        1. Disagree with you on this for once Wibbling. There are too many of them, they are paid too much and most of them are political hacks anyway. The Augean stables need a thorough cleansing. We are back to the days of the kings of England pre-Cromwell, where the kings bestowed patronage – now it’s politicians bestowing patronage ex-post. We are going to need another Revolution to get rid of this anti-democratic system.

          20th April 1653:

          …[you] would like Esau sell your country for a mess of pottage and like Judas betray your God for a few pieces of money. Is there a single virtue now remaining amongst you? Is there one vice you do not possess?…which of you has not bartered your conscience for bribes…”. Etc etc.

          1. I agree with you that the number of peers in The House of Lords should be greatly reduced.

            However a significant percentage of these should be hereditaries who will not be entitled to sit until they are at least 50 years of age and have never been previously involved in politics with any of the main political parties.

      2. I like that suggestion. 2 for Rutland; 2 for Sadiq Khan's patch. Sounds about right.

    1. It's a good cartoon, but it's not that useless woman in the vice, it's the UK economy and everyone working in it.

      One Bob could do is the private sector getting crushed with the public turning the handle.

    2. There’s a vacuous article in the Speccie by Ross Clark on Reeves’ “growing the economy” and every one of the comments was incredulous.

      One commenter however noted that apparently Gove has been seen dining with Reeves.

    2. It's all a bit predictable – unions kicking off, councils demanding more money, massive uncontrolled immigration, crushing tax hikes (on top of the highest taxes in decades), waste and rubbish everywhere, spite and envy driven policies, furious – irrelevant yet enforced – class warfare over private schools fees, timed to do the utmost damage possible regardless.

      This entire government is a shambolic, spiteful, nasty, greedy, fundamentally stupid farce that is an embarrassment to this country.

    3. The city is a magnet and we're powerless to resist,
      We are drawn and then enveloped and we can't see in the mist
      Our hearts are filled with hope that the streets are paved with gold
      And we waste our youth in rented rooms which are sordid, damp and cold
      And I'm trying to find a meaning and I'm trying to write a song,
      But the words come out as clichés and they don't seem to belong
      And the tune is just an echo of some other tune I've heard
      And my mind's become a vacuum with no music and no words.

      [Song lyric from the 1960s.]

  9. Good morning all

    Awake far too early , and of course the bird song , chakking pheasants , meowing cat who decided to stay outside all night , but what a welcome when she pawed the window as she meowed let me in please. Her paws were so cold .

    Can I ask , why did Port Talbot close.. because there was no coal?

    So if Scunthorpe is going to be saved , apparently this idiot government will be importing coal from…….. Japan?

    Meanwhile in China and India they are expanding their coal fired operations flooding the world with steel to control the market.

    I saw this comment on F/B , interesting eh.

    Chap worked in a Sheffield steelworks who went to college to study steel making and steel rolling. Blast furnaces produce iron, which is usually poured into moulds called pigs, hence the name pig iron.

    Electric arc furnaces produce steel, the quality of which is decided by what's put into the furnace.

    ( The Scunthorpe plant is within 48hours of shutting down and can' be re started if shut down )

    What on earth are the Chinese doing owning anything in the UK?

    1. It was all predictable. The plant was making steel but losing money because of the cost of energy. Desperate to keep it open – and continue the farce of 'green' the owners sold it to the Chinese and, inevitably, because they're not thick, they bought it knowing they could eventually do it in and either get a bailout of their money back.

      Lo! Along comes waddling gormless government. Having caused the problem, it now flails about to do anything BUT solve it by scrapping the green con. Instead, it buys the thing – at a hike – from the Chinese and because the stupid morons in state won't repeal the 'climate change' act we're forced to buy expensive coal from overseas. It's taping over a chasm and calling it fixed.

      The plant could have returned to profit through the simple act of abandoning the green con, opening the coal mine nearby, fracking our own gas and the Chinese would be able to sell us steel at a profit.

      Government: creating the problem only to pretend it has the solution while making the problem worse.

          3. Fibre irritates the stomach, Phil. White bread, for instance, is much gentler than wholemeal. Stimulating the bowels is surplus to requirement when you have IBS.

          4. Fibre irritates the stomach, Phil. White bread, for instance, is much gentler than wholemeal. Stimulating the bowels is surplus to requirement when you have IBS.

      3. I woke up at 03.15 to find Winston had had another upset stomach episode. It looks like a trip to the vets next week.

        1. Poor Winston. If mine have trouble from either end they go on dry biscuits. But it do monitor them closely in case it is something more serious.

          1. I have cut out his meat altogether. He gets kibble and a small strip of dried salmon for flavour. Kadi had problems while I was in church, so they’ll both have to go to the vet’s this week.

    2. Good morning DB

      Dorset roads are very busy this weekend , overflow car parks everywhere!

      Standard price of an ice cream cone , £3.50!!!

      2. Yesterday we visited a friend in a Christchurch hospice. The traffic was horrendous.

  11. I tried chlorinated chicken – even after roasting it’s pale and doesn’t get crispy. 12 April 2025.

    Chlorine washing: the facts.

    Chlorine washing is widely used in the US to reduce bacterial contamination.

    In the US, food producers are not required to disclose whether chlorine was used in meat processing. Neither are restaurants or caterers legally obliged to reveal where their meat comes from.

    It’s undetectable

    Chlorine doesn’t affect the chicken’s flavour, smell, or appearance. There’s no visible or sensory indication it was used.

    Some useful info on the much despised in the UK (though not tasted) chlorinated chicken. One notes the difference between the above and the authors direct experience.

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/food-and-drink/features/i-tried-chlorinated-chicken-us-uk/

    1. Today I am roasting a non-chlorinated duck. I shall eat the sliced breasts today with a (tiny amount of a) home-made plum sauce.

      The rest shall be shredded for future use in Chinese pancakes. The rendered fat will be saved for culinary purposes.

      1. Yes, bagged salads are often washed with a chlorine solution as part of the food safety process. This chlorine rinse is used to kill harmful bacteria like E. coli and Salmonella. While this process makes the salads safer to eat, some argue that it can also reduce nutrient levels in the leaves.

        1. It’s pretty easy to grow on a windowsill, anyone who’s really worried about it 🙂 Slugs love it too….

  12. https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/5bb43df4e87232cdf40b8a68463f914d44f22e90/0_0_2127_2238/master/2127.jpg?width=700&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=5d27c08f79ec2924f66d38660e7a243b Back home … Dorcha and Louis, two ospreys, on their nest at Loch Arkaig pine forest in Lochaber, Scotland. Louis, who became an online star during the first Covid lockdown, has returned from west Africa for the summer, despite fears he might not make it back after illness. He and Dorcha have been an item since 2021

  13. Government: creating the problem only to pretend it has the solution while making the problem worse.

    Ain’t that the truth.

  14. Good morning, chums. And thanks, Geoff, for today's new NoTTLe site.

    Wordle 1,393 4/6

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    1. Good morning Elsie and all
      I thought all my guesses were good – but definitely a 'phew!' today!
      Wordle 1,393 6/6

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  15. Morning, all Y'all.
    Beautiful, cloudless day. Stunning sky, sun bright on the trees and hills, and for once an uninterrupted ten hour zed!

  16. Good morning, all. Sunny. Going to be warm Have a loaf to bake and a greenhouse to clean.

    1. I am proud at having been born in Staffordshire, even if 1974 upended me in this regard. Staffordshire is a really interesting county geographically (as are/were they all, really – who can forget poor Dudley?).

      I see Teddesley Park is neat Penkridge. I’ve never been. I went to Shugborough last year with Dad. There’s a Staffordshire Way walk I’d like to do one day…so many walks, so little time.

      Two years and 10 days till I retire.

      Edit. My grandparents were born in Coventry and on our way back from Brum airport yesterday, Dad remarked how proud my grandad was of being a Warwickshire man. But his father was born in Lancashire and the family legend has it prior to that we were Protestants in Roscommon.

        1. I have your recipe (think it’s yours) from a few years ago….🙂👍

          3. Thanks Grizzly, looks good (so does the website). Will tell Him In The Kitchen, looks his sort of thing. I’m ‘not allowed’ in there, still (syncope)….sun shining here, hope it’s shining for you too 🙂

          4. DERBYSHIRE OATCAKES

            INGREDIENTS

            4 oz (114g) porridge oats

            4 oz (114g) strong flour

            1 teaspoonful salt

            ¼ oz (7g) dried yeast [or ½oz (14g) fresh yeast]

            1 teaspoonful sugar

            9 oz (255g) water

            9 oz (255g) milk

            1 tablespoonful lard (or butter)

            INSTRUCTIONS

            Put the flour, oats and salt in a bowl and mix.

            Weigh out the milk into the jug and half the water. Add the remaining water from a recently boiled kettle so that it is tepid.

            Put the yeast and sugar in a small bowl and about 3 tablespoons of the milk mix. Stir the mixture and leave for a few minutes until bubbly.

            Mix the yeast with the remaining milk and stir into the dry ingredients.

            Cover the bowl with a clean tea towel and leave to activate for an hour.

            Melt the lard in a frying pan over a medium heat.

            Pour in a large ladleful of the mixture and swirl the pan so that the base is evenly coated.

            Cook for about 2 to 3 minutes and bubbles start to appear on the surface.

            Loosen the base with a spatula and flip the oatcake over for a further 2 minutes.

            Slide the oatcake onto a plate and cover with greaseproof paper to stop the next one from sticking.

            Cover the oatcakes in foil to keep warm and repeat the process for the remaining oatcakes.

            Note: Whizzing up the oats first in a food-processor makes the batter smoother.

            What is the difference between Derbyshire oatcakes and Staffordshire oatcakes?

            Oatcakes from Derbyshire are thicker than the Staffordshire ones, which use more water in the batter mix.

The Derbyshire ones were traditionally eaten hot at breakfast and the Staffordshire oatcakes were originally sold to mill workers as a hot snack at the end of their shift.

          5. Thank you very much, LIR, I will pass your receipt on to my husband, he’s chief cook (I’m the bottle washer).

          6. Thank you very much, LIR, thought I’d already replied to you but seems not…..will pass this one to Him In Charge of the Kitchen, he likes to use the food processor, and he likes baking (and cooking generally, and eating)…….

  18. Silly question from me , but whose steel would have been required if HS2 was to be completed .

    Whose steel would be required for the construction of the idiotic childish idea of a theme park in Bedfordshire .

    Whose steel would be required for any other major construction job..

    Miliband should fall on his sword!

    1. Theme parks are not for me, but if they provide innocent amusement for others, why should I complain?

      1. They are expensive and boring places that you only go to because some wretched kid in your child's class went there and lied that it was wonderful!

  19. If I hadn’t been picking dad up yesterday,I would have snuck into the TR appeal.

    I donated some money to his appeal and get the Rebel News emails now. Just reading yesterday’s:

    “Tommy Robinson’s hearing at the UK Court of Appeal was held today. It wasn’t long — just 75 minutes. Tommy himself joined by video link from prison, but he wasn’t allowed to say anything, he could just observe.

    Tommy had an excellent lawyer, a senior barrister named Alisdair Williamson, KC. Williamson was the barrister who won an important case for Tommy against the Metropolitan Police, when they illegally banned him from entering London.

    Today’s appeal was for the sentence Tommy received for his contempt of court conviction.

    Normally, an appeal is just on the existing record — that is, the evidence that was heard by the sentencing judge. There is no new evidence; it’s not a do-over. The higher court merely weighs whether or not the trial judge got it right or wrong.

    Williamson made the case today that there was important “fresh evidence” that the Court of Appeal should consider — namely, that an independent psychologist has visited Tommy in prison, and written up a detailed, 39-page diagnosis of his mental health after so many months in solitary confinement. Williamson said that information was obviously not in the hands of the sentencing judge, but the Court of Appeal should consider it.

    The government’s main lawyer was Aidan Eardley, KC. I felt like he was weaker. And his argument in response to the psychologist’s report was essentially, “so what?” As in, he didn’t care that Tommy was being made mentally ill by keeping him in isolation; he told the three-judge panel that if Tommy really wanted to get out of prison, he should just delete the Twitter video that got him thrown in prison in the first place.

    I thought Tommy’s lawyers did well. But appeals are inherently uphill battles. Higher courts are reluctant to overturn lower courts unless the trial judge got something very wrong. It’s up to the Court of Appeal to decide whether to allow that fresh evidence in, and whether to give it any weight.

    I’m really starting to worry that it is now impossible for Tommy to get justice in the UK legal system. He has been so demonized, and the government is so obviously pursuing a vendetta, he really has become an “enemy of the state”, as his book is titled.

    I saw a story in the Times of London last week that said on any given day in the UK, police arrest 30 people for social media posts. 30 per day! Frankly, I doubt Russia’s Vladimir Putin arrests that many for social media posts. An entire system has been built to censor ideas and block people from speaking out. Tommy has been the “test case” for that.

    The judges concluded by saying they’ll release their ruling in the days ahead. I’m not optimistic, but you never know — remember, Tommy beat the Met Police in court, and that was the same lawyer.

    He’ll keep fighting for freedom. And the least I can do is keep going to court to live-tweet about it, to ensure that the mainstream media isn’t the only source of news as to what happened.”

    https://www.rebelnews.com/tommy_robinson_reports?utm_campaign=el_tommyupdate_041025&utm_medium=email&utm_source=therebel

    Must dash, mum has cooked bacon and tomatoes.

    1. I’m really starting to worry that it is now impossible for Tommy to get justice in the UK legal system.

      Tommy Robinson is the Solzhenitsyn of the UK

    2. Farage's political career must die because of his failure to condemn the treatment Tommy Robinson has received.

  20. SIR – Readers unable to obtain Bath Oliver biscuits (Letters, April 11) may be interested to know that there is a recipe on the Bath Oliver Preservation Society’s website for baking your own approximation. Let us pray, however, that this splendid product becomes widely available once more.

    Charles Oliver
    Faversham, Kent

    SIR – For those seeking a supply of Bath Olivers, just visit Waitrose.
    It appears they were brought back to life following demand from fans around the country whose Stilton sulked without the perfect partner.

    Andrea Hamilton
    Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire

    SIR – The demise of the chocolate Bath Oliver has been sad for my husband, who loved these treats. The deli in Wells stopped stocking them, and that was that.
    However, the distinctive tins are a perfect for storing ginger nuts, which my donkeys love.

    Rosy Drohan
    Marksbury, Somerset

    SIR – Recent letters have reignited my guilt about the time I deceived my grandson (now aged 40) by telling him that chocolate Bath Olivers were “adult biscuits”, when the truth was that we couldn’t afford them.

    Mary Ann Barton
    Cowes, Isle of Wight

    Look! I am 74 years old, British, and have a more-than-decent knowledge of British food. Yet I have never encountered this biscuit called a "Bath Oliver" that is seeming to elicit such excitement. I cannot remember it being for sale in any of the grocer shops I habitually frequented in my youth.

    What is it? Some kind of cracker? And what sets it apart from other (bog standard) crackers to such an extent as it sends its devotees into paroxysms of delight?

    The only cracker my mother would buy was something curiously known as a "cream cracker" (no cream to be seen anywhere). This taste-free comestible was as exciting as nibbling on a carpet tile!

    1. Pure stupid foodie conversations annoy me so much .

      Bath Oliver biscuits .. never tasted them .

      I have tried Simmers Abernethy Biscuits, now they are quite acceptable , but expensive!

      1. Why does Bath Oliver sound like some kind of a scrubby sponge used during ablutions…
        I'll get me coat.

      2. Calm down, Margaret.

        Eat a nice fatty steak or some fatty lamb or pork chops. They will cure all your ills and make you more tolerant.

    2. I have spent my 76 years without knowingly encountering a Bath Oliver. Two, four, six, eight, it's never too late!

    3. Morning, Grizz.
      As I recall, the cream crackers sole function was to allow you, in the absence of a fork, to place tasty cheese in your mouth without getting your fingers greasy. The lack of flavour wouldn't interfere with the taste of the Stilton, Cheddar, or whatever.

        1. Several French blue cheeses can be compared to Stilton, particularly Bleu d'Auvergne and Fourme d'Ambert. Both are made from cow's milk and have a similar crumbly texture and distinct blue veins. While Bleu d'Auvergne is known for its sharper, spicier flavor, Fourme d'Ambert offers a richer, more robust blue flavor.

          5. It was a frozen one from Poland (they are rare here). I defrosted it in the fridge for 36 hours.

            That's what I intend to do.

          6. We tried Bleu d'Auvergne – it it isn't a patch on Stilton.

            Caroline says we tried Fourme d'Ambert – I don't remember it but she says we didn't like it. We have been recommended to try Bleu de Causses but we haven't yet been able to find it in the shops we use.

        2. I buy superior Colston Bassett stilton (the best) from a deli in Simrishamn; the delightful little seaside town just 20 km from me.

        3. We get some excellent bleus down here, and I think some come from neck of the woods.

    4. I take my cheese on Carrs Melts (cheese flavour) biscuits rather than the cardboard cream crackers although I used to get herby cream crackers but I've not seen them for ages

        2. My favourites for strong-flavoured cheese are Nairn's fine-milled oatcakes. Unlike many oatcakes they aren't padded out with wheat flour. Their marmite and cheese oatcakes are rather good with brie.

        3. Those are my absolute favourites, along with the puffy crumbly flaky ones which I think are called Cornish Wafers

    5. Perhaps you only got them in posh Southern shops. Which is why you haven't heard of them.

    6. They’re making it up, Grizz. Good morning! Jacob’s cream crackers in our house. Dad liked them and wouldn’t eat any other brand.

      1. I like Ryvita, Sue (good morning x:-) the ones with sesame seeds…….blue stilton…..

      2. I like Ryvita, Sue (good morning x:-) the ones with sesame seeds…….blue stilton…..

      3. I like Ryvita, Sue (good morning x:-) the ones with sesame seeds…….blue stilton…..

      4. I'm a Ritz man, Sue, but mum wouldn't buy them. My standard snack for years was Ritz crackers with Primula cream cheese, pickled onion and salted peanuts.

        Mum only bought Dairylea, which tastes like foam rubber to me!

      2. As a Bathonian I have been familiar with Bath Oliver’s for decades. They are perfect for Stilton being large, dry and unsalted. There was a sign on the site of the original invention by Dr Oliver (near Green Street from memory).

        Chocolate Bath Oliver’s are by contrast a seasonal luxury marketed in an expensive tin. The core of the biscuit is a small Bath Oliver but covered in thick chocolate. I believe Huntley & Palmers or its successor marketed these.

    8. They're good for a challenge though – cream cracker racing. The first to eat three cream crackers wins. n.b. they must be dry, no butter

      1. I find them quite slabby and not particularly pleasant to eat. The Chocolate Olivers, however, are divine.

  21. 'I cannot get to the bottom of why it was done in such a quick turnaround, maybe less than an hour – all these police cars and police officers going to an address over a completely false report of a theft.' says Vanessa Brown mother of two was arrested for theft after she confiscated her children's own iPads.

    Clue: Vanessa's ex-husband, a former Surrey police officer, is understood to have made an initial complaint about the row between mother and daughter.

    1. 'Apparently'.. it's very interesting why he resigned from the police force.
      The whole farce brilliantly captures the state of 2025 UK.

  22. 'Apparently'.. it's very interesting why he resigned from the police force.
    The whole farce brilliantly captures the state of 2025 UK.

  23. mum added some fried bread to the bacon and tomatoes. Delicious. I have wasted half an hour discussing the map of Staffordshire with my parents. I had never realised Harborne was part of Staffordshire, but dad knew as he used to play hockey against them (in the Staffordshire league). My parents were surprised that Arley was Staffordshire (south west spur).

    https://maps.nls.uk/view/245955979

    1. Currently, Birmingham, traditionally part of Warwickshire, now contains large slices of Worcestershire and Staffordshire. The district I live in was Worcestershire, which being on the east side is wrongly assumed to have been Warwickshire. A large part of Worcestershire projects northwards into east Birmingham.
      A former police station (now a pub) has the three pears symbol above its door, representing Worcestershire constabulary.

      The border runs along the River Rea next to Edgbaston cricket ground. One batsman once drove a ball out of the ground from Warwickshire into Worcestershire.

      1. Fascinating. I remember a pub called the Bristol Pear, from my Sell6 Oak days…

      2. Fascinating. I remember a pub called the Bristol Pear, from my Sell6 Oak days…

        1. It is exported all the way to the US of A.

          But they are clueless as to how to pronounce it.😉

          1. I had the same on exchange in New Zealand – they always managed to insert a “ch” sound.

  24. Morning All 🙂😊
    I didn't expect sunshine again today. A bonus.

    It's difficult to tell if 'news' mentioned is actually true but apparently a van had been driven into a crowd of people near Somerset House in London and a young lady was killed.
    And also another huge fire had been started on the Yorkshire moors.

    1. Re Somerset House.

      Was this the incident from a few weeks ago, or a new one?

      On Thursday I was thinking of the one a few weeks ago (as I cycled past the area on my Brompton on the way from Temple tube station to work).

      1. District Line from Richmond to Temple? The Temple Church is rather wonderful. Built by the Knights Templar and the home of Magna Carta. It was negotiated there and has one of the original copies on permanent display.

        1. I remember seeing I belive, one of the original Magna Carta's at Lincoln, in the castle museum.

        2. Yes, I went to see it a while back – must have been 2015 (obvs).

          Don’t tell anyone, but there’s a great Restaurant called Pegasus bar and grill just nearby. I go there all the time when I go out in London. Quiet, beautiful surroundings, good value and not well known. Shhhh!

      2. I'm not sure, I saw it on FB earlier, it showed the police condoning the area off.

    2. Re Somerset House.

      Was this the incident from a few weeks ago, or a new one?

      On Thursday I was thinking of the one a few weeks ago (as I cycled past the area on my Brompton on the way from Temple tube station to work).

  25. Re British steel .. and a comparison .

    Do you remember your parents nice cutlery from childhood?

    We were given stainless steel cutlery years ago which became rather unfashionable decades later , but it was made in Sheffield .. the sort of Viners cutlery that had terrible patterns on the tools and felt quite uncomfortable to hold ..

    We still have a few bits and pieces which have survived years of dishwasher use .

    A few years ago , I bought some replacement cutlery from Tesco or similar .. The knives are badly tarnished , ugly spots on the cutting edges , and spoons that look terrible .

    I assume they were made in China , as everything is these days .

    I also have a set of steel carvers, Moh brought them back from Denmark when he and his flight were on exercise probably 50 years ago , the Danish steel is still as good as new .

    Funny present to bring back for me , but hey ho , they have survived .

    1. We bought a cutlery set, Viner's IIRC, from the Ipswich Debenham's department store back in the early '70s. I'm still using the cutlery but the box disintegrated some years ago. No tarnishing or other blemishes.

      2. I have a lovely canteen of Viner's cutlery that I bought at Jarrold's in Norwich back in 1999. It contained eight pieces each of: table knives, dessert knives, table forks, dessert forks, dessert spoons, tea spoons and soup spoons, but only two table spoons.

        I ordered an extra four table spoons since two is neither use nor ornament.

          2. AI answer…Fish knives are used to facilitate the eating and serving of fish, offering a more precise and elegant way to enjoy seafood. They are specifically designed with a curved, sharp edge to slide between the fish's skin and flesh, aiding in lifting the fish to a fork and removing small bones. Their broad blade helps lift fish in one piece and can also be used to scrape up or spread sauce.

            So there !

          5. John Betjeman was very funny.

            I don't believe in the concept of the 'inverted snob'. I think it is a throwaway term invented by real snobs to take the attention away from them.

          11. Why-aye, man woman.

            Me mam had some and I found using them as useful as eating soup with a poker!

          13. Good afternoon, Grizzly. Your phrase "as useful as eating soup with a poker!" had me in stitches of laughter. Lol.

          14. The fish knife, also known as a fish eater or fish-eating knife, emerged in the early 19th century, particularly during the Victorian era. It was developed as a specific utensil for consuming fish, often made of silver to avoid reacting with acidic sauces and potentially tainting the flavor. Before the fish knife, fish was typically eaten with two forks or a fork and bread.

          15. I know. I have no trouble eating fish (of any kind) with a standard table knife and fork.

    3. There is a company in the US called Cutco, which makes cutlery, kitchen and hunting knives, etc. Plus they make the Ka-Bar knifes used by hunters and the military. All made in the US, and with a life time guaranty. We made that move a couple years back replacing a German set – mostly Henkel but with some Wustof thrown in. The big difference is that the Cutco knives retain their edge much better than the German stuff. My favourite is their "boning knife", incredibly sharp and flexible and allows ultra thin slices of almost anything to be cut.

      Only problem is that their stuff is pricey.

    4. Our best knife when I was growing up was made in Duisburg. Where it came from I have no idea.

      1. I mean I don’t know how my parents got hold of it. It came from Duisburg obviously.

  26. Good Morning!

    Should we on the Right support Reform, after all the accusations, sniping and what many believe to be bitter betrayal? Please read Should We Continue To Support Reform and let us know.

    We are nearing the end of Nanumaga’s draft satire on the Brexit Referendum, Brexit Redux . It’s very funny and we are asking you to read it and leave comments, advice or constructive criticism to help him finalise it. He’s off to the Great South Seas next week, for a month, so help him out with his book.

    Energy watch 08.00: Demand: 26.75 GW. Total UK Production: 19.73 GW from: Hydrocarbons 19.4%; Wind 16.3%; Imports 27.1%; Biomass 10.6%; Nuclear 16.4%. Solar: 7%.

    We are import almost 30% of our electricity, when our own gas-fired power stations, which could supply all of that, remain on standby.

    2. Although I understand the traditional references, I'm not a fan of right or left.
      I believe in common sense and supporting the working and general taxpaying public. And not encouraging people from other countries to arrive demanding changes that associate to the place's around the world that have assumingly left because they no longer felt comfortable. But insist on changing our culture to suit their strange beliefs.
      And are now using over bearing and violence to gain government favours.
      For reasons that are never explained we have had three government's in succession that appear to hate the British people and are bringing our long established culture and social structure to its knees.
      Common sense no longer prevails or even seems to exist.

      1. The strangest and most irrational belief has been taught to the third worlders by deluded Europeans. The idea that bad culture is a product of poverty. We bring them here expecting that we can maintain prosperity while destroying the culture that generated it and finance their bad culture without reducing our living standards. It can’t be done.

        1. And we place untold restraints on our own culture whereas those of strangers are deified. Their bad practices are never challenged so they automatically think they are the right culture over ours.

        2. The problem also is they are too lazy to even try to bring their own cultures up to the 21st century. Then after arrival in a 21st century culture try to bring it to the level they have left behind. Unfortunately with the help of our stupid ignorant destructive political classes.

  27. We Have a complete canteen of cutlery stored away that was given to my parents for a wedding present. it's in excellent condition still in its wooden and green baise box.
    It must be around ninety years old.

    1. Same as us, Eddy! But we use ours quite often! In fact (don’t tell anyone) I put the stuff we’d used at Christmas/New Year away last week!

    2. I have a canteen of kings pattern silver. It doesn't come out very often. All that polishing !

      1. I can't remember using it.
        We've also got some silver ware. A tray, silver plated tea pot milk jug and another open pot for a strainer to sit on.

      2. We know!

        4 miles up the road from us , and locals like us could buy a seasonal parking pass for £30 when we moved here 25 years ago , now one has to pay over £100+ . We don't bother . The ice creams cost alot as well , over £3.50 .

        Considering the Lulworth estate gains money from film producers especially the Bollywood film makers .. and others , and the MOD !!

        We are all furious .. livid, large chunks of our coast are now inaccessible to ordinary mortals , even Kimmeridge charges a lot .

        https://lulworth.com/

      3. There is a very large paddling pool (the Pond) close to my parents and it’s parking Hellín the summer. My parents came home one day to find diversity eating a picnic in their front garden

      4. There is a very large paddling pool (the Pond) close to my parents and it’s parking Hellín the summer. My parents came home one day to find diversity eating a picnic in their front garden

  29. Glides in on another enchanting spring day . Good morning.

  30. I caught a clip on the BBC News last night about the Bin Strike in Birmingham. The most interesting part was the interviewing of two Pakistanis taxi drivers. Is this England?” They asked. “More like the Third World.” The irony.

      2. I watched a crime documentary about a drive-by shooting in some town, I don't remember which, where a young Lebanese girl was accidentally killed. The shooting was part of a feud between two Yemeni families.
        The grieving mother and brother said they had to leave Lebanon because they were not safe (unspecified) there and came to Britain because they thought it was a safe country.

        "It WAS a safe country until all those from your and neighbouring countries arrived", I shouted at Stevie (the tevie)

      1. Can't reply to you on the spelling mistake where I made that error because that is now locked. But thank you, yes it was a mistake. Unfortunately, as my eyes deteriorate these sort of mistakes are increasing but usually I catch them.

  31. Rumours are Tommy Robinson will be released next month.. providing he removes 'links' to his documentary about er.. reality.

    I guess he got what he was looking for.. worldwide confirmation that British courts deserve nothing but contempt.

    1. Once it's out there it stays out there. He should remove the links for his own health.

      1. I'm originally from that neck of the woods, Joseph. I read TR's piece when speaking with a pupil there. Glad I left and moved north, but really …no escape, not for long.

        1. I’ve become familiar with this area over the past nearly 25 years. Quite like it, really.

          1. Yorkshire – God’s own county 🙂 Some promote Independence, I couldn’t possibly comment…..

      1. Back in London now. The lad is on his way back home from Uni today. Hubby went to Cornwall to see to the boat. I was always planning on being here for the lad so turned down a girls’ night out to be in (not that the lad cares, but we feel we shouldn’t just be out all the time when they are back). So I got back to find hubby also on. His way back from Cornwall. Well, it’s not too late to go outwith the girls, soI’m out wine-tasting now tonight.

  34. Amazing how much stuff one has in even a small greenhouse – once you start to empty it!

  35. Amazing how much stuff one has in even a small greenhouse – once you start to empty it!

  36. Bollywood film makers in the area are probably the reason you have so many tinted visitors.

    2. Ach, mainly a Northern problem…who cares about them (me for one, and most folks I know).

      1. There are over a dozen along one road down here. A little village whose hairdresser went under has one directly opposite. Never any customers in there, but a regular stream of pakistani moped deliveries

  38. From Coffee House the Spectator

    12 Apr 2025

    Spectator Life
    Charles Walford
    Forget Adolescence: this is the Netflix drama teenage boys should watch
    The Clubhouse: A Year with the Red Sox is about much more than baseball
    12 April 2025, 5:00am
    From Spectator Life

    Triston Casas in The Clubhouse: A Year with the Red Sox [Netflix]

    Boris Johnson didn’t like Adolescence. In his Daily Mail column last week he acknowledged the fine acting of the most talked-about television programme of the year, but still concluded that it was ‘tosh’. The problem, he felt, was that it wasn’t based on a real-life crime, which somehow lessens its worth as a lesson for our times in the eyes of the former Prime Minister.

    I’m not sure his logic fully holds up to scrutiny (nor, for that matter, does Keir Starmer’s plan to show Adolescence in schools). But if it is real-life drama that Boris wants then Netflix, with impeccable timing, this week released another one of those sports documentaries at which they have become rather adept.

    The latest offering is The Clubhouse: A Year with the Red Sox, a warts-and-all look at the highs and lows – psychological as well as sporting – of the 2024 Boston Red Sox. It is no sepia-tinted reminiscence of glory, like The Last Dance about the NBA’s all-conquering Chicago Bulls side of the 1990s, or even quite in the same vein as those fly-on-the-wall series Drive to Survive and Full Swing, which focus on the individual pursuits of glory that are Formula One and the PGA Tour.

    Indeed the fascination here is not about how successful the team is (not hugely), but how well it does compared with the low, low expectations of the locals, which are made clear in the first five minutes of episode one.

    ‘Get me a better fucking Boston team,’ one, more than slightly inebriated, fan tells the camera early on. (Loyal supporters turning angry and disenchanted? Maybe this would be too close to home for Mr Johnson.) ‘They’re a weak group. They just don’t have it,’ opines one radio pundit.

    And straight away we know that these men are judged on more than their ability; their mentality, in the day-in, day-out slog of the major leagues, will come under constant scrutiny. But in baseball one shapes the other perhaps more than in any other sport, as we learn through the eight episodes.

    ‘You have to have a short memory to be good in this game because it is so tough it will eat you alive if you don’t let things go,’ says Triston Casas, the 24-year-old first baseman, whose coping mechanisms include yoga on the outfield, painting his nails and talking to himself. A lot.

    Jarren Duran, a 27-year-old outfielder, keeps his emotions in check by writing in his journal every night. We learn how Duran was subjected to relentless opprobrium, from Red Sox fans and the Boston media, as he struggled to make the step up to Major League Baseball, but has emerged as one of the best players on his team – and in the whole league.

    Which makes the admission of his suicide attempt even more startling. ‘I got to the point where I was sitting in my room, I had my rifle and I had a bullet, and I pulled the trigger and the gun clicked, but nothing happened,’ Duran says. ‘To this day, I think God just didn’t let me take my own life because I seriously don’t know why it didn’t go off.’

    What we see are men at the pinnacle of their sport who are not afraid to be different, who refuse to be defined by locker room notions of ‘traditional masculinity’

    The man tasked with getting such a disparate group of personalities pulling in the same direction is Alex Cora, the manager – who comes with his own professional demons by way of a 2020 season-long ban for his role in the Houston Astros cheating scandal. The extent of the sporting challenges involved in moulding a winning side are made clear too: injuries to key players, for example, or deciding how long to let struggling players stay in the firing line. But what we also see from him is tactical acumen, and the series focuses on certain wins throughout the season specifically achieved by some tendencies he has noticed in the opposition.

    But there are so many games (a season lasts 162 games across 185 days) that the action necessarily becomes only a small part of the series. Players can be on the road for almost three months a year. The message of how the mental side of the game is just as crucial as the physical cannot be overstated.

    As Cora explains when it comes to dealing with players day in, day out: ‘This is not “Show up at the weekend and perform”. This is every day, over and over and over and over again. It’s not always about your swing or your defence or your base-running, it’s about “How are you feeling?”, “What have you got tonight?”, “How’s the family doing?”.’

    Or as Sean McAdam, a journalist with MassLive, puts it: ‘This is a draining game. It demands a lot of you mentally, just having the physical tools, talents and abilities isn’t enough.’

    Alex Cora and Jarren Duran in The Clubhouse: A Year with the Red Sox [Netflix]
    So yes, this is a baseball documentary, and we see its capacity for drama; and we see the preparation that goes into one-on-one match-ups in this most individual of team sports. We go inside Fenway Park’s famed ‘Green Monster’ (the intimidating 37ft-high left-field wall); and we see what it means to the fans to beat the Yankees.

    But what we really see are men at the pinnacle of their sport who are not afraid to be different, who refuse to be defined by outside expectations or any notions of the sporting locker rooms’ ‘traditional masculinity’: one man embracing his spirituality and painting his nails; another talking openly and frequently about his demons, and a crippling fear of failure that almost destroyed him.

    If Keir Starmer really wants schoolboys across the UK to study a Netflix drama, he could do worse than suggest they watch this.

    Written by
    Charles Walford
    Charles Walford is a journalist and sports writer focusing on American sport.

  39. Parliament recalled from recess. First time in 43 yrs. Betcha the ideologues & zealots expenses will be hammered this weekend.

    Dependent on others for coal to make steel even though UK has 100 years supply. LOL
    Dependent on others for iron ore to make steel. LOL
    Dependent on others for steel first time since Sir Henry Bessemer. LOL
    Next up.. Dependent on others for food. LOL
    Barry Docks , UKs largest coal exporting docks being turned into marina-style living. LOL
    Steelworkers have drilled the final hole in the last remaining blast furnace in Port Talbot. LOL

    Is this Peak Ideologues & Zealots?
    Nah, The Revolutionaries are just getting started.

    2. All put in line by a Conservative government. It seems to me that since the loss of Empire our leaders are desperate to be seen as 'leaders' on the world stage. Wars, nut zero, famine, we just have to be there to prove our importance. It is unfortunate that 2TK actually looks like a puffed up turkey, but he is an epitome of the UK being taken as the world's village idiot.

      1. Absolutely right. Posted by me elsewhere last October:

        " But all I can say, is wherever I have been in the world, it is very clear quite how powerful the BBC is"

        I've worked in Africa, the Middle East and Asia during my years in the gas and oil industry.
        I've met many people who follow the English Premier League – some even support English teams enthusiastically.
        I have never heard anyone say "Oh, you're so lucky to have the BBC".

        What is this obsession with "soft power"? We are no longer an empire, we are no longer a major power – let's get used to it.

        There is almost some neo-colonial desire to tell the natives what is good for them.

        This always comes from the Left who would be horrified at the old empire, butstill have this inherent desire that somehow, they must "lead" the little people on the path to righteousness.

        Real power costs – soft power is not so costly but there is still an underlying imperialist mentality.

        Colonialism by another name.

        1. I often have to explain to BBC people that when buying a licence for use of externally sourced materials, it’s customary for the seller (as owner of the material) to set the terms of sale and not the buyer. They seriously expect it to be the other way around and I have to remind the wokest of the woke that we no longer have an empire.

        2. Apologies world, but you're on your own. I don't see why I should care about Botswana, Canada or France. You've your own governments. Sort yourselves out. We've enough problems.

        3. For all of the UK’s problems, I am unable to think of any other country that doesn’t have serious drawbacks at least as bad as ours and we still have much to be proud of.

          The UK is one of only 5 Permanent Members of the UN Security Council; it has the sixth largest economy and the sixth largest Defence budget in the World; English is the international language of marine and air navigation; the UK is regularly ranked behind only the USA and China in Soft Power; it has world class intelligence agencies with global reach; the BBC is recognised the world over (other than in the UK!) for comprehensive and objective reporting; most Formula 1 racing teams are based in the UK because of our hi-tech engineering prowess; and London is an international financial centre second to none.

          UK has provided the world with more inventions than any other, more Nobel prize winners than any nation except the USA, is ranked by Blomberg as the most innovative in the world, came 2nd in the London Olympics (and 3rd in the one before and 4th in the one before), invented most sports worth playing, has the world’s best football league, is one of the ten most generous providers of overseas aid, is home to 3 of the world’s 10 best universities, continues to lead the world in popular music, has more Oscar winners than any nation bar the USA, has the world’s most accessible health system, invented the ‘world language’, is home to the world’s 6th largest immigrant community, has one of the world’s largest and most widespread diasporas and even had (sadly until recently) arguably the world’s most recognisable Head of State.

      2. I agree entirely. Starmer is fixated on Ukraine. It is as though Ukraine is his comfort zone whereas his own country is falling apart at the seams largely as a result of his backward and incompetent policies.

        The same syndrome is evident in France where Macron pretends to Napoleonic attributes and in the UK where Starmer pretends to Churchillian virtue. Both Macron and Starmer are midgets on the ‘world stage’ and not even stage hands.

        We need rid of these deeply incompetent and dislikeable fools.

    5. It is a catastrophic level of deceit to pretend they're (as a collective of rats) not directly responsible.

  40. Parliament recalled from recess. First time in 43 yrs. Betcha the ideologues & zealots expenses will be hammered this weekend.

    Dependent on others for coal to make steel even though UK has 100 years supply. LOL
    Dependent on others for iron ore to make steel. LOL
    Dependent on others for steel first time since Sir Henry Bessemer. LOL
    Next up.. Dependent on others for food. LOL
    Barry Docks , UKs largest coal exporting docks being turned into marina-style living. LOL
    Steelworkers have drilled the final hole in the last remaining blast furnace in Port Talbot. LOL

    Is this Peak Ideologues & Zealots?
    Nah, The Revolutionaries are just getting started.

  41. Afternoon, all, from the races. Lovely day for once (here because it’s usually very chilly).
    I agree merit is the prime consideration for police work, but suitability is a factor, too.

  42. Good afternoon all.
    Well, what a lovely morning. Cool, rather the cold after a night spent in woodland on top of Windmill Hill just outside Ludgershall.
    Called in to see Wilton Windmill and Crofton Beam Engines before ending up here in Watchfield en route to Deddington for a performance by the Chipping Norton Choral Society of the St. John Passion.
    I have a load of photos to upload and am wondering whether I should be doing a write up of my trips!

    1. North and West Oxon: my patch up to my student days (which lasted a bit longer than many folks!). Wonderful old red ironstone villages and pubs, Hook Norton ales and glorious countryside.

      Rich w*****s from London have bought and spoiled much of it…

      1. As I found out from the St. John’s Passion performance last night, The Coward Cameron and his ilk do not live in Chipping Norton its self, but infest the surrounding villages and the local people from the town detest the way the town is associated with them.

        1. I wasn’t thinking only of Cameron, Clarkson and the Beckhams but well-off middle-class types who’ve hoovered up the housing.

  43. Off to get on with cleaning the greenhouse. Back later. For anyone interested, Rdio 3 is relaying Live from the Met at 6 pm – The Marriage of Figaro.

  44. Afternoon, all!

    I finally managed to give my friend the portrait I'd painted of her, and she was thrilled! Made all the teeth-gnashing (aaaargh; I mentioned teeth!) and tearing-out-of-hair worthwhile. 🙂

    2. I drew the Warqueen in charcoal once when we had met. I don't think she liked it that much although her chums said it was a very close likeness.

  45. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/37a260730e29a2389381481191cbf08438909a9656cee9f5df59bc3572450cd6.jpg https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/8352addc0dcaf5ed90c44acb541b43120274f497623bc6ed06295af9942452f2.jpg https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/a5e035484eb6feab90ebf26300f3a3b74dfc70c14fa0acadb1adea075d212b02.jpg Apropos my post, yesterday, on helicopter tragedies, here are some photos taken back in 2002 a few months before the pictured helicopter [a Sikorsky S-76A+ G-BJVX] crashed in the North Sea killing all on board.

    In the top photo I am pictured far right (or extreme-Right, if you prefer) with an assorted team from screening, baggage-handling and passenger services.

    Far right in the second photo is Mike, the manager from Shell UK who organised the trip. We are all wearing necessary helicopter survival kit.

    The third and fourth photos show our approach to the Sole Pit Clipper gas platform.

    In the bottom photo I am on the right and the huge chap next to me is 'Pud' from baggage-handling, a gentle giant if ever there were one. We had changed into standard regulation platform workwear.

    1. Wearing the overall and lid like a professional, Grizz!
      My first trip offshore Southern North Sea was 1981 or so – 2 choppers crashed that week.
      Mid-1990s I was offshore a few times, mostly for installation of new platforms (Mobil Beryl A Riser Tower, Phillips Judy, Conoco Britannia), where travel was by chopper.
      Have also been offshore was warranty surveyor for pipeline installations.
      Now I don't – not only not medically fit, but seen that, done that, got the Tee-shirt.

        1. When I did it, I was also a sport diver, so it was no problem.
          Now, well… 🙁

    2. I don’t have any photos of me in an immersion suit and bone dome when I flew in the Wessex.

    3. The huge chap, I hope you didn't let him have a window seat (you'd have had to wait for him to squeeze through the window if you'd ditched).

    2. Is he delusional or just a serial liar? The reason industry is on it's knees is because, in 2008 one Miliband, Ed forced the climate change act through. That was the death kneel for heavy industry. Since then it's become more expensive, less efficient and harder to make things in this country. Add in Labour's hideous taxes and this lying scrote still lies.

      Everything that they could do wrong, Labour have – deliberately, spitefully. To pretend they've now.. bah, I give up, Punch them all in the face until they stop getting up.

    4. I've just been chatting with our neighbour over the garden fence. And not for the first time we have pulled millipedes nonsensical beliefs to pieces. His unfathomable idealistic martyrdom of our country, its lifestyle and traditions, makes no sense at all. While the rest of his colleagues are filling the country with illegal invaders which obviously increase energy consumption and waste management. And jow they are planning on increasing the sizes and therfore passenger capacity of at least two of our major airports.
      I think we all believe that he is mad.

    5. I've just been chatting with our neighbour over the garden fence. And not for the first time we have pulled millipedes nonsensical beliefs to pieces. His unfathomable idealistic martyrdom of our country, its lifestyle and traditions, makes no sense at all. While the rest of his colleagues are filling the country with illegal invaders which obviously increase energy consumption and waste management. And jow they are planning on increasing the sizes and therfore passenger capacity of at least two of our major airports.
      I think we all believe that he is mad.

    7. But for you and your fellow numpties, British Steel would not be in such dire straits.
      Ineffable plonker.

      1. Bummer. 🙁
        It's even warm here at +15C. Shirtsleeve order. Had a patrol around the barn, planning external painint and cherrypicker access, also inside for tidying stuff away. But, the land is desperate for rain. All that grass that dried out over winter (think freeze-dry) is all beige and just waiting to burn the world down – so, no barbecues.

      2. Bummer. 🙁
        It's even warm here at +15C. Shirtsleeve order. Had a patrol around the barn, planning external painint and cherrypicker access, also inside for tidying stuff away. But, the land is desperate for rain. All that grass that dried out over winter (think freeze-dry) is all beige and just waiting to burn the world down – so, no barbecues.

      1. The building is a stabbur – store house. Built on pillars so you get a) fresh air circulation all round, and b)some resistance to rats.
        This one is about 250 years old, and also has small beds for seasonal workers, two floors, and all kinds of domestic junk that might be worth something sometime.

        1. It looks beautiful, Oberst. Stupid Q, what's the insulation like? How do you heat it? How do you cool it?

          1. No heating or cooling. In the past, there'd be a wood burning stove, and unless you filled in the gaps between the tree-trunk walls, it'd be awfully draughty and cold.
            But over winter, it would be your store-house, so cold would be good. Cooling in Norway isn't normally needed, it's quite cold enough anyhow!
            The seasonal workers who would stay there would have gone home anyway, after the harvest, so little need for heating.
            It has a great atmosphere. Lovely that it's in the family, part of Firstborn's smallholding.
            The farmhouse isn't so dramatic externally, because the log cabin look is covered by vertical planks, but the house is older than the USA… I'll post a view from inside the "spare" bedroom below.

          2. Much obliged, I'm always interested in how buildings function as there's always more to learn about improving our own.

          4. Were your sons born in Norway? Which is their first language, English or Norwegian? I asked an Italian friend if she still translates in her head and she said no, she’s been here so long that she thinks in English.

          5. One English-born, one Norwegian-born (Second Son).
            Both bilingual, with a slight bias towards Norwegian.

      2. The building is a stabbur – store house. Built on pillars so you get a) fresh air circulation all round, and b)some resistance to rats.
        This one is about 250 years old, and also has small beds for seasonal workers, two floors, and all kinds of domestic junk that might be worth something sometime.

        1. Not just you. My hands are big as well (I can encircle a pint glass with some effort) and modern telephones are just tiny things.

      1. Nope. It’s heavy all over – solid, dry tree-trunks are the main ingredient. In any case, it’s been there over 300 years.

  49. I am finding part of the problem with losing weight is that you end up with very 'floppy' bits. Around your middle what used to be well, stuffed is not any more and flops about a bit.

    Apologies for those having tea. I know losing is good for me medically and I can live with my pants being looser but it's still a bit … hand me some spanx.

      1. I do a fair amount of core and stretching classes – pilates and what not. As the Warqueen takes the yoga class I used to go to (when there was another instructor) I avoid that one, else she never has any space solely hers.

      2. I do a fair amount of core and stretching classes – pilates and what not. As the Warqueen takes the yoga class I used to go to (when there was another instructor) I avoid that one, else she never has any space solely hers.

    3. Same here having lost over 15 kilos following a blocked bile duct. Am about to go for a ‘wobble’ across a field near here.

      Or as somebody remarked that the Maharishi does not ‘wobble’ or ‘waddle’ but he ‘glides’.

      1. My father and his father before him wore braces. I haven't worn them since I was about 10 – and that was a very long time ago.

        p.s. here they are called suspenders.

          1. No, those are called braces. Getting suspenders on one's teeth would lead to another whole area of speculation…

          4. No, those are called braces. Getting suspenders on one's teeth would lead to another whole area of speculation…

        3. The next question of course is what do they use to hold up their stockings if suspenders are holding up their trousers?

        4. The next question of course is what do they use to hold up their stockings if suspenders are holding up their trousers?

        5. When Harold Wilson's deputy, George Brown, was invited to attend a White House ball he trawled through Washington DC's gents' outfitters looking for a pair of braces for his trousers to no avail.

          It was only when he was told that if he had asked for 'suspenders' for his 'pants' then he would have been successful.

        6. I thought I had replied earlier but …..they are not known as suspenders and never have been in the UK. 😏

      2. My hips are ok-ish as I'm a sort of triangle shape. Problem is I'm a triangle with a hemisphere at the top.

      3. My hips are ok-ish as I'm a sort of triangle shape. Problem is I'm a triangle with a hemisphere at the top.

    5. I have a floppy bit below the middle. Advancing years, not weight loss, is the likely culprit.

  50. Weather is closing in , no sunshine , cloud cover , can feel a drop in temperature .

    Moh following Southampton playing Aston Villa .. he is very tense , not saying very much.

      1. Unless it’s football. My horse finished third but he ran well, giving weight all round. I’m happy.

  51. I must have skipped this letter ..

    Sleepwear and scandal

    SIR – One evening during the summer of 1963, I was lounging in an armchair in the sitting-room of my parents’ fishing lodge in Sutherland. I was wearing an M&S pink and white nylon nightie and negligee (Letters, April 10).

    At 10 o’clock, who should walk through the door but the recently deposed John Profumo. To escape the South, he and his family were holidaying in a nearby “big hoose”. Profumo had come to report to on his day’s fishing, which my father had granted him.

    My mother later told me that my father had been in a panic as to “what might happen”. In the event, however, a drink was enjoyed and the guest left.

    Cicely McCulloch
    Penicuik, Midlothian

    Of course she knew who was expected to call, I mean lounging on an armchair in M&S skimpy frillies , I wonder whether she sprayed herself with a bit of perfume at the same time , and smoothed her hair .

    Just wondering whether that accidental incident was a precursor to John Profumo's desires other than fishing ?

    What on earth did she mean by “what might happen”.

    Curiouser and curiouser says I ..

    1. I take it Mr Blockley is not an MP. He can't be. He's talking sense.

      Bluntly, net zero is ruining us. It is destroying this country. That, after all, was the point of it.

        1. Remember though, it was May who forced it on us. The entire uniparty bellieve in it because it offered a huge number of pointless non jobs after office, a big wodge of cash and made the state bigger and them more important.

    2. I take it Mr Blockley is not an MP. He can't be. He's talking sense.

      Bluntly, net zero is ruining us. It is destroying this country. That, after all, was the point of it.

  55. Well, that's the greenhouse disinfected, washed and polished. Tiry old job – awkward bending and craning – getting into the nooks and crannies one avoids for the rest of the year.

    Will now change out of my gardening clothes and relax.

    I don't imagine I have missed any earth-shattering news.

  56. Well, that's the greenhouse disinfected, washed and polished. Tiry old job – awkward bending and craning – getting into the nooks and crannies one avoids for the rest of the year.

    Will now change out of my gardening clothes and relax.

    I don't imagine I have missed any earth-shattering news.

  57. Wordle No. 1,393 2/6

    🟨🟨⬜🟨🟩
    🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

    Wordle 12 Apr 2025

    An eagle comber?

    1. Just a smaller birdie

      Wordle 1,393 3/6

      🟨⬜⬜🟨🟩
      ⬜⬜⬜⬜🟨
      🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

    2. Blimey, well done. Birdie here.

      Wordle 1,393 3/6

      ⬜🟨⬜🟩🟩
      ⬜⬜🟩🟩🟩
      🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

    3. Four and nearly five. There were two good options left and I was favouring the wrong one.

      Wordle 1,393 4/6

      ⬜⬜⬜🟨🟨
      ⬜🟨🟨⬜🟩
      ⬜🟩🟩🟩🟩
      🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

    4. Good stuff Rene! I had the start I like least – three yellows – and abandoned my plan to use a second starter word (would have led to birdie) to mess around with the three letters I already had….. bogey!!

      Wordle 1,393 5/6

      ⬜⬜🟨🟨🟨
      🟨⬜⬜🟨🟩
      ⬜⬜🟩🟩🟩
      ⬜⬜🟩🟩🟩
      🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

  58. Zimbabwe starts compensating white farmers 25 years after land seizures. 12 April 2025.

    Mugabe’s government seized more than 4,000 mostly white-owned farms, often violently, from about the year 2000 to redistribute to black people in what it claimed was restitution for the dispossession of British colonial rule.

    However, Mugabe and his cronies took nearly 40% of the 14m hectares (about 35m acres) confiscated for themselves, according to a 2010 investigation by a local news outlet, ZimOnline. Agricultural production, which had accounted for 40% of exports, plunged and the economy collapsed, with hyperinflation reaching a staggering 500bn% in 2008.

    What enraged me about this, and still does, is that we all knew this would happen. That is everyone except those in Harold Wilson’s government.

    https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/apr/11/zimbabwe-starts-compensating-white-farmers-25-years-after-land-seizures

    1. Well yes, because unlike the white colonisers, the black colonisers were useless buggers. Waycist! But true nonetheless.

    2. I was on a trip from JHB through Rhodesia via Bulawayo to Zambia and back via Salisbury when Wilson was aboard HMS Tiger demanding Ian Smith handed over the tidy well run self-sufficient country to native people. Although all the infrastructure had been installed by the then current government. Mugabe murdered 20 thousand people because he realised they were never going to vote for him.
      He should have been arrested and hung. He also allowed China to take over the mining. Wilson had no right at all to do what he did. Another british prime minister who is a wrecker of people's lives.

      1. Yes they betrayed the white Rhodesians just as they are now selling out the Native Brits. It must be something in the Socialist DNA.

    4. About 10 years ago, I heard Tony Benn speak at our local town hall. Most of the questions were fairly sycophantic but towards the end, a questioner asked him why he was so supportive of Mugabe. “Of course”, he responded, “we didn’t know what he was like then” – he forgot that plenty of people warned him of the dangers of Mugabe and his bunch of thugs. From Benn, not a word of apology and not a trace of regret – just smugness and arrogance.

  59. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/481af4a14b0442392b842aaf81e4e2edf7917ab11246d9f2aea85d56c74fecd7.png
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/52c44df6004c746099851cb9c17c241d001fef93231456c14e4482262b2ef370.png

    Beebsplaining
    6h
    Can I just check who makes the steel for the items being banned on amazon🤔
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/de1dd84467e4345632ce300562aa1e9e3f1fd9a83d0f7249d0f644ad46c71ddc.png
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/1dcc4bddffae778a1d146f83203fe544a621dbc791d826b40d42ae1c887e5b59.png
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/14ff14451d3a3ae40c023af5e75b916a699ba57ad9496145bbdde5b7b37dbde3.png

  60. The Government could force British Steel’s Chinese owners to sell the business for as little as 1p, Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds has declared.

    However, Lord Richard Hermer KC, the Attorney General has told ministers and their legal advisers that, unless we reach a deal with The Chinese Communist Party & Jingye Group, we would lose a future case brought against us and have to give up the British Isles and outlying islands to comply.

    1. Sir Keir Starmer added later he was also "disappointed" with the Committee of the Environment Protection Agency's refusal to change guidance and that "all options are on the table" over how the government might respond.

    2. Sir Keir Starmer added later he was also "disappointed" with the Committee of the Environment Protection Agency's refusal to change guidance and that "all options are on the table" over how the government might respond.

      1. I guess he still has to reach agreement with China about how much he's going to pay them to take the British Isles off his hands.

    4. Hmm – Reynolds and Hermer – would I believe anything those two say, even if they swore on a stack of bibles? Er, No.

  61. The Government could force British Steel’s Chinese owners to sell the business for as little as 1p, Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds has declared.

    However, Lord Richard Hermer KC, the Attorney General has told ministers and their legal advisers that, unless we reach a deal with The Chinese Communist Party & Jingye Group, we would lose a future case brought against us and have to give up the British Isles and outlying islands to comply.

  62. LOL of the day..

    Audio clip reveals French Navy requesting return of Life Jackets after picking up passengers.. despite £476 million being paid to "stop" invasion between 2023/24 and 2025/26, under a three-year deal.

  63. 12 April 2025, 17:24 BST
    Updated 2 minutes ago
    Three prison officers have been attacked by Hashem Abedi, the brother of the Manchester Arena bomber, a source has told the BBC.

    The officers sustained life-threatening injuries on Saturday including burns, scalds and stab wounds in the attack at HMP Frankland in County Durham, the Prison Officers' Association said.

    Abedi threw hot cooking oil over the officers and used "home made weapons" to stab them, the organisation alleged.

    The Prison Service confirmed three officers have been treated in hospital after an attack by a prisoner, adding police were investigating.

    This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh the page for the fullest version.

    You can receive Breaking News on a smartphone or tablet

  64. Manchester Arena terrorist attacks three prison officers
    Hashem Abedi ‘threw hot cooking oil then started stabbing with makeshift weapons’
    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/04/12/three-prison-officers-hospitalised-after-knife-attack/

    Breaking story.

    This terrorist is serving a life sentence for murder.

    Should this monster :
    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/da02096a706a0eb18b378b69445da0a7e788815cffcef6af34b168ee2fead1fc.jpg

    be housed, fed, and kept alive at the taxpayers' expense?

      1. If we aren't going to kill these evil creatures then weld their cell door closed and throw soup through once a day – make them lick it off the floor and drink rain water.

        Let's be clear: these scum kill people because their fictional sky man tells them to – or, they're just evil, bitter, revolting people who just want to kill others because it makes them hard.

        We must stop pandering and start beating them to death.

        1. It has a lot to do with them having a very low IQ. At 85 or below, they’re incapable of empathy.

          1. I suspect it may also have something to do with the fact that their ideology tells them that the infidel is "lower than cattle" and is there to be abused.

    6. The good thing is that he has nothing to lose. So, whatever happens to him, he's free to repeat his little "retaliation" again.

      One can only hope that while restraining him prior to the arrival of the boys in blue (reluctantly abandoning a "hurty words" incident} the prison staff managed to break both his arms and legs.

    7. I thought working in prison kitchens was supposed to be a privilege. Why has he been given any privileges after massacring little girls?

    8. I thought working in prison kitchens was supposed to be a privilege. Why has he been given any privileges after massacring little girls?

  65. That's me for today. The promised "heat wave" never materialised. A pleasant day but far form the 20ºC forecast.

    Just had to pacify elderly neighbour. On holiday in Whitby, went to Thirsk station to meet wife arriving by train. In carpark, "paypoint" said one had either to book and pay in advance (big larf) or "download the app". Robert doesn't have a smart phone. No number to ring. No one in the station. Local bloke suggested he leave and park in pub opposite and have a beer while he waits. Did that. Gets home a week later to find he has incurred a penalty of £100. I explained to him how to appeal. I suspect, these days, not having a smart phone would not be an acceptable excuse.

    Bastard world we try to live in.

    Have a spiffing evening (remember the Marriage of Figaro is on Radio 3 shortly).

    A demain.

    EDIT: I LIED – it is the Magic Flute.

      1. Thanks, Our Susan. Funny thing: I read it in the listings as Figaro. Checked online with the Met – yes, live Figaro this very afternoon.

        Curses – now the beeboids seem only to do recordings from the Met – no more "lve" – which used to be such a thrill.

    4. That's appalling, especially if no one is present. The language is also atrocious and why, why do you have to use their 'app'? Why can you not just use a debit card?

      Oh. Because you can cancel that transaction – as you should as the train station was built with public money, so the car park is public property. We're being charged to park on our own property.

    5. Whichever it was, I didn't listen and would have been highly unlikely to do so.

    1. "… All people are good with the exception of fascists." directly translates as, "All people are good with the exception of Socialists."

      Trouble is, Socialists are too fucking stupid to comprehend that salient and eminently provable fact.

      1. The muslim has no place here. It's long past time that we stopped jailing and just hanged them.

        1. Socialists are morons. They ignore they can only exist because of the luxury of time that capitalism has bought them. Stupid people.

  68. The closure of Grangemouth oil refinery in Scotland is "not comparable" to the situation at British Steel in Scunthorpe, MPs have been told.

    Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said an emergency law aimed at saving the Lincolnshire site from closure was an "exceptional situation".

    SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn challenged Reynolds over similarities to the closure of the Scottish refinery on the Firth of Forth – with the loss of 400 jobs.

    It came during a rare Saturday sitting of parliament to pass legislation to save the the British Steel plant, opening the door for full nationalisation.

    Reynolds told the Commons: "I understand that some have asked about precedent or referenced other troubled industrial situations.

    "To be clear again, this is an exceptional situation, a unique situation.

    "The question for all members is whether we as a country want to continue to possess a steel industry, do we want to make the construction steel and rail we need here in the UK, or do we want to be dependent on overseas imports?"

    Flynn asked Reynolds whether the Labour party would back a similar bill for Grangemouth.

    Scotland's only oil refinery has been marked for closure by owner Petroineos

    About 400 of the 2,000 jobs that are based at the industrial complex will be lost.

    The Aberdeen South MP said: "Many minds right now will be very much focused on the situation in Grangemouth, where we know that hundreds of jobs are going to be lost directly, thousands of jobs in the supply chain.

    "Would the Labour Party back it in the same way as it is backing this Bill today?"

    But Reynolds said the UK government had pledged £200m to secure Grangemouth's "long-term future".

    He added: "It is not a comparable situation and the behaviour of the company is not comparable to the situation in this case."

    A report published last month said up to 800 jobs could be created over the next 15 years at the Grangemouth site

    The Project Willow study, funded jointly by the Scottish and UK governments, sets out nine areas where there are potential opportunities for green industries.

    It said jobs could be created in areas like sustainable aviation fuel, hydrogen production and plastics recycling but it would require £3.5bn of private investment.

    Brian Leishman, Labour MP for Alloa and Grangemouth, has also called for nationalisation of the Scottish refinery.

    He told BBC Radio's Good Morning Scotland there were "striking similarities between Scunthorpe and Grangemouth".

    He said: "The government should intervene at Grangemouth to extend refinrery operations until the new energy industies of the future that we are going to need are ready.

    "That is the only way that we can really, truly, achieve a just transition for workers and communities.

    "The PM recognises the strategic importance of Scunthorpe steel, and he really should do the same for Grangemouth oil."

    Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said the legislation for British Steel would allow ministers to "take control" of the site and stop its Chinese owner from closing its blast furnaces.

    Its owners Jingye said the furnaces were "no longer financially sustainable".

    Starmer said steelmaking was "essential for our future" and that he would always "act in the national interest to protect British jobs and British workers".

    1. Our mps don't live in the same world as their constituents they wouldn't have a clue.

    2. Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds – isn't he the one who claimed to be a qualified lawyer – apparently two separate offences but still in post!?

  69. I remember buying British Steel share back when it was privatised.
    They never did any good and finished up worthless

        1. Me too but I wonder what the toothed wheel does as it can only be driven by the worm wheel

          1. Indeed. There seems to be no logical reason for the toothed cog wheel. I'm guessing whatever it did must be long missing or broken.

          2. "Ey our lass. Does thee mind if while you're making yonder yarns I rig a butter churner to the damned infernal machine?"

      2. I'm guessing that is probably what it is, Pet. Especially since it was found alongside an old, full-size, but very broken loom.

  71. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/04/12/pro-palestine-protesters-fire-engine-london-elephant-castle/

    The vehicle, which had its sirens on, was forced to change route after Youth Demand demonstrators refused to end their roadblock in Elephant and Castle on Saturday at around 12.30pm.

    The group, which was demanding a trade embargo on Israel and investment in communities most affected by the use of fossil fuels, had five of its protesters arrested.

    Footage shows the vehicle struggling to pass through the traffic as around 50 demonstrators, who continued to chant and bang their drum, blocked the roundabout next to the Tube stations.

    This is insane. Next time, just ram the protestors. Stop being nice to the scum. They shouldn't be there, plod should have removed them. This was plain, utterly wrong at every level. If fundamental systems cannot work then society doesn't. The wasters need to be dealt with harshly and immediately – by smacking them around.

    2. By all means ram protesters, but you might very well end up in prison for doing so, depending on injuries sustained. It's a lot to ask drivers to martyr themselves.

  73. Afternoon, Nottlers. A beautiful day up here in the wilderness. +10 C daytime high (still minus at night), maple sap flowing like crazy. Not quite feeling brave enough to drain the snowblower and put it to bed just yet. Got the petrol chainsaws running though, and the mower/summer equipment. Took a drive out to the nearest little village to get a few gallons of fresh petrol – and everyone is out there, like me, in sandals and shorts. Everyone happy and chatty and full of the joys of things.

    For reference, the same 10C when temperatures are falling after the summer would have us all wrapped up and complaining about how cold it is.

    Everything is relative.

        1. It's on the edge mate. Totally bonkers.
          How's the back end of beyond and the tribe?

          1. Life in the fast lane, eh?

            Dog pack enjoying the freshly uncovered rotting masses on the ground from last Autumn. New dog has been following in the pawsteps of the older Sheps – he came back smelling of something foul and looked pretty pleased with himself.

            Nipped over to the Amish to say hello, not seen them since Christmas Eve – and enjoyed a glass or two of last years pine sap wine. It's not up to Upset's standards, but a hell of a lot better than my attempt at it! 🙂

          2. Sounds like a good day to me.
            Had lunch in Winchester with the kids, and then did next to nothing.

  74. Two large rewarding glasses of decent red, a Charlie Bingham red thia curry, now I'm feeling quite tired after my day in the garden. I've finished the fencing, touchè.
    Tomorrow front and rear grass to cut, note not lawns, but the green green grass of home.
    But It's not unusual is it.
    Good night all Nottlers 😴🙏

    1. 'Night Eddy…I'll be having CB lasagne tomorrow, intend to try the curry on your recommendation, thanks 🙂

        1. Ah, freezer? good idea. Don’t think I’ve seen ’em on special offer yet but will deffo look out for that 🙂

          1. Waitrose has 25% off on some of his range. Sainsbury’s do their meal deals and Nectar prices which bring the costs down.

          2. No Waitrose here. Sainsbury’s stopped delivering when a driver reversed into a tree in garden and we protested…so Morrisons it is, all lovely people working there…and CB meals..result! 😀

  76. From RT.

    Here’s why the AfD is destined for the German government

    The right-wing party has taken the lead in a nationwide poll for the first time. It won’t be the last – and the establishment only has itself to blame
    Tarik Cyril Amar
    By Tarik Cyril Amar, a historian from Germany working at Koç University, Istanbul, on Russia, Ukraine, and Eastern Europe, the history of World War II, the cultural Cold War, and the politics of memory
    Here’s why the AfD is destined for the German government
    Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla, co-leaders of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) political party. © Maryam Majd/Getty Images
    Germany has an undeserved reputation for dour rationality and lacking an appreciation of the absurd. In reality, however, Germany is a – for want of nicer terms – very counterintuitive country.

    If you are running a regime in Kiev (at least according to the official story) and blow up Germany’s vital energy infrastructure, Germans will say thank you and throw money and arms at you, while also helping you blame someone else (the Russians, of course: Germany has never been an imaginative country).

    If you are in Washington and certainly had a hand in blowing up that infrastructure, and then go on to fleece the Germans by selling LNG at a high cost and promoting their deindustrialization by filching their companies, good Germans get very, very angry – at China.

    If you happen to be the single most popular and perfectly legal political party in Germany, get ready to never be allowed to actually participate in governing. Because Germany is also a country in which that single most popular party – the Alternative for Germany (Alternative für Deutschland, commonly known simply as AfD) – is locked out of building governing coalitions. By definition.

    That system is called a “firewall” – against that nasty most popular party that makes life so difficult for all those other, no longer popular parties. It has absolutely no basis in the constitution or in law.

    Come to think of it, as the “firewall” systematically and deliberately treats the votes of AfD voters as somehow less effective than those of others, it may well be the “firewall” itself that is unconstitutional, at least in spirit if not even by the letter of the law. So much for Germany, the country that allegedly loves order and rules.

    In reality, the “firewall” amounts to a dirty political cartel and a form of disenfranchisement: The traditional parties, feeling threatened by the insurgent AfD have simply decided that they do not care what the voters say and won’t have anything to do with it. Since German governments are virtually always based on coalitions, which means that the AfD and its voters are treated as inferior. That this means that, as of now, in particular voters in the former East Germany are subject to this kind of discrimination, adding a West-East aspect to it that sits very badly with talk about German unity.

    AfD tops German opinion poll for first time READ MORE AfD tops German opinion poll for first time
    To get one thing out of the way: For now, it is only one poll that shows the AfD in the lead; other polls still have it in (barely) second place after the mainstream conservatives of the CDU/CSU bloc (which, in reality, functions as one party) of soon-to-be chancellor Friedrich Merz. But these differences are irrelevant. What matters is that the AfD’s rising trend is unbroken. That is definitely a blow to Merz, even before he has officially assumed office, as international observers are noting. Especially in view of the fact that Merz’s own poll numbers are cratering at the same time.

    Yet there is a broader point, too: The whole “firewall” strategy is malfunctioning extremely badly. Sensible observers have long predicted it, and now it is becoming ever more obvious: Freezing the AfD out only serves to make it stronger.

    One thing that does not make Berlin’s ruling parties, the CDU and SPD, any more popular is that they have concluded their negotiations on how to divvy up the spoils of ministries and other goodies. Indeed, it is extremely embarrassing for the new governing coalition of conservatives and Social-Democrats (SPD) that the most recent AfD milestone breakthrough is happening now. It is a coincidence from hell: there they are, the traditional parties, seemingly safe behind their “firewall” and all ready to go, and the voters – uncouth as they can be – show them just how unpopular they are.

    Germans expect little from them, even now: A fresh poll shows that two thirds do not believe that things will change under the new coalition of tired old parties.

    Note that most Germans have been deeply unhappy with the status quo, as we also know from recent polls: In February, Ipsos found that the general mood was “as bad as never before.” Only 17 percent of citizens – less than a fifth – believed their country was “on a good trajectory.” The other 83 percent were not indifferent or neutral but felt Germany was on the “wrong” trajectory. Even for a nation with something of a culture of angst and doom, those are atrocious figures.

    Hence, expecting no change now amounts to deep pessimism: Germans have felt for a while already that they are in dire trouble; and a preponderant majority thinks that that is where they will be stuck under new old management as well.

    Something needs to be done to save Germany. €1 trillion of debt is not it READ MORE Something needs to be done to save Germany. €1 trillion of debt is not it
    A senior AfD leader, Alexander Gauland, is already more than confident: “It’s a natural law that we’ll be ahead of the CDU at the next elections,” he recently declared. That may be jinxing it. The AfD is, after all, much less unlike other parties than the latter like to pretend: The AfD as well may end up squandering its current good luck with infighting, for instance, over how to react to US President Donald Trump’s tariff attacks, which will severely harm Germany.

    Yet there is no doubt that the traditional parties are doing their utmost to repel not only voters but even their own members. In particular Merz’s CDU is in barely contained rebellion: its members and voters are fuming at having voted conservative and yet being saddled with a massive deficit spending program. The pretext that all of this is needed because of – drum roll – Big Bad Russia is not dampening down the anger.

    One local CDU organization has already rebelled openly. In the state of Sachsen-Anhalt, formerly part of East Germany, CDU members from the Harz district have gone public with an official resolution making two points and one demand: There is “massive” unrest among the CDU’s base of ordinary party members, and in Germany’s “East,” that is, what used to be the former German Democratic Republic, the CDU has decisively lost the last federal elections. The demand is to tear down the so-called “firewall” against the AfD and start collaborating with it systematically. It is symptomatic that this very local rebellion is making news all over the country.

    “What a scandal! Opening the gates to the far right!” many will scream. Yet they have it all upside down: Disregarding the fact that, in reality, the CDU/CSU conservatives and the AfD mostly see eye-to-eye ideologically, one day, in the not so far away future, the AfD may well enter and perhaps even dominate a German government. The irony is that when that happens, those who have upheld the, frankly, moronic “firewall” will have only themselves to blame. Because the real question is not if the AfD will enter government in Berlin but how and, in particular, how strong. The longer the “firewall” is kept up, the more likely the AfD will not just participate but dominate.

    1. AfD are a minority party. Our voting system protects us.
      .
      .
      AfD minority are now a popularist party. Being popular is not what a democracy is all about.
      .
      .
      AfD might win something. Our voting system must be wrong.

    2. Weidel started appearing on social media a while ago – I like her, she says the things I like to hear, and she has the policies I like. Nevertheless, there's a small doubt in the back of my mind…I don't know too much about her fellow politicians, or her supporters. And it's always possible for politicians to change their tune when in office, and they often seem to.

      1. She is a slightly odd person I think, which to me is automatically a bit untrustworthy. People who are outside the mainstream can be a bit unpredictable.
        But the mainstream parties are deluding themselves if they think that a quarter of the country has suddenly turned into Hitler supporters.

        1. G’morning BB2…I think all politicians must be a bit barmy to want to enter political life. They mostly all have a hidden agenda, especially if finance involved. She may or may not be OK, I’d like to know more about her AfD colleagues tho’.

        1. I have put away my cross-country skis. The Spring season gives Mrs. DC's sides a chance to heal after splitting with laughter over winter as I once again attempted to keep up with her.

          1. Well you can comfort yourself with beating her on the shooting range…. Oh wait….

          2. 🙁

            As she reminds me often: "You may out shoot me at 300+ yards, but the chance of you making it 300+ yards first is slim to none."

          4. "Target exhibits quantum-level randomness in direction, speed, and posture."

          6. Observer: “What was dull that sounding thud? Didn’t sound like a leg breaking.”

            Mrs. DC: “Correct. He got lucky again and went in head first. Nothing to damage in there.”

  79. 5:00pm here, so the sun is well and truly over the yard arm..Time for a tall, cold American sized G&T. Decided I do like Fever Tree tonic, a bit more taste than most.

    1. Same time zone. Same idea. Different mixer.

      Empress 1908 with tonic and lemon basil.

      Cheers!!

    2. I've tried all my life to get to like and enjoy tonic water. I have serially failed. It is a dry Martini all the way for me.

      Decent gin, Noilly Prat, dash of angostura bitters, ice. Sorted.

  80. From the Telegraph

    How unhealthy is ketchup really?
    It’s made from nutrient-rich tomatoes and we add it to everything. We ask the experts their verdict on ketchup
    Ceri Roberts12 April 2025 12:00pm BST
    Ketchup being poured on top of chips
    The history of ketchup dates all the way back to the early 1700s, when British sailors first encountered a tasty Chinese fermented fish sauce
    Whether you reserve it for fish and chip suppers, or you’re someone who likes it with your roast dinner, it probably won’t come as any surprise that tomato ketchup is the nation’s favourite condiment. More popular than other table sauces such as mayonnaise, brown sauce, mustard and salad cream, according to numerous surveys, 8.6 million of us in Britain are slathering it on our sausages, chips and bacon sandwiches up to three times per week.

    Originally known as ‘Catsup’ it was introduced to the American public in 1876, making it to the UK a decade later, at London department store Fortnum & Mason. However, the history of ketchup dates all the way back to the early 1700s, when British sailors first encountered a tasty Chinese fermented fish sauce, which they brought back to Europe and attempted to recreate the recipe.

    Early ketchups were made from mushrooms and enriched with oysters, anchovies and walnuts, until American horticulturist James Mease created the first known recipe for tomato ketchup in 1812. In those days, tomato ketchup was sold in pharmacies as a remedy for diarrhoea and indigestion, but there was nothing medicinal about Henry Heinz’s version. It contained vinegar and sugar, and balanced all five tastes: sweet, sour, salty, bitter and umami, enhancing the flavour of food and becoming a popular store cupboard essential. So can it lay claim to any health benefits in its most modern incarnation?

    What’s in ketchup?
    The exact ingredients vary between brands, but Heinz tomato ketchup is made from:

    Tomatoes (148g per 100g ketchup)
    Spirit vinegar
    Sugar
    Salt
    Spice and herb extracts (including celery)
    Spice
    A 15g serving (about one tablespoon) contains:

    Calories: 15
    Fat: Trace
    Carbohydrate: 3.5g
    Of which sugars: 3.4g
    Protein: 0.2g
    Salt: 0.3g
    How does ketchup compare to other classic condiments?
    “Ketchup is lower in fat than mayonnaise, which can contain up to 80 per cent fat, and lower in sugar than a barbecue sauce,” says Charlotte Faure Green, a registered nutritionist. “It’s higher in sugar than mustard, which is pretty much sugar-free, and has a similar sugar content to brown sauce. Nutritionally, ketchup sits somewhere in the middle. It’s hardly a health food, but it’s not the worst condiment on the table either.”

    Three reasons why ketchup is unhealthy
    1. It’s high in sugar
    “One decent squirt of ketchup (15ml) contains almost one teaspoon of sugar,” says Janet Padfield, a registered nutritional therapist at Apples to Zinc Nutrition. “Government recommendations state that we should have no more than seven teaspoons of sugar per day – and most people have considerably more than just one tablespoon of sauce per serving, which ramps up the sugar intake and makes it more of an issue.”

    2. Most types are classed an ultra-processed food (UPF)
    “UPFs are foods that have been significantly altered from their original form through the use of industrial processes and ingredients like preservatives, emulsifiers, stabilisers, extracts, flavourings, sweeteners and colourings,” explains Padfield. “Tomato ketchup is typically classed as a UPF because it contains herb or spice extracts, and sometimes modified starch, flavourings and sweeteners.”

    3. It’s usually eaten with unhealthy foods
    “Ketchup is often paired with ultra-processed meats, fried foods, or refined carbohydrates, all of which have a far greater impact on health than the ketchup itself,” says Faure Green.

    Does ketchup have any health benefits?
    Ketchup is largely made from tomatoes, which have numerous health benefits. The classic version of Heinz ketchup, for example, contains 148g of tomatoes per 100g of ketchup. They’re a good source of fibre and vitamins A, C and K, and also contain folate and potassium. Although the average serving of ketchup contains only minimal amounts of these nutrients, it is recognised as one of the most concentrated sources of the red-coloured pigment and antioxidant lycopene, which is understood to have anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory and antidiabetic properties.

    In fact, research shows that the heat used to process the tomatoes helps the body absorb lycopene more effectively, and studies show that eating tomato-rich foods, including ketchup, is linked to a lower risk of gastric cancer, could give some protection from prostate cancer, and may help to protect against heart disease.

    “It’s true, ketchup does contain lycopene, an antioxidant linked to heart health – though it would be a stretch to call it a ‘good source’, says Faure Green. “Processed tomato products offer more bioavailable [easily absorbed] lycopene than raw tomatoes, due to the heat used during production, but the amount you’d get from a small serving of ketchup is modest.”

    What makes a healthy ketchup?
    The main issue with ketchup is the sugar content, and all varieties – even the most natural and unprocessed – are sweetened. Heinz ketchup is classed as a UPF only because of the addition of spice extracts, so this is something to look out for if avoiding UPFs is a priority for you.

    Although Heinz offers both 50 per cent less sugar and salt ketchup, which contains 1.7g of sugar per serving, and no added sugar ketchup, which contains 0.7g of sugar per serving, these contain the sweeteners stevia and sucralose respectively, which are both classed as UPF ingredients.

    Faure Green explains: “Some of these ‘healthier’ versions use sweeteners or thickeners, which may affect the taste and come with different health concerns. Heinz uses stevia as a sweetener in their low-sugar version which studiessuggest may affect the gut microbiome when consumed frequently and in larger doses.”

    The three healthiest ketchups
    To find the healthiest ketchup on the supermarket shelves, look for one with minimal ingredients, that’s as unprocessed as possible.

    The Sauce Shop Tomato Ketchup
    This contains 296g of tomatoes per 100g, along with sugar, onion, white grape vinegar, salt, garlic and spices. “This is the best option, but it’s still high in sugar so needs to be eaten in moderation,” says Padfield.

    Stokes Sauces Real Tomato Ketchup
    This contains 200g of tomatoes per 100g, and also contains unrefined raw cane sugar, spirit vinegar, cornflower, sea salt, garlic and onion powder, sorbic acid, salt and spice extracts. “Although this contains more tomatoes than Heinz, it still contains some processed extracts,” says Padfield.

    Heinz 50% Less Sugar & Salt Ketchup
    This contains 174g tomatoes per 100g, spirit vinegar, sugar, salt, spice and herb extract, spice and the sweetener stevia. “​​If you use ketchup regularly, the lower sugar and salt version is a sensible choice – it’s what I buy,” says Faure Green.

    How to make healthy ketchup
    Making your own ketchup is the healthiest option. However, Padfield warns that it may not go down well with younger members of the family. She says, “Most ketchup connoisseurs (aka kids) that I’ve come across in my clinic don’t like a homemade alternative.”

    Is ketchup healthy or unhealthy?
    Both experts agree the verdict is neutral.

    “Ketchup isn’t inherently unhealthy unless eaten in large amounts,” says Faure Green. “If eaten in moderation and as part of a balanced diet, ketchup is nothing to worry about.”

    Padfield adds: “The ingredients in a standard bottle of ketchup aren’t terrible, so a tablespoon-sized portion is unlikely to do you any harm every now and again. Just be mindful of the sugar content.”

    FAQs
    How long does ketchup last in the fridge?
    Heinz recommends storing opened bottles of ketchup in the fridge. It should then be consumed within eight weeks.

    Is ketchup low on the FODMAP?
    An acronym standing for fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides and polyols, the FODMAP diet excludes all these types of starches that can affect people with a sensitive digestion.

    The diet restricts the consumption of these “FODMAPS” – the four types of carbohydrates which are poorly absorbed in the small intestine and most likely to cause bloating, wind, constipation and diarrhoea in people with IBS.

    So can ketchup be enjoyed as part of this diet? “Yes, in small amounts,” says Faure Green. “Most ketchups contain garlic and onion, which are high FODMAP ingredients, but the quantities are pretty low. For most people following a low FODMAP diet, a tablespoon or less is considered safe. Those who are highly sensitive or on a stricter phase of the diet may want to opt for a certified low FODMAP version or make their own.”

    1. Slice up a fresh greenhouse tomato-or-three. Sprinkle it with salt and black pepper. Sauté it in some lard until soft. Use that as a ketchup substitute. Much tastier and far more nourishing than any load of chemical junk in a bottle.

      1. Now we're talking, Grizz!

        The market does seem, in some areas, to be moving to a more simple ingredient approach. The one above isn't that bad for those who really don't enjoy food prep and for whom food is almost a chore to be done with as easily as possible. I have no problem with that.

        But holy crap, the salt and sugar slurry is in almost everything unless you choose for it not to be. It hides a multitude of sins.

        1. Yes. The main ingredients of much highly processed food – salt, glucose-fructose syrup, seed oils, wheat flour, emulsifiers – give it a very samey taste and texture.
          When one breaks away from that, real flavours and textures of food can be enjoyed.

      2. It partly depends on how you view food preparation. I think it a tedious chore. That weighs heavily in favour of pouring or squeezing it from someone else's bottle. Furthermore, if, like me, you're not especially discerning when it comes to food quality, your effort to achieve superiority would be largely wasted on me. Double or treble the effort for, at most, a 10% improvement in perceived pleasure just isn't worth it.

        1. That's where you and I differ in every way, Stig. Food preparation is not a 'chore', it is a delightful pleasure. My simplistic approach to fewer (fresher) ingredients is healthier and more delicious. And the time it takes is minimal.

          My research tells me, clearly, that people who continue to buy and eat ultra-processed 'food' (like bottled ketchup) suffer the most from all manner of diseases and terrible health conditions. Yet they would rather castigate those trying to help as being insufferably 'superior'.

          We all make our choices.

          2. Nonetheless, Stig, I do urge people with health problems to prepare simple food from a few good ingredients.
            It takes very little time and the health benefits are incalculable.

        2. Firstborn loves making food. I can't be arsed, a lot of work and washing-up for nothing much (lost my sense of (nose) taste some years ago, mouth taste still works fine) so the results of a lot of skilled cooking aren't really appreciated.

    2. In my experience, it is worth seeking out an expensive organic tomato ketchup with fewer ingredients, or making it oneself.

      1. Rats.

        Now I have the Disturbed version as an earworm.

        There are worse things.

        (tried to post link. Failed. So be it.)

  84. Well, chums, it's bedtime for Elsie. Good Night, sleep well, and see you all tomorrow.

  85. Good morning all of you lucky sleeping people.

    Woke up at various times of the night , why , because I could hear scratching noises and meows .

    Moh let Pip out into the garden at 5am , I woke up again at 5.30 ..

    Moh wore fresh jim jims last night , so I looked in his wardrobe , which is deep dark and rather tardis like .. no cat there..

    Where indeed , I looked everywhere .

    I heard more meows as I staggered downstairs .. the adopted cat was stuck in the utility room, utter chaos , bags all over the floor , laundry basket and clothing scattered , dog food bin with flip lid all askew , I wonder whether she had got stuck in there then climbed out , anyway she was pleased to see me , how on earth Moh didn't hear her, I have no idea . She dashed out into the garden , then mewed she wanted to come back into eat ..

    Oh yawn , all I want is a good nights sleep.

    1. Morning Belle. This gives me the opportunity to whinge about my own health and sleeping. The latter had been atrocious for a while. Three, two to three hour sessions per night. Now I had put this down to my diabetes experiences. This may not be so. When I was struggling with it and the NHS, I had a really bad cold. The worst I have had in years. It has taken the better part of seven or eight weeks to shake off its remnants. The result is that I have had two consecutive nights of blissful sleep. Only five hours you understand but real rest with a quick snooze afterwards. Long may it continue. .

      2. Hello Minty ,

        I can see you have been dragged down by health issues . Normality has been difficult and I really feel for you .

        A good sleep does restore well being . Are you taking any vitamins or Q10 for the awake times ?

        Try to relax , and don't worry.

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