John Fitzpatrick

Ireland v All Blacks
Ireland & New Zealand return to Soldier Field Chicago. 9yrs ago Ireland claimed an historic win over the All Blacks. The 40-29 victory ended Ireland's 111-year wait for a win over New Zealand

#AutumnInternationals #TeamOfUs #Irfu #fourproudprovinces #IREvNZ

Joe Marler “I was the more stand in the way of people… turn like an oil rig type of player” 😂😂

Prince Andrew stripped of 'prince' title and will move out of Royal Lodge He will now be known as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor - Buckingham Palace says

The Andrew formerly known as Prince
www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cn...

Ireland vs New Zealand: Jack Crowley starts at 10 with Caelan Doris on the bench for Chicago rematch Jack Crowley is named to start at fly-half in Ireland's much-anticipated Chicago rematch against New Zealand, while returning captain Caelan Doris will start on the bench.

Looking forward to this! Can’t wait for the Autumn Internationals to start. Can Ireland beat New Zealand 🇳🇿 Can England beat Australia 🇦🇺 after a thrilling encounter last time out.

#AutumnInternationals #IRFU #RFU #SRU #WRU

www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-...

Slow Horses
British spy thriller that just keeps getting better & better based on the Slough House series of novels by Mick Herron, created by Will Smith. Season 5 is a triumph from start to finish. Starring Gary Oldman with Jack Lowden & Kristin Scott Thomas

Trains delayed to Doncaster because of trespassers on the tracks. Why the feck would you trespass on train tracks complete and utter irresponsibility and stupidity

The mirage of safety: Dubai, Reform UK, and the false promise of order Dubai’s promise of safety and order, like that of Reform UK, rests on an illusion and comes at a cost to those without power

The mirage of safety: Dubai, Reform UK, and the false promise of order

Dubai’s promise of safety and order, like that of Reform UK, rests on an illusion and comes at a cost to those without power

By Mike Chitty

@yorkshirebylines.co.uk

My train is delayed by 14 minutes because of…. Wait there… Slippery rails. It’s as if we are unprepared for rain snow and ice ☔️ ❄️ 🧊

After another leaving do with some wonderful friends and ex -colleagues time for some music 🎶
Sisters in Country…
How Dolly , Linda & Emmylou’s careers took off in the 1970s with distinct takes on country, but how they ended up uniting as close harmony singers on Trio.

Sunder Katwala on race, patriotism and flag-waving: ‘The far right is vocal and angry because it is shrinking’ The director of British Future has spent his career trying to find common ground when it comes to race and immigration. He describes his own experience of racism – and why he’s still hopeful for the U...

Interview with @sundersays.bsky.social about race and patriotism in the UK - www.theguardian.com/world/2025/o...

"Does the ECHR stop states from controlling their borders?"

No. The ECHR Court emphasises migration policies are up to states themselves.

"But the ECHR stops the UK from deporting foreign criminals."

No, it doesn't.

Successful human rights-based appeals against deportation are very rare.

Wolfson Final Report | Conservatives Wolfson Final Report

Like most apologias, the Wolfson report isn't supposed to be read, it's just supposed to exist to provide cover. But this is really pretty limited cover. If anyone is bothered, note the utter lack of any references re the GFA.

It's all just vibes:

www.conservatives.com/wolfson-fina...

Here are two of the relevant sections on ECHR in the Belfast/ Good Friday Agreement (Cm 3883, pp 16-17). I'm as moderate a Nationalist as you can possibly be. Without ECHR I would regard the multilateral Agreement as terminated.

I see Conservative conference will "discuss" leaving the ECHR again this morning. Anyone care to ask how they will prevent the Irish lobbying the US, delivering bipartisan agreement that the UK is breaking the Good Friday Agreement, leading to UK political crisis?

@georgeperetzkc.bsky.social is well worth a follow for those interested in how all the kerfuffle about the ECHR will impact the GFA/BA in Ireland. 👇

Today will see a flurry of speculative claims about the GFA & ECHR. Most significantly that rights weren't important/were late additions/didn't mean the whole ECHR in NI law. I'm begging journalists to push back. Civil Servants were planning for Labour's Rights Agenda for NI from the 1997 election:

Today will see a flurry of speculative claims about the GFA & ECHR. Most significantly that rights weren't important/were late editions/didn't mean the whole ECHR in NI law. I'm begging journalists to push back. Civil Servants were planning for Labour's Rights Agenda for NI from the 1997 election:

3. “The ECHR commitment is only applicable to devolved bodies”. Wrong. The commitment is to incorporate into “NI law”, including NI law made and administered by UK institutions. (And given that UK institutions were responsible for the concerns, any other result would be bizarre.)

2. “The ECHR commitment is only to have rights ‘like’ the ECHR”. Wrong: there is no basis for saying that the agreement to incorporate “the ECHR” in NI law can be read as meaning “something the UK thinks is a bit like the ECHR”.

I suspect that tedious but necessary work once the Wolfson “legal advice” is released will be to go through it and find other obvious errors and distortions.

Joshua points out what looks like an obvious mistake (about Ziegler). The analysis of the GFA also seems to repeat the simply wrong (not “arguably wrong”: “wrong”) Policy Exchange paper de-bunked here. caj.org.uk/publications...

Chris Philp on R4 yesterday making 3 false statements about the ECHR and the GFA.
1. “The ECHR is mentioned only in the Multi-Party Agreement not the UK/Ireland Agreement.”. Wrong: the latter agreement requires the UK to support the former: they can’t be pulled apart like that.

Grand Ole Opry Live in London at The Royal Albert Hall BBC Two

Yes I was there but what better way to spend a rainy Saturday evening than watching to Opry members Luke Combs, Ashley McBryde, Carly Pearce, Darius Rucker, and Marty Stuart. Who are joined by UK artists Breabach and Mumford & Sons.

UK will leave ECHR if Tories win election, Badenoch says - BBC News The European Convention on Human Rights has become a focal point in debates around changing immigration policy.

Shocked, shocked to discover that Lord Wolfson's report says exactly what Kemi Badenoch wanted it to say and finds no GFA impediment to the UK leaving the ECHR and that only sunlit policy uplands will result from doing so. A tissue of Conservative wish fulfilment:

share.google/qsYHPBUGr3Ou...

Ryder Cup time

The Best of Europe take on the Best of the USA.

#RyderCup2025 🏆 BBC Radio 5 live Sport BBC Sport Sky Sports Golf ⛳️

Remember that ridiculous lawyer called Steven Barrett...? He's still ridiculous.

France v Ireland

Well it wasn’t to be, but this is a young squad and this group of women can hold their heads up high. So proud of this group of players well done ladies. Loved the emotion from former player Anna Caplice in commentary!

IrishRugby #womensrugbyworldcup2025

England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 v Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

England will be favourites for this. As the two old rivals go head to head. But this is knockout rugby 🏉 and anything can happen on the day. Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 looking to upset the odds

#womensrugbyworldcup2025 #ENGvSCO

France v Ireland

No ref no TMO no citing ? This type of behaviour has no place in Rugby 🏉 or any sport. The French player clearly biting Aoife Wafer. This type of act should be an instant red card and a lengthy ban

The actual group moving most strongly to Reform are male Gen X-ers. We need more articles on how to deal with them.