Nick Russell

Map of Germany showing the "raccoon invasion" by shading the areas with over 0.1 raccoons per hectare.

Any tips for getting rid of 0.1 raccoons from my hectare?

Alphabetical order hurts my eyes!

Superb. I am as glad for you as I am that it wasn't me!

Would be interested in chatting through this when you're in Düsseldorf

A related question is what is the 'best' station. I'm talking about quality of stops, not just quantity. I want to be able to travel to Cornwall, Wales, London, Manchester and Aberdeen from a single place. My feeling there is that Birmingham New Street, Manchester Piccadilly and York are the top 3?

Happy Christmas Eve!

Mince pies in the oven, presents under the tree...and the number 1, undisputedly best Christmas banger of all time 'A Spaceman Came Travelling' blaring out across the house.

I wonder if there's more in common between both stories than first meets the eye. Key anchor points of a community, strong family values, importance of work ethic, link between price, convenience and demand

Humphrey’s world: how the Samuel Smith beer baron built Britain’s strangest pub chain Since the 1970s, Humphrey Smith has acquired scores of pubs and historic properties around the UK. But time after time, he has left the buildings empty. Why has he allowed his empire to moulder?

Two great reads which show different sides of Britain available this morning.

@duncanrobinson.bsky.social on the enduring guile of the Bossman www.economist.com/britain/2024...

And this in @guardian.com on Samuel Smiths pubs www.theguardian.com/news/2024/de...

Love this!

PHOTO OF THE DAY. Liverpool v Nottingham Forest in the snow (1969). Nottingham Forest won 2-0. 📷 google images

This is tragic. The Daringman is exactly the type of place which needs cherishing.

Superb! Great to know I'm not alone flying the red flag in NRW. Kettwig is a lovely place too. Let's hope our early season form continues, though anything near the top half would be fantastic.

The Premier League top five. Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal, Man City and oh yeah, Nottingham Forest

Good morning, sports fans. #nffc

Chris Wood, after scoring against Manchester United

Is Blue Sky the kind of place that's interested in Wood pics?

And soggy shoes for the kids...oops!

Bejay Mulenga, holding his chin and smiling at the camera.

Last but not least is Bejay Mulenga.

Starting his entrepreneurial journey with a school tuck shop, he has expanded this to a wide network of business services over the years.

Aged 20, he was the youngest winner of the Queen's Award for Enterprise Promotion.

Picture of Jo Wimble-Groves in front of a white wall.

Jo Wimble-Groves is next on my list.

Company founder, blogger and motivational speaker.

Jo is focused on getting more women into senior leadership positions.

Out of the leading 80 energy companies in the UK, only 6 are led by women.

We can do more to raise awareness of this issue.

A photo of Amika George, in front of a couple of doors.

Amika George contributed more to the political debate in the UK before she was even allowed to vote than most of us do in a lifetime.

Her campaign for free period products in schools helped lead to a decision in 2019 for Government to start funding schools to provide sanitary products to students.

Anna MacDonald, singing into a microphone.

Next on the list is Anna MacDonald.

Her career has taken her from medical doctor, to a charity to support young unaccompanied asylum seekers, via being a musician singing in Gaelic.

She represents the array of languages and cultures in the UK. And hope for a better future for young asylum seekers.

Ren, holding his chin.

Fifth on the list is one of the most multi-talented musicians of recent years, Ren.

His range of abilities is huge. But what makes him stand out is his battle with Lyme disease, and how that struggle has influenced his music to such a deep degree.

What a guy.

Ryan Yates wearing a Nottingham Forest shirt

I couldn't do this list without covering football.

And I can't cover football, without talking about Nottingham Forest.

And I can't talk about Forest, without referencing the man, the legend, Ryan Yates.

A symbol of work ethic, talent and perseverance.

Picture of Anne-Marie Imafidon.

Third on my list is Anne-Marie Imafidon.

She picked up her Computer Science A level aged 11.

She has starred on Channel 4's Countdown.

But her real triumph has been her work through her organisation Stemettes, to get young women more involved in STEM professions.

Image of British model, Adwoa Aboah.

Secondly, I will talk about Adwoa Aboah.

A model by trade, but really an activist. The work that she has done for the mental health and wellbeing of adolescent and young girls through her organisations Gurl Talk is so important.

A picture of British hip hop artist and actor, Dave.

First on the list, and perhaps the most famous of them all is Dave.

Dave's story is quite something. His father deported when Dave was just six weeks old, both his brothers in prison when he was a teenager.

He's gone on to release some deep and meaningful records, tackling issues inc knife crime.

I'm on my way to deliver the Christmas lecture for the Deutsche Britische Gesselschaft Ruhr.

My topic is "Faces of Modern Britain". I am going to try and paint a picture of the UK in the 21st Century through the stories of ten inspirational British voices.

But who are those ten people?

Close up of a Christmas tree with decorations.

A snowball drink, laptop playing Christmas songs, snowman decoration and a fire

Tis the season (well, almost)🎄⛄🌰

Saarschleife

A UK export for you to promote, @stephenconlon.bsky.social!

53.

I would be 52, but I got over excited and counted horsegiirl, who I mixed up with the excellent horsegirl. Apologies to all horsegi(i)rls.

Former Forest man Bachirou? Need to make it along to my first Matlock game pronto!