Paco B. Garcia

Dolly Parton has sent my daughter a new book every month for years as she does for thousands of children. She help fund the development of the Covid vaccine. She’s not a billionaire. I think as non wealthy people it’s hard to even imagine how much billionaires *could* be doing with their money.

Just FYI, the very funny British sitcom Plebs - about three young losers in Ancient Rome - is now on Netflix. It’s a lovely show with a great cast, and I recommend you watch it

hear me out: Kobi Nazrul primary school in London's East End is the first in the UK where *every* pupil is bilingual

here.

Fifty years, and this country appears to have changed very little in its attitudes towards immigrants and, basically, people who are not white. And, indeed, attitudes of finrge groups like NF now mainstreamed by media, politicians and governments. So, arguably much worse than the 70s. So depressing.

"Co-headliners: Jimmy Carr and Louis C.K."

Just occurred to me that "to mother" and "to father" are both verbs

But "mothering" commonly means raising a child with care, whereas I reckon you're more likely hear "fathering" as an act of procreation

A reminder of John Boyne’s own words and why decent-minded people might not wish to be on a prize list with him. He thinks women who support trans rights are “ready to pin a handmaiden down while her husband rapes her.” No one’s “cancelling” him; we just don’t want to be associated with him.

Actual name of a company currently working on the drains up the road here. Their logo could have been worse I suppose

YouTube video by Yorkshire Tea The Tea Song - by Yorkshire Tea

How come I've never seen this amazing thing before?

www.youtube.com/watch?v=GFfn...

So The Sun has run a piece expressing alarm at my “influence” pushing against welfare benefit cuts and for justice for the Palestinian people.

Seems they may not have clocked the photo they used for this article calling me a “plank” is from when I beat The Sun in the High Court!

Weird how the wishes of pensioners voting for Brexit must be respected, but when they support Palestine Action they need to be arrested.

All Back to Mine with Val McDermid — A Kick Up The Arts This episode was recorded live at the brilliant Portobello Bookshop , in (near!) Edinburgh - thank you so much to Euan and the gang for making us so welcome - as ever - and to everyone at Birlinn. ...

All Back to Mine with Val McDermid – A Kick Up The Arts podcast

Recorded live at @portybooks.bsky.social, @nicolameighan.bsky.social talks to folk singer, football fan, & Fun Loving Crime Writer @valmcdermid.bsky.social about life, love, reading, & writing
💙📚
www.akickupthearts.org/blog-3-1/all...

My Hammerstein painting is now up for auction on eBay. It's drawn in acrylic and Rotring ink and hand-coloured with watercolour paints. painted on thick hot-press watercolour board that measures 29 x 40 cm roughly A3 Get to it!
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/20566033...

DV is so normalised that some of the few men who've done time for it get to cheerily get on with careers in entertainment, the press & as MPs but we're putting all this effort into pushing a minority who have nothing to do with that out of existence & pretending it'll fix things? Grow up, Britain.

Meanwhile, rape survivors will continue to have to wait years for a trial, which will leave many feeling horribly retraumatised, & 2 women will still be killed by a partner a week, & the next terrorist will be a known domestic abuser, as will 50% of the next race rioters.

Just taking my birth certificate with me on the big shop in case I need a piss in the Asda customer toilet and the toilet bouncer doesn't like the shape of my skull

To say this is somewhat at odds with the news and social media narrative would be the understatement of the year.

Also if Ed Davey is that popular vis Farage why is the mainstream media practically ignoring him?

*NEW ALBUM ANNOUNCEMENT*

We are delighted to announce the upcoming release of Lost Measures!

Released on September 26th. Pre-order your copy now, only via our website (for CDs) or our BandCamp.

We hope you love it

www.leveretband.com (CDs / download)
www.leveretband.bandcamp.com (download)

Patient, sobbing: But Doctor, I AM Pagliacci!
ChatGPT: Apologies. I didn't realise when recommending Pagliacci's epic show to cure your depression that you were the genius himself. I'm impressed! With regards to your initial question, I can recommend seeing the Great Clown Pagliacci.

Doomscrolling, as we all know, is named after Doctor Doom's habit of reading the news and getting angry whenever Reed Richards is mentioned

What ho, Wednesday! We’re putting this one out to the community - it’s Korean, but what’s the book? The usually helpful Google Translate comes up with ‘the editor regrets these three years’. Answers on a postcard, please! A beautiful volume nonetheless.

JK Rowling tweeting got a boycott of M&S, stretching facts to the breaking point, and making the world a worse place for absolutely everyone.

The employee asked the girl and her mother if they needed help shopping. That’s it. That’s all. The misinformation, the insinuations (because the facts are inconveniently benign) are EXACTLY what was done to lesbians in the 80s. This is the product of hate and fear, not reality.

I prosecute and defend the most serious sexual offences in our courts.

The overwhelming majority of offenders are British-born. Overwhelmingly the victim is someone known to them, either a partner or relative.

Anybody purporting to care about protecting women might start there.

Paul Cornell's National Past Crimes Paul Cornell's National Past Crimes

Paul Cornell's trilogy of Pete Wisdom, Captain Britain, and Spitfire comics! Leonard Kirk! Trevor Hairsine! Elena Casagrande! National character, national guilt, racism, misogyny, self-sabotage, prebuilt nostalgia & the 1970s. With Blade, Excalibur, Meggan, John Lennon, Jack the Ripper & Dracula!

The most important British character in US comics Alfred Pennyworth? Captain Britain? No, it’s a trench-coated, chain-smoking reprobate who this year celebrates his 40th birthday—John Constantine

40 years of John Constantine! Come raise a glass with me at @prospectmagazine.co.uk. With @jamiedelano.bsky.social
@damedenisemina.bsky.social
@ianrankin1.bsky.social

www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/culture/70761/the-most-important-british-character-in-us-comics-john-constantine-hellblazer-alan-moore

#OnThisDay 1305 William Wallace was captured and handed over to the English, in spite of the lucky Lego Han Solo he had been given a short time earlier.

An extract from TNA SP 1/93 f. 68r, which reads: "It is said maliciously that the king's grace should first keep the mother [Elizabeth Boleyn] and after the daughter and now he hath married her [Anne Boleyn] whom he kept afore and her mother also".

One of the few things most people know about Elizabeth Boleyn is that she was accused of sleeping with Henry VIII, both during her lifetime and afterwards. I take a forensic look at these accusations in my book. Who made them? When? What purpose might they have served? Is there any truth to them?

Children hold up copies of Histories most epic ribs. The author Athena Kugblenu is signing a copy

Here's a picture of me at an event that was free for low income familles in Wandsworth. They get a week's festival with rides, activity, workshops and talks. This was the first year they had a book offering

Is "financial uncertainty" code for "tried to steal from a bunch of authors without them kicking up a fuss about it and that didn't work for some reason"

Genuinely, the way my widowed mother has combatted loneliness has been by connecting more with her neighbours, joining a choir, taking up art classes and volunteering work. Young men & Podcasting middle aged fellas, learn from a 70yo woman finally allowed a social life again. No need for fash!