Chris Lines

I cried! But that shouldn't put you off seeing I Swear.

A film about ignorance and understanding, cruelty and kindness, it's very well written, acted and directed.

The Book Club verdict on CloudStreet was positive. I enjoyed it, liked getting to know the characters, laughed out loud at times and got a strong sense of the environment in post war West Australia. However, I also found it too long, unevenly paced and at times a difficult read.

A weekend in Portsmouth so we saw the rash of English flags hanging from lamp posts and in some house windows. What we also saw were Hope not Hate posters as well as other heart-warming posters, stickers and signs - many home-made - promoting kindness, welcoming refugees and opposing racism.

The Leicester goalie dives the wrong way as the ball heads for the net from Adam Idah's penalty, seen from the side.

Good to see Adam Idah's first goal for Swansea but it wasn't enough to beat two classy Leicester goals and a freak one. It wasn't a 1 - 3 performance and we were competitive for most of the game but losing ain't fun.

Who’d have guessed? Nigel’s ‘honest, decent, honourable man’ has admitted taking Russian-linked bribes💰

Warning rejecting budget could cost Senedd politicians their pay "Almost impossible" to keep Senedd running if Welsh government budget falls, says presiding officer.

If Senedd Members cannot agree a budget for Wales, shouldn't they lose more than five per cent of their own budget?
www.bbc.com/news/article...

Paracetamol

An enjoyable watch for the neutral at Swansea today but very frustrating to only get a draw.

The atmosphere in the stadium was disappointingly flat too.

Reform UK's ex-Wales leader Nathan Gill admits pro-Russia bribery Nathan Gill admits eight charges of bribery while being a Member of the European Parliament.

This is a big story - a senior Reform politician taking bribes from Russia. Doesn't this make him a traitor to the UK?
www.bbc.com/news/article...

Disinformation - what's new?

Paintings of south Wales iron works in the industrial revolution were often sanitised for the owners who commissioned them.

One of the many facts discussed by Merthy Tydfil's, Huw Williams, in his talk to Abergavenny's history society.

To ‘ultra-crepidate’ (19th century) is to lecture others on subjects you know very little about.

Two years after being captivated by Irene Vallejo at the Hay Festival I finished her enchanting book, Papyrus, appropriately while in Rome.

Highly recommended, the book will stay with me for some time. I'm sure to dip in to it and to refer to it many a time to come.

Why are the American president's claims about autism the first item on British news bulletins?

He's not our president, the advice doesn't apply here and he's not presented any evidence to support his assertions.

So why spread these claims? What make this the biggest story in the UK?

A general strike has been called in Italy today in support of Palestine. We're in Rome and all services seem to be running as normal. However, we have seen the second big demo in three days.

As wildlife conservation slogans go, in my opinion the whale beats the duck.

CIPR logo. National Inclusion Week 2025 logo. #NowIsTheTime. 15-21 September. PR has a diversity problem. 80% white. 25% privately educated. Nearly 4,000 women forced out mid-career. Gender inequalities. Ethnic minority pay gaps. Barriers to entry and progression. This isn’t inclusion. We have to do better.

We’re proud to support National Inclusion Week 2025.

This year’s theme - #NowIsTheTime - is about urgent, practical steps to embed inclusion across PR and tackle the barriers holding the industry back.

Learn more about our campaign and get involved: bit.ly/3I1TWGu

#CIPRinclusion

Isn't this a case of polarisation? There's a group of people lapping up as much long content as they can get vs. a group who have less and less of an attention span. Just as research shows fewer people are reading but those who do read are reading more.

I try not to use the word hate but the experience of checking in at an airport challenges me.

I don't buy into the conspiracy either because, I agree, I can't imagine Starmer would be capable of it.

However, I CAN believe that Trump responds to blackmail.

As for Andrew, Trump wouldn't be interested because he's only a prince. He wants to deal with his equal: king to king.

They don't. Specifically he doesn't. Clare's conspiracy theory is that he's got damning info on Trump. And that Starmer knew he did. Which is why he got the ambassador job.

Peter Mandelson used to be held up as a master of communications and presentation but this is a disaster about to play out in slow motion.

If he was well advised he'd be himself proactively putting out all the bad news now, preventing the drip feed to come.

British baby dies from whooping cough as vaccination rates fall Infant’s mother had not been vaccinated against the highly infectious disease, which affects the lungs and airways A baby in the UK has died from whooping cough, marking the first such death in the country this year. The infant’s mother had not been vaccinated against the highly infectious disease, which affects the lungs and airways. This death occurred as vaccination rates among children and pregnant women in the UK have fallen to their lowest levels in 15 years. Continue reading...

British baby dies from whooping cough as vaccination rates fall

The slide continues
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

I propose a game. What is the most unlikely internet search result? You're allowed to search on unlikely company sites like this one.

Test cricket is the most wonderful sport. In physical skill and mental strength.

We are regressing. We drink coffee as though it comes in a child's beaker - through a small hole even when served indoors.

So much for international law and the role of the UN.

So much for the UK's influence and our policy of de-escalation.

An entertaining 'Conversation at The Chapel' with Ian Leslie, author of 'John & Paul: A Love Story in Songs.' Told chronologically, the story was not just the love of two men making such great music together, but one of the author's obvious love for Paul and growing love for John.

Running, chasing, punching, fighting, swimming, driving, flying, grunting, groaning and gurning, #MissionImpossible:TheFinalReckoning was an enjoyable mix of stone tunnels, National Geographic landscapes and rehashed James Bond sets, all in the cause of a cybersecurity warning.