Rob Wickings

The Swipe Volume 4 Chapter 4 Apparently I have a doppelgänger. Two separate pals on two separate occasions have sworn, hand on heart, that they have seen a fella with not just my physical appearance but gait and stance stridin…

70s SF two ways, the best way to protest against tyranny and a poem which acts like a machine. Fret not, pet, The Swipe has got you covered for all eventualities.
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The Swipe Volume 4 Chapter 3 I’m under both the clock and the gun a bit this week, so let’s jump straight into the serious business. Enjoy links on dangerous caramel, drone metal, skronky jazz and a Disney movie you really nee…

Hostile caramel, sparkly prog and sonic cathedrals. Let's get it on!
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Pockets Cover image by beasturnchen on Pixabay I have a little ritual I have to enact before I leave the house. A simpler version of the old Catholic mnemonic — spectacles, testicles, wallet and watch. Thi…

Pockets for all!
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The Swipe Volume 4 Chapter 2 Hands up who had ‘actual flippin’ blizzard, ICE murder in Minnesota and a potential annexation of Greenland’ on their scorecards for the first week of 2026. The soap opera of life in the second qua…

Make some Middle English noise, pasta for breakfast and MTV your way. Time to boss 2026.

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The Swipe Volume 4 Chapter 1 So here we are again. The start of a new year—depending of course on your calendar of choice. Yet again we were lured past midnight on New Year’s Eve by the promise of big fireworks (Caversham, you…

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In which I embrace my grumpy old man status.

I'll take that. Thank you.

Thank you, Katie! It would have been easy to do a best of year post, but this felt more the sort of thing I wanted to say.

The Three Parts Of Christmas It all happens so quickly. One minute you’re rushing around and over-thinking, the panic rising like a bubble of acidic bile, convincing yourself that you haven’t done enough, it’ll never be enough…

Rob's theory towards a three-part version of Christmas, Betwixtmas and after.
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Right backacha, Katie. Have a lovely low-key time. Just about to serve up the Christmas feast!

Thank you, darlin!

I'm sold. You always come up with the good recommends.

She mentioned it. I think Pluribus runs off such a clever idea. Very keen to give it a try.

Must make a start on DCR. With me and you on it, I think I can get our beloved mutual on board...

Apologies for the 30 second gap between my finding out about this and buying it. My reactions are usually sharper.

A prang, a playlist, a little bit of Paradise. Have some Swipe, my lovelies.
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I still read his newsletter, and he's still putting plenty of work out. I honestly can't tell what work he's done behind the scenes which may (or not) have settled matters, but he seems content with his lot, so who knows?

Your attention please. Due to entirely avoidable circumstances and poor choice of approach angle round a tree, I have had to speak to car insurance people. On the phone.
On the PHONE.
I am now accepting thoughts, prayers and commiserations for my emotional damage.
The car will recover. I may not.

The Olivia Nuzzi and RFK Jr. Affair Is Messier Than We Ever Could Have Imagined Inside the most important, and also least important, story of our time

I wrote 4000 words about Nuzzi/Lizza/RFK, please read it before it gets taken down by HR

Excellent cross-culture referencing. I have no idea what OTC is. But I now know exactly what it sounds like.

Cricket only works if you're watching it live with a nonstop flow of booze.
Curling, however, is tense and tactical from the first stone.

Several Sorts Of Sacred – EXCUSES AND HALF TRUTHS From Glastonbury Tor, you can find a kind of perspective. Below you, the lines of the earth are clear and sharp—both the natural contours of the land, and the hedges, fields and roads carved onto t…

No Swipe this week. Instead, join C and I on a pilgrimage, as we search for something sacred.
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November 14th: A Partially Muscled Skeleton Stands By The Perimeter Fence And Screams For Thirty Seconds Before Vanishing.

Happy Partially Muscled Skeleton Stands By The Perimeter Fence And Screams For Thirty Seconds Before Vanishing Day to those who celebrate!

Please make this happen, @2000ad.bsky.social.

Rising – EXCUSES AND HALF TRUTHS I couldn’t tell you where it started, this thing with Bruce and I. Perhaps it was the thundercrack, the twelve-gun salute from Mighty Max Weinberg which counts off Born In The USA. Maybe it was the…

In this house, we believe in Bruce Springsteen.
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MONSTER HITS | WROB It’s All Hallow’s Eve Eve, and Rob and Jillian are here to scare up your season. Enjoy a fat dose of the best Halloween music, chat, unidentifiable bongs and honks from our malfunctioni…

A little treat for All Hallows Eve Eve - three hours of spooky tunes, creepy chat and that whole David S. Pumpkins vibe. Any questions?
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OK, so the first line of @nytimes Connections made me laugh this morning. A hand across the oceans?

The Swipe Volume 3 Chapter 31 – EXCUSES AND HALF TRUTHS We took a wander out into the woods near Maidenhead last week, as an attempt to keep some sort of exercise regime running. The weather was greyer than expected, but the colour of the leaves and fol…

In this week's Swipe — pivots, pumpkins and pellicles. Spicy!

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FINALLY.

The Swipe Volume 3 Chapter 30 – EXCUSES AND HALF TRUTHS This week, a little spurt of writing advice as we gather pace towards a month made for hunkering down and making a dent in your wordcount. The organisation behind Nanowrimo hasn’t made any friends …

A slightly gloomier than usual Swipe, but there's carbonara and cocktails in the mix at least.
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The Swipe Volume 3 Chapter 28 – EXCUSES AND HALF TRUTHS The shift from summer to autumn seems to happen more suddenly than with any other seasonal switch. It’s been accelerated this year, perhaps, by our week in Northumberland — the return to work sudde…

A message from the mayor, 200 songs and embracing the eternal circle. It must be Saturday. Give it a Swipe. excusesandhalftruths.com/2025/10/04/t...