iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Turns out Row D was in fact the front row, which meant I had a close-up unblocked view of UNEXPECTED SPECIAL GUEST JUN SENOUE. Holy SHIT this show is awesome. #SonicLive

Jun Senoue playing his trademark Sonic guitar

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

This is me when I try to play guitar with my big giant ape-fingers. #SonicLive

Closeup of Shadow the Hedgehog playing guitar on the “Sonic Live in Concert” artwork. His giant gloved fingers basically cover half the length of the fretboard.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Back in London for another full nerdy rockout with my beloved blue blur. I have friends I only ever see at these events – we’ve been gathering and catching up every few years for nearly two decades now. It’s like our own personal 7 Up series. It’s lovely. 💙 #SonicLive

Front row view of the stage at the Hammersmith Apollo, set up with a large screen showing “Sonic Live in Concert”.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

I can’t remember the last time our cat sat like a normal cat.

A tuxedo cat on a sofa, lying on his back with his front twisted around 180 degrees and his paws sticking up in the air.

A tuxedo cat on a sofa, lying on his back with his front twisted around 180 degrees and his paws sticking up in the air. He’s looking into the camera with a bemused expression.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

Favourite thing I learned today: if you travel in any cardinal direction from Geneva (N/S/E/W), you still end up in France.

Screenshot of the French-Swiss border around Geneva. The French border is seen wrapping around Geneva such that France is accessible from it on all four sides.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

Was at a pub quiz last night with one of those terrible “two famous people morphed together using AI” rounds. As if the whole concept doesn’t piss me off, one of the morphs (below) turned out to be “1970s Elton John combined with 2020s Elton John”. Fuck the fuck off.

A black and white picture of Elton fucking John, looking like Elton fucking John and not two versions of Elton fucking John

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 17/08/2026

34. Hidden Cats in Tokyo (2025) Gameplay as fun/chill as ever. You can tell they upped the budget for this one – it has a full narrative that hits all the Japanese sci-fi tropes, even ending with a big Godzilla/Gundam inspired kaiju battle. In what is essentially a furry Where’s Wally game!

Screenshot of the final boss of the game “Hidden Cats in Tokyo”. A giant cat-shaped Gundam robot is doing battle with a giant cat/Godzilla hybrid with a fiery tail.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

33. Is This Seat Taken? (2025/2026) Enjoyed this game so much last year, I bought and completed it again on PlayStation. Wonderful wholesome short-but-sweet game about finding everyone their ideal seat at various events, locations and on modes of transport.

Screenshot from the video game “Is This Seat Taken”. A seating layout for a small movie theater is shown with various characters scattered in seats. The currently selected character, sat in the front row, is wearing a big hat. The character sat behind them looks disgruntled and is saying “It blocks my view!”

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

I can’t remember the last time our cat sat like a normal cat.

A tuxedo cat lies on his back on a hallway rug like he’s been shot by the mafia

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

…phew. Stand down from panic stations. Now stationed at a cliff top cafe, counting down the hours to hopefully a glorious totality. Seven hours to go! #Eclipse2026

Diners on a cliff top overlooking the ocean. Skies are blue and clear.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

Spot the Coke Zero. Stupidest rebranding ever.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 31/07/2026

I can’t remember the last time our cat sat like a normal cat.

A tuxedo cat lies on a rug flat on his back, legs akimbo with crotch on full show, with his head twisted 90° to the left and his arms stretched out above him like an Olympic diver doing a yoga pose.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 30/07/2026

I’m guessing this is the same reason the “islands” of Great Britain and Ireland are also in tiny font!

Screenshot of the Irish Sea from Google Maps. The text “Great Britain” and “Ireland” is in very small font on their respective islands, next to the much larger font of “United Kingdom” and “Ireland”.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 26/07/2026

They have an escape room set in the Westgate Tower which is the coolest location of any escape room I’ve ever done. You’re in the actual museum in the castle, climbing up and down the spiral stairs, and you finish outside on top of the battlements having stolen Magna Carta. It was so cool.

David and Marsha smiling holding a (fake) copy of Magna Carta, with stone battlements behind them.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 26/07/2026

We’re having a lovely pre-wedding weekend getaway in Canterbury – but you wouldn’t know about it, because in the 17 years since I started coming here, this city is somehow still a complete deadzone for any shred of mobile phone signal. That aside, I still love this place. Could easily retire here.

View of Canterbury from the top of the Westgate Tower, looking down the High Street with the cathedral in the distance.

View of Canterbury from the top of the Westgate Tower, looking southwest down the river.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 20/07/2026

“Oh my god, Dr Doom stopped Thor’s axe with his fingers, he’s so powerful!” Please, Shadow the Hedgehog did that two years ago. 😏 #AvengersDoomsday

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

Ordered some wine bottle bags for the wedding and they came with instructions.

Warning:
Product must far away from fire.
Children must be used under supervision.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 11/07/2026

At my cousin’s wedding, and they’ve stuck on a screen and the band have started blasting Vindaloo and Three Lions, and half the wedding party have changed into England tops. Most surreal wedding ever. #NORENG

A wedding party holding England flags are standing on a dance floor watching a screen with Thomas Tuchel on it.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 09/07/2026

At London’s newest concert venue for my first classic rock gig in a couple years – and the closest I’ll ever get to seeing Van Halen live. ❤️🤘

The entrance to a concert venue is pictured, with “British Airways ARC” across the top. On a light up sign above the doors are written the words “SAMMY HAGAR”.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 05/07/2026

Had my stag party today. 20 people doing a whole bunch of retro gaming on a big screen. It was perfect. Couldn’t have asked for more.

A group of 19 people, one of whom is David dressed as Mario.

David dressed as Mario, complete with hat and moustache, doing the classic power pose.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 04/07/2026

Dear BBC News, please do not use these two words to open a headline if that player is still the tournament. #Wimbledon

BBC News headline: “Dimitrov out to rewrite Wimbledon story after beating Berrettini”

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 04/07/2026

Okay, after THAT Cape Verde goal, Bluesky finally feels like old school Twitter. #ARGCPV #WorldCup

Screenshot of David’s Bluesky feed. Every single person on the page is posting all-caps reactions to Cape Verde’s second equaliser against Argentina in the World Cup.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 03/07/2026

The Prosecco delivery for our wedding arrived, and I’ve had to fight the urge to play the most expensive ever game of 25-pin bowling.

25 sealed bottles of Prosecco standing on a wooden floor, in an approximate triangle.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 03/07/2026

31. GoldenEye 007 (1997/2023) We’re planning some classic Goldeneye deathmatches at my stag party this weekend, so I blasted through the game on NSO to unlock all the multiplayer stuff. And wow, the NSO version runs so smoothly! Once you remap the controls, it’s basically flawless. Still holds up.

Screenshot from the Nintendo Switch version of GoldenEye 007, showing the big screen of the Bunker level.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 02/07/2026

30. Öoo (2025) Short and sweet little platform puzzle game about a caterpillar with an explosive butt. Really. Only has one mechanic but uses it to great effect in some ingenious traversal puzzles set to very chill music. The abundance of hidden tunnels reminded me of Wario Land II in places too 👌

Screenshot from the video game “Öoo”. A 2D retro maze is shown, with a pink caterpillar trying to navigate a zig-zag brick tunnel.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 25/06/2026

Everyone down to Andover, Met Office says we're gonna be an oasis of cool tomorrow! ☃️

Screenshot of the Met Office Weather Warnings page for Friday, zoomed in on a map of North Hampshire. A yellow storm warning covers the left of the screen, a red extreme heat warning covers the right of the screen, and a small strip of land in the middle, including Andover, is not covered by either.

A zoomed out version of the same Met Office warning map for Friday, showing basically the whole of England covered by either a yellow, amber or red warning, except that small strip in Hampshire.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

Please be careful out there – we have officially reached the temperature at which your pets may start to buckle.

A tuxedo cat lying on a rug in a crescent shape, as if his spine has bent back on itself. Like a big furry Olympic diver.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

We’re playing Resident Evil 4 and Margaret Thatcher’s just turned up.

A character from the game Resident Evil 4 bearing a striking resemblance to Margaret Thatcher.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

Binx has assumed the heatwave position.

A tuxedo cat lying on a couch, manspreading with his crotch in the air and his head and shoulders twisted around facing backwards

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 20/06/2026

29. Metroid Prime 4: Beyond (2025) Was apprehensive going into this, but I had a really great time! So nice to have new Prime to play. Loved the NPCs, who made me really care about their fates, and even the open-world segments never got too monotonous. For me, the best Prime since the original.

A screenshot from the game “Metroid Prime 4: Beyond”. Main character Samus is on an alien forest world, shooting creatures with her electric cannon arm.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 14/06/2026

We’re top of the group ahead of Brazil, savour it while we can #HAISCO

2026 FIFA World Cup Group C as it stands, with Scotland on top with three points and Brazil and Morocco joint second with 1 point each

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

I still have mine!! Held together with sellotape and willpower. First strategy guide I ever bought.

A torn, taped-up copy of the N64 Magazine strategy guide for Zelda: Ocarina of Time

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 08/06/2026

28. 007: First Light (2026) I don’t know what to say. This was incredible. It’s been a long time since I’ve wanted to savour a game so much; as a lifelong Bond fan, it left me grinning from ear to ear throughout. A 10/10 blend of Uncharted, Hitman, Spider-Man, and Indiana Jones. 007: First Class.

A closeup of a young James Bond in the video game “007 First Light”.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 08/06/2026

My fiancée and I have a game we play when we drive through rural England, “which village sounds the most like a Tory MP”. My current favourite is this one, on the Dorset/Somerset border.

Google Maps screenshot showing a village called “Brympton d’Evercy”

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 06/06/2026

Okay this moment in #007FirstLight just made me laugh harder than pretty much anything else all year (no spoilers)

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 04/06/2026

We’ve started watching Somebody Somewhere, which is utterly wonderful, but I’m finding it hard to get past the fact that Bridget Everett looks like she could be Jeff Daniels’ younger sister.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 04/06/2026

Once again @learnedleague.com is serving as less of an attempt to improve my quizzing and more of an attempt to get on the Best Wrong Answers list.

Question: “Stephen R. Covey's 1989 blockbuster self-help and personal development book detailed, per its title, the "Seven Habits" of what specific three-word group?”

Correct Answer: “Highly Effective People”

David’s Answer: “Fashion Conscious Nuns”

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 03/06/2026

27. FutureGrind (2019) A short-but-sweet, challenging-but-satisfying physics game that sticks to a basic premise (grinding a bike on rails) and just throws a bunch of courses and challenges at you. A bit repetitive, but never boring. A fun time, even if I did laugh at the save-the-world storyline.

Screenshot from the game “FutureGrind”. A bike with one pink wheel and one blue wheel is doing a flip over a long blue rail, while a pink rail (and various other blue and pink rails) lie ahead. In the background is a futuristic beach scene.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 31/05/2026

Amazing how forest shelter technology has developed. My current forest shelter (bottom right) and an original 80s forest shelter, the size of a brick!

A giant forest shelter (made of lots of sticks in a giant pyramid shape) with a small campfire setup in the front (lots of small sticks in a pyramid shape)

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 30/05/2026

Finally started 007 First Light, and the opening credits sequence started up, and I actually got chills. I felt like a teenager again, watching Pierce Brosnan in the cinema. They’ve nailed it so far. Really feels like a new James Bond adventure, just on a different medium. I’m so happy.

Screenshot from the opening titles of the game “007 First Light”. James Bond is in silhouette against a sunset, with the overlaid text “As Ian Fleming’s James Bond 007 in”

Screenshot from the opening titles of the game “007 First Light”. James Bond is in silhouette against a sunset, firing a smoking gun, with the overlaid title text “First Light”.

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 28/05/2026

26. Mixtape (2026) It’s effectively an interactive John Hughes movie, but my god it nails it. Amazing music choices, and dialogue that had us howling with laughter. The story isn’t that original, but it doesn’t need to be. It’s a warm hug of teen nostalgia, and it doesn’t try to be anything else.

The three main characters of the game Mixtape in a liquor store

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David Strathdee @davidstrathdee.bsky.social · 27/05/2026

Just got this in an email from the Hammersmith Apollo. It’s got official Sega copyright on it. Has this been leaked early by mistake? I can’t find any other information on it online, and it’s not listed on the Apollo website yet. @sonicstadium.org @sonichedgeblog.bsky.social

An ad for “Sonic: Live in Concert”, with the tag “Celebrating 35 Years of the Most Iconic Moments and Music from the Games”, with a date of 30th September 2026, and presale tickets supposedly on sale “Thursday at 10am”. It’s got official Sonic artwork with a Sega copyright statement underneath.

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