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Neil Hughes

@enhughesiasm.bsky.social
314 followers 164 following 84 posts

author, mental health speaker & occasional comedian a welcome breath of tedium in a world of thrills / all bait and no click walkingoncustard.com

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Reposted by Neil Hughes
Sam Freedman @samfr.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
New post: Burnham has opened the door to a "rejoin" manifesto pledge. The politics make more sense than a lot of people seem to realise. I look at what it would involve at every step from pledge to referendum. There are significant barriers but it can be done. samf.substack.com/p/the-route-...
samf.substack.com
The route back into the EU
Back in 2022 I wrote about the long-term prospects for undoing Brexit and made two predictions.
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Matt Hodges @matthodges.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
There's growing experimental evidence¹˒²˒³˒⁴ that LLMs are unusually good at talking people out of entrenched false beliefs and conspiracy theories. ¹ pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39264999/ ² pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41179846/ ³ sciety.org/articles/act... ⁴ connecticut.adl.org/resources/re...
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The Empty City @davidallengreen.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
The insistence by Manchester City on still being aggressive makes little or no sense from a litigation perspective. It seems they are doing it just because they can.
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flyingrodent @flyingrodent.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
I think there’s a duty here to say …And there’s little or no evidence to support this, and most of the people who say things like this are simply crackpots, usually very right wing ones.
"I have no doubt that the pandemic began in Wuhan. I'm almost certain it came out of that laboratory." Today's @ObserverUK Walk is with Tom Tugendhat.
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The Empty City @davidallengreen.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
That the BBC still puts ‘inflated‘ in speech marks tells us things about the state of BBC journalism. Bothsidesism has rotted its soul. www.bbc.co.uk/sport/footba...
bbc.co.uk
Man City guilty charges: Which clubs did 'inflated' money flow to in transfer market?
BBC Sport follows the trail of transfer money flowing to other clubs during Manchester City's period of financial rule-breaking.
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Your Scary Ad Here @cooluser354.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
"As an adult I was too stupid to read instructions to make tacos... and thats why trans people shouldn't have access to healthcare."
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The Empty City @davidallengreen.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
The Oof stones wincing meme
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Dan Neidle @danneidle.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Manchester City cheated Premier League rules, the Commission found. Did it also cheat HMRC? We've examined the decision and leaked Mancini documents. We think City likely failed to pay £12m in tax. There should be a criminal investigation. Thread:
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The Anfield Wrap @theanfieldwrap.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
'The reason Jürgen Klopp builds a team that takes 110 from 114 and wins a European Cup and World Club Cup during that time span...is because they were trying to beat a team that had cheated to the tune of £900m...' ✍️ @knoxharrington.bsky.social column… 👉 Read here: mailchi.mp/theanfieldwr...
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Sam Freedman @samfr.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Every private conversation in Westminster: "Well the triple lock obviously has to go at some point". Every commentator on Burnham: "completely mad to propose getting rid of triple lock - political suicide".
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Neil Hughes @enhughesiasm.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Does it seem likely that Man City cheated for a decade and then suddenly stopped in 2018? Injecting money sounds very addictive and I doubt they just decided to clean up their act one day in 2018.
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Max B 💙 🔶 🇺🇦 🇬🇧 🇪🇺 @maxbrockbank.com · 26/09/2026
Manchester City should ask the electorate of Clacton if they are guilty or not.
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Adam Smith @adamlsmith.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Also worth noting that every success they’ve enjoyed since is fruit of the poison tree. Nothing they’ve won is legitimate. Not a single thing. The Lance Armstrong of football.
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Neil Atkinson @knoxharrington.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Very, very difficult if things are and remain as reported for this not to be the start of a chain of events that lead to expulsion. The scale of the breach of good faith alone makes it hard to see another outcome. Still a lot more process though am sure.
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Peter Geoghegan @petergeoghegan.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Cocaine produces certain types of very visible social ills - which are politically potent But cocaine, as we’re seeing, also fuels very particular types of political movements (that, ironically, feed of unhappiness at the same social ills as above)
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Mark Chadbourn @chadbourn.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Reform’s Nigel Farage mysteriously coming out against a UK government plan to combat Russian disinformation: “Andy Burnham is setting up a Ministry of Truth to clamp down on free speech.”
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Adam Bienkov @adambienkov.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Finally
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Tom Roberts @tpgroberts.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Not to harp on this, but one man has now coordinated the disruption of a port, two separate attacks on the RNLI, and interference with the border force and the police have no further questions? And the Home Secretary has not noticed?
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Sharon O'Dea @sharonodea.com · 22/09/2026
A landlord making £100,000 a month says young people have “no excuse to be poor”. Excellent. I love financial advice. Gather round, children, let's examine how he himself stopped being poor. metro.co.uk/2026/09/20/i...
metro.co.uk
I’m a landlord making £100,000 a month — young people have no excuse to be poor
Samuel bought his first home aged 17 with a 100% mortgage.
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Will Jennings📉🗳️ @drjennings.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
I wouldn't consider myself a particular expert in national security, but it is absolutely obvious what the problem is and what needs to be done. The failure of the UK government to respond to disorder over a sustained period is egregious.
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Tom Roberts @tpgroberts.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
The complete and total collapse of state function in the face of far right extremists. It is frankly ludicrous that Daniel Thomas continues to be at large given the series of crimes committed which he has literally filmed.
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Paul [Atreides] Wood @retroid.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
More than 13 years ago and still utterly correct.
Independant headline:

British public wrong about nearly everything, survey shows
Research shows public opinion often deviates from facts on key social issues including crime, benefit fraud and immigration
Jonathan Paige
Tuesday 09 July 2013 15:16 BST
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Jessica Elgot @jessicaelgot.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Started watching Sky’s War Game last night where Michael Gove is the PM during the Russian attack and I’m afraid it is just very difficult to watch it without thinking of this, one of the great cartoons ever published
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Ian Dunt @iandunt.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
The resilience of immigration in these figures is really troubling. We need the reporting of the fall in small boat and general immigration to ramp up. Reform can come back as long as that issue reigns.
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Gianmarco Soresi @gianmarcosoresi.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
If you’re moved by this guy crying boy oh boy are there some other images and videos you should check out
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Ian Dunt @iandunt.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Lots of talk of growth ahead of the Budget, as if it were a baroque puzzle. Our problem is basic. It's that we no longer support the things which facilitate growth: Europe, immigration, higher education, tax simplification, policy stability. These are all choices and could stop making them anytime.
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g0m @g0m.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
A world where a twist ending is repurposed as a video title. where a thing's climax has been removed, leaving an advertisment for the gap where it used to be. such things are commonplace in. the twilight zone
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Richard Corbett CBE @richardcorbett.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Major opinion poll shows that every constituency in the UK except four would vote to reverse Brexit and rejoin the EU
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Ian Dunt @iandunt.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
This from a party with liberal in the title. Zero moral leadership from either Labour or the Lib Dems on this issue
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Kieran Hurley @kieranhurley.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Bleakly, grimly hilarious that people my age have been hearing this exact same tune on repeat for very literally our entire voting lives now. I'm 40. My daughter starts seconday school next year.
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missinglinkage.bsky.social @missinglinkage.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
David Frazer is an Australian artist. "The Tangled Wood," 2018 wood engraving
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Adam Bienkov @adambienkov.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Why does the BBC have as one of its lead news stories this morning another Britain-hating interview with Jim 'the UK has been colonised by immigrants' Ratcliffe? What public interest is this serving?
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Steve Peers @stevepeers.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
St Augustine of Reform: "Lord, give me scrapping data protection law, but not yet"
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
I've done a deep-dive on the Harborne and Delo mega-donations over the weekend, and whether they may have to be handed back From my reading, a lot of unlikely things have to be true at once for the two £36m 'gifts' to be allowed once the (retrospective) Representation of the People Bill becomes law
bylinetimes.com
Why Reform UK Could Be Forced to Hand Back Their £72m Donations From Crypto Billionaires
Christopher Harborne and Ben Delo gave a record £36 million each over the weekend to Nigel Farage's party, but a new law means they may have to take it all back
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kate bush’s husband @airbagged.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Very rare to see someone like this with principles
macklemore
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I didn't need 10 shows from Ed. I needed 2. Two chances to stand in front of 90,000 people and say the words that somehow became too dangerous to
say.
Free Palestine.
But if those words cost me the stage, while turning the conversation back to Palestine, then it was the most successful tour I've ever been on.
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Jonn Elledge @jonnelledge.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
this is completely and utterly fucking insane
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Syd Barhey Esq. FCA. #FBPE @barheys.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
Call to action ? Change the bloomin law and make sure no one can buy influence in this way. The Representation of the People Bill is making its way through Parliament right now - amend it and fix this. Thats all the action thats needed. #UKLabour
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derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
Apparel Arts was the premiere menswear publication of the early 20th century. It was a trade journal sent to clothiers and tailors, so they could help advise their customers on how to dress. Notice the focus here is on things like cut, styling, and fabrics, rather than brands and celebrities.
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Sunder Katwala (sundersays) @sundersays.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
Harborne has given Reform £36 million to match Delo's £36 million. The Telegraph describes it as a "show of force" from Reform's donors. The two men's £72 million is greater than all of the spending by all political parties on the 2024 GE www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/202...
telegraph.co.uk
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The Empty City @davidallengreen.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
NEW Why holding a placard is a terrorist act, while causing disruption in a balaclava is not The mess caused by ministers and the police not taking terrorism law seriously By me at @prospectmagazine.co.uk www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/ideas/law/th...

Recent events in England now reveal the practical difference between terrorists and protesters. It would seem that terrorists peacefully hold placards and get immediately arrested, while protesters wear black uniforms and balaclavas and disrupt infrastructure and do not get arrested.

How did we get into this mess? How have we placed ourselves in the position where terrorism legislation is used to detain and prosecute peaceful protesters, while those adopting the terror tactics of private armies seem to be free to do as they wish?

The reason is that for some time British politicians have not taken terrorism legislation seriously, and that ministers have got into the habit of misusing terror laws for easy targets.
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Neil Hughes @enhughesiasm.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Lovely cafe I’m in just brought me a second Eggs Benedict they’d cooked by mistake. My teenage self would never believe this but I wisely turned it down despite the first one being absolutely delicious
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flyingrodent @flyingrodent.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
An entire politics and worldview animated by a lively terror that somewhere, somebody might be eating a free cheese sandwich
Sharron Davies HoL MBE O
@sharrond62
x.com
Accept they're not free really are they? The cost the tax payer, when giving children a breakfast can be achieved for 50p at home. The cost to the tax payer is far far higher per breakfast than
50p
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Will Jennings📉🗳️ @drjennings.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
It is completely right to treat the far right mobs roaming our streets as a national security issue. Government has been far too complacent about this for over two years now. This is interlinked with failures to regulate social media platforms and the collapse of domestic policing and intelligence.
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Dr Joanna Nadin @joannanadin.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Heard a BBC vox pop (truly the bottom feeding of broadcast journalism) complain that the RNLI might not be able to get to ‘genuine people’ because they were busy rescuing from small boats. ‘GENUINE PEOPLE’. Imagine being that level of soulless d**k.
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Alex Hern @hern.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
It's finally happened: the improved quality of machine transcription and the greater ability to extract value from unlabelled data means "your tech is eavesdropping on you for marketing purposes" has crossed from "false conspiracy theory" to "true and concerning" www.theverge.com/tech/991190/...
theverge.com
LG TVs caught spying even when offline or on standby
Gamers Nexus comes for LG again.
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🦈 Shark Girl 🦈 @sharkgirl23.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
I'm genuinely curious about this. What is their end game?
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Mic Wright @brokenbottleboy.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
The Times has run a story this morning about how ‘polite’ the masked men in Dover were to three white ladies on a train. Propaganda in its clumsiest form.
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Sam Freedman @samfr.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
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Nat Guest @unfortunatalie.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
It's hardly the thing most of note from this clip but why do both of them look like 12 year olds dressing up as 60 year olds from the eighties.
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Otto English @ottoenglish.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
Before reading this place a cushion below your jawline
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