iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Sorry rant over. I'm going back to the joy that is Wednesday night telly -- Ted Lasso, Slow Horses etc etc etc.

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Folk were thrilled today, hopeful even, thinking Burnham was going to abolish the obscene cost of social care. You might still have to sell your home to line some private equity profit. So now Burnham's got himself in a jam having to deal with their disappointment once the penny drops

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We could start with the private equity companies making obscene profits while the carers who work for them get paid pitiful wages? Start there. Overhaul the care for profit system. That would be progressive. A wealth tax. Why not? We all deserve dignity and respect in old age.

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We tried to keep my dad at home for as long as possible. My cousin and I did two overnights a week each, then paid for someone to stay with him the other three. That cost a lot of money too. Yes, we need reform.The whole social care system / welfare system / taxation needs a complete overhaul but..

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The Scottish Government's policy of free personal care is welcome. My dad got 4 visits a day before he went into a home. But staying in your own house till the end isn't always possible. Not if you can't stay by yourself overnight. Sometimes a care home is the only alternative

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Surely, the devil is in the detail and there wasn't a lot of that when it came to clarity on Burnham's big social care pronouncement. In fact there was a lot of posts from Labour comms today clarifying what he actually meant.

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4. Your free personal care allowance will also go to the care home. Towards your care. IE personal hygiene, laundry, meals etc (I think hairdressing and chiropody are extra. Then they give you a bit of pocket money out of your pension)

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3. Private equity companies still control care homes. They still charge fees that mean most residents must sell their homes. (The same in Scotland) The fees are eye watering. They take your pensions (private and public) and use them towards the fees. The rest is topped up by savings or house sales

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2. What he didn't make clear was he was talking about personal care, not residential care. That's an important distinction. He didn't mean you wouldn't have to sell your home to go into a care home. He meant that access to personal care would be free. (In England btw. It already is in Scotland)

Andrea Gibb @gibbzer.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

Thoughts on the Burnham 'free social care' pledge everyone is lauding as hugely progressive. Judging by the socials today he left folk confused on the policy by stating categorically that no one should ever have to sell their home in order to get access to free social care. So far so good. But....

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I started buying vintage frocks when I was in Uni and wore them all through the 80s and 90s. Couldn't get into most of these now sadly. What a time it was.

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Andrea Gibb @gibbzer.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

Closing my Etsy shop but if anyone fancies anything let me know. Open to offers. Genuine vintage frocks etc. Here's the shop link. www.etsy.com/uk/shop/Blac... And here's a vintage photo of me when I was in All Creatures Great and Small and got to wear a ton of beautiful vintage gear.

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Andrea Gibb @gibbzer.bsky.social · 02/08/2026

The Anish Kapoor exhibition at The Hayward is breathtaking.

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Rob Morgan @durutti74.bsky.social · 26/07/2026

The DWP are asking for people to contribute evidence for a forthcoming review of Carers Allowance and how it operates. Admittedly this is niche, but please spread the word so it reaches the right people. www.gov.uk/government/c...

gov.uk

Carer's Allowance: call for evidence

This call for evidence is being administered by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to gather information and views to build on the Department’s existing evidence. What we hear will help shape ...

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Andrea Gibb @gibbzer.bsky.social · 20/05/2026

In other news, Michelle Pfeiffer is beyond words phenomenal in Margo's Got Money Troubles (Apple TV) What an icon.

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Andrea Gibb @gibbzer.bsky.social · 20/05/2026

Thank you all so much for your heartfelt and heartwarming messages about the late and oh so great Mr Ricketts. X

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That's a lovely thing to say. He was the most brilliant communicator and he truly loved all the connections he made on his socials.

Thank you. He would have been in his element though also totally horrified but the state everything is in. X

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I am grateful for the ones we had, he was really good for me. xx

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You could always rely on him to see the bigger picture. He was a one off.

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Andrea Gibb @gibbzer.bsky.social · 03/05/2026

Simon and I were together for ten years before he died and It makes me happy to know he is still remembered. He was a beautiful man and today would have been his 58th birthday. He was only 50 when he died, no age at all so thank you @wayneconnolly.bsky.social for this post.

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Watched The Battle Of Algiers the other night. It's, quite simply, a masterpiece. And it could not be more relevant for what's going on today. It's a superb exploration of colonialism and the moral complexity that arises out of that condition. If can find it, see it.

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Andrea Gibb @gibbzer.bsky.social · 22/04/2026

Gave just discovered 'Margo's Got Money Troubles' on Apple and am loving it. Elle Fanning and Michelle Pfeiffer are superb. It's well worth your time. Review Ends.

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Andrea Gibb @gibbzer.bsky.social · 20/04/2026

It's so so good. Everything about it. Writing, acting, premise. Amazing achievement.

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Andrea Gibb @gibbzer.bsky.social · 15/04/2026

The Pitt deserves all the praise. Totally brilliant. 5 stars. Review ends.

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Glen O'Hara @gsoh31.bsky.social · 13/04/2026

Those 'conservative Christians' who helped bring us to this point? I want them pursued and made to admit they were wrong. What's Christian about any of this? For that matter, what's conservative about it? The perversion of religious tropes and themes has bent the US out of all recognition.

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Allison Gill @muellershewrote.com · 13/04/2026

Man. Person. Camera. Jesus. Doctor.

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Irish Literary Times @irishlittimes.bsky.social · 31/03/2026

“I can’t think of a case where poems changed the world, but what they do is they change people’s understanding of what’s going on in the world.” Seamus Heaney

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Andrea Gibb @gibbzer.bsky.social · 08/03/2026

'We are our mother's savage daughters. We will not cut our hair. We will not lower our voice' www.youtube.com/watch?v=tege...

youtube.com

Ekaterina Shelehova - Savage Daughter

YouTube video by ShelehovaVEVO

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Andrea Gibb @gibbzer.bsky.social · 28/02/2026

Timothy Snyder, author of On Tyranny has written a substance about Trump's possible motives. snyder.substack.com/p/why-attack...

snyder.substack.com

Why Attack Iran?

Our Authoritarianism and Our Corruption

the pickwicker man @pickwick.bsky.social · 27/02/2026

Reposted by Andrea Gibb

Remember when parties who lost elections used to be like "This is a strong message from the electorate and we will listen and learn and change" rather than "Fuck everyone who didn't vote for us, you're all extremists trying to destroy Britain"

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Adil Ray @adilray.bsky.social · 27/02/2026

And despite being told they’re anti semitic and homophobic they voted for a party led by a gay, Jewish man. This is significant.

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Adil Ray @adilray.bsky.social · 27/02/2026

Despite being continually accused of not integrating, Muslims have voted in numbers, and against a party with a Muslim Home Sec whose immigration policies and actions regarding Gaza they strongly opposed.Instead they found common value with a white British woman who spoke to them locally and beyond.

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Kieran Hurley @kieranhurley.bsky.social · 09/02/2026

Perhaps one lesson to be taken from Starmer's fate is that if you're going make things like integrity and good judgement key pillars of your political persona, you do then still have to demonstrate a little bit of these qualities once in a while

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Andrea Gibb @gibbzer.bsky.social · 04/02/2026

This is an astonishing piece of writing. It will make you rage, cry and despair. (It could also be triggering so read with care) www.thetimes.com/life-style/c...

thetimes.com

I studied the latest Epstein files. As a woman, this is what I felt

They show a hidden world oiled by porn-saturated misogyny. I spent two days reading them

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Andrea Gibb @gibbzer.bsky.social · 31/01/2026

Friends Again tonight with the bold @nicolameighan.bsky.social Excited much? I should coco.