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Olive

@olivera60.bsky.social
536 followers 394 following 430 posts

Music, Politics, NHS and Tennis (watching, not playing). No DMs please.

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Reposted by Olive
paulusthewoodgnome @paulusthewoodgnome.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
🥳 "There is one final thing we need to change if our plan for Britain is to succeed – our politics. And so I am announcing a new national commission on electoral reform. I invite all the political parties to be part of its work." — Andy Burnham www.theguardian.com/politics/liv...
theguardian.com
Burnham says he would put PR in Labour manifesto and scrap triple lock to fund social care – UK politics live
PM, in first speech to party conference as leader, insists his plans are a ‘good deal’ for older people
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Caroline Lucas @carolinelucas.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
So pleased to hear this confirmed in the PM’s speech. Big congrats to @makevotesmatter.bsky.social and all who’ve campaigned for it! At last we have a chance to restore trust in our politics with a system where “everyone’s views count and everyone’s vote matters” 👏👏👏
theguardian.com
Andy Burnham expected to say he will push ahead with electoral reform plans
Exclusive: Labour conference speech will kick off process that could replace current system with proportional representation
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Olive @olivera60.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Ed Miliband wiping back tears when listening to Andy Burnham talking of his dad towards the end of his speech at the Labour party conference.
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Olive @olivera60.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
@mrjamesob.bsky.social I remember my next door neighbour telling me about tiktok over the garden fence during Covid. I'd already heard a little about it and didn't like the sound of it, so I just said it sounds a bit like crack to me. Just going to look up disused railway stations. I love them too!
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Olive @olivera60.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Alex De Minaur plays out of his skin to come back from a set down to take the second set and beat Zverev in a 10 point tie-break. Even though I'm team Europe I was always rooting for De Minaur for this match. So happy for him. #LaverCup
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paulusthewoodgnome @paulusthewoodgnome.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Anti-migrant activist? How about far-right knife wielding thug? 'Daniel Thomas has been charged with criminal damage after a video appeared to show him slashing at a dinghy in the English Channel.' #newsnight www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Anti-migrant activist Daniel Thomas charged after dinghy slashed in Channel
Activist Daniel Thomas is charged in connection with an incident in the English Channel on Tuesday.
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Celeste Headlee @celesteheadlee.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
So, Banksy bought a used yacht, repaired it and retrofitted it to serve as a rescue boat to save migrants in the central Mediterranean. The whole project cost the artist $860,000. Since 2020, the boat has saved more than 3,800 people. londondaily.com/banksy-funds...
londondaily.com
Banksy funds refugee rescue boat operating in Mediterranean - London Daily
Exclusive: UK artist finances bright pink motor yacht that set sail in secrecy to avoid being intercepted by authorities
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Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan @london.gov.uk · 23/09/2026
Through Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, children in more London boroughs will receive a free book every month from birth to age five. This initiative is keeping Dolly’s amazing legacy alive and helping more young Londoners arrive at school ready to learn.
bbc.co.uk
Dolly Parton free book scheme to expand in London
The late singer's Imagination Library posts children a free book every month until they turn five.
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Sarah Murphy @13sarahmurphy.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
That thug sabotaging rescue efforts, racist riots, flags on lampposts, pink ladies wanting to burn down hotels, doxxing charity workers, ICE-style deportation plans, threats to scrap the Equality Act and leave the ECHR… “legitimate concerns” No. A tornado of hate and prejudice set off by Farage.
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Olive @olivera60.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
@mrjamesob.bsky.social I guessed right with JRM. He has a habit every now and then of thinking and saying the absolute opposite of what you think he'd say and think.
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Olive @olivera60.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
@mrjamesob.bsky.social I have no idea but I'm going to have a guess at Jacob Reese-Mog
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paulusthewoodgnome @paulusthewoodgnome.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Perhaps the Met will concede Sadiq Khan has a point. 'A consortium of 5 police forces is to stop working with Palantir in a significant setback for the US technology company’s efforts to establish itself as a key supplier to UK law enforcement.' bsky.app/profile/paul... www.ft.com/content/a1e0...
ft.com
Five UK police forces end Palantir project after two years
Significant setback for US technology company’s bid to establish itself as key supplier to British law enforcement
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Olive @olivera60.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
@mrjamesob.bsky.social Your callers do indeed have courage calling in on such a difficult subject. I certainly wouldn't be able to. Having lived this It's hard enough to listen.
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Reposted by Olive
paulusthewoodgnome @paulusthewoodgnome.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
You would have to be blind not to see that this is aimed at the RNLI.
Screencap of tweet posted on the official Reform UK account, featuring a video of Nigel Farage presenting his show on the unofficial Reform UK news channel, formally known as GB News:

"Charities' actions in aiding and abetting the invasion of our country will be illegal under Reform UK."
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Olive @olivera60.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
@mrjamesob.bsky.social Thanks for the last 2 hours covering the intimidation and despicable attacks on the RNLI. If Farage, Yaxley-Lennon and Musk's army can attack these brave volunteers, they'll attack anyone.
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Matthew Newell 🇺🇦 @matthewnewell.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
@mrjamesob.bsky.social @lbc.co.uk At present I don't think the #RNLI is covered under this act: Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act of 2018. They don't seem to qualify as an "emergency worker." Might give some more protection. BBC News www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Portsmouth RNLI lifeboat station off service after anti-migrant protest
The RNLI says it hopes to have the lifeboat station operational again as soon as possible.
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JointheDots @joiningupthedots.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
This is a blatant threat to the RNLI, who are currently out of action in Portsmouth - ergo not saving lives, because staff are being terrorised. When will Mahmood take domestic terrorism of this nature seriously.
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Ash Oro @ashoro.co.uk · 18/09/2026
@lbc.co.uk and @mrjamesob.bsky.social thank you for the time and the coverage of the story as well as listening to the stories. rnli.org/support-us/g...
rnli.org
Donate to the RNLI and help save lives at sea
Your donations really make a difference. We depend on your generosity to educate people to stay safe and prevent tragedies on and offshore. Donate here.
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Peter Kay @theonlypeterkay.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
@mrjamesob.bsky.social @lbc.co.uk asks “What are we becoming? We’ve turned ourselves into a population where the bravest people in the country are being terrorised and closed down by the biggest cowards, the people who won’t even show their faces.” Fascism in action.
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Sunder Katwala (sundersays) @sundersays.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Reform have launched an app & game for real-time tracking of boats crossing the channel. But some supporters have said it is boring because so little happens. There were 3 boats in last 7 days www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/poli...
independent.co.uk
Fury as Reform UK launch small boats mobile ‘game’
Reform launches mobile game amid questions over party’s £72 million donations
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paulusthewoodgnome @paulusthewoodgnome.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
The whole country is fortunate. We're so lucky... 🫩 Palantir CEO, Alex Karp: "This is just the latest chapter of Tom Watson’s 40-year fight for better public services. We're fortunate to have him guide us as we help the government deliver for the British public." www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
theguardian.com
Former Labour deputy leader Tom Watson joins Palantir
Peer takes full-time position at the controversial company as it fends off pressure from both Andy Burnham’s government and Sadiq Khan
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Sarah Murphy @13sarahmurphy.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
“Last week YouGov polling found nearly three quarters of voters (73%) believe Farage is at least fairly sleazy. And 71% believe Reform UK is similarly disreputable, up 20 points in two years” This is only going in one direction. £72Mill won’t make us like you. www.mirror.co.uk/news/politic...
mirror.co.uk
Nigel Farage is more unpopular than ever among voters, stinging polling shows
Polling by YouGov found that nearly seven in 10 Brits have a negative view of Nigel Farage - the highest level on record - as he and his party battle allegations of sleaze
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paulusthewoodgnome @paulusthewoodgnome.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
This should be required reading for BBC journalists, so when they're interviewing Farage or Tice or Yusuf or Jenrick and they start spouting their well-worn lies about climate change and renewables and net zero, they can call them out rather than letting it slide. www.carbonbrief.org/factcheck-re...
carbonbrief.org
Factcheck: Reform UK’s 45 false or misleading claims about climate and energy - Carbon Brief
Reform UK, led by Nigel Farage, has emerged as a major force in UK politics in recent years – pushing…
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James O’Brien @mrjamesob.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Essential thread.
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Bryan Behar @bryanbehar.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Could you imagine anyone else in the history of history, let alone the President of the United States, so blatantly defiling the memory of our fallen brethren? What a terrible, broken person.
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Zeteo UK @zeteo.uk · 07/09/2026
A protester was struck over the head with a walking stick at Reform UK’s conference. Lee Anderson joked about a “quick whip-round” for the man whose stick was damaged. The bigger issue is what political leaders legitimise when they laugh at violence against protesters.
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Olive @olivera60.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
@mrjamesob.bsky.social Condoning violence is exactly exactly what Robert Jenrick was doing and should be investigated by the police. As for Lee Anderson, the 'but' after saying he didn't condone violence is saying completely the opposite. Not to mention the buying of a new stick for that thug.
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Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 07/09/2026
Newsom: "He's not screwing around. He wasn't screwing around when he called Greg Abbott for 5 seats, said he was entitled to 5 seats. Why does he do that? Because he knows he's going to lose the election unless he rigs the election before one vote is cast. That is what we're up against."
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Olive @olivera60.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
@mrjamesob.bsky.social The police have got to clamp down on this violence against the woman protester at Reform's conference. Else it's the start of a slippery slope. I think it's truly scary to see how people can behave like this at a lone woman who was simply protesting. I'm sorry, It's a cult!
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paulusthewoodgnome @paulusthewoodgnome.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
I wonder how many of these shit stains have issues with Muslim women covering their faces? bsky.app/profile/paro...
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Adam Bienkov @adambienkov.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
The Nigel Farage and Reform foreign donations scandal excluded from all but one national newspaper front page this morning. No sign of it at all on the front pages of the two papers which splashed the polls secretly funded by a Reform donor earlier this year
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Sunder Katwala (sundersays) @sundersays.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
Zia Yusuf has tweeted this about the leader of Camden Council, Sagal Abdi-Wali, who has lived in Camden for over 35 years, after arriving as a child refugee in the early 1990s. (Nadhim Zahawi, born in Baghdad to an Iraqi Kurdish family, came to the UK as an 11 year old:should be asked about this)
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Sarah Murphy @13sarahmurphy.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
Chris Mason (BBC) reports on his “interview” with Nigel Farage. It’s not an interview. It’s an idiotic, moany rant from Farage about how he’s being picked on cos he reckons he’s a threat to the establishment. And Mason just folds like a wet cardboard box in the face of this delusional bollox.
Farage pictured with his innocent face on… (it’s hideous - my opinion) 

Nigel Farage insists he's 'broken no rules'He added: "The point is, we live in a complainants' society. If you complain about me, automatically that triggers an investigation."
He said that political parties were "constantly writing to all the authorities", meaning Reform was "under investigation every day for virtually everything we do".
"There's a big picture here. The old two-party system that has dominated since the end of the First World War feels for the first time it faces an existential threat.
"There is a whole ecosystem with a century of development around this. And we come along from virtually nowhere and threaten the whole thing.”
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paulusthewoodgnome @paulusthewoodgnome.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
'On Thursday, he received the qualified backing of the powerful Saudi Arabian Football Federation.' A sentence that tells you everything you need to know about Infantino and FIFA. www.bbc.co.uk/sport/footba...
bbc.co.uk
Gianni Infantino: Uefa's attack on Fifa president escalates football's civil war
Explosive court documents reveal the growing bitterness of Uefa's feud with Fifa president Gianni Infantino, Dan Roan reports.
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Olive @olivera60.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
Just arrived at London bridge and of course the busker is singing Dolly Parton's Jolene. ❤️
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Richard Ferro, MD MSc @richferro.com · 25/08/2026
I’ll always remember Dolly Parton for the fact that she donated $1 million in 2020 to the research that led to Moderna’s COVID vaccine, as well as millions more for childhood vaccine and cancer research. She was an immensely talented, kind, and giving person.
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Library of Congress @librarycongress.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
The Library is devastated to learn of the passing of Dolly Parton, a music legend and titan of children's literacy. Her Imagination Library program has earned multiple Library Literacy Awards and, in 2018, she visited us to donate its 100 millionth book to our collection and host a story time. 🦋❤️
Dolly Parton reads to children in the Library’s Great Hall in 2018. Photo by Shawn Miller.
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Joel @itsjoels.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
This is the letter kids got at the end of Dolly’s Imagination Library. I defy you to read this and not cry.
Sorry, I can’t type that.
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Dr. Lucky Tran @luckytran.com · 25/08/2026
Do not normalize children dying from measles. Measles was previously eliminated in the US, thanks to vaccines. When children die from measles, it means that adults have catastrophically failed to protect them because they have rejected basic science.
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Timmy Jackpots, The $13,250 Diamond Dazzler @tbone.malware-virus.biz · 26/08/2026
my wife has a friend who sent Dolly Parton a painting she made & a letter explaining how much Dolly's music meant to her while she was transitioning. Dolly responded to it personally & paid for her top surgery. Sounds like an urban legend but it's real. I think we're going to more stories like this.
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paulusthewoodgnome @paulusthewoodgnome.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Dolly Parton is one of those celebrities who does seem to be genuinely universally loved and I think that love is probably only going to grow now that she's gone. bsky.app/profile/tusk...
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Olive @olivera60.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
@mrjamesob.bsky.social Listening to your caller talking about his neighbour feeding foxes & encouraging rats. Foxes kill & eat rats so as long as you don't overfeed a fox this will continue. And didn't Cyndi Lauper cause a storm on morning TV by saying tree rats when talking about squirrels?
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Olive @olivera60.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
Oh wow, it's actually raining! What a wonderful sight and sound.
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Natasha Devon @natashadevon.bsky.social · 16/08/2026
Had to disable comments on clip of me talking about Jason Arday yesterday on lbc because of sheer volume vile comments suggesting (just as they did with George Floyd) that he ‘deserved’ it. I think Black people are getting pretty sick of the ‘be perfect or expect us to kill you’ routine.
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The Gearwitch @gearwitch.bsky.social · 16/08/2026
So... let's get this right. A woman who happily wrote lies and disinformation during the Brexit campaign and was, presumably, paid handsomely to do so, justifies the media campaign that resulted in his suicide, on the basis that he was 'telling lies'. Yeah, right...
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paulusthewoodgnome @paulusthewoodgnome.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
Two weeks ago... "I cannot stand by when an autistic man is on the ground and the kicking continues. This is relentless bullying of a vulnerable autistic man and raises safe-guarding issues." — Simon Baron-Cohen, cognitive neuroscientist at Trinity College, Cambridge www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Cambridge professor at centre of plagiarism row defends his work
Prof Jason Arday admitted errors in his work but said he was not a liar after attracting criticism online.
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Chris Dwyer @chrisgdwyer.bsky.social · 15/08/2026
It’s very depressing. Hounded by Spectator among others. Blood on their hands.
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Rhodri Marsden @rhodri.biz · 15/08/2026
I couldn’t believe the Telegraph’s tally
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Russ Jones @russincheshire.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
Farage's by-election stunt wasted enough public money to pay for free dental care for every child in his constituency. Does he care? No. He just wanted to avoid legitimate parliamentary scrutiny of his dodgy bungs. Which he won't. It'll start again immediately. What a cock.
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Adam Bienkov @adambienkov.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
Nigel Farage suggests the police advised him against attending the result of the Clacton by-election. Essex Police completely deny this, telling the BBC "we have a proportionate and robust policing operation to ensure the safety and security of all participants in the count"
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