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Jo Kibble (Political Animal)

@politicanimal.bsky.social
5.8K followers 1.3K following 15K posts

politic_animal from the Musk shop. Local government policy adviser by day. Timetable wrangler/travel challenge story-teller by day and night. Once branded ‘Twitter’s answer to Phileas Fogg’ YouTube: youtube.com/@travelling_turtle?si=W…

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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 2m
Enjoying cooking with this veteran book, but it does show it’s 1997-vintage somewhat by calling for you to use a pack of unsalted plain crisps to top a gratin with. Bring back the little sachets of salt! (Frankly, I think even in 1997 it would have been a bit of a mission to source unsalted crisps.)
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 2h
Very much here for Jon waking up and choosing violence by arguing (not without justification) that Cardiff to Wrexham is actually a better rail service than Paris to Brussels.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 4h
I’ve seen some astonishing things levelled at PMs by leaders of the opposition, but this is surely the first time one has accused the premier of being the reaper of souls.
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Reposted by Jo Kibble (Political Animal)
StatsJew @statsjew.bsky.social · 6h
It sucks that Palestinians have such shitty allies. But antisemitism is deeply baked into the world, and anyone wading into activism on the conflict needs to educate themselves to see it where it's hiding.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 6h
Going to the cinema again today, but this time *with* Clara, who is seeing Sense & Sensibility for the second time in as many days. Apparently it has lots of doggies in it, and she approved of that yesterday.
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Reposted by Jo Kibble (Political Animal)
Stephen Bush @stephenkb.bsky.social · 20h
One thing I find endlessly funny about the rise of AI is that it has revealed that there is a large number of people who believe that the reason they wrote essays at school or university is their teachers were desperately waiting for them to provide a definite answer to “Lear: what’s up with him?”
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 23h
Ok, so *now* we get to understand why the MP for Runcorn was so obsessed with not being platformed by a student society at Bangor Uni. It’s the most convenient for her. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
theguardian.com
Reform MP raises concerns about second homes – then buys one for £800,000
Sarah Pochin bought Anglesey property two days after writing to minister about impact of second homes on rural communities
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 23h
The Guardian’s picture editor determined to ensure we get a good view of the Parthenon marbles, fair play.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
In light of this, I have been relieved of parenting duties for the day so I can go and see both de Gaulle films at the Institut Français. Who lack the courage to show it as a double bill and are programming Part 2 5 mins before Part 1 ends. But I am not to be put off. I’m taking my own croissants.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
[spots some crows bobbing around on the road] ooh, how seasonal and atmospheric, nice [gets to station, spots crow pecking at the carcass of a squirrel lying between the lines having been hit by a train] that’s quite enough of that, thanks
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Lord Archer of Weston-I’d-Have-Been-A-Super-Mayor (He wouldn’t have been, but let me wheel out that one last time.)
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Reposted by Jo Kibble (Political Animal)
Ste Jormur @stejormur.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
static.klipy.com
Brass Eye: One Thing I Did Want To Happen
ALT: Brass Eye: One Thing I Did Want To Happen
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
They used to call this Operation Yewtree.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
Quite surprising findings for someone like me who lives practically next door to a big M&S and Sainsburys in a ward where the Tories got 14% in May, but I guess a) London’s special and b) lots of people drive to them from Eltham.
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Reposted by Jo Kibble (Political Animal)
People's Government of the Pelargir Commune 🇺🇦🇱🇹🇵🇸🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 @dov.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
The only fair one state solution would be so binational it makes Belgium look centralised.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
At a bring-your-baby pub quiz in a highly historic pub. (It’s where Truss and Kwarteng planned the mini-budget. To be honest, I’m not sure what the point of having a Labour council is when they haven’t yet put up a blue plaque for services rendered.)
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Reposted by Jo Kibble (Political Animal)
DismalChips DIED FIFTY YEARS AGO THIS VERY NIGHT @dismalchips.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
The witch from the BBC Microcomputer game Granny's Garden. It's an extremely large-pixel picture of a blue-faced witch with blue skin, yellow eyes and green hair. It used to properly shit me up.
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Reposted by Jo Kibble (Political Animal)
BeijingPalmer @beijingpalmer.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
The parish newsletter should have 1990s clip art as nature intended
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
Less admiring the Trent valley sunset, daddy, and more getting my dinner ready.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
Back at quasi-ecclesiastical Crewe.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
Very grateful that Powys/the Welsh Government decided a year ago to provide Sunday buses to Montgomery. Makes getting home with the baby so much easier. But it is hilarious that Monty (pop 1,200) has a bus every 2hrs, while just across the border Shrewsbury (pop 76,000) has no Sunday buses at all.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
Introducing Clara to a proper dark, stary Welsh night on the walk home.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
At a movie showing in a town hall for a sub-1000 population town in the Welsh borders. The pre-show adverts are for the shop and the pub. I think the chances anyone is here who doesn’t know of the existence of these amenities are pretty slim.
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Reposted by Jo Kibble (Political Animal)
Robin Wilde @robinwilde.me · 03/10/2026
I can hear the screeching U-turn that happened during the naming of this business
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
Nice morning for a walk to the county war memorial.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
I love the detail that the guy drove to do the terrorism in a sodding Smart car, the most ULEZ-compliant vehicle on the face of the planet.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Is there a greater joy as a travelling parent than finding yourself on one of the c.6 trains on the network which have straps on the changing tables which a) exist and b) aren’t broken? TBF, London NorthWestern’s new-ish class 730s are delightfully well designed for the buggy-wielding classes.
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Reposted by Jo Kibble (Political Animal)
Anthony Zacharzewski @anthonyzach.be · 02/10/2026
Can Lib Dems survive the onset of the AI age?
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Stick them on a tapestry-replacement rail service on the Elizabeth Line to see the replica in Reading. They’ll never know the difference.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
I think the correct description for these ducks at Mudchute Farm is ‘absolute units’.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Your comic book pictograms for the various animals is a level of inaccuracy I can live with. But giving the DLR a pantograph? That’s just taking economy with the actualité a step too far.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Today in transport infrastructure that can apparently put the baby to sleep: the Silvertown Tunnel.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
It’s great that we have a nice little Italian deli up the hill these days, especially for stocking up on tiny stelline pasta designed for babies. But I have to admit that my English sensibilities do get a bit taken aback by finding this in the baby food section. No! Not the bunnies!
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Continuing our tour of local baby rhyme times. The 90s-era arms-length body that runs our libraries clearly provides a script but allows for local variation. Alarmingly, at Charlton House this is ‘The spider on the bus goes tickle tickle tickle’. Do TfL need to investigate cleaning on the 53 and 54?
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Looks like ‘Cobra meeting’ has a different meaning in Polish politics.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
They got going quickly with those easier evictions.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
‘And when Cornwallis’ troops marched out to surrender at Yorktown, their band played ‘The World Turned Upside Down’.’
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
We rightly give Home Office ministers a hard time here for many things, but in their defence, not one of them has ever ordered the Identity & Passport Service to mail out passports in envelopes that might as well be printed with the words ‘Important identity document enclosed: please steal’.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
I like that Magyar is just calling the de-Orbánisation process ‘Operation Purge’. No pissing about with cutesy names like ‘Renewing Hungary’ or ‘Building our Shared Future Together’. Just ‘Operation Purge’.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Andrew Gilligan: rabid on Muslims, terrible on buses, annoyingly and generally consistently good on active travel. (‘Best person I ever worked with at City Hall on this stuff’, according to the pro-cycling Labour council leader I used to work for)
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Parental leave lesson: it’s great having one of London’s few remaining Railway Children-esque level crossings (still controlled by a person in a picturesque box, not a computer at Three Bridges!) on your walk route, but the bell signals will undo your work of getting the baby towards a nap.
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Reposted by Jo Kibble (Political Animal)
Leftback @leftback.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
As a half Sicilian I both understand this and will be using it going forward.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Just walked past a primary school playground at breakdown to hear a teacher shouting across the yard ‘Maximillian, eat your fruit please!’ and just like that, I’m back in imperial Vienna.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
‘Minister, did you know that Indonesia is at a crossroads?’
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Reposted by Jo Kibble (Political Animal)
Dave Keating @davekeating.substack.com · 30/09/2026
Best part: "'My wallet was stolen and my Italian ID was inside,' she said. With a looming holiday, she contacted the Italian embassy to ask what she needed to do, but to her frustration quickly realised that it would be faster to gain Belgian citizenship than to wait for a remade Italian ID."
brusselstimes.com
Why so many Italians are getting Belgian nationality
Belgium appears to be an easy place for Italians to come and be themselves. Many of those who do, love it and choose to formally become Belgian. But why?
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
What even is the point in living in the greatest city on earth if no-where in its 32 boroughs can it offer a parent-and-baby showing of the de Gaulle duology?
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
‘We have come to see a match featuring the mighty Salisbury Whites. We hear they are biggest football team in Kuwait.’
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Reposted by Jo Kibble (Political Animal)
Hugo von der Thüsen @hugovdthusen.com · 29/09/2026
The future Grand Paris Express station Villejuif - Gustave Roussy is a masterpiece. It connects metro line 14 (already operating) to the future line 15 in this massive station. I counted a total of 24 escalators. It was eerily quiet since it’s not yet an interchange station.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
‘We will therefore be pursuing an unexplained wealth order against these five individuals’, Gloucestershire Constabulary continued.
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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Lovely day wandering around Kew, introducing Clara to the concept of autumn, courtesy of their £10 Tuesdays offer. The Henry Moores are worth that price of admission alone.
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