Sign in

Robin Bennett

@robinfbennett.bsky.social
489 followers 417 following 144 posts

Musician, Festival organiser and Green Party Councillor

PostsRepliesMedia
Reposted by Robin Bennett
George Monbiot @georgemonbiot.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
As former Labour minister Tom Watson joins Palantir, please read this devastating exposé by @petergeoghegan.bsky.social & @lucasamin.bsky.social of how the company, with Peter Mandelson's help, wormed its way into the UK government to sell its dire & dangerous products. www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...
lrb.co.uk
Peter Geoghegan and Lucas Amin · ‘This looks absolutely rubbish’: Palantir and the NHS
A decade ago Palantir was largely unknown in the UK. It now holds public contracts worth hundreds of millions of pounds...
18433351811
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Adam Bienkov @adambienkov.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
Very weird to be living for weeks through what has so far been the worst UK drought since records began and for the Prime Minister to have still said absolutely nothing about it
1862664738
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Sam Freedman @samfr.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
Quite impressive to completely undermine your own defence and insult most of your party's elected officials in the same sentence.
35709174
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Nate O @nateo.bsky.social · 04/08/2026
Ex-PM Starmer said, in response to Raise the Colours terrorising people, ‘I am supporter of flags’, ‘I’m very encouraging of flags. I think they’re patriotic and I think they’re a great symbol of our nation’ and his family had ‘got St George’s flag in our flat’ www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...
Raise the Colours Oxfordshire organiser Ben Cullen head-butted a highways worker after police were called to McDonalds in Benson where highways staff were attempting to remove flags from lamp posts;
Highways staff now wear unbranded PPE, work in unbranded vehicles, wear face coverings to hide their identity, and do not travel alone for fear of attacks;
Highways staff working on streetlight maintenance, not flag removal, have been spat on and abused by RTC supporters;
Cullen and his partner Trudy Wells posted the office addresses and phone numbers of highways depots online, leading to comments suggesting “hanging council workers from those same lamp posts”;
RTC Oxfordshire fixed trackers to the vehicles used by highways staff, then used this to find out their home addresses – which have been published online, and repeated to staff with threatening messages;
Highways depots now have to remain locked at all times;
A highways contractor’s sponsorship of a children’s football club is being rethought after concerns that children could be targeted.
7251131
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Richard Leader @leader-music.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
On the show tonight... chat and Dreaming Spires session songs with Joe & @robinfbennett.bsky.social... On air from 8pm on 107 Meridian FM
042
Robin Bennett @robinfbennett.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
recommended reading for today
011
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Adam Schwarz @adamjschwarz.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
When the story of why humanity didn't stop climate change is written, it will feature front pages like this. Even as the skies blacken with climate change-induced wildfires, right wing media continue their relentless crusade against measures to tackle it.
The Times: Net zero risks blackouts. Below a photo of French wildfires.
23247492019
Robin Bennett @robinfbennett.bsky.social · 03/07/2026
really interesting debate on the Rights of Nature Bill going in the House of Lords right now
020
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Causing A Scene @causingascene.bsky.social · 27/06/2026
This upcoming Oxford music exhibition looks brilliant. It’s the starting point for a wider project - ‘City Stories 'Oxford's Music History.' Contribute your own memories, tickets, flyers, set lists, photos etc below. museumofoxford.omeka.net/contribution museumofoxford.omeka.net/contribution
Poster for Sounds of the City. An Oxford music exhibition coming to the Museum of Oxford in July.
121
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Leverhulme Centre for Nature Recovery @naturerecovery.bsky.social · 26/06/2026
TVERC will be at the Nature Festival TOMORROW with fun games and activities to encourage everyone to notice the nature around them 🪲🌱🐞 See the full programme & join us tomorrow! thenaturefestival.org @morethanadodo.bsky.social @ecioxford.bsky.social @bbowt.bsky.social @biodivoxford.bsky.social
031
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Tom Cox @dj-acid-reflux.bsky.social · 15/06/2026
Yes it could be argued that keeping up with world events is important but alternatively can I interest you in hugging an ancient mossy boulder that looks like a face and quietly listening while it tells you stories from centuries cloaked in mist.
A lovely mossy boulder with a face. I walked past this venerable stone gentleman on Dartmoor when I was beginning to write my first novel, Villager, and it whispered all 104,000 words of the book to me. So now I have to pay it all of my royalties. Unfortunately my ex-publisher stopped paying me royalties last year. Understandable, the boulder was not happy. But now I have a new publisher and the book has been republished. So remember if you purchase a copy you will be helping a boulder to eat, pay the rent on his riverside moss garden, and feed his boulder family.
32951201
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Richard Leader @leader-music.bsky.social · 15/06/2026
Happy 14th Birthday Brothers in Brooklyn from The Dreaming Spires - #NowPlaying Everything All The Time on 107 Meridian FM Thanks for the request @robinfbennett.bsky.social :)
251
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Cllr Emily Kerr 💚 @emilykerr36.bsky.social · 19/05/2026
I'm absolutely delighted that Cabinet has agreed to pilot a locally-led filtered Quiet Lanes policy to improve rural active travel. It's innovative and I'm so proud of my role in it alongside others. Do share, AT policy enthusiasts (short thread) mycouncil.oxfordshire.gov.uk/%28S%2803u25...
613034
Robin Bennett @robinfbennett.bsky.social · 18/05/2026
Great to see my council (South Oxfordshire) is now on Bluesky, and also handing out capital grants for community buildings and projects...
020
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Hannah Fearn @hannahfearn.bsky.social · 15/05/2026
Politics is actually dull but worthy. Get out if you don't want to be responsible for hard, invisible, extremely important things. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Reform councillor Barry Martin quits after saying role was 'dull and boring'
Staffordshire Reform councillor Barry Martin has been the subject of a council complaints inquiry.
3194
Robin Bennett @robinfbennett.bsky.social · 09/05/2026
the 90s are trending in all aspects of culture...
000
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Oxford Clarion @oxfordclarion.bsky.social · 09/05/2026
If you fancy supporting local producers this weekend, consider heading to a local market - there's one in the county every day of the week. We made this directory of markets in Oxfordshire. oxfordclarion.uk/oxfordshire-...
oxfordclarion.uk
Oxfordshire Market Directory
Looking for fresh food, affordable clothes, or simply fed up with trudging round supermarkets? Oxfordshire’s markets might have the answer. We’ve taken a look at the history of the county’s markets i...
1115
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Tom Flood @tomflood.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
where the hell am I supposed to park to have a pint? this is the nightmare all those urbanists want.
a narrow street with a pub on the corner
14823
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Adam Bienkov @adambienkov.bsky.social · 14/04/2026
BBC News leading all its bulletins on demands by former Government advisor Lord Robertson for more defence spending, without at any point mentioning his current paid senior role for US defence lobbyists
13522871173
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 12/04/2026
Good time to re-up this 🎉
9469186
Robin Bennett @robinfbennett.bsky.social · 12/04/2026
New reading material I’ve acquired direct from the authors… nice and varied!
020
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Leverhulme Centre for Nature Recovery @naturerecovery.bsky.social · 09/04/2026
Climate + nature need joined-up solutions 🌿 Our Oxfordshire strategy with the Oxford Local Nature Partnership & the district councils shows a diverse habitat approach could boost carbon storage by 28% & offset ~20% of emissions in 30 years.
naturerecovery.ox.ac.uk
Designing a carbon strategy that delivers for climate, biodiversity and resilient land use
Developing a high-integrity nature-based carbon sequestration strategy for Oxfordshire
183
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Tom Flood @tomflood.bsky.social · 03/04/2026
Guitar Minimums > Parking Minimums 7 is the bare minimum of guitars needed for that perfect wall of noise - Brian Jonestown Massacre Montreal 2022.
brian jonestown massacre on stage playing
3241
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Causing A Scene @causingascene.bsky.social · 03/04/2026
Inspirational BBC Radio 4 feature on Beaker, putting the Oxfordshire music scene, past and present, on the map. Catch them live at the Jericho Tavern on Friday 8th May. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Oxford indie band Beaker on returning after 25 years
Beaker first emerged from Oxford's 1990s music scene and have reunited more than 25 years later
011
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Phillips OBrien @phillipspobrien.bsky.social · 31/03/2026
Worth noting that Donald Trump just announced the end of NATO and the Special Relationship in one tweet.
2071904603
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Oxford Clarion @oxfordclarion.bsky.social · 26/03/2026
The Government consultation on how to reorganise Oxfordshire’s councils closes tonight at 23.59. Three proposals have been put forward: a single council for the whole county, two councils covering north+city and south (‘Ridgeway’), and three councils covering north, an enlarged Oxford, and south.
Cheese, sliced into two (Jonny Gios at unsplash.com)
164
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Matt Bors @mattbors.bsky.social · 17/03/2026
wow we are arriving at the exact situation every single person imagined within one second of seeing their first robot dog
11552581562
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Ed Newton-Rex @ednewtonrex.bsky.social · 02/03/2026
🚨 It looks like the UK government is gearing up to upend copyright law in favour of AI companies, legalising the theft of their work. This is despite creatives' huge protests, and despite previous proposals being roundly rejected by the public. Please spread the word. 🧵 1/4
9430782530
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Squeezy John @johnspiers.co.uk · 12/03/2026
This new Harry Enfield character is really shit!
4276
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Cllr Sam Casey-Rerhaye @samcaseyr.bsky.social · 06/03/2026
Thames Water discharging sewage into watercourse at South Morton for 940 hours … and counting. No rain for ~4 days, and no storms or heavy rain for longer than that. They should be prosecuted for this asap and the law applied (which can be imprisonment btw not just fines that end up on bills)
023
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Oxford Clarion @oxfordclarion.bsky.social · 02/03/2026
Abingdon Green Party candidate Aidan Reilly has called on Thames Water to clean up a sewage filled watercourse just south of the town. Thames Water data shows it has been dumping raw sewage into Oday Hill Ditch alongside Peep-O-Day Lane for hundreds of hours in February alone.
sewage in brook.
32313
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Cllr Dr Alex Powell @apowelllaw.bsky.social · 02/03/2026
Just throwing it out there: telling people that they have legitimate grievances about immigration will never reduce the sense of grievance. This isn't how anything works and a government that paid even the merest attention to social science research would know their approach helps the far-right.
631174
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Robert Wright @reporterrwright.ft.com · 27/02/2026
It’s actually a great political moment that Hannah Spencer apologised in her speech to clients whose pipes she now won’t be able to fix.
930455
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Adam Bienkov @adambienkov.bsky.social · 27/02/2026
In a battle between hope and hate, hope won out. Why voters rejected the hateful politics of Reform and instead embraced the "Green Menace" in Gorton and Denton bylinetimes.com/2026/02/27/h...
bylinetimes.com
Hope Beats Hate: Green Party Defeats Reform and Labour in Huge Gorton and Denton By-Election Victory
A concerted political and media campaign to scare voters about a “Green Menace” winning this by-election failed, reports Adam Bienkov
782555573
Reposted by Robin Bennett
The Green Party of England & Wales @greenparty.org.uk · 27/02/2026
Introducing Hannah Spencer MP 💚
INTRODUCING! 

Hannah Spencer 

The new Green MP for GORTON & DENTON 

Green Party 

Promoted by Chris Williams on behalf of The Green Party, both at PO Box 78066, London SE16 9GQ
18343981007
Reposted by Robin Bennett
John Bull @garius.bsky.social · 27/02/2026
I don't know what the opposite of nominative determinism is. But Matt Goodwin does.
1042685
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Municipal Dreams @municipaldreams.bsky.social · 26/02/2026
Please watch Channel 4's docudrama 'Dirty Business' on the pollution of our waters. There could not be a more shocking exposé of the human and environmental cost of privatisation, deregulation, corporate corruption and government complicity: www.channel4.com/programmes/d...
channel4.com
Dirty Business
Shocking real-life drama about the muck in our water and a corporate scandal
12517
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Cllr Emily Kerr 💚 @emilykerr36.bsky.social · 26/02/2026
Do you live in Abingdon, have kids at Europa, work in Culham, or know anyone who does? Please send them this consultation on improving the crossing nearby to the school if so. letstalk.oxfordshire.gov.uk/culham_a415_...
letstalk.oxfordshire.gov.uk
Culham: A415 Abingdon Road - proposed Sparrow crossing & traffic calming
We're asking for your views on the proposal to construct the following features on & adjacent to the A415 Abingdon Road, in Culham – which are being put forward to help improve active travel route...
2114
Reposted by Robin Bennett
South Oxfordshire District Council @southoxon.bsky.social · 26/02/2026
Over £1.5M in grant funding will be available for community organisations in South Oxfordshire over the next year! This funding will come from a range of grant schemes supporting projects that help residents and the environment across the district. orlo.uk/qjqzh #YourMoneyYourServices
001
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Cllr Sam Casey-Rerhaye @samcaseyr.bsky.social · 25/02/2026
Are you watching Dirty Business? I can't believe how much water companies have gotten away with. They're putting profit before public health - it’s a scandal and the Government MUST take action! Sick of sewage? Add your name to the petition today: you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/en...
you.38degrees.org.uk
End the sewage pollution scandal
We're sick of it. Sick of the lies, sick of the greed, and sick of a system rigged against us. This is a scandal and this dirty business must end. For more than 30 years water companies have put corpo...
052
Robin Bennett @robinfbennett.bsky.social · 12/02/2026
After nearly 7 years as a councillor, it's my first council budget meeting tonight as part of the opposition group, so I'm proposing some budget amendments... we'll see what we can get through! @southandvalegreens.bsky.social
SODC Green group proposed amendments
010
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Peter Geoghegan @petergeoghegan.bsky.social · 05/02/2026
🔴 BREAKING: Labour Together paid controversial PR firm £30k to investigate journalists who were digging into how its undeclared funding Reporters from Sunday Times, Guardian and other outlets targetted *And* Morgan McSweeney knew about it Full story: democracyforsale.substack.com/p/exclusive-...
democracyforsale.substack.com
BREAKING: McSweeney’s think tank paid PR firm to investigate journalists
Labour Together put private investigators onto journalists writing about its funding. Starmer's right-hand man knew.
561115661
Robin Bennett @robinfbennett.bsky.social · 05/02/2026
@zackpolanski.bsky.social highlights that this Epstein/Mandelson moment goes far beyond politics into the integrity of our institutions, as Arlene Foster nods in unlikely agreement! The whole of last night's #Newsnight is well worth 30 minutes of your time.
110
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Tom Scott @tom--scott.bsky.social · 05/02/2026
NB: It's not just Mandelson. The Tories' chief election strategist Isaac Levido was also a lobbyist for Palantir. Under both the Tories & Labour, this predatory mass surveillance corporation has had its tentacles deep into the heart of government.
47348
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Dr. Aaron Thierry @thierryaaron.bsky.social · 30/01/2026
The optimist vs pessimist divide in #climate debates isn’t usually about the data. It’s about how the same graphs are read, what people emphasise, what they discount, and how they interpret pace and stakes. Here’s what I mean 🧵👇
1419188
Reposted by Robin Bennett
Zoe Gardner @zoejardiniere.bsky.social · 13/01/2026
Note the timing of Home Office re-press releasing the “most ever raids” & “hardest ever immigration crack down” today. Signalling alignment with Trump & ICE. They haven’t got a clue how to make ordinary British people’s lives better, only how to make migrants suffer. #r4today
24458135
Reposted by Robin Bennett
WOOD HQ @woodhq.bsky.social · 05/12/2025
First artists announced for Wood 2026! 🤩 Read more on our new website at woodhq.org
Wood 2026 initial lineup poster, featuring Morganway, Noble Jacks and more
011
Robin Bennett @robinfbennett.bsky.social · 20/11/2025
Nice to have a mention for The Dreaming Spires' album "Normal Town" from The Clarion... an unexpected Batman comparison as well!
010
Robin Bennett @robinfbennett.bsky.social · 11/11/2025
Today in Oxford @truckmusicstore.bsky.social, 6pm. See you there if you're in the neighbourhood! The album is getting some nice reviews, including 4 stars in the new issue of Mojo.
010