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Clive Simpson

@simpsonclive.bsky.social
381 followers 705 following 243 posts

Journalist & Editor (space, environment & climate). Author of FLOOD WATERS DOWN - a grounded climate thriller set in the flooded Fens. Bookshops & online. www.amazon.co.uk/Flood-Waters-Down-…

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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 5h
Could Sham City be forced to fold and reform, possibly as a non-league club? In the circumstances that probably wouldn't be too severe. www.theguardian.com/football/202...
theguardian.com
Sham City: verdict on financial breaches is damning and punishment must be severe | Jonathan Wilson
How can Manchester City be trusted under these owners after they were found to have devised £900m of ‘sham’ contracts?
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 6h
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
Two million people in England unaware their properties are at risk of flooding
Environment Agency warns residents of 6m at-risk properties to prepare for wet and windy three months ahead
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Press Gazette @pressgazette.co.uk · 8h
The NUJ has responded to reports that Byline Times journalists have been denied access to the Conservative Party conference: "Political parties should not pick and choose which journalists and publications are able to question and scrutinise them" www.nuj.org.uk/resource/nuj...
nuj.org.uk
NUJ responds to reports of Conservative party banning Byline Times journalists from conference
The NUJ has responded to reports that Byline Times journalists have been denied access to the Conservative Party conference.
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Cliftop Publishing @cliftop.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Taking Flood Waters Down to sea. What could possibly go wrong? Two reader pics – Norway and the Aegean. Always great to see where a book ends up. Keep them coming! #FloodWatersDown #climatefiction #Booksky
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
“You maniacs! You blew it up!” More than half a century after Planet of the Apes, that final scene still has the power to shock. Flood Waters Down - a near-future #climate & #AI thriller. Different apocalypse. Same uncomfortable question: did we see it coming and carry on anyway? #Booksky #film
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
UK shares findings of damning climate crisis national security report suppressed under Starmer
El Niño poses critical threat to nations’ defences, says Ed Miliband in presentation to global foreign ministers
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
'War warning sparks UK space push' - my article from last December takes on new significance by the week as events unfold in the Middle East and Russia/Ukraine. simcomm.blogspot.com/2025/12/war-...
simcomm.blogspot.com
War warning sparks UK space push
Topical comment and travel writing
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Can fiction help close the climate "empathy gap"? I'll be at EarthLincs in Lincoln this Saturday talking about #FloodWatersDown, the flooded Fens, climate journalism – and why stories can sometimes make us feel what statistics struggle to convey. 📍 12 Mint Lane LN1 1UD 🕑 2pm 🎟 Free
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Cliftop Publishing @cliftop.bsky.social · 02/08/2025
The warnings keep coming. This BBC piece echoes the world of my upcoming novel #FloodWatersDown - a future-history thriller set in the flooded Fens, where survival and resistance play out in a land abandoned to climate collapse. Fiction - but now uncomfortably close. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Billions needed for failing flood defences on Lincolnshire coast
A breach could leave Lincolnshire communities under several feet of water, officials have warned.
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
AI safeguards are only as good as those willing to abide by them. In #FloodWatersDown, the super-wealthy Baroness Lydia Frampton thinks she's in charge. But in a near-future ravaged by climate change, can even she retain control? Fiction – for now. www.amazon.co.uk/Flood-Waters...
amazon.co.uk
Flood Waters Down
Flood Waters Down : Simpson, Clive A: Amazon.co.uk: Books
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
AI safeguards are only as good as those willing to abide by them. In #FloodWatersDown, the super-wealthy Baroness Lydia Frampton thinks she's in charge. But in a near-future ravaged by climate change, can even she retain control? Fiction – for now. www.amazon.co.uk/Flood-Waters...
amazon.co.uk
Flood Waters Down
Flood Waters Down : Simpson, Clive A: Amazon.co.uk: Books
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Old gods in new machines - our shiny #AI future. A thought-provoking piece by @authorbnugent.bsky.social in the light of the current febrile super intelligence debate. centralbylines.co.uk/business/tec... @centralbylines.co.uk @bylinesnetwork.co.uk
centralbylines.co.uk
The old gods in new machines?
Animism is seen as the oldest religion by many, are we on our way back to animistic belief in AI and our machines?
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Meditation on an autumn summer's afternoon. #Algarve #Portugal #travel #climate simcomm.blogspot.com/2026/09/alga...
simcomm.blogspot.com
Algarve observation
Topical comment and travel writing
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
More genuine journalist jobs being cut and lost forever. Reach and others seem to think the future is click-bait journalism powered by AI. www.theguardian.com/business/202...
theguardian.com
Mirror publisher to cut 220 editorial jobs as readers turn to AI summaries
Reach, which also owns Express, makes decision because of ‘mammoth shift’ in how audiences seek out content
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Cliftop Publishing @cliftop.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
With warnings about AI's insidious growth dominating the headlines, the world of Flood Waters Down suddenly feels a lot closer. Climate collapse. AI control. Human self-interest. Bookshops & online now. www.amazon.co.uk/Flood-Waters...
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ROOM Space Journal @roomspacejournal.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
What happens when humanity moves from visiting space to living and working there? Our new issue explores reproduction beyond Earth, the future space workforce, commercial stations, Artemis, space economics, governance – and whether humans are really ready to stay. Print and digital - out now.
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Cliftop Publishing @cliftop.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Delighted to see that Flood Waters Down has been chosen as Book of the Month by Holt Book Shop in #Norfolk. If you’re visiting #Holt, do pop in for a browse. Flood Waters Down is a haunting vision of #climatecollapse & #AI control set in the #Fens of eastern England. #Bookshop #reading #thriller
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Central Bylines @centralbylines.co.uk · 14/09/2026
Imagining climate futures at Threekingham Literary Festival The Threekingham Literary Festival unpicked the imminent threat of climate change to Britain, concluding with a call to action | Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social
centralbylines.co.uk
Imagining climate futures at Threekingham Literary Festival
The Threekingham Literary Festival unpicked the imminent threat of climate change to Britain, concluding with a call to action
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
www.theguardian.com/business/202...
theguardian.com
George Osborne calls for UK to rejoin EU customs union and boost trade
Ex-Tory chancellor says economy has ‘fallen off a cliff’ since Brexit but rejoining union could be ‘quite simple’
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Bylines Network @bylinesnetwork.co.uk · 12/09/2026
Imagining climate futures at Threekingham Literary Festival The Threekingham Literary Festival unpicked the imminent threat of climate change to Britain, concluding with a call to action | Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social @centralbylines.co.uk
centralbylines.co.uk
Imagining climate futures at Threekingham Literary Festival
The Threekingham Literary Festival unpicked the imminent threat of climate change to Britain, concluding with a call to action
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
Imagining climate futures at Threekingham Literary Festival centralbylines.co.uk/news/environ...
centralbylines.co.uk
Imagining climate futures at Threekingham Literary Festival
The Threekingham Literary Festival unpicked the imminent threat of climate change to Britain, concluding with a call to action
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Central Bylines @centralbylines.co.uk · 12/09/2026
The Threekingham Literary Festival unpicked the imminent threat of climate change to Britain, concluding with a call to action | Clive Simpson
centralbylines.co.uk
Imagining climate futures at Threekingham Literary Festival
The Threekingham Literary Festival unpicked the imminent threat of climate change to Britain, concluding with a call to action
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Brendan Nugent @authorbnugent.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
ASI is becoming a headline topic, and the public is only now encountering concepts that shaped my writing years ago. Fiction edging closer to reality — especially in The Sentient Ones and Thanatos Ascendancy. #Booksky #TheSentientOnes #ThanatosAscendancy www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
theguardian.com
UK lawmakers urge Burnham to back ban on superintelligent AI after chilling warnings
Letter from 70 MPs and peers follows Anthropic employee’s claim new technology could wipe out humans
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Delighted that Flood Waters Down has been chosen as Local Book of the Month by Holt Book Shop in Norfolk. If you’re visiting Holt, do pop in for a browse. Flood Waters Down is a haunting vision of climate collapse & AI control set in the fens of eastern England. #Booksky #Holt #Norfolk #Bookshop
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
When I wrote Flood Waters Down, I was imagining a near-future Britain reshaped by the effects of climate change & moral ambiguity. Today it feels all too close. #Booksky #future #media #books
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
Here's a preview of the new cover of ROOM Space Journal which will be out next week.
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
www.lincolnshireworld.com/arts-and-cul...
lincolnshireworld.com
Literary festival a hit among writers and book lovers
A Boutique Literary Festival was held for the first time at a village venue near Sleaford and organisers are already looking to expand it as an annual event.
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
“AI systems are getting rapidly smarter. Right now, we’re still the cat, but soon we might be the mouse.” www.theguardian.com/news/2026/se...
theguardian.com
‘If you build something vastly smarter than you, it better be on your side’: can we stop AI from deceiving us?
The long read: We are used to the idea that our fellow humans might intentionally mislead or manipulate us, but the idea that machines can now do the same is deeply unsettling. Researchers are racing ...
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
“AI systems are getting rapidly smarter. Right now, we’re still the cat, but soon we might be the mouse.” www.theguardian.com/news/2026/se...
theguardian.com
‘If you build something vastly smarter than you, it better be on your side’: can we stop AI from deceiving us?
The long read: We are used to the idea that our fellow humans might intentionally mislead or manipulate us, but the idea that machines can now do the same is deeply unsettling. Researchers are racing ...
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
simcomm.blogspot.com/2026/08/fict...
simcomm.blogspot.com
FICTION FOR NOW
Topical comment and travel writing
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
Top event today - Three Kings Boutique Literary Festival, Threekingham, Lincs. Great to do a panel with Amy Lilwall brilliantly chaired by Samantha Maw.
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
This kind of article is verging on the unhinged, yet it is being fed to millions of readers as establishment fodder. So many conflated arguments, disingenuous slurs and wilful distortions – all apparently designed to turn the reality of climate change into another front in the culture wars.
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Cliftop Publishing @cliftop.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
Corporate greed, self-interest, insidious AI & the accelerating effects of climate change. Fast forward a few years and you have the world of Flood Waters Down – a gripping story of people, survival & landscape transformed. Bookshops or Amazon now: www.amazon.co.uk/Flood-Waters... #climatecrisis
amazon.co.uk
Flood Waters Down : Simpson, Clive A: Amazon.co.uk: Books
Flood Waters Down : Simpson, Clive A: Amazon.co.uk: Books
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
When I wrote Flood Waters Down, I was imagining a near-future Britain reshaped by the effects of climate change & moral ambiguity. Today it feels all too close. #Booksky #future #media #books
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
Love this cover for the latest issue of The Spectator (US and international edition)! And I'm looking forward to reading the article by David Whitehouse. Frankly though, a human mission to Mars is probably still in the realms of a TinTin adventure. Isn't it?
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Cliftop Publishing @cliftop.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
Climate change, AI and dystopian futures. There should be plenty for @amylilwall.bsky.social & @simpsonclive.bsky.social to talk about next weekend as they kick-off Threekingham's Boutique Literary Festival. Lots of other authors to meet & chat to as well - all in the lovely Three Kings Organic.
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
Rewilded land remains green amid drought-stricken English countryside, images show
National Trust’s Holnicote estate says restored wetlands and rivers offer proof of resilience to drought, wildfires and flooding
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
Enjoyed a few days on the Norfolk coast near Cromer. Lots of good photo opps including this one of local fishermen returning to Overstrand beach with their boat and catch of North Sea lobster. #photography #landscape #norfolk
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Amy Lilwall @amylilwall.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
Excited to be at Threekingham Boutique Literary Festival with @simpsonclive.bsky.social on Saturday 29th August. All welcome and free to all 💙📚🌊
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Cllr Dr Alex Powell @apowelllaw.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
When climate denial runs out of road, the plutocrats try nihilism. Tice's intervention here where he invites people to 'enjoy' climate breakdown is fundamentally of the same (genocidal) logic as Boris Johnson declaring 'let the bodies pile high' during Covid. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
theguardian.com
Reform’s Tice says people should stop fighting climate crisis and ‘enjoy’ heat
Deputy leader says it is ‘arrogant’ to try to halt global heating, despite UK being left reeling by summer firewave
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
"It was barely nine o’clock in the morning and already the outside temperature was edging towards thirty degrees centigrade..." When I wrote Flood Waters Down, I was imagining a near-future Britain reshaped by climate change & moral ambiguity. Today it feels all too close. Bookshops & online now.
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
theguardian.com
Hot topic: why is Burnham so reluctant to talk about the climate crisis?
Extreme heat is harming wellbeing of ordinary people the PM champions, yet little has been said on the topic
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Met Office - weather and climate @metoffice.gov.uk · 13/08/2026
Temperatures have already reached 35°C, and it's only midday This is now provisionally the 9th day in 2026 with temperatures reaching 35°C or more 🌡️
A table of the top temperatures so far. The current highest is 36.4°C at Charlwood.
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
"It was barely nine o’clock in the morning and already the outside temperature was edging towards thirty degrees centigrade..." When I wrote Flood Waters Down, I was imagining a near-future Britain reshaped by climate change & moral ambiguity. Today it feels all too close. Bookshops & online now.
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
Shadows of the eclipse. #photography #Lincolnshre #nature #eclipse
Eclipse photo with shadows by @simpsonclive.bsky.social
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
Boston & Skegness. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...
theguardian.com
Bridget Phillipson condemns Richard Tice’s ‘chilling attempt to silence free press’
Labour chair says Reform deputy leader is trying to harass journalists over reporting on his financial affairs
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
Sounds woefully inadequate. Needs a whole department. Most politicians just don't seem to have a clue what to do. It's just too big - a kind of 'reverse denial' manifesting itself as the inability to act. #climatecrisis #heatwave #FloodWatersDown #Cobra www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
Just 20 of 6,600 Defra staff working on climate adaptation amid drought and wildfires
Exclusive: England ‘desperately unprepared’ for effects of crisis including water shortages and heatwaves
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
Sounds woefully inadequate. Needs a whole department. Most politicians just don't seem to have a clue what to do. It's just too big - a kind of 'reverse denial' manifesting itself as the inability to act. #climatecrisis #heatwave #FloodWatersDown #Cobra www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
Just 20 of 6,600 Defra staff working on climate adaptation amid drought and wildfires
Exclusive: England ‘desperately unprepared’ for effects of crisis including water shortages and heatwaves
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Brendan Nugent @authorbnugent.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
We have failed to shift the narrative and we are still caught up in the same legal, economic and political systems. #Booksky #TheSentientOnes #climatechange www.ipolitics.ca/2025/07/02/i...
ipolitics.ca
‘It’s too late’: David Suzuki says the fight against climate change is lost
In our first edition, iPolitics caught up with David Suzuki, noted environmentalist and longtime host of 'The Nature of Things' on CBC. At 89-years-old, Suzuki remains a fierce advocate for global cli...
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Clive Simpson @simpsonclive.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
Reform UK leader’s non-disclosure of a £5 million ‘gift’ from a crypto billionaire could amount to a criminal offence, leading democracy groups allege. open.substack.com/pub/bylineti...
open.substack.com
Nigel Farage Reported to Met Police Over Alleged Misconduct in Public Office
The Reform UK leader’s non-disclosure of a £5 million ‘gift’ from a crypto billionaire could amount to a criminal offence, leading democracy groups allege
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