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Tim Burrows

@timburrows.bsky.social
682 followers 653 following 293 posts

Writer, Guardian and others. The Invention of Essex is published by Profile Books: bit.ly/3Bj9lLi Guardian profile: www.theguardian.com/profile/tim-bur… Linktree: linktr.ee/timburrows Agent: ZRoss@unitedagents.co.uk

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Reposted by Tim Burrows
Tobias Jones @tobiasjones.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
This is what ethnic cleansing looks like: the blanket cancellation of life and the infrastructure required to support it. www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/9/...
aljazeera.com
Satellite images show Gaza in ruins three years into Israel’s genocidal war
Google Maps images show scale of Israel's destruction of Gaza, where more than 74,000 Palestinians have been killed.
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Tim Burrows @timburrows.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Same energy
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Luke Turner @luketurner.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
I live in Chingford / Woodford. People move to Essex bc mugs like me have bought their mortgage-free homes, giving them a fat pile of £ to spend on a greige-painted new gaff and a West Ham themed shed pub in which to sit and moan about the death of the pie & mash shop that they never went to.
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Tim Burrows @timburrows.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Obsessed with this detail in this resurfaced 1981 Guardian archive report on France banning the guillotine. www.theguardian.com/world/2026/s...
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Tim Burrows @timburrows.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
Blimey, soon they will be able to afford Sandro Tonali www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
theguardian.com
Donations of £72m make Reform’s prospects both rosier and riskier
Party can boost its campaign power with funds from billionaire backers, but it can also lose support from ordinary Britons
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London Review of Books @lrb.co.uk · 11/09/2026
‘If you look at post-election analyses, the number one issue for citizens was not migration at all. It was the economic situation.’ @jwmueller-pu.bsky.social on the AfD’s state election victory, on the podcast. podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/t...
podcasts.apple.com
On Politics: Germany's Far-Right Future?
Podcast Episode · The LRB Podcast · 10 September · 1hr 4min
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Rebecca Solnit @rebeccasolnit.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
I think I noted during the recent Belfast riots that a certain kind of man is not really interested in protecting women & girls; he's interested in protecting the exclusive right of his kind of man to abuse and control women and girls.
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Sunder Katwala (sundersays) @sundersays.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
England's young people performing esp well, putting UK in the top ten for maths, reading and science. One driver of bucking trend is better integration: closing white/minority attainment gap for children of migrants, where west European countries lag www.theguardian.com/education/20...
theguardian.com
England’s teenagers outperform peers in most countries in maths, reading and science
OECD test sees results dip in almost all member nations and warns of ‘digital distractions’ eroding academic skills
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Duncan Weldon @duncanweldon.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Even leaving any politics at all aside: as general rule, no state can allow a group of masked men to be able to close down critical infrastructure. This is basic stuff.
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Tim Burrows @timburrows.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Danny Thomas is the latest public school alumnus pretending to speak on the behalf of "working class Britain" because he can affect a persona and maintain an accent to be seen as credible. See also Tom Skinner, whose political flirtations died down somewhat after meeting JD Vance last year
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Gill Tavner @gilltav.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
Just Stop Oil protesters sitting peacefully outside Parl’t on Wed were escorted to police stations; masked thugs were escorted, still Masked, to train station. JSO protesters were released, mostly alone, in the early hours. Some had their return tickets, Oyster cards & railcards confiscated.
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Luke Turner @luketurner.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
This is very good:
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Tim Burrows @timburrows.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
This is a fantastic essay on the uncanny (even by his standards) prescience of JG Ballard's last novel, Kingdom Come, by a writer who lives similarly in a Surrey motorway town
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Richard James Foster @richardjamesfoster.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
As my Lancashire gran would say, a Lummox. A clever stupid lummox. All the same these posh dons…
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Tim Burrows @timburrows.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
I wrote about the protest outside RAF Barnham and how it is affecting the town of Thetford, and about anger assimilation and political failure. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...
theguardian.com
The battle over RAF Barnham: how ominous anti-asylum protests engulfed a small Norfolk town
Thetford has a welcoming history. So why have there been so many demonstrations this summer over plans to house asylum seekers at a nearby military base – as well as nights of violent disorder ?
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Tim Burrows @timburrows.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
I wrote about the protest outside RAF Barnham and how it is affecting the town of Thetford, and about anger assimilation and political failure. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...
theguardian.com
The battle over RAF Barnham: how ominous anti-asylum protests engulfed a small Norfolk town
Thetford has a welcoming history. So why have there been so many demonstrations this summer over plans to house asylum seekers at a nearby military base – as well as nights of violent disorder ?
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Tim Burrows @timburrows.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
This looks like a sixth form drama production of a political satire called 'The Coalition', penned by the drama teacher who is also playing Nick Clegg (right), and starring the school's least popular prefect as David Cameron
Robert Jenrick looks like a boy and Richard Tice looks like a silly man. they are not real politicians are they. In suits
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Tim Burrows @timburrows.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
Something very 'London has changed' about the fact this megarich Essex drugs kingpin (arrested in Dubai) lives on Albion Drive, Hackney, a place I first read about 20 years ago as Iain Sinclair's address, "bought for a tenner with money lent by Renchi...' etc www.echo-news.co.uk/news/2647652...
echo-news.co.uk
Leader of Essex drugs trafficking gang jailed after being caught in Dubai
The leader of a major organised crime group has been jailed after spending nearly five years on the run and being caught in Dubai.
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Hacked Off @hackedoff.bsky.social · 15/08/2026
The Express led on a "jaw-dropping" list of freebies given to asylum seekers in Thetford. The list: bedding, towels, one frying pan, one saucepan, one set of cutlery — and one toilet roll. www.hackedoff.org/blog-posts/g...
hackedoff.org
Guess what was on the "jaw-dropping" list?
How the bare basics, including one toilet roll, became a tabloid headline. A guest fact-check by Emma Monk of Monk Debunks.
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Stephen Bush @stephenkb.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
Reform’s electoral record at parliamentary by-elections: win by five votes when the previous Labour MP had literally decked one of his constituents. Lose. Lose. Lose. Lose. Lose. Beat a novelty candidate with no ground game while doing worse than the Tories in the same seat in 2019.
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Tim Burrows @timburrows.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
I was on BBC just after Farage's speech. He lied about the police and referred to himself in the third person. I called it the most arrogant political speech I'd ever seen, and then they brought in John Curtice and we discussed. It isn't on iPlayer so all I have is this grab of me looking knackered
A screengrab of me on the BBC. It was late
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Harry Taylor @harrytaylor.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
Astonishing. The Press Association understands Essex Police did not tell Nigel Farage, or any other Clacton candidate, not to attend the count. This is after after his and Reform UK's claim Essex Police advised him against it due to a "credible threat".
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Tim Burrows @timburrows.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
Incredible detail here on the formation of the Clacton constituency's seaside settlements of varying fortune, and how the quietly extreme facets of their demographic lend themselves to Faragism
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Tim Burrows @timburrows.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
Luca spouted everything you might expect from a gen Z man who watched too much Joe Rogan – so why did it feel so haunting? Some notes from Clacton on a very modern voter (who might not even vote) timburrows.substack.com/p/luca-notes...
timburrows.substack.com
Luca – notes on a 21st-century Clacton voter
I saw a vision of the future at the end of my two-day journey through the constituency that is being contested by Nigel Farage.
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Simon Evans @drsimevans.carbonbrief.org · 13/08/2026
"High temperatures have meant London Ambulance Service (LAS) was busier in June than it was during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic." www.bbc.co.uk/news/a...
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Sunder Katwala (sundersays) @sundersays.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
Clacton turnout benchmarks
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Tim Burrows @timburrows.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
Luca spouted everything you might expect from a gen Z man who watched too much Joe Rogan – so why did it feel so haunting? Some notes from Clacton on a very modern voter (who might not even vote) timburrows.substack.com/p/luca-notes...
timburrows.substack.com
Luca – notes on a 21st-century Clacton voter
I saw a vision of the future at the end of my two-day journey through the constituency that is being contested by Nigel Farage.
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Rachel MacGregor @anoldhand.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
Really interesting thread. Having recently holidayed in both Kent and Essex and read @timburrows.bsky.social excellent book on Essex (bought in a shop mentioned in the book!) I’ve been thinking about this.
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Sven-Erik Volberg @volberg.bsky.social · 03/08/2026
The Moroccan government confirmed that the Ceuta migration wave was organized and amplified through social media. A similar campaign is currently being run on TikTok, where people from Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iraq are being encouraged to migrate through Belarus to EU via the Baltic states. 1/2
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Robert Reich @rbreich.bsky.social · 03/08/2026
The effective federal corporate income tax rate: 1950: 50% 1990: 25% 2020: 13% Stop asking "but how we will pay for it?" Restore the corporate tax rate. That is how we will pay for it.
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Tim Burrows @timburrows.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
“I would sooner have Farage than the Tin Man!” My report from Clacton's silly season byelection www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
theguardian.com
‘Farage’s got to come clean or clear off’: what voters on Clacton beach think about their MP – and the country
Nigel Farage’s constituency takes in genteel resorts and one of England’s poorest villages. With a snap byelection approaching, what do the residents want from the Reform UK leader – or the bin who’s ...
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Tim Burrows @timburrows.bsky.social · 26/07/2026
The Quietus continues to astound: existed on a shoestring for almost 20 years years, it has in recent years beefed up its site including its archive, which means gems such as this fun rundown of Blur lesser known tracks (including one from me) FROM 14 YEARS AGO are floating out into the world again
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Snigdha @snig.bsky.social · 26/07/2026
Tweet from Elon Musk: “Anyone who opposites remigration is a traitor” posted yesterday.
Tweet from Elon Musk: “Anyone who opposites remigration is a traitor” posted yesterday.
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Tim Burrows @timburrows.bsky.social · 26/07/2026
Did 'neoliberalism' write this?
Andy Burnham with thumbs up, the headline says Andy Burnham is a people pleasure. I was one too - here's how. stopped
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Dr Jo Kershaw @mthrjo.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
Once again, why haven’t we banned disposable barbecues?
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Kat Lister @katlister.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
How do you write a thousand words on Ed Askew when his music evokes a sea of them? As his pal Jay Pluck said before Askew died last year: “Ed was a brave gay songwriter from the beginning & I hope more come to know this.” I hope so, too. May this be the first feature of many – lord knows it’s time
theguardian.com
‘His chords are like sheets of diamond ice’: the beguiling psych-folk of late cult songwriter Ed Askew
The late songwriter released around 50 records, writing gay love songs and effortless folk songs from folk’s fringes. Fans including Bill Callahan explain his singular brilliance
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Tim Burrows @timburrows.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
Can't believe I didn't notice until now that Andy Burnham is a pirate
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Tim Burrows @timburrows.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
Great to talk to @helenpidd.bsky.social for today's Today in Focus, which has turned my recent story on the Bell Hotel in Epping into a podcast www.theguardian.com/news/audio/2...
theguardian.com
The battle to reclaim Epping – podcast
Tim Burrows goes back to Epping in Essex one year after protesters from across the country descended on the small town to demonstrate against asylum seekers being housed at the Bell hotel
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Tim Burrows @timburrows.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
I now live in Norwich, which has 20 mph in residential streets, and you still zoom past cyclists at that speed. It just makes it easier to stop for kids who might have step out in narrow streets (often because there are so many cars parked half on the pavement)
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Tim Burrows @timburrows.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
Ahead of Norway v England tomorrow, here's my trip from last year to Erling Haaland's home town of Bryne, the land of the farmers where he once drove tractors for his uncle and chugged milk by the bottle while climbing the ranks of local team, Bryne FK www.theguardian.com/football/202...
theguardian.com
The Haaland safari: Bryne celebrates its famous son in Norway’s newest tourist attraction
Visitors are encouraged to visit the training ground and first club of the Manchester City No 9 and can stay in the ‘Haaland suite’ at a local hotel
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Simon Cox @simonfrcox.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
“When Aisha was a child, the National Front & BNP were active. Her mother would hurry her away as racist taunts were shouted from passing cars. The atmosphere feels even more unpleasant to her now. “In the 80s, whether somebody put up a flag or painted a swastika, politicians & media condemned it.“
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Steve Yates @yatesyman.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
Outstanding piece on last year's protests and what's happened since.
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Another Cinna @anothercinna.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
Once again, @timburrows.bsky.social examines how #Essex is the site of national struggle. I hope he becomes the Clacton Correspondent.
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Luke Turner @luketurner.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
A superb long read by @timburrows.bsky.social looking at the far right violence round the Epping Bell Hotel last summer, and the local people caught up in it – both those for, and against: www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...
theguardian.com
The battle over the Bell hotel: how a year of asylum protests tore apart a pretty, prosperous Essex town
Last summer, a 14-year-old girl was sexually assaulted by an asylum seeker in Epping and this small community was engulfed in protest. Can it recover?
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Tim Burrows @timburrows.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
I spent a bit of time in Epping recently to see if the Bell Hotel protests had changed the place. Spoiler: they had www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...
theguardian.com
The battle over the Bell hotel: how a year of asylum protests tore apart a pretty, prosperous Essex town
Last summer, a 14-year-old girl was sexually assaulted by an asylum seeker in Epping and this small community was engulfed in protest. Can it recover?
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Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan @london.gov.uk · 26/06/2026
This is remarkable.
Bar chart which shows y-axis running 0-8000, and x-axis showing years 2019 and 2024. For 2019, a light orange bar runs up to just over 6000, with a darker orange running up to 8000. For 2024, a green bar runs up to 4000, with a dark green running to about 5000. The text "40% lower" is on the lighter green bar. Text at the top of the graphic reads "Estimated air pollution deaths are down by around 40%. New analysis estimates deaths associated with air pollution in London reduced substantially between 2019 and 2024." Text at the bottom of the graphic reads "Note: darker shading shows estimated ranges. Data based on a comparison of estimated mortality burden using updated methods and a scenario-based analysis where only air pollution changes. Source: london.gov.uk/aqmortality". The Mayor of London logo sits in the bottom right-hand corner.
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Anne Cross 🦋💚 @annemcross.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
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Tim Burrows @timburrows.bsky.social · 16/06/2026
'You don't need to knock down an apartment every time you're looking for somebody.' If only someone had said so sooner
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Gavin Esler @gavinesler.bsky.social · 15/06/2026
Yes it is a huge story and what is surprising is how little coverage Russia’s useful dupes receive in the UK - including those involved in political troublemaking and street violence.
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Tim Burrows @timburrows.bsky.social · 12/06/2026
'I'm not going away' as political slogan
theguardian.com
‘I’m not going away,’ says Keir Starmer despite defence secretary’s exit
PM promises to fight any leadership challenge, saying any successor would face same problems as him
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