Mr Pecksniff's Diary
@pecksniffsdiary.bsky.social
In which Mr Pecksniff lays before his readers for their approval certain observations and speculations reflecting on the political life. (DMs are open.) Email tips to: pecksniffsdiary@gmail.com Diarist for eastangliabylines.co.uk
Robert Fox, Royal Navy expert: "Operation Fortress shows that Reform is throwing up a smokescreen about defence and security – not a good look as we enter a new stage of threat from cyber, drone, electronic and biological warfare."
I’m a Navy expert – this is everything wrong with Reform UK’s ‘Operation Fortress’
The ridiculous plan to stop small boats by deploying bigger ones is full of holes and a sideshow from the very real issu
independent.co.uk
The state of this. A lovely day out for Badenoch and Philp, playing dress up and making pronouncements about early release schemes - having left the country with one hundred available men's prison places, after fourteen years in charge. You read that right. One hundred places.
Plans were delayed in 2024. Now the Government has confirmed that work to remove the SS Richard Montgomery's three masts will begin in September. Stuart Burrell tells us what happens next.
Britain’s most dangerous shipwreck needs urgent attention
The SS Richard Montgomery, a wartime wreck that still contains 1,400 tonnes of explosives, is still a major threat
eastangliabylines.co.uk
Sir #DavidAttenborough “Things are going to get worse. This is the new extinction. We are in terrible, terrible trouble and the longer we wait to do something about it, the worse it is going to get." #ClimateEmergency
David Attenborough, the voice of Our Planet: “Things are going to get worse”
The voice of some of the most stunning nature documentaries ever made is pessimistic about the future of wildlife on earth.
vox.com
#SnailorSwift #SnaiChampion #worldchamp #Congham #Norfolk #AbsoluterBonkers
East Anglia Bylines@eastangliabylines.co.uk · 4d ago🚨 We have a new World Champion! 🐌🏆 After 18 heats and 271 entrants, Snailor Swift raced to victory at the 2026 World Snail Racing Championships in Congham, Norfolk, winning in 3 minutes 13 seconds. Read all about it here ⤵️ Ready, steady... SLOW!
Pecksniff returns with tales of farewell parties, Westminster whispers and saloon-bar wisdom. * Cross-party politics makes a surprise comeback. * Reform's future comes under the spotlight.
Pecksniff: It was just as Angela Rayner walked up Downing Street that the beer ran out
In which Mr Pecksniff lays before his readers for their approval certain observations and speculations reflecting on the political life
eastangliabylines.co.uk
The two-day smaller Cambridge Folk Festival runs until 2 August, reformatted and reinvigorated | Liz Crosbie
Cambridge Folk Festival – I hope it’s here to stay
The two-day smaller Cambridge Folk Festival runs until 2 August, reformatted and reinvigorated
eastangliabylines.co.uk
What does it feel like to watch a place you've loved for nearly 50 years devastated by fire? David Jobbins reflects on the loss of Dunwich Heath – and why it should concern us all.
What we’ve lost at Dunwich Heath
Dunwich Heath has burned. The wildlife may take decades to recover
eastangliabylines.co.uk
‘And nightly under the simple stars As I rode to sleep the owls were bearing the farm away, All the moon long I heard, blessed among stables, the nightjars Flying with the ricks, and the horses Flashing into the dark.’ ~ Fern Hill by Dylan Thomas for #BookWormSat 🏴 🖼️ Caspar David Friedrich, c.1836.
The mischievous Pecksniff tells tales of farewell parties, Westminster whispers and saloon-bar wisdom. * Reform watches Clacton nervously. * Badenoch draws red lines. All this and more in this week's diary ⤵️ @eastangliabylines.co.uk @pecksniffsdiary.bsky.social
Pecksniff: It was just as Angela Rayner walked up Downing Street that the beer ran out
In which Mr Pecksniff lays before his readers for their approval certain observations and speculations reflecting on the political life
eastangliabylines.co.uk
Among the very many dim takes around the Ceuta incident... the very, very dumbest must be the assumption in Reform circles that all those people were somehow trying to make it to Britain. How exceptionalist and indeed exceptionally stupid can you get?
Another corker from Mr P & the regulars.
Mr Pecksniff's Diary@pecksniffsdiary.bsky.social · 5d agoFrom Westminster gossip to Norfolk council politics, today we leave few targets untouched. Political plotting, Reform's future, Labour's honeymoon & a mysteriously empty bar all feature. Plus another deserving trip to the bin..
From Westminster gossip to Norfolk council politics, today we leave few targets untouched. Political plotting, Reform's future, Labour's honeymoon & a mysteriously empty bar all feature. Plus another deserving trip to the bin..
Pecksniff: It was just as Angela Rayner walked up Downing Street that the beer ran out
In which Mr Pecksniff lays before his readers for their approval certain observations and speculations reflecting on the political life
eastangliabylines.co.uk
With the introduction to the unlikely concept of a 'laughter of innkeepers', the image of an arm wrestling bout between #Burnham v #Badenoch and monitoring #Reform activities in Essex @pecksniffsdiary.bsky.social is the essential start to the w/end.
East Anglia Bylines@eastangliabylines.co.uk · 5d agoThe ever acerbic Pecksniff wonders whether Sir Keir's farewell party ran out of beer just as Angela Rayner walked into Downing Street... Is Burnham ushering in a new politics while Badenoch has red lines? And why is Reform suddenly nervous about Clacton? Read on...
From Westminster gossip to Norfolk council politics, today we leave few targets untouched. Political plotting, Reform's future, Labour's honeymoon & a mysteriously empty bar all feature. Plus another deserving trip to the bin..
Pecksniff: It was just as Angela Rayner walked up Downing Street that the beer ran out
In which Mr Pecksniff lays before his readers for their approval certain observations and speculations reflecting on the political life
eastangliabylines.co.uk
No human lives were lost. But for the wildlife of Dunwich Heath, the consequences have been catastrophic. Read this very personal reflection by birder, David Jobbins, on the cost of one of Suffolk's worst wildfires ⤵️ #birds #wildfire @davidj2024.bsky.social @rspb.bsky.social
What we’ve lost at Dunwich Heath
Dunwich Heath has burned. The wildlife may take decades to recover
eastangliabylines.co.uk
Facebook set out to connect the world. Did it end up corrupting it? Sarah Wynn-Williams' insider account charts how the pursuit of clicks and growth trumped ethics – from Myanmar to Trump to teenage mental health. A sobering read.
Clicks at any price: the corruption of Facebook
Sarah Wynn-Williams’ book about Facebook documents its decline from a force for good, into a global monster
eastangliabylines.co.uk
England win, pints flowing – everyone singing like it still matters. But underneath the noise, something real was slipping. Ben Smith's fictional councillor remembers reality. #satire
Our new councillor contemplates the unexpected
Our fictional councillor encounters surprises, but his wife saw things coming before he did
eastangliabylines.co.uk
Thank you to everyone who attended my community meeting in North East Ipswich last night. Some of the issues raised included fly-tipping, road maintenance and Humber Doucy Lane. If you would like to join my meeting in South West Ipswich this afternoon, please email jack.abbott.mp@parliament.uk
I absolutely love this style of writing, it's a joy to read.
Mr Pecksniff's Diary@pecksniffsdiary.bsky.social · 2w agoDown at the Muckrakers Arms, mischievous Pecksniff: - explores why Burnham is writing his own political story instead of responding to everyone else's. - peers behind the headlines at the real cabinet intrigue. - finds plenty to amuse him in Clacton's extraordinary by-election. Enjoy!
“Palestine protests are treated differently in Britain to all other forms of activism. Direct action is regarded as terrorism and words on a placard are rendered illegal. The only time our equipment has been seized and destroyed was when it related to Palestine.” https://bit.ly/3S0QUqP
Led By Donkeys wins compensation over seizure of Gaza protest banner
Waste firm Veolia pays £27k after ‘Yes It’s A Genocide’ banner taken by Greater London Authority was destroyed
theguardian.com
Is 5% of GDP on defence really the right target? What matters isn't how much you spend – it's what you can actually deploy when it counts. Finland shows capability beats headlines. Stephen McNair reports.
Europe’s defence: getting better value for money
In response to Trump’s demands, there has been much agonising over Britain’s defence spending. But it’s capability that counts, not spend
eastangliabylines.co.uk
At EAB, we feel for the people of Spain and France affected by wildfires. Today the EU has deployed emergency assistance to France and Spain under its ‘civil protection mechanism’. Here’s what we wrote about that mutual support scheme in 2024. eastangliabylines.co.uk/news/brexit/...
Floods and wildfires show the best of EU cooperation
In times of crisis, it’s good to be able to rely on friendly nations for support. Britain opted out of either giving or receiving help
eastangliabylines.co.uk
When will Farage aim his pure cold rage at his violent abusing supporters "Data released by Hampshire police under FoI laws shows that 22 of 37 people (59%) detained in Southampton after Henry's brutal murder have been reported for crimes associated with intimate partner violence" via Expose Racism
Woah ‼️. SCOOP 🔥 “George Cottrell carried a fraudulent Swiss passport in the name of ‘Oscar Drewitt’ – the identity under which he was hired into a City corporate finance network by the future Reform UK treasurer, Mehrtash A’zami.“
Josiah Mortimer@josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 2w agoBrilliant and far-reaching new investigation into George Cottrell and former Reform treasurer Mehrtash A’zami by @nafeez.bsky.social bylinetimes.com/2026/07/23/p...
This is how the Far Right controls the narrative. Threats and intimidation.
Michael Savage@michaelsavage.bsky.social · 2w agoNEW: UK journalists are self-censoring stories about Trump and the right over safety fears Government-backed investigation finds risks are normalised in newsrooms. The abuse now means some journalists are changing what they write about… Grim findings: www.theguardian.com/media/2026/j...
"Honest Bob Jenrick spends all week warning about risks to politicians from political rhetoric then deletes his dangerously irresponsible disinformation tweet that acted as red meat to far-right anti-immigrant extremists and thinks nobody noticed. Absolute fucking scumbag bastard! " via We Demand UK
