If you know an Irishman who visited France for two weeks in July and who saved my life at the Piscine du Grand Parc, get us in touch. He'll remember as much as I do. They visited all the swimming pools in Bordeaux.

Please boost and see if anyone is on Mastodon who can help.

#Irish #Ireland

☢️Topic reveal for Origin Story Live☢️

The History of the Daily Telegraph: How a reassuringly traditional newspaper lost its mind

We’ll take you from its respectable origins to the hysterical bedlam its become today

Tickets available here. No-one gets out alive.

unionchapel.org.uk/whats-on/ori...

@ianRobinson @DJDarren oh yeah, I realise that was the total cost. Just saying that for a project that size it's unlikely a few hundred ppl complaining about Dobby's grave would have much impact compared to the wider public and environmental consultation that will have been undertaken.

But also, work is complete and Greenlink is in operation as of February 2025. This is all old news that's been dredged up by an off-hand comment on a recent podcast from what I gather.

@DJDarren @ianRobinson I'm gonna go out on a limb here and suggest this is a bit of (at least in this community) very misguided PR.

I bet they've done absolutely nothing to reroute this piece of work that cost £430m, but thought it would sound cute and fluffy to cater for the fans of what they thought were cuddly kids books.

The cable was installed underneath the beach and dunes using horizontal drilling, with no impact to the surface whatsoever:

https://greenlink.ie/faqs/

Brian Tyler Cohen talks about what happened after he was put on The White House’s media enemies list.

4-minute video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZYnJc2mKm3Q&feature=youtu.be

#USPolitics

Weird how nobody's AI has gone rogue, broken containment, and become profitable.

For fuck sake. These are the cultists who will pay to watch the new HP series and keep channelling money to someone who uses it for terrible purposes. 🤷🏻‍♂️

Harry Potter fans force relocation of £430m undersea cable to avoid Dobby’s ‘grave’ | Harry Potter | The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/aug/10/harry-potter-fans-force-relocation-of-430m-undersea-cable-to-avoid-dobbys-grave

Suspect Device by Stiff Little Fingers is a marvellous song from a great, angry debut album from ground zero of the 1970s Northern Ireland conflict. Album links below.

Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/gb/album/inflammable-material/697417504

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/2uXYm7SqdQlOgrx2FEWlkD

#Music #Belfast #StiffLittleFingers

RE: https://mastodon.social/@ianRobinson/117070800524900698

Hey Siri. Play Alternative Ulster by Stiff Little Fingers.

Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/gb/album/alternative-ulster/697417504?i=697418492

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/2yE3bwbhqypdsuhmv48Svn

#Music #Belfast #Fleadh

The usual fuckwits will be along to undermine the goodwill soon. 😕

Fleadh: 'Roll on 2027' as Belfast 2026 festival comes to an end - BBC News https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4gk74vpzxzo

#Belfast #Ireland

I pretty much skip over podcasts and articles about the Everettian many worlds interpretation (MWI) interpretation of quantum mechanics now.

I did read about half of a recent paper that argued that the Born Rule couldn’t be derived successfully via MWI. I didn’t finish reading it.

I don’t think I’ve ever listened to Jeremy Vine on purpose.

Ireland risk ECB ire by agreeing to play five matches against Afghanistan | Ireland Cricket Team | The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/aug/04/ireland-five-matches-against-afghanistan-england-ecb-cricket https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/aug/04/ireland-five-matches-against-afghanistan-england-ecb-cricket

#Cricket

Watching episode 1 of For the Record: An Incomplete History of Music by The Cosmic Shambles network on YouTube.

It’s a phenomenal production.

63-minute video episode 1 of 9: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=quj8JVU-usw&feature=youtu.be

#Music #MusicTheory #History

Spider-Man Brand New Day Box Office: Second Weekend Sets 10-Day Record https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/spider-man-brand-new-day-box-office-second-weekend-1236669418/

This week's reviews written in The Pangolin, with a couple of pints of Nightjar's Gangsters.

RE: https://mastodon.social/@ianRobinson/117066842928530973

Highlights of this match.

23-minute video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s1HRaW8KTeE&feature=youtu.be

#Cricket

Suggested football rule change: A scoring team can, as now, take as long as they like running to the corner to celebrate and do a choreographed dance routine etc. But the conceding side can kick off after 20 seconds, regardless of where on the field the scoring side are. Agreed? #football

Because I walk everywhere and know this city like the back of my hand, it probably wasn't the best idea to ask me for directions like this: "Oh thank fuck mate, it's all p*kis around here, I'm just trying to get to the city centre, is this the right way?".

It was the right way. He just had to keep walking.

Instead he received convincing directions to go in the opposite direction and get completely lost. I didn't spend all these years as an anti-racist campaigner to miss such an opportunity. 🤭

Ireland v Afghanistan: Rashid Khan takes six wickets in big win for tourists - BBC Sport https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cricket/articles/cy8mp51417zo

Three more ODIs at Stormont this week. I’ve a ticket for Wednesday.

#Cricket #Ireland