John Crace writes: "Charles would be doing everyone more of a public service if he just ripped up the sheets of paper and started reading out what was on TV that night. He had heard there was a cracking episode of MasterChef. And for sport fans, there was Man City v Crystal Palace. He was very much a palace fan."
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2026/may/13/kings-speech-keir-starmer-labour
Most famous image of JMW Turner not a self-portrait, says expert.
Political parties total reported donations in third quarter of 2025
Reform UK £10,526,846*
Conservative and Unionist £7,038,861
Labour Party £2,564,786
Liberal Democrats £2,174,712
Green Party £371,753
Source: The Electoral Commission
*Christopher Harborne donated £9m to Reform in 2025. He donated a further £3m in 2026 as well as the £5m in 2024 that does not appear on his MP register of interests.
Donations from the donor
Christopher Harborne:
https://donation.watch/en/unitedkingdom/donor/b5efff4bb9a1ba2dd59d1b4e9fd32fae4a9f23a1
Scottish Greens co-leader Ross Greer MSP said: “This disappointing programme of policies is hardly surprising from a Labour Prime Minister who will be out of a job in a matter of days. Keir Starmer is more interested in clinging to power than delivering the real change that families and communities need.
“He has doubled down on cruel, Tory-style immigration plans, climate-wrecking airport expansion plans, and done almost nothing to cut extortionate household energy bills."
#Oldham #ReformUK leader, an ex-Tory (no surprise there) has form for threatening behaviour in the council chamber.
"During the meeting's break, an argument arose between the deputy of the Oldham Conservatives Lewis Quigg and the Conservative leader Graham Sheldon. Quigg could be heard saying "I quit this party. You no longer have any say over me".
Sheldon approached him and both councillors could then be seen squaring up to each other, with Quigg seen pushing Sheldon. The two men were separated by other Conservative councillors surrounding them."
From our rudderless local authority correspondent.
"After gaining 13 councillors on May 7, Reform is now the second largest group in the borough. But with a total of 16 elected members, they would need to come to an agreement with other political groups to reach a majority consensus to put them in a position of power.
But this is exactly what the group have ruled out doing, with Oldham’s Reform leader Lewis Quigg stating the group ‘would not be doing secret deals behind closed doors’ or joining any coalitions."
Organised crime news - latest.
"California’s Santa Clara county has sued Meta Platforms, alleging it has profited from Facebook and Instagram ads promoting scams in violation of California’s false advertising and unfair business practices laws.
The lawsuit – filed on Monday in Santa Clara county superior court on behalf of all California residents – accuses the social media giant of tolerating fraudulent advertising on a global basis. The suit seeks restitution, civil damages and an order prohibiting Meta from engaging in unfair business practices."
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/may/13/meta-scam-ads-california-lawsuit
“Before being swept along by the enthusiasm of tech billionaires whose profits depend on this expansion, we should pause and ask ourselves whether it’s worth the price.
“We need more transparency about the amount of water and energy used by data centres, proper environmental impact assessments, and a ban on new polluting plants being built to power AI.”
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/may/13/datacentres-electricity-consumption-uk-us-ai
normal country
Once upon a time, going on a cruise only involved enduring people one would rather avoid.
Now with added viral infections.
The frog-faced fascist has been on the make ever since he fiddled his European Parliament expenses.
> Women leaving the beach, going into a shop, or simply standing outside are now being approached by men usually wearing Meta's Ray-Bans, the company's "smart" or "AI" glasses, often in order to film the women's responses to casual questions or pick-up lines without their knowledge or consent.
Perhaps it is time to simply ban them from public.
Whether I'm talking about spy glasses or men, you decide...
The likes of Google, Amazon and Microsoft should not be allowed in the same universe as sensitive public sector data.
PS: Love the "Add as a preferred source on Google" button at the foot of the piece. Someone's never heard of irony.
"Despite concerns in some quarters that the birds could prey on livestock such as lambs, a study into the food the Isle of Wight birds are eating showed they were targeting prey such as cuttlefish, rabbits, fish and other birds, and there were “no conflicts” with farming,"
@wood5y "associates of the far-right anti-Islam activist Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, better known as…" ??? Maybe more widely known as, but better? #badjournalism
#Hampshire county councillor sounds like he wants whites-only public parks.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/reform-ken-tranter-aldershot-racist-b2975651.html
If Streeting resigns today, which private healthcare shill will replace him to continue dismantling the #NHS in England?