The UK political class has used WhatsApp to avoid democratic scrutiny. They weren’t bamboozled by the tech or confounded by advice from their private office. They knew what they were doing. They knew it was wrong. They did it anyway.


Funny how aging TINA neoliberals accuse the kids of being intolerant of diverse opinions


An occasional series of East London chicken shops. Peck! Peck! by Sutton and Sons, Graham Road, Hackney, London E8. Sutton and Sons is a chain of North-East London chip shops.

Two takeaway food shops on a Victorian street in East London with rental e-bike in front and a food delivery rider.

It seems to me British politics reached its nadir some time ago. And now, various Tory wannabees are wrestling in the muddy slops below the bottom of the barrel.


Average car insurance cost in UK nears £1,000 after prices rise 58%

“Like a lot of our expenses, car insurance is getting more costly. And this is likely to be the case for some time. Claiming is one of the biggest factors when it comes to insurers pricing up policies. And with the cost of paying out for claims being considerably high, insurance prices are going to be too.”

From my perspective as an inveterate pedestrian, car driving has got a lot worse in London since the pandemic.


Technicians commission one of the Winter Lights exhibits at Westferry Circus.

In the twilight, bracketed by tall buildings, technicians, barely visible, commission a large, orange-glowing light installation in a public park on a roundabout.

X-risk: when the techno-optimists’ AI tells them we need to reduce inequality and establish social democracy.


An occasional series of East London chicken shops. Frisco’s, Beckton Road, Canning Town, London E16. The streaks are wind-blown snow.

A photo of a solitary diner in Frisco's Chicken at night, streaks of windblown snow cross the lens

An occasional series of East London chicken shops. Seoul Bird with a branch of Wagamama above, in Jubilee Place, Canary Wharf, London E14.

Seoul Bird fried chicken restaurant entrance, Wagamama noodle restaurant above, Jubilee place, Canary Wharf, London