OneGuyFromBarlick

Thank you Cathy You are so good at spotting birthdays!

Isn't she.... I hope you have a good one!

Happy birthday Wendy, do something nice

See THIS BBC report on compensation for car deals....
Victims of car finance mis-selling will likely get less than £950 per deal under a compensation scheme proposed by the financial regulator, with the first payouts expected next year. The Supreme Court ruled on Friday that hidden commissions from lenders to dealers on car loans were not unlawful, meaning millions of motorists will not be able to claim. However, the judgement left open the possibility of compensation claims for particularly large commissions which the Supreme Court said were unfair. Following the ruling, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has said it will consult on running a payout scheme - estimated to cost between £9bn and £18bn. The FCA said it was "hard to estimate precisely at this stage the total cost to industry of the scheme", but it is understood that millions could be eligible. The industry is expected to cover the full costs of any potential compensation scheme, including any administrative costs.
Will this stop the offers of help to claim? I doubt it, it will still be seen as an opportunity by the 'get-rich-quick' brigade....

Have a look at THIS latest news about Steven Yaxley-Lennon....
Far-right activist Tommy Robinson has been arrested in connection with an assault at St Pancras railway station. British Transport Police did not name Robinson, real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, but confirmed a 42-year-old man, from Bedfordshire, was arrested over an assault in London on 28 July. The force said the arrest took place at Luton Airport shortly after 18:30 BST on Monday, following a notification that the man had boarded an incoming flight from Faro. The man was arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm and will be taken to custody for questioning, police said.
This person seems to me to encapsulate so much that is wrong with this country these days.

`Remains of extinct Bronze Age cattle found in cave' BBC
Remains of an extinct breed of Bronze Age cattle have been discovered by archaeologists in a cave in the Yorkshire Dales. Researchers working with cave explorers uncovered the remnants of an auroch while surveying a number of caverns and sinkholes near Ingleborough. The team also found evidence of the area being used as a human burial site during the Neolithic period....

Stanley wrote: ↑05 Aug 2025, 02:54 This person seems to me to encapsulate so much that is wrong with this country these days.

Not sure what you mean by that. . . .

Remember when this incident happened he was only days out of prison (seven months in solitary confinement), and subject to an immediate recall. Everyone who speaks to him says he is very intelligent. Why would he jeopardise his freedom? Let us wait and see what fully happened at Paddington.

To get the flavour of it all - look at this. Tommy Robinson (NHRN) I doubt you will - as he speaks very quickly and is hard to follow, but you'll wait a long time for such material to be available on the BBC. I quite expect him to be back in prison - and for a very long time.

Breaking news that the Repair Shop's Jay Blades has been charged in two cases of rape. (LINK)

Re Tommy Robinson

Here is his version of the incident. Paddington incident

He usges the Police to release the video which is in their posession, pleads self defence, and has been bailed. Quite relaxed "not a jury in the land would convict after seeing the footage".

Interestingly his first book "Enemy of the People" from 2016 which was Number one on the Amazon best seller list,seems to be unobtainable on Abebooks. A couple on eBay for £30-£40 . I wonder why that is.

THIS looks like a good piece of work!
9 hours ago
A BBC investigation has exposed the French and UK operations of a powerful and violent smuggling gang taking people across the English Channel in small boats. A reporter, posing as a migrant wanting to cross, helped us gain unprecedented access to the smugglers' notorious forest hideout in northern France - an area plagued by armed battles between rival gangs. Secret filming at a major UK railway station also captured associates of the gang collecting cash payments to secure migrant places on illegal Channel crossings. Two men met us on separate occasions on the busy concourse at Birmingham's New Street Station to collect envelopes containing hundreds of pounds. Multiple sources have described how gang leaders, who keep one step ahead of the authorities by changing mobile phone numbers and the gang's name, subjected their henchmen and migrants to violent beatings. We have managed to identify three men - Jabal, Aram and al-Millah - all Iraqi-Kurds, who are believed to lead the outfit, which is one of the main groups in northern France transporting people to the UK by small boat. We have also come across other senior figures, including a man called Abdullah, whom we witnessed shepherding groups of migrants towards boats. Another gang member, Besha, who had escorted migrants in France, took a small boat to the UK himself, we learned, ending up in a migrant hostel in West Yorkshire having claimed asylum.
There is much more in the report and it makes interesting reading....

Youngest offspring couldn't get far today, he's staying where the blue dot is (top of the map). He was supposed to be going to Collioure but the A9 has been closed, he says there have been fire fighting aeroplanes flying over all day.
30+ degrees and no sign of rain forecast either, should have gone to Bridlington.

Much to be said for staycations....

I think there is a lesson buried somewhere in THIS BBC report on a drugs bust.....
A talking parrot has helped bring down a major drugs operation after a gang member taught the pet how to say phrases used by dealers, like "two for 25". The bird was discovered when police raided homes in Blackpool where officers also seized large amounts of heroin and cocaine. Ringleader Adam Garnett, 35, ran the gang from inside prison from 2023 to 2024. A search of his cell uncovered phones which had videos showing kilo blocks of drugs and footage of his girlfriend's pet parrot Mango talking and playing with drugs money. After Garnett's cell search, police identified his next-in-command were his girlfriend Shannon Hilton, 29, of no fixed address, Dalbir Sandhu, 41, of Beech Road, Cleveleys and Jason Gerrand, 50, of Shore Road, Thornton-Cleveleys. A video on Hilton's phone revealed her laughing as she taught the bird to say "two for 25" in front of a child.
If you're breaking the law don't thrust your parrot to keep stumm....

See THIS BBC report on adulterated food.....
Takeaway Naafiah Grill in Burnley was serving unsuspecting customers lamb and chicken kebabs that contained mostly beef. In a separate case, Lancaster-based Eat Indian supplied a farm shop in Preston with lamb and pork kebabs that also contained chicken. Both firms' bosses blamed suppliers for the errors, but the companies were fined under the Food Safety Act at magistrates courts in Lancashire. Joshua Roberts, from Lancashire County Council, said the firms had a "blatant disregard for public safety".
This is why I mistrust fast food outlets where profit is the main driver for food quality. The only defence is to find a good local supplier that you trust and buy your food of him or her. I trust my butcher implicitly, that's the only way to ensure quality.

Whoops!
`MP mistakes charity rowers for 'illegal migrants'' BBC
Independent MP Rupert Lowe shared a picture on X on Thursday, showing a boat close to wind turbines , externalnear Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, and wrote, "Dinghies coming into Great Yarmouth, RIGHT NOW". HM Coastguard contacted the crew to confirm their identities and it was revealed the boat was a team of charity rowers attempting to travel from Land's End, Cornwall, to John O'Groats, Scotland. In a later post, external, Mr Lowe, said: "As a well done to the crew, I'll donate £1,000 to their charity - raising money for MND."

I heard that report Peter. The perils of trying to get exposure to the public for political purposes.... Serves him right!

Have a look at THIS news of a new book on Prince Andrew.
This searing biography of Prince Andrew crackles with scandals about sex and money on almost every page, two subjects that have always caused problems for the royals. Andrew Lownie's book, Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the House of York, is an unrelentingly unflattering portrait of Prince Andrew. It depicts him as arrogant, self-seeking and in denial about his links to the sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The author's best-selling biographies have a habit of changing the reputation of famous figures, such as establishing the Nazi intrigues around the Duke of Windsor, the former Edward VIII. Although in the case of Entitled, he hasn't so much cemented Prince Andrew's reputation, as put it in concrete boots and thrown it in the river. It is hard to see how he might come back from this.
Much more in the article, worth a read I think. I shan't be buying the book but nice to know it has been published.....

`Beloved by bands and bank robbers, the Ford Transit turns 60 ' LINK

Good grief! It can't possibly be 60 years.... there must be some mistake! Funny thing is that in all my driving I have never driven a Transit.....
Thanks for that Peter.... it made me think.

I like the idea of that flashy electric transit, it's probably all luxury inside. The article mentioned the early rock groups travelling around in Transits. Imagine the late Ozzy Osbourne rolling up in the new electric Transit outside the Dorchester and throwing the keys to the doorman!

Two things, an annual boiler service and a visit by Susan. Both good!

While Susan was here she put my new duvet covers on and I overslept 90 minutes!

You must have needed it Stanley.
One of the joys of retirement

Thanks Love

The fact that I am crossing the Manorial Boundary for the first time in yonks and we are promised the hottest day of the year....

The advantages of having good friends. I wanted blank steel to chop out four more steam engine crankshafts from the solid. I reached out to my old boss John Ingoe, went to visit him yesterday and lo and behold.... When I asked him how much I owed him he just snorted..... Nice!

A surprise visit by my great grand daughter Lily on a visit from Australia!