Andrew Connell 🇺🇦

You want reverse gentrification? Poundland in Queen street, Cardiff, replaced Laura Ashley.

Such an interesting article from Andrew Atherstone on withdrawing from Communion (in @ChurchTimes). But I have to say my enthusiasm for unity means I stand with JC Ryle on this:

Poor form, especially for a Habsburg.

22 July. St Mary Magdalene, Apostle to the Apostles.

Rhubarb. So prolific, they should be practically giving the stuff away.

Rung up by my wonderful aunt, who at 82 and after an operation has just gone back to volunteering at her local homeless centre. 'Of course, half of them are intoxicated on one thing or another so when I go along and talk my rubbish to them it doesn't matter...' 😆 Utter star.

The @TSA_Wales brass group warming up for the 11am worship at the @CytunNew tent at the Royal Welsh Show.

I made the mistake of engaging with as post on Ukraine that was, I now see, obviously the work of a Russian bot. Crikey the stuff that crawled out of the woodwork to pile onto me! Sort of proud of it but I won't bother again - you know what they say about wrestling with pigs, eh?

This sort of thing is literally the height of this government's ambition. But beyond that, it's one thing turning to gesture politics because you can't make the economy or public services work - gestures matter, after all. It's another to make the gestures so petty & regressive.

I think one may fairly say that the campaign for this Bill has not always been conducted with quite the degree of precision, and alas sometimes of candour, that such a momentous proposal would appear to require.

This. @helenhayes_ @BellRibeiroAddy , not sure which of your constituencies it was filmed in ( looks like Electric Avenue), but will you be taking @GBNEWS and @StevenEdginton 's despicable behaviour up with the broadcast regulators, please?

Oddly enough, a Methodist- well, the actor, Toshiro Mifune, was, anyway.

Attenborough: Relaxed comfortably on a wooden deck, this duck-billed platypus lurks in wait for a fallen sausage or sweet treat.

'...foreign terms should be forbidden whenever a French term can be used [ added by hand:], which is to say always'. It's that handwritten addition that makes it so typically de Gaulle!

Rather a @CrowlandMH feel to this, don't you think?

Saw Norrington at the Proms , probably 35 years ago. Will never forget him, conducting from a stool, bent over in intense communion with the orchestra.

You've just invented something in an HG Wells novel, haven't you?

He also sent his Hindu then-PM Rishi Sunak sweets for Diwali, and put the Chief Rabbi up at St James's Palace so he could walk to the Coronation on the Sabbath. These are the actions of a wise Christian King, secure enough in his faith to respect those of (some of) his peoples.

Had one or two evening classes with Melissa Scott - Miller. An extremely nice and encouraging teacher.