Ben Jackson
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jacksobc.bsky.social
Ben Jackson
@jacksobc.bsky.social
2K followers 2.3K following 2.8K posts
Welsh. Former central banker. Mostly skeeting about my cooking and LFC. Mostly. He/him. Almost died once and I wrote about my accident and the role Zwift had in my rehabilitation:

https://zwiftinsider.com/the-fresh-puncheur-of-watopia/
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jacksobc.bsky.social
You can tell you’re in the Baltics when the airport lounge has a Jäegermeister dispenser.

Next to all the spirits there is just a series of shot glasses, no tumblers.
It’s a photo of a Jaegermeister dispenser, with a branded bar mat and a handle to pour shots of all those herbs. Next to it is a branded ice box, and then you can just make out the rest of the spirit bottles and shot glasses. Through the window you can see a very cold and snowy Riga airport.
January 25, 2026 at 1:04 PM
jacksobc.bsky.social
It’s amazing the number of people that believe this. I got into a bit of an argument with a colleague about my refusal to travel to the US. It descended into this. I found it so funny that the typical IQ range could be considered as having read a lot of books…
It’s a screenshot from WhatsApp. It reads: Him: Yeah right.....you guys project. You are the ones who censored the right, controlled free speech, you are the facists and morons on top of it. Like sheep. remember the Nazis were national SOCIALISTS and gave away health care and controlled the media just like you! Me: Hahahaha. Oh my word, you might need to actually go read a book about the Nazis Him: I've read more books that you have IQ points. I respond to that last message with the laughing emoji. We have not corresponded since.
January 25, 2026 at 10:45 AM
jacksobc.bsky.social
This cabin safety pamphlet feels like it’s been Fight Club’d. Buddy, if you’re ditching at that angle I ain’t bracing for shit.
It’s a photo of the cabin safety leaflet for bahamasair. If demonstrates the brace position and when you should adopt it. The examples used are ploughing into the ground and the sea at a 45 degree angle. You can brace all you want but it’s not going to stop the chair in front crushing you.
January 15, 2026 at 1:32 AM
jacksobc.bsky.social
Scott Adams was a piece of shit, and he once wrote a Dilbert that colleagues asked if I had somehow commissioned it.
It’s a three panel Dilbert strip. The first panel has Pointy-Haired Boss introducing a very tall man to Dilbert: PHB: DILBERT, I'D LIKE YOU TO MEET BEN, OUR NEWEST FAST-TRACK MANAGER. Dilbert: HI The second panel shows PHB and Ben face on to emphasise quite how tall Ben is. PHB: BEN HAS NO REAL EXPERIENCE BUT HE'S VERY TALL, SO WE KNOW HE'LL GO FAR. The third panel reverts on the side on view of the first panel, as Ben towers over PHB and leans in: Ben: I ALSO HAVE EXECUTIVE STYLE HAIR. PHB: WE THINK IT WILL TURN SILVER. Nb. It did. It did go silver.
January 13, 2026 at 6:34 PM
jacksobc.bsky.social
A pork mince ramen with ginger and toasted garlic. Perfect for winter’s evening. 🍽️🍜 #foodsky
Photo of a bowl of pork noodle soup. You can just about make out the ramen noodles and chunks of pork mince, as well as wilted baby spinach. Scattered on top are coriander leaves, fresh red chillies, and fried off garlic slices.
January 9, 2026 at 7:20 PM
jacksobc.bsky.social
Season 2 of Landman is great. The whole of the Taylor Sheridan Televisual Universe is pretty terrific. Just need an Avengers style crossover episode. However, it’s such a shame it’s all on the Nazi channel, Paramount+. #series #TV #Landman 📺
It’s a screen cap from the best TV show of 2025, The Rehearsal. It depicts Nathan Fielder’s vision of the Paramount offices. He’s sat at a large table, in an even larger chair, in a vast ballroom. Hanging down over three of the widows are large flags. Instead of Nazi insignia, they’re blue with the Paramount logo. Nathan looks very sad about everything.
January 5, 2026 at 8:06 PM
jacksobc.bsky.social
Mad that the odds on a football commentator getting the job are so short, but I put nothing past the Manchester United board.
It’s a screenshot of the odds for the next Manchester United manager from oddschecker.com. It reads: Enzo Maresca 3/1 Darren Fletcher 4/1 Oliver Glasner 5/1 Gareth Southgate 12/1 Xavi Hernandez 12/1 Kieran McKenna 14/1 Michael Carrick 14/1 Unai Emery 20/1 Marco Silva 20/1 My little joke is that the former United player and current interim manager, Darren Fletcher, shares a name with a football commentator.
January 5, 2026 at 11:35 AM
jacksobc.bsky.social
Trump is out of control and there is no saying how this ends.
It’s a screenshot from the FT app. It reads: president to 'watch his ass' after Venezuela attack Donald Trump issued a new warning to Colombian president Gustavo Petro. "He's making cocaine and they're sending it into the United States. So he does have to watch his ass," he said. Collapse post ^
January 3, 2026 at 5:32 PM
jacksobc.bsky.social
Justifiably. It’s weird wanting a World Cup to be a failure because the pricing of tickets is outrageous. As you say, nothing will actually change unless people do speak out (or don’t buying tickets)

On the surge pricing on cat 4 tickets, most of the time it’s hard to find any cat 4 tickets at all!
It’s a seat plan for the stadium in Boston to be used for the World Cup. The different categories have different colours. The majority of the stadium is gold for category 1 tickets, the most expensive. Tucked right in two of the corners are small slivers of green, representing the cheapest tickets.
December 13, 2025 at 4:38 PM
jacksobc.bsky.social
London pubs can do one. 🍺🍻
It’s a screenshot of my phone’s lock screen, with a Money Out notification for £8.35 for one pint from a pub in London.
December 11, 2025 at 6:28 PM
jacksobc.bsky.social
Connections
Puzzle #909
🟪🟪🟪🟪
🟦🟦🟦🟦
🟩🟩🟩🟩
🟨🟨🟨🟨

Picked up the badge for 350 games getting purple first.
It’s a screenshot of the NYT Games app on my phone. It shows the 350 Purple First badge. The text reads: EARNED DEC. 6, 2025 350 Purple First You earned this badge by successfully completing 350 Connections puzzles after getting the purple category first.
December 6, 2025 at 10:05 AM
jacksobc.bsky.social
I know it says it’s about screenwriting and things that are interesting to screenwriters, but it’s so much more. If you have any interest in Film & TV, or writing in any form, this is fascinating stuff. @johnaugust.bsky.social and @clmazin.bsky.social have produced a great book. 📚📖 #booksky
It’s a photo of my copy of the Scriptnotes book by John August and Craig Mazin. It is bright orange, with their names at the top, then a picture of an old fashioned type writer, then the word: SCRIPTNOTES At the bottom it reads: A Book About Screenwriting and Things That Are Interesting to Screenwriters
December 3, 2025 at 11:29 PM
jacksobc.bsky.social
In Egypt, travellers seemingly need telling not to hang clothes on sprinklers. It’s so high that I, at 6’4”, can’t reach it. But someone must have done it to prompt the sign, right?
It’s a photo of the join between ceiling and wall in a hotel room in Cairo. There’s a small metal sprinkler very close to the ceiling. Just below it is a small sign with a clothes hanger with a red circular no symbol over it.
December 2, 2025 at 8:26 AM
jacksobc.bsky.social
Ancient relic found in The Egyptian Museum in Cairo. #LFC #YNWA
It’s a photo of an ancient statue, dug up from the sacred grounds of Egypt. It depicts a young Mo Salah, his arms out spread, as he celebrates what the ancients refer to as a goal. I remember them well. He’s is resplendent in the red kit of Liverpool FC
November 28, 2025 at 1:08 PM
jacksobc.bsky.social
This is why Rachel Reeves has an impossible task. You already pay national insurance on your pension contributions. For most people this won’t change anything. If you currently do a salary sacrifice—receiving a lower salary and saving both income tax and NI contributions—then you’ll be hit by this.
The tax raid on companies will be less explicit this year than in Reeves' first Budget, although her plan to tighten the rules on salary sacrifice schemes has been described as a £2 billion take through the back door. Currently workers can pay up to £60,000 a year into their pension without being liable for national insurance but the Treasury plans to cap this to £2,000.
November 26, 2025 at 12:28 AM
jacksobc.bsky.social
Here’s the context from the paragraph before it:
The tax raid on companies will be less explicit this year than in Reeves' first Budget, although her plan to tighten the rules on salary sacrifice schemes has been described as a £2 billion take through the back door. Currently workers can pay up to £60,000 a year into their pension without being liable for national insurance but the Treasury plans to cap this to £2,000.
November 25, 2025 at 11:42 PM
jacksobc.bsky.social
But this is just about salary sacrifice contributions, right? This doesn’t impact the standard minimum 3% employer and 5% employee contributions. This is only if you opt to contribute more in a salary sacrifice scheme.
The tax raid on companies will be less explicit this year than in Reeves' first Budget, although her plan to tighten the rules on salary sacrifice schemes has been described as a £2 billion take through the back door. Currently workers can pay up to £60,000 a year into their pension without being liable for national insurance but the Treasury plans to cap this to £2,000.
November 25, 2025 at 11:33 PM
jacksobc.bsky.social
One magical animal, and some roast potatoes/garlic. 🍽️🍜 #foodsky
It’s a photo of a roasted shoulder of pork. It’s sitting on a dark gray chopping board. The cracking is orange and blistered. The meat facing the camera is browned and crispy. It’s a photo of the same roasted meat, this time from above to get a better very of the cracking. The score marks are apparent, as are some flakes of salt. It’s a photo of the sliced meat on the chopping board. It’s soft, tender, and laced with fat. It’s a bowl of roast potatoes. They have crispy edges, and tucked in between are roasted cloves of garlic.
November 23, 2025 at 6:20 PM
jacksobc.bsky.social
What a guy #LFC #YNWA
November 18, 2025 at 11:26 PM
jacksobc.bsky.social
What are travellers in Germany doing with the kettles?!
It’s a photo of a small sign in an Avani hotel room in Frankfurt. It reads: Kettle for water only
November 14, 2025 at 3:43 PM
jacksobc.bsky.social
I ate this grilled octopus at Versículo d'O Faia and it was worth the trip for this alone.
It’s a photo of a large octopus, grilled to perfection. There is a pool of oil around the plate with three black olives and a clove of garlic in the top right corner.
November 11, 2025 at 9:52 PM
jacksobc.bsky.social
An FT article engineered to trigger @michaelhobbes.bsky.social. It argues that Wikipedia is left-leaning because it claims the lab leak theory is controversial. We need something like Grokipedia because 2/3rds of Americans believe COVID-19 originated in a lab… on.ft.com/47m6GBB
Does he have a point about some Wikipedia articles having a "liberal" or left-leaning bias that obscures or fails to provide a full and fair version of the truth, though? Yes. Just look up the "COVID-19 Lab leak theory" entry as an example. Despite the fact that two-thirds of Americans in a 2023 study by YouGov and the Economist said they believed the virus originated in a Chinese laboratory and not, as originally thought, a wet market, this is described in the second sentence as a "highly controversial" claim, while it is stated that "many scenarios proposed for a lab leak are characteristic of conspiracy theories" - as if there were not legitimate and non-conspiratorial reasons for believing in it.
November 2, 2025 at 9:16 PM
jacksobc.bsky.social
Luchador wresting at the York Hall tonight.
It’s a photo of a 64 year old man jumping of the top rung of a wrestling ring. He’s star shaped, wearing gray Lycra pants and a gray Luchador mask. He’s about to land on a wrestler wearing green pants and a green mask. Another wrestler in the ring looks on expectantly
November 2, 2025 at 12:44 AM
jacksobc.bsky.social
My brother is staying so I cooked him a big plate of lamb chops with chilli and salt. 🍜🍽️ #foodsky
It’s a photo of a white plate piled high with lamb chops. They’re a deep brown colour, and they’ve been finished in a wok with loads of garlic, chilli (green and red), spring onion, and a Sichuan peppercorn and salt mix.
October 16, 2025 at 9:33 PM
jacksobc.bsky.social
I was fascinated by this bit. He’s a self-proclaimed dimwit, but smart enough so it’s not immediately obvious what side he comes down on with the flag wavers, although if he’s upset with someone being arrested for xenophobic tweets, I’ve got a good guess…
"I'm not massive on reading politics," Shelvey said. "I just see some of the things that go on. "I see people getting arrested for tweeting and, then, all of the flags and 'taking back the country. "I'm not going to sit here and comment on things like that because I'm not clever enough to, and I'll get myself into trouble if I carry on, but I just feel that the UK isn't what it was 10 to 15 years ago."
October 16, 2025 at 1:31 PM