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Reposted by Simon Glendinning

Anita Chaudhuri @anitachaudhuri.bsky.social · 3d

Only just caught up with Peter Ross’s beautiful review. Going by last night’s London gig, 100% true: “His concerts have become acts of thanksgiving for his life and work. Now, as he plays these songs for the last few times, that feeling is ever deeper. People had come to let him know he is loved.”

Peter Ross @peteralanross.bsky.social · 9d

"Edwyn Collins is allergic to nostalgia, but gave the impression that he was saying goodbye to these songs, skimming them like stones on a loch."
It was a privilege to attend and write about the Glasgow date of this farewell tour. www.thetimes.com/culture/musi...

Edwyn Collins review — a beautiful, five-star goodbye

The Scottish singer’s farewell tour, prompted by ill health at the age of 66, introduced new songs and brought together his old band mates in a stunning concert

www.thetimes.com

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Simon Glendinning @simonglend.bsky.social · 3d

Edwyn Collins leaves the London stage for the last time. What a night at a sold out Royal Festival Hall.

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Simon Glendinning @simonglend.bsky.social · 3d

An evening with Edwyn Collins. A testimonial totally deserved. Unforgettable.

Birmingham 81 @birmingham81.bsky.social · 4d

That was such a beautiful evening with Edwyn Collins at the Royal Festival Hall. Will share some more pics and vids tomorrow, but here's one of Paul Cook, Edwyn, Dennis Bovell and Vic Godard at the end of the show

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Princeton University Press @princetonupress.bsky.social · 5d

Goethe: A Life in Ideas by @matthewgbell.bsky.social gets a sharp, illuminating review from Ritchie Robertson in @litreview.bsky.social! “Deeply learned, crisply written.” Read it here: literaryreview.co.uk/darkness-light-2

Ritchie Robertson - Darkness & Light

Ritchie Robertson: Darkness & Light - Goethe: A Life in Ideas by Matthew Bell

literaryreview.co.uk

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Anand Menon @anandmenon.bsky.social · 7d

‘Structures designed to diffuse power are utterly inappropriate if the ambition is to deploy hard power.’ www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

The European Union was designed for peace – it is never going to be a war machine | Anand Menon

Reacting to the Russian military threat would require the bloc to be agile and decisive. It is many great things, but it is not that, says Anand Menon, director of UK in a Changing Europe

www.theguardian.com

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LSE European Institute @lse-ei.bsky.social · 9d

Happy first day of the Autumn Term! 🍂

This academic year is an extra special one as we are celebrating LSE’s 130th anniversary 🎂

The theme is centred around LSE’s impact, past and present. Look out for celebratory events, freebies, exciting announcements, and much more from October onwards! 🎉

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Simon Glendinning @simonglend.bsky.social · 14d

Very sad to hear about the death of Jonathan Lear. So readable and wise. The quote in this article on mourning is wonderful (even if I might disagree that it is exclusively human). dailynous.com/2025/09/22/j...

Jonathan Lear (1948-2025) - Daily Nous

Jonathan Lear, Professor in the Committee on Social Thought and in the Department of Philosophy at the University of Chicago, has died. Professor Lear was well-known for bringing moral and social phil...

dailynous.com

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Simon Glendinning @simonglend.bsky.social · 15d

It was: perhaps and maybe. Turns out that was hard to get a perfect anagram with.

Simon Glendinning @simonglend.bsky.social · 15d

No - it’s right with an extra p. (Why did I start on this…)

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Simon Glendinning @simonglend.bsky.social · 15d

No! It’s still wrong… Universal failure.

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Simon Glendinning @simonglend.bsky.social · 15d

That many…and (oops, sorry) add a “p” (Total fail trying to get a perfect anagram with these letters…)

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Simon Glendinning @simonglend.bsky.social · 15d

The media enabling, especially irresponsible on the BBC, makes me furious.

But some people clearly get a kind of self-righteous pleasure contemplating the prospect of “us” tearing the whole house down, not caring too much how to pick up the pieces, satisfied that “we” will have taken back control.

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Simon Glendinning @simonglend.bsky.social · 15d

Be a shaper day man?

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Simon Glendinning @simonglend.bsky.social · 15d

This was also Spengler’s attitude towards the closing years of the Faustian world. I often find it difficult to get my head round. But it seems the right thing to do - to go down with the ship, not stupidly “saluting” but actively attempting to salvage whatever can be saved.

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Simon Glendinning @simonglend.bsky.social · 16d

I try to keep a measure of respect for people whose views I disagree with. I am rarely confident that there is absolutely nothing whatsoever to be said even for outlooks that look totally off to me. But I have to say I think Farage is genuinely dangerous - and the BBC really needs to get a grip.

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Simon Glendinning @simonglend.bsky.social · 19d

“power now needs to be put in the hands of the grassroots” — in the hands of some (other) “me”

Simon Glendinning @simonglend.bsky.social · 21d

But he is also a close third in the unfavourable ranking - just behind Farage-the-most-favoured. Your (justified) bemusement about how anyone could possibly approve of Farage would likely be mirror echoed by the many who do not approve of JC.

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Adam Parkhomenko @adamparkhomenko.bsky.social · 21d

One of the best GOP impersonations ever?

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Ed Davey @eddavey.libdems.org.uk · 24d

I've written to Keir Starmer, Kemi Badenoch and Nigel Farage, urging them to join me in condemning Elon Musk's dangerous remarks inciting violence yesterday.

As leaders, we must stand together and make clear Musk will face serious consequences for these actions.

Letter from Ed Davey to Keir Starmer condemning Elon Musk for inciting violence and urging unity to defend democracy.

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Anand Menon @anandmenon.bsky.social · 24d

The problem is that ‘this is not who we are’ is coming to feel a little empirically unconvincing. It might help if the PM actually stood up and made the case for a liberal, tolerant and inclusive country.

Alison McGovern @allymcgovern.bsky.social · 25d

It didn't work out for me in the race to be deputy leader, but given events today, am sharing this again.

We in Labour are uniquely placed to bring our diverse country together against the forces of hate. When we stand up for each other, we all win.

labourlist.org/2025/09/alis...

'We win when we fight together – that's the story Labour needs to tell' - LabourList

We can never give in to the forces that would divide us and send us backwards. The answer is the Labour winning over a broad coalition for our future.

labourlist.org

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Chris Brosnahan @chrisbrosnahan.com · 24d

Keir Starmer really needs to move away from his strategy of legitimising the anti-immigration hostility. It's unbelievably dangerous.

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Patrick Dunleavy @patrickdunleavy.bsky.social · 26d

Objective data show BBC & ITV bias.
Reform featured in 49 bulletins between January-July 2025
whereas Lib Dems(with 72 MPs) were in 18% of bulletins, with 35.
Reform referenced in nearly 1 in 5 ITV News At Ten bulletins, but 6% for Lib Dems www.theguardian.com/media/2025/s...

BBC under fresh pressure over extent of Reform UK coverage

Nigel Farage’s party featured in considerably more News at Ten bulletins than Lib Dems over six months, study finds

www.theguardian.com

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Simon Glendinning @simonglend.bsky.social · 25d

Is the link broken?

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Simon Glendinning @simonglend.bsky.social · 26d

So very sad to hear that my much loved colleague Conor Gearty has died. What a loss to LSE - and far beyond.

Donncha O’Connell @donnchalaw.bsky.social · 26d

Encourager-in chief, peerless writer, brilliant speaker and teacher, courageous thinker, funny man from Longford who lived greatly in London, benevolent friend to so many. If there is an ‘eternal reward’ it will hardly match the generosity of Conor Gearty. May he rest in peace.

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Robert Saunders @robertsaunders.bsky.social · 27d

Another problem is that UK politics has a serious "pipeline problem".

If Starmer keeled over tomorrow, I've no idea who would replace him.

I don't even know who the frontrunners would be.

There are no experienced, tested candidates in either main party, because UK politics no longer develops that

Robert Saunders @robertsaunders.bsky.social · 27d

I suspect Starmer would be in more peril if MPs still picked the leader.

Under the present rules, Labour MPs can fell a prime minister but they can't replace him. And right now, no one can predict who the membership would choose.

That will make many MPs nervous.
www.ft.com/content/1487...

Extract from article by Stephen Bush: "Badenoch may not be the only leader not to make it all the way to the next general election. Starmer’s government increasingly resembles Boris Johnson’s in the early autumn of 2021: struggling with inflation, hit by scandals and developing a reputation among its own MPs for a nightmare combination of bullheaded stubbornness and brittleness under pressure.

There is a significant appetite among Labour MPs to believe that the government can still be turned around without a change of leader and all the instability that would bring. But a moment of crisis or panic could very swiftly make this government resemble Johnson’s in 2022: undone by panicking, unhappy backbenchers, blundering from landslide to disaster in a single term. "

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