From today’s @theguardian.com - welcome to the UK, the land where satire died.

Cheers all! And a very Happy (and hoppy) Easter. Beautiful weather for a beautiful DIPA - Track/Factory brewing collab at the ever fantastic Beer Shop #StAlbans

Met up with friends for a day of boardgaming yesterday - we tried our hand at the Civilisation boardgame. Elegant design with a fair few moving parts to hold in mind, it does a fab job of recreating the Sid Meier experience: tech, trade, resources, wonders and, of course, war! #boardgames

It’s true what they say - no matter how bad things are, there’s always someone else who’s worse off - really puts things into perspective… via @thetimes.com

Third time lucky when it came to a marathon Arkham Horror session this weekend with my brother. Such a great game despite how almost impossible it feels for most of a game but how victory feels glorious on the rare occasions that it occurs. And my character was an author! Which was nice.

Iain M Banks is one of my favourite Sci-Fi authors & a major inspiration for my own writing. I read Player of Games again recently and, despite the fact that it's probably the 5th or 6th time, I still loved it. One oh his most accessible & straightforward books IMHO and one of my favourites.

I can't help making up stories about the virtual civ-citizens who have to live with the aftermath of my often less than optimal settling decisions. #Civilisation

Civ sledging.

Towards the end of what will likely be my last game of Civ6 so to mark the transition to a new era (and as a way of getting myself into the habit of posting) here are a few old twitter posts about Civ. This first one is a bit niche.

First sunny day for what feels like an aeon so it’s time for a BBQ and a glass of the superbly well timed annual release of the quintessential DIPA from @verdantbrew.bsky.social.

Stupendous!

I've been a video game player since the days of Binatone - I still play on PC and Xbox when I get a spare moment (Civ 6 and Battlefield V/The Divisions respectively). I'm also a fan of the board-based variety - the bigger, more complicate and more social the better.

I'll post about craft ale occasionally. I'm equally as happy with a traditional ale as I am with a modern NEIPA or a West Coast but steer clear of anything too odd (lambics and sours I'm looking at you). Faves tend to be from Track or @verdantbrew.bsky.social.

When it comes to Historical Technology I'm mostly interested in late-Victorian/early Edwardian computing, telecoms, media and military tech - also quirky tech in general. Difference Engines 1 & 2 are particular favourites!

Here's a bit more detail about me for those brave persons who decided to follow based on a bio and no content!

As a Writer...
I've published one novel so far. The Sterling Directive is an alt-historical espionage thriller. "The Bourne Identity meets Sherlock Holmes with a dash of Peaky Blinders".