RoverAndOut

Silly Queenie! Should've known the "guidance".

Best quote of his I saw related to this doesn't seem to be in that piece. "We're looking forward to spending the second half of our lives together." So apparently Rupert's planning to live to 184!

The Daily Star does it again. Except, of course, we all know he's both.

It absolutely breaks my heart but I think they've finally done it. The Tories and their right-wing mates in the press have irrevocably broken the BBC. Either the BBC is a state institution controlled by the government of the day, where all staff are gagged for the entirety of their tenure. Or, they row back, Lineker is somehow reinstated with a slap on the wrist and thousands of people refuse to ever pay their TV licence again and the right wing commentators have a field day. Both outcomes are horrific. And I don't see a third way. I can only pray that the Twitter echo chamber is a very unrepresentative sample of opinion, that we can somehow get through this, the next 18 months pass as quickly as possible, the Tories are decimated, Labour clear out the top brass at the BBC, appoint independent minded replacements, impartiality rules are clarified so that there is a clear distinction between "BBC views" and "private views" and we start to move on from this mess. But, as I say, I fear the damage is already done.

So...let's see...that's...no presenter, no pundits, no player interviews and no commentators! Good job BBC bosses! What an absolute clusterfuck.

Now suggestions that PL players will refuse to give interviews to the BBC in solidarity with Gary Lineker, with the PFA prepared to support players fined.

Can you believe these fuckers? Pour the petrol, light the match, then pretend you're shocked there's a backlash. Government distancing themselves and then this bullshit :

No such rules for Lord Sugar though, who is currently the star of a major BBC weekly show on prime time BBC1...

Assuming he stands by his principles, I suspect Gary Lineker has presented his last edition of Match of the Day. It pains me to say the right-wing press have successfully demolished the BBC. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-64920557

"The News Agents presenter and former BBC journalist Emily Maitlis said it was "curious that Gary Lineker [was] free to raise questions about Qatar's human rights record - with the blessing of the BBC - over the World Cup, but cannot raise questions of human rights in this country if it involves criticism of government policy". However, this is arguably a false equivalence. Voicing an opinion on a government policy about migrant crossings, a divisive subject, is not the same thing as highlighting well-documented human rights breaches in Qatar, something which is a matter of fact." This is the bit I don't understand. Presumably it means if he'd kept his tweet to the bit about us taking in less refugees than most major European countries, that would have been fine as it was fact? And if he'd talked about the horrendous conditions in the Manston Migrant Centre that would have been fine, as it is "well-documented"? I suspect the answer, in both cases, is no. So it's all a nonsense.

Caroline Blakiston (Mon Mothma) has just turned 90 and is still attending conventions according to this. Looks in no immediate danger.

"My dad was this tall and he came from over there!"

Just popped up on Facebook. David Pleat looks ancient. Apparently, he's 78.

Speaking of leaked WhatsApp messages, it's not often I say "I agree with Jackie Doyle-Price" but... I agree with Jackie Doyle-Price. Cue Mad Nad in full shriek mode on the final page. https://mobile.twitter.com/SamCoatesSky/status/1632789572235952129

What a fucking snake Isabelle Oakeshott is. Her journalism career must be in the toilet, how would anybody trust her with a drinks order, let alone a government secret after this. Brazenly admitting she's broken an NDA because she's "worried the public inquiry will be a whitewash" instead of letting the inquiry do its job and THEN releasing them if it is a whitewash! Instead, the public inquiry is sabotaged before it's even started. The revelations are as gruesome as we'd expect (no regard for care homes, Boris doesn't understand basic maths, the Education Secretaries past and present hate teachers unions) but without context and proper scrutiny, it's just a free-for-all and a chance for Oakeshott to get her face on the news. What a pillock Hancock is. What did he think was going to happen?!