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🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿🇬🇧 The last time a foreign army invaded Britain, a Welsh cobbler sent them home. With a pitchfork. 🍴 Her name was Jemima Nicholas. Born in Mathry, Pembrokeshire. 1755. A cobbler. Not a soldier. Not a general. On the 22nd of February 1797, four French warships anchored off the Welsh coast. 🚢 1,400 soldiers came ashore at Carreg Wastad Point. Many of them were convicts and deserters. Their plan was to march on Bristol, start a revolution and inspire the British poor to rise up. It did not go to plan. A ship had recently wrecked nearby. Its cargo was Portuguese wine. 🍷 The French found it. Within hours, the invasion force was drunk. Jemima heard what was happening. She reached for her pitchfork. And walked out to meet them. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 She found twelve French soldiers. They were drunk. She rounded them up, marched them to the church, and locked the door. She wasn't the only one. Hundreds of Welsh women came out of their homes in their traditional red shawls and tall black hats. 🟥 From a distance, after a glass or two of Portuguese wine, they looked exactly like British Redcoats. On the 24th of February, two days after they landed, 1,400 French soldiers surrendered. ⚖️ Unconditionally. The surrender was signed in a pub. It was the last time a foreign army set foot on British soil. 🇬🇧 Jemima Nicholas was awarded a pension of £50 a year for the rest of her life. She died in 1832. Her gravestone reads: "The Welsh heroine who boldly marched to meet the French invaders who landed on our shores." Did they teach you her name? 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 Jemima Nicholas was almost forgotten forever. So were thousands of others. Every time you support this channel, more of them survive. Be Part Of Us. Be Proud Of Us. 🇬🇧 proudofus.co.uk

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Love this from Danny Dyer on @PeterCrouchPod. 👏

Wilberforce got the statue. This man got the mud. Thirty-five thousand miles of it. His name was Thomas Clarkson. Born in England. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Cambridgeshire. 1760. He was twenty-four years old when Cambridge set him an essay question. "Is it lawful to make slaves of others against their will?" He knew nothing about slavery. So he started reading. Two months later he couldn't stop. He won the prize and rode home to London with something nobody had given him. A conscience he couldn't put down. Halfway there, on a quiet country road, he stopped his horse. Sat in the silence of the English countryside. The trade was real. He had just proved it. And somebody had to stop it. So he gave up the church and got to work. Bristol. Liverpool. Every slave port in Britain. Into the taverns, the back rooms, the ships. Asking sailors what they had seen below decks. Men who had been there. Who knew what happened on the Middle Passage. Some refused. Some were threatened. Some were bought. Clarkson kept riding. Thirty-five thousand miles. Ten years. Every testimony written down in longhand on the road. All of it handed to a young MP named William Wilberforce. Wilberforce went to Parliament and gave the speeches. Clarkson saddled up and went back out. In 1792 they put a petition together. Not from London. Not from the powerful. From ordinary men and women. Market towns, village squares, chapel steps across England. Four hundred thousand signatures. The largest petition in British parliamentary history. Parliament voted it down. So they went again. And again. Eighteen years of going again. 25 March 1807. The Slave Trade Act passed. Britain outlawed the trade and turned the Royal Navy loose to hunt the ships. History gave Wilberforce the statue. Coleridge called Clarkson the moral steam engine of the abolition movement. Clarkson lived to see slavery abolished completely in 1833. An old man of seventy-three, who had started this at twenty-four. He died in 1846. The last surviving founder of the original committee. He never held office. Never gave the famous speeches. He just got back on the horse. For sixty years. Did they teach you his name? Together we keep our history alive. proudofus.co.uk/support Be part of us. Be Proud Of Us. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🇬🇧

Speaking about the deep contradictions in human nature, Japanese actor Hiroyuki Sanada said: “Some people dream of having a swimming pool at home, while those who have one barely use it. Those who have lost a loved one feel a profound sense of loss, while others often complain about the relatives still in their lives. Those without a partner long for one, while those who have a partner often fail to appreciate them. The hungry would give anything for a meal, while the full complain about the taste of their food. Those without a car dream of owning one, while those who have a car are always looking for a better one. The key to happiness is gratitude—to truly see and value what we already have, and to understand that somewhere, someone would give everything for what we take for granted.”

In 2023, Antarctic sea ice hit a record low. Researchers from the British Antarctic Survey were quick to blame climate change, saying human CO2 emissions made such an event "four times more likely." But then reality intervened. Through 2025 and into 2026, Antarctic sea ice surged back, returning to levels similar to 1980 - a dramatic rebound the models did not predict. This is the problem with climate attribution theatre. When ice declines - it's climate change. When it rebounds - it's ignored. And a complicit media never updates the public.

For those who are displaced by Leeds fans for the QF, we'd encourage everyone who wants to create atmosphere all game to get their seats in the Bobby Moore Lower between 145-148, and the Trevor Brooking lower 142 corner. Rather than scatter the noisier fans about the stadium, instead we can transfer that atmosphere and combine it to make one large area. Spread the word! COYI ⚒️

For the first time in a few years, we have a team listening to the manager and fighting tooth and nail for him and the club because they respect him. Nuno Espirito Santo, long may you stay. Not seen 25% of what we’re capable of yet either because we’re having to scrap game by game for points because of the position we’re in.

Not sure when Dinos Mavropanos turned into prime Franco Baresi, but here we are

My MP ensured HIS VOTE was cast to keep MY RIGHT to trial by Jury.

Wife made me go to couples therapy last week Nice office Two couches Box of tissues The therapist asked what brings us in My wife said "he treats everything like a transaction" I said "that's not true" The therapist asked me to give an example of something I do that isn't transactional I thought about it for 11 seconds I could not think of an example The therapist asked how that made me feel I said "efficient" My wife looked at the therapist The therapist looked at my wife They had a moment I was not part of the moment My wife said "do you love me?" I said "I chose you. Every day I choose you. That's not emotion. That's a commitment with a compounding return and I don't see a better alternative in the market." The room went quiet My wife cried The therapist cried I didn't understand why That was the most romantic thing I've ever said The therapist said "I think we should meet weekly" I said "what's your hourly rate?" She said "$275" I said "for both of us or each?" My wife picked up her purse and walked out I stayed to negotiate the rate Got it down to $250 Small win Sent from my iPhone

Had a parent-teacher conference this morning My wife told me not to come I came anyway She said "please just listen and nod" I said "I always listen" She said "you listen like you're sitting in a boardroom looking for something to challenge" That's how listening works Nice classroom Small chairs I am 6'4" and was seated at a desk designed for someone who still believes in Santa Claus My knees touched my chest The teacher introduced herself Shared her identified pronouns I shared my identified adjectives Smart and handsome My wife closed her eyes The teacher had a folder Color-coded tabs I respected the organization She said our son is "a pleasure to have in class" My wife smiled I waited That sentence is never the whole report It's the executive summary before the risk section She said "however" There it is She said he "asks a lot of questions" I said "good" She said "during quiet time" I said "when is quiet time?" She said "it's when students are expected to work independently and in silence" I said "so he's the only one trying to get information and you've structured the environment to prevent it?" My wife put her hand on my arm I continued The teacher said he recently told another student that "sharing pencils doesn't make sense if nobody brings their own" I said "that's an accurate observation" My wife squeezed harder The teacher said she's concerned about his "resistance to group activities" I said "he's not resistant. He just doesn't see the value of doing more work for the same grade." The teacher said he also corrected her math on the whiteboard I said "was he right?" She paused She said "that's not the point" I said "it's a little bit the point" My wife stood up Sat back down Compromise The teacher pulled out an evaluation sheet Categories like "works well with others" and "follows directions" and "respects classroom norms" All subjective Not a number on the page I asked how these are graded She said "based on observation" I said "so one person's opinion with no second review?" She said "it's professional judgment" I said "my auditors say that too. Right before I disagree with them." She looked at my wife My wife said "I'm sorry about him" I said "I'm sitting right here" My wife said "I know" The teacher said overall he's a bright kid and she just wants to make sure he learns to "collaborate" I said "collaboration is important. But so is recognizing when you're the only one doing the work. He'll learn that again in college. And again in the real world. Might as well start now." Nobody spoke The teacher closed her folder She said "I think we've covered everything" I said "one more thing" She braced herself I said "his reading is above grade level. His math is strong. He asks hard questions and corrects mistakes when he sees them. I just want to make sure this school knows what it has." The teacher looked at me differently My wife looked at me differently I said "that's all" We left In the car my wife was quiet Then she said "he's turning into you" I said "is that a good thing?" She didn't answer From the backseat he said "dad, why does the teacher count off for asking questions? Isn't that the whole point of school?" I looked at my wife She looked out the window I said "yes. It is." He said "I don't think she likes when I'm right" I didn't say anything Neither did my wife Small chairs Color-coded tabs No follow-up items But the kid's going to be fine Sent from my iPhone

I had never heard this wonderful story before!

Every pane of glass around you. 🪟 Every window. Every phone screen. Every car windscreen. Every skyscraper.🇬🇧 All made the same way. All using the same process. Invented in a kitchen sink in Lancashire. His name was Sir Alastair Pilkington. He wasn't even related to the glass company. He just happened to share the name and married into the family. In 1952 he was doing the washing up at home. He watched the grease float on the water. Perfectly flat. Undisturbed. And thought: what if molten glass could do that? Before this moment, flat glass had been made the same way for three hundred years. 😰 You melted sand. You poured it into sheets. Then you ground it. And polished it. By hand. For hours. A third of every sheet was wasted in the process. The work was brutal. The results were inconsistent. Nobody questioned it. That was just how glass was made. Pilkington went to his bosses at Pilkington Brothers in St Helens with his idea. They backed him. It took seven years. It cost £7 million. An enormous sum in the 1950s. There were years where nothing worked. The company nearly went bankrupt. His idea: pour molten glass at 1,100°C onto a bath of molten tin. Glass is less dense than tin. It floats. It spreads. Both surfaces fire-polished perfectly flat by the heat. No grinding. No polishing. No waste. 🔥 In January 1959, it worked. The float glass process was licensed to manufacturers across the world. Over 40 companies. Over 30 countries. Today it accounts for over 90% of all flat glass production on Earth. Every window you have ever looked through in your entire life was almost certainly made using this single British process. Sir Alastair Pilkington was knighted in 1970. Elected Fellow of the Royal Society in 1969. Made a life peer in 1995. Baron Pilkington of St Helens. He died the same year. Before he could take his seat in the House of Lords. A British man with an idea who changed every building on Earth. 🇬🇧 Be part of us - proudofus.co.uk Be proud of us. 🙏🇬🇧

Message for Labour MP’s. You only have to scroll through X today to see how betrayed voters feel about you. Named and shamed for choosing to scrap jury trials. How many of you considered your constituents thoughts? Take note - you are finished!

Here she is @RachelReeveMP talking to petrol bosses. Look at their faces... I would love to know what they're thinking. "We must work together" she says. Maybe she should lower the rate of fuel tax. We're paying 57% of every pound!

A powerful scene in the Odyssey happens when Odysseus finally returns to Ithaca after twenty years of war and wandering. You would expect the story to end with celebration, with the hero coming home, the family reunited, and order restored. Homer does something far stranger. Odysseus arrives disguised as a beggar, because Athena warns him that the palace has been taken over by more than a hundred suitors who have been living there for years, eating his food, drinking his wine, and pressuring his wife Penelope to marry one of them. They believe Odysseus is dead and in their minds the kingdom is already theirs. So the king of Ithaca walks through his own halls dressed in rags while the men stealing his house sit comfortably at his tables. They mock him, throw scraps at him, and one of them even strikes him, and Odysseus takes it. That is the remarkable part, because the same man who blinded the Cyclops and survived twenty years of disasters now stands quietly while strangers insult him in his own home. Homer tells us his heart burns inside his chest and that he wants to attack them immediately, yet he restrains himself and waits. Instead of striking, Odysseus studies the room carefully. He counts the men, watches their habits, and quietly observes which servants remain loyal and which have betrayed him. The hero of the Odyssey does something most people cannot do, which is delay revenge until the moment is right. Eventually Penelope announces a contest and brings out Odysseus’ great bow, declaring that she will marry the man who can string it and shoot an arrow through twelve axe heads lined up in a row. One by one the suitors try and fail, because none of them can even bend the bow. Then the beggar asks for a turn. The suitors laugh at first, but the bow is eventually handed to him. Odysseus takes it in his hands and strings it effortlessly. Homer says the sound of the bowstring tightening rings through the hall like the note of a swallow. Then he places an arrow on the string and sends it cleanly through all twelve axe heads. In that moment the beggar disappears. Odysseus turns the bow toward the suitors and reveals who he is. What follows is one of the most brutal scenes in Greek literature. The doors are sealed and the suitors realize too late that they are trapped inside the hall. Odysseus, his son Telemachus, and two loyal servants begin killing them one by one. There is no escape, no mercy, and no negotiation. The men who spent years consuming another man’s house die inside it. It is a violent ending, but Homer wants you to understand something important. The real danger to Odysseus was never just the monsters and storms on the long journey home. It was the possibility that someone else might take his place while he was gone. When Odysseus finally returns, he reminds everyone in Ithaca of a simple truth: a man’s home is not truly his unless he is willing to fight for it.

🚨 Physicists accidentally wrote an equation that points straight to God. They were trying to explain antimatter. Instead they uncovered a mathematical symmetry so precise it feels… intentional. I broke it down here in this article:

1,000 followers in a matter of hours. We're building something that's never existed: a platform where you read every bill in Parliament, see how MPs voted, and cast your own vote. Parliament votes on your behalf. Now you can have your say too. App coming to the App Store this month.

Growing up on a council estate in the 80’s we were taught to hate this woman. Now I know why.