Patrick Cheesman

@vashikoo It was awesome. I remember watching in the cinema. Everyone cheered and clapped.

Stuntman Rick Sylvester was paid $30,000 for the iconic parachute jump off Mount Asgard (6,611 feet) in Canada. Love the nonstop cowbell in the "Ski Chase" score. The abrupt cut to silence in the soundtrack when he jumps must have been incredible in the theater!

@SceneinCinema Definitely in my top 3 of all time. Wonderful movie

The Shawshank Redemption flopped in theaters, $16 million worldwide on a $25 million budget, opening weekend just $727,000 in 1994, it disappeared almost immediately. It lost all seven Oscar nominations to Forrest Gump, no awards, no box office, the studio labeled it a failure and the director walked away devastated. Then something quiet started happening, VHS rentals, cable reruns, someone watching it alone on a Tuesday night and calling a friend the next morning. People who watched it told their friends, their friends told more people, it spread slowly, one recommendation at a time, no marketing push just genuine word of mouth. By 2008 it reached number one on IMDb, the audience voted it the greatest film ever made and it has stayed there ever since. It took 14 years to get there, a box office bomb turned into the highest rated film in history, built entirely by viewers long after the studio had already moved on.

@geoallison I really enjoy your site. It's important to report these stories and apply pressure on the government of the day to prioritise defence. Long may you continue,

I've been reviewing our traffic figures over the last year and some of the numbers genuinely caught me off guard. According to our Google Analytics, the UK Defence Journal recorded 60 million page views in 2025. while I already knew that, I learned recently that month to month, our peak traffic sits among the top 30 news websites in the UK by page views, and within the top 10 in Scotland specifically measured by page views, according to Ipsos iris figures published by HoldtheFrontPage. That, amazingly, puts us ahead of most some established news titles in Scotland and a significant number in England. We started in 2014 with no publisher backing and no real plan beyond wanting to cover UK defence and security matters accurately and straightforwardly. Over a decade later we're an IPSO-regulated publication with a team of contributors drawn from military, industry and academic backgrounds, read by serving personnel, defence industry professionals, and government and policy circles across the UK and beyond. What I find most unexpected is the size and continued growth of our general public readership. For a specialist defence outlet that is genuinely unusual, and it is something we are still getting our heads around. I honestly did not expect any of this when we started.

Amazing. #UAE

In the UAE, we take care of our guests, no questions asked. 🇦🇪

So I live in Dubai, and it has been an interesting few days. I have been impressed with the UAE Defence Ministry and their allies in helping stop the attacks. There were many missiles and drones launched against us, but only a tiny fraction has caused problems. Almost quiet today

@sophiegreenart Happy birthday Sophie. Hope you are having a fabulous day.

Today is my birthday and what I want more than anything is for Molly to become a lap cat but I suppose I will settle for world peace. 🤞🏼✌🏼

@sophiegreenart Thanks Sophie. Know where that is 🙂. Will report back when I make my trip 🫡

@pchees Thank you Patrick! It’s at Gallery27 in Dubai Marina! 🙏🏻🙏🏻

Thank you to everyone who came out for the Commodities collection opening in Dubai. ❤️ Opening nights are always a strange, vulnerable experience for a creative but you guys were so supportive, smiley and along the the ride ✌🏼 The collection will be up for the next couple of months, so do go along and check it out if you happen to be in the area ! #artexhibition #contemporaryart #dubaiart #dubaievents #artist

@kejamieson_ Haha. My money is on the dog :-)

He tried... 🐾 😂

Need to smile? #happydog #beatlife #happy

Very funny, if it wasn't so raw and true as a Manchester United fan

@kejamieson_ Haha. Lucky escape

@pchees Not in International Relations I didn't 😂

With the way the world is going, I'm incredibly glad I finished my International Relations degree when I did, because the world was at least only moderately insane at that point (2013). A simpler time.

@kejamieson_ Probably no alcohol as well 🙂

Hard agree.

@kejamieson_ Happy birthday. Have a wonderful day.

36 feels a lot like 35... with the exception of the awareness that 40 is now edging closer 😂 🎈 🎂

Best video ever

@ElinaMia34 Wow. Stunning. Congratulations to her.

@boringcompany Very impressive. But it will never be a cool as the Thunderbirds tunnel machine #notsoboring #thunderbirds #theboringcompany

Prufrock-3 is ready to dig its 5th tunnel! In advance, the Monster passed its final tests, tilting the 480,000 lb shells ±10°. Prufrock-3 will then tilt down and mine directly into the ground - no concrete, no pit, zero civil prep. Allows rapid, safe and inexpensive launch.

@kejamieson_ Haha. It's been going on for a very long time

I swear if a zombie apocalypse happened in Yeovil you wouldn't actually be able to tell the difference