This is Northumberland Calling 2.5.25

The They think is all ovaries… edition

Hello America (particularly Central Ohio) this is Northumberland calling.

The local election results are trickling in from across England. Northumberland had its act together and did the counting overnight. Reform picked up 23 seats, mainly from Labour. It stays no overall control with the largest party being the Conservatives. My local councillor who is actually very focussed on local issues and quite good kept his seat, one of the few Lib Dems to achieve this. Let’s hope people get better public services in their local area as a result of the change. Reform also picked up another MP in Runcorn, overturning a huge Labour majority. The Conservatives continue their decline in part because they governed so poorly for so long. Badenoch is good but people remember what a shower the Conservatives were. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2025/05/02/local-elections-live-runcorn-byelection-reform-labour-tory/

The lawyers and insurance underwriters have come back from their Easter hols and the dominos are starting to fall in the corporate world, and in sports with regards to the FWS ruling. The answer to the question who will be the last to restore fairness and safety for women to their sport appears to be Parkrun. The FA (football), the ECB (cricket) and netball (which is like basketball sort of – I have never got the hang of the rules) . Oliver Brown of the Telegraph who has been stalwart in his defence of protection for women’s sport has written a great piece on this: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/2025/05/01/transgender-sport-ban-trans-cult-spell-broken/ or https://archive.ph/LXelR

Barclays Bank did a 180 this week. The point is that the advice to allow mixed sex communal toileting instead of segregating by sex was never lawful. It became common practice and suddenly companies are waking up to the potential of having to pay huge fines or not having employers’ liability insurance or both if they continue with an illegal policy. The common sense solution is to have more unisex facilities are alongside the current single sex offerings. And to have a policy which follows the law as it stands, not how activists wish it to be. As the law has been the same for the last 15 years, the Conservatives could have clamped down on the excesses earlier but chose not to. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2025/04/30/barclays-to-ban-trans-women-from-using-female-lavatories/ or https://archive.ph/1Smn4

Baroness Falkner has warned activists to stop trying to undermine the integrity of the Supreme Court. Mahmood, the Justice Minister made similar remarks earlier in the week. The judgement clarified the law. There has never been self id in the UK. Single sex spaces were supposed to be protected and not become mixed sex. If you had a designation Men over 55 rowing squad, you were not supposed to deem two women as honorary and allow them to take places in the boat, particularly when other men over 55 wanted the chance to row. By all means have a mixed squad and open it up to both sexes, but to do it by dubbing some women with an ‘honorary men’ designation is discriminatory. https://www.politicshome.com/opinion/article/supreme-court-ruling-equality-act-cause-no-confusion-judgment-model-clarity

I loved the Grizelda cartoon for Private Eye. A reporter interviewing a group of dignitaries (Labour politicians) ‘Can I call you all coward?’ https://x.com/PrivateEyeNews/status/1917548790682210732

The US HHS released a 490 page report into ‘gender-affirming’ care which examined the evidential base. Unsurprisingly it came to the same conclusion as Cass. In fact it went further than Cass , stating that the current practices are causing harm. The side effects such as sterility, urinary incontinence (another reason to have more unisex toilets), bone density (an increase in brittle bones), loss of cognitive function (ie early onset dementia), cardiovascular disease are so severe that the ‘cure’ is most likely worse than doing nothing. It is worth reading the executive summary (8 pages) if you don’t have time to read the whole report. https://opa.hhs.gov/gender-dysphoria-report

The pair who cut down the Sycamore Gap tree are currently in court. They are running what is known as a cutthroat defence. Each is blaming the other. Mobile phone data puts both at the scene. One filmed the destruction. The police found souvenirs. But hey, the former pals framed each other. The tree they cut down was well beloved and I do miss seeing it as I often drive that way when going to Carlisle or down the M6. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/05/01/sycamore-gap-suspect-claims-he-was-framed-in-feud/ or https://archive.ph/9O0rK

The Prince and Princess of Wales celebrated their wedding anniversary on the Isle of Mull. They had visited here when they were students and took the opportunity to enjoy the delights once again. Mull is currently well served by ferries. They did take the public ferry to Iona where St Columba founded his monastery. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/royal-family/2025/04/29/prince-princess-wales-celebrate-14th-wedding-anniversary/ or https://archive.ph/V0Wsk

It is May Bank Holiday on Monday and the UK will be having its VE 80 celebrations. As the remaining few are all nearly or over 100, this will be most likely the last time they participate in such an event. There will a procession and flypast in London. A number of towns are having their own celebrations and the pubs (possibly the most important aspect) are staying open late. The VJ 80 celebrations (15 Aug) will be more muted as those British who fought in Burma and other places in the Pacific are often overlooked. Then as now.

https://ve-vjday80.gov.uk/

As several people enjoyed looking at where Paddy went to the pub last week (Twice Brewed inn), this is another pub which I have enjoyed recently –the Kirkstyle Inn. It is a sportsman pub and thus does serve game. They do a tasting menu but the a la carte is a very good deal. It is truly in the middle of nowhere. They are dog friendly but Paddy stayed at home as we thought he’d be bored.

https://theksi.co.uk/

Here –

The copy edits for the Vikings Royal Marriage Bargain arrived. It was my last chance to read and make any minor tweaks. The copy editor though was confused that Vikings could divorce. Head in hands. A two second google would have shown that I did do my research properly. For the avoidance of doubt – Vikings could divorce. The adoption of Christianity in Scandinavia in 1000 put an end to that practice. The book takes place in the 840s. All my editor will say is that the copy editor was ‘just asking questions’. It will be my last Viking for awhile for a number of reasons and it is a worthy book to complete that chapter of my writing life.

The weather has been lovely and warm. The bees are building nicely. The hens are laying. It is great to have fresh eggs again, plus the knowledge that the eggs are going to keep on coming. The vegetable patch is starting to take shape. It is still possible to get hard frosts in early May. Northumberland is very much a cold climate (no long hot summer here)

Paddy helpfully searching for rabbits.

Paddy has been patrolling and hunting for rabbits. Hopefully the rabbits will take the hint and move elsewhere. He does have a turn of speed.

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