This is Northumberland Calling 5.3.26

The Have you seen Britain’s spine? edition

Hello America (especially Central Ohio), this is Northumberland calling.

Yesterday was World Book Day and this week it became clear that the British military lacks a spine. And the spineless chameleon Starmer defers to Ed Miliband (the Millipede) . Miliband is in charge of the roll out for net zero which is causing so many problems in Britain. He is the former leader of the Labour party who remains proud that he stopped Britain bombing Assad in 2013 after Assad used chemical weapons on his own people. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/2026/03/05/starmer-drops-another-hint-to-real-power-behind-the-throne/ or https://archive.ph/U1TCi

After years of being hollowed out, smoke and mirrors, and creative accounting, the current war laid bare what many preferred to overlook — the Royal Navy has too few operational ships. And still the UK Treasury refuses to fund the urgent repairs required of those ships urgently needing repairs including the aircraft carriers. It is doubtful that the Royal Navy rules anything bigger than a bathtub. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/03/05/britain-betrayal-gulf-allies-putting-security-peril/ or https://archive.ph/ZW0gb

This gives chapter and verse on how the Royal Navy was hollowed out. Britain is an island nation. Its first service should be its navy. Britain can recover but it will take time and time is a luxury Britain doesn’t possess. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/03/06/how-the-royal-navy-became-a-shadow-of-its-former-self/ or https://archive.ph/WXlED

Why are the sovereign British bases on Cyprus vital? They are supposed to protect the listening station there. Britain excels in signals intelligence. GCHQ is well integrated into US military plans. It is part of the special relationship. When Britain handed Cyprus over, it retained the bases as sovereign territory.

The Hexham Mumbler Joe Morris MP met with and commented positively about a Tyneside group which wants to stop flights from RAF Akrotiri Cyprus gathering intelligence over the Middle East as they echo his naïve stance on Gaza. <eyeroll> He would be better advised to concentrate on rural issues such as the problems for farmers or indeed understanding why the changes to the court system which will have its first reading on 10 March are so terrible instead of just spouting Lammy’s line. My sole consolation is that I didn’t vote for him.

https://www.hexham-courant.co.uk/news/25904190.joe-morris-mp-meets-hexham-group-gaza-petition/

Plans seem to be afoot to have Ukraine supply inceptor drone tech in exchange for Patriot missiles which Ukraine needs. The interceptor drone technique is far more cost effective, allowing countries to save the good stuff for the truly big stuff like ballistic missiles. Ukraine are the West’s experts on drone warfare and apparently has a 90% interceptor rate against the Iranian drones. That expertise is sorely needed against Iran. And it would appear a deal is in the making. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/05/ukraines-solution-stop-iran-drones-patriots-us-shahed/ or https://archive.ph/DgNJW

Some people wonder about the current war, but the IR has been at war with the West including Britain since 1979. The IR has spilled blood on British soil and hunted British citizens including Sir Salman Rushdie. The fatwa issued against Rushdie was illegal and improperly done according to Shi’a jurisprudence. To have a book declared heretical, a court needs to be convened. No such court ever was. Khomeini usurped the position which is rightfully occupied by the Hidden Iman by inventing the concept of the Guardianship of the Jurist. No such doctrine existed before and there was no such doctrine as the infallibility of the ‘Supreme Leader’ as no such position existed before.

Today in breaking news, the Met Police have arrested 4 men on suspicion of spying for Iran. They planned to hit Jewish targets. 6 other men have been arrested on charges of aiding an offender. This will have been a long running investigation btw. A https://www.thetimes.com/uk/crime/article/iran-spies-arrest-london-0skdfr0r2 or https://archive.ph/VNZ3e https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cz6e7g96890o

Khamenei used the tools Khomeini put in place to create the Khamenei crime family. The office of the Supreme Leader has one occupation – ensuring the enrichment of the Khameneis. The former shah’s wealth was supposed to be used solely for the weak and vulnerable. It is why the charitable organization BMEE was created. Instead BMEE acts as a slush fund for the Khamenei family. You can see this in the maneuvering to get Khamenei’s favourite son to be the next ‘Supreme Leader’ – the 1979 revolution was supposed to ban the passing of the title between relations. If you have not read it, United Against Nuclear Iran’s report on the Bayt is excellent. It also shows why they are going to be tough to dislodge. This is the press release and there is a link to full and enlightening report. https://www.unitedagainstnucleariran.com/unmasking-bayt-inside-supreme-leaders-office-hidden-nerve-center-of-islamic-republic

People should remember that it was IR interference in Iraq, including the production of IEDs which prolonged the confliction and caused the death of so many. They also tried to interfere in Russia in the past (there may be reasons why Putin only gives lip service support)

One way you can tell the regime is weakening is when the internet connection is restored. The IR controls the telecom companies within Iran currently.

https://x.com/netblocks/status/2029822804229583309

shows 1% connectivity after 6 days.

The Iranian state media is unsurprisingly IRGC controlled. But even they cannot fully hide what is happening.

https://x.com/Osint613/status/2029829837762838864

Len Garry who was part of the Quarrymen (a forerunner to the Beatles) has died at age 84. https://www.thetimes.com/uk/obituaries/article/len-garry-obituary-original-member-of-the-quarrymen-lrtjgf3jr or https://archive.ph/tX5zl

It is Crufts 2026 Day 2 Terrier and Hound Day. Spaniel Day aka Gundogs is on Sunday. You can find out about what is going on at Crufts:

https://crufts.org.uk/

They are live on you tube as well.

Here

The sleet has returned after a few days of good weather. The price of fuel is going up (naturally), but it is something which had to be done.

Paddy listening to music and preparing to watch Crufts

Paddy is inside listening to music. We shall brave a walk later.

My writing continues. I had an odd email from a hybrid publisher telling me how much he’d loved Viking’s Royal Marriage Bargain. I was pleased he liked the book, but the company seemed very dodgy. When you are writing, you always have to be very careful of predators. There are a lot of scams around. Any publisher who is not in eBooks but claims to be a publisher of commercial books is a scam basically. You must do your research. Still it was kind of him to say that he loved my book…

I have no plans to put a paywall on. If you want to buy one of my books to reward me, fabulous. I believe they are good escapist reads, historical romance set in a wide variety of eras such as Rome, Viking and Regency. They are also often on super special at Amazon.

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