David Skelton 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🇺🇦

Author - The New Snobbery, Little Platoons, The Future Habit. Co-founder Pharos Futures, North Easterner, SAFC, Durham CCC, racing, cricket, darts.

[David Skelton 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🇺🇦 @DJSkelton]

My new book 'The New Snobbery' is published today. You can buy it on Amazon here: https://t.co/LJ61Zq1ejQ

[Alexander Adams @AdamsArtist]

The bell tolls for National Gallery, London. Yesterday, the NG announced plans for sweeping changes. Phrases such as "taking an audience- and customercentric approach in everything we do", "removing barriers to engagement" and "reach new, more diverse visitors" will send a chill down your spine. (1/2)

[A Show About The News @ASATNshow]

last two democrats to hold those exact senate seats, btw

[David Skelton 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🇺🇦 @DJSkelton]

@Dannythefink Terrible news. Such an important part of football radio for such a long time.

[David Skelton 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🇺🇦 @DJSkelton]

@NeilDotObrien This is such a good idea!

[Neil O'Brien @NeilDotObrien]

Athelstan on the fourth plinth - let's make it happen!

[Calgie @christiancalgie]

Reminder that in 1981 Britain added a descant to the national anthem, turned it into the best national anthem in the world, and then just… forgot about the arrangement never to use it again

[David Skelton 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🇺🇦 @DJSkelton]

Crucial @FT piece on continuing sell-off of promising British companies. It's long been a problem for the British economy and only getting worse. Building structures to help British companies scale in the UK and keep strategic control in UK is crucial: https://t.co/kDUIWSJhvr

[David Skelton 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🇺🇦 @DJSkelton]

@btharris93 It’s so interesting. Wallace did ok there too. Fascinating how plenty of states diverged in about 2000 and kept on going.

[Ed Grimshaw @mindmodeller]

Betting per race, 2020–25:

Bookmakers promoting Horseracing, you are joking!

🇯🇵 Japan +20%
🇮🇪 Ireland +16% (Tote only)
🇫🇷 France +2%
🇬🇧 Britain −36%

Britain is the only one in sustained decline. Even from 2021, after the Covid bump, it's down a fifth.

That's online turnover per BHA race, so read it as the direction rather than an exact figure.
Field sizes, prices, account restrictions, too many fixtures: what's driving it? To blame the black market would do nothing to create a healthy one.

#HorseRacing #RacingData @RacingPost @BetGameCouncil

[History Girl @HistoryGirlBW]

A poignant moment as football fans en route to the 1922 Cup Final between Huddersfield and Preston remove their hats in silent respect while passing the Cenotaph War Memorial in London.

[David Skelton 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🇺🇦 @DJSkelton]

@Bob__Hudson Hah.

[David Skelton 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🇺🇦 @DJSkelton]

@Bob__Hudson Yep. That forest result yesterday didn’t help.

[Bruce Clark @snowyclark]

Carnival Festival Crowds 2026:
Melbourne Cup Carnival: (4 days - 307,889)
Royal Ascot: (5 days - 294,541)
Kentucky Derby: (2 days - 253,705)
Cheltenham: (4 days- 226,223)
Breeder's Cup: (2 days - 81,604)
Hong Kong International Races (1 day - 48,494 2025)
(Royal Ascot has entry/enclosure, ticket limits)
(Japan Cup 2025 - 77,028 but has had a one-day record 187,524 in 1995)
(Kentucky Derby Day 1 day crowd this year was 150,415)
(image: @RacenetTweets)

[🇫🇷 Gaullisme ☨ @Gaullisme_Fr]

🇲🇫 🇬🇧 6 novembre 1958, le Général de Gaulle remet à Churchill la croix de la Libération : « Je tiens à ce que Sir Winston Churchill sache ceci : la cérémonie d’aujourd’hui signifie que la France sait ce qu’elle lui doit. »

De retour au pouvoir en mai 1958, de Gaulle décide à titre exceptionnel, et en témoignage de l’estime qu’il lui porte, de rouvrir l’Ordre de Libération pour Winston Churchill.

Le décret, signé le 18 juin 1958, est un hommage : « Comme Premier Ministre de Grande-Bretagne, au moment du pire danger couru par l’Europe, a inspiré et dirigé la résistance de son pays et contribué, par-là, d’une manière décisive à sauver la liberté du monde. […] »

Le 6 novembre, à l'hôtel Matignon, après avoir prononcé les paroles rituelles : « Nous vous reconnaissons comme notre compagnon pour la libération de la France, dans l’honneur et par la victoire », de Gaulle décore Churchill.

À l’issue de la cérémonie, le Général Ingold, chancelier de l’ordre de la Libération, remit aussi à Churchill une croix de Lorraine en cristal.

[David Skelton 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🇺🇦 @DJSkelton]

The Talarico interview with Ezra Klein a few months ago was one of the most fascinating political interviews I’ve heard for years. His knowledge of scripture and ability to align that with modern political messaging is stunning and has no British equivalent.

[Ezra Klein @ezraklein]

One of the more exciting parts of this election - among many - is the return of a religious left.

[James Heale @JAHeale]

This by @AndrewMarr9 on Telegraph strikes a chord

[Keith Edwards @keithedwards]

Scott Colom is poised to do the impossible: flip Mississippi blue. He’ll be the first Black U.S. senator from Mississippi since Reconstruction.

And when he does, it will be because of conversations like this. Going to MAGA rallies and talking to voters in line.

[Peter Hitchens @ClarkeMicah]

While looking for something else last night, found these , er, convivial pictures of Christopher and me, from 2009, before he fell ill. I thought they were a bit counter-cultural.

[David Skelton 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🇺🇦 @DJSkelton]

True. And British politics has largely not had such a figure since Blair.

[Ryan Shorthouse @RyanShorthouse]

You should watch and admire people who are demonstrably across the detail - who speak coherently with evidence and logic rather than platitudes.

In the end, they will win - and deservedly.