Liberal England

Liberal Democrat Blog of the Year 2014

"Well written, funny and wistful" - Paul Linford; "He is indeed the Lib Dem blogfather" - Stephen Tall
"Jonathan Calder holds his end up well in the competitive world of the blogosphere" - New Statesman
"A prominent Liberal Democrat blogger" - BBC Radio 4 Today; "One of my favourite blogs" - Stumbling
and Mumbling; "Charming and younger than I expected" - Wartime Housewife

Friday, July 18, 2025

Chancellor announces £1.5m fund for Britain's elite chess players

Rishi Sunak established a £500,000 fund to support Britain's elite chess players when he was prime minister. The new Labour government s...

The Joy of Six 1386

“The government is about to publish a White Paper on Election Regulation, in preparation for the Elections Bill it will bring forward in the...

Thursday, July 17, 2025

Satire: "I’m trying to beat you all up and beat myself up too"

"Have you seen that piece on satire by Colin Burrow in the London Review of Books?" asked Lord Bonkers over lunch. "It's...

Part 1 of Inside the Cult of the Jesus Army will be aired on 27 July

The first part of the BBC's two-part documentary on the Jesus Army, the abusive cult that grew out of the Northamptonshire village of Bu...

Stamford Chidge is the son of the late Lib Dem MP David Chidgey

I've had to inform this blog's trivia desk of a discovery I've made while listening to my favourite Chelsea podcast. Chelsea Fan...

Wednesday, July 16, 2025

Inside the secret world of Eel Pie Island

An entertaining video on the long and bohemian history of Eel Pie Island, which is to be found in the Thames between Twickenham and Ham. Hen...

Ed Davey's big day: Cheaper energy bills and challenging the BBC over Nigel Farage

This was Ed Davey on BBC Breakfast this morning. His determination to attack Nigel Farage at every turn, and hang his admiration for Vladimi...

The Joy of Six 1385

Sam Bright looks at new research that suggests effective attack lines to use against Reform UK: "Farage’s shtick is to pose as a champ...

Tuesday, July 15, 2025

After the rail accident: Godmersham and Crundale Village Hall

It's almost 10 years since I was given a late-night cup of tea in this imposing village hall. It's Godmersham and Crundale Village H...

Reform council leader pleads for government to soften new visa regime for care workers - Welcome to the real world

The Reform UK leader of Kent County Council has written to the home secretary expressing "grave concerns" about government proposa...

Former sheriff candidate to face trial for allegedly registering cats to vote

KTLA , a Los Angeles television station, wins Headline of the Day: A man who ran for Ventura County sheriff will stand trial for allegedly t...

"Let’s get him out before he poisons all the fishes": Robert Jenrick in the River Teme at Leintwardine

What the hell is Robert Jenrick doing in the River Teme at Leintwardine? Readers of this blog will remember that Malcolm Saville's 11th...

The Rolling Stones: Paint It, Black

This was the first UK number 1 to feature a sitar (played by Brian Jones) and an influence on the emerging genre of psychedelic rock. And I...

Monday, July 14, 2025

Hilaire Belloc's persecution of Charles Masterman

I knew Charles Masterman had won the enmity of Horatio Bottomley, the publisher of John Bull magazine, over the Home Office inquiry into all...

Ed Davey calls for Mark Carney to pay official visit before Trump

Embed from Getty Images Ed Davey has called for Mark Carney to be invited to pay an official visit just before President Trump and for him t...

Tortoise rescued after starting fire in south London flat

An inadvertent nomination from a reader sees the Independent win our Headline of the Day Award: Pictures from the aftermath of the scene sh...

The Joy of Six 1384

Ben de Pear and Ramita Navai tells the story of how the BBC repeatedly delayed and ultimately shelved a damning documentary on the destruct...

Sunday, July 13, 2025

Josh Babarinde is interviewed by Nick Robinson

Last week Josh Babarinde was interviewed by Nick Robinson for his Political Thinking series. The blurb for this edition runs: The Lib Dem Ju...

The Poachers: The Coast

A good song for a summer Sunday. The Poachers are a Glasgow band, and I don't know much about them beyond what we are told in this Insta...

Saturday, July 12, 2025

Risotto rice under threat from flamingoes in north-eastern Italy

Despite the judges raising a collective eyebrow at the newspaper's choice of plural for "flamingo", our Headline of the Day Aw...

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