Former Senior Civil Servant. Checked in my political impartiality on retirement. Fellow @theRSAorg. Member @UKLabour, @thefabians. May mention Dr Who.
Stockwell
Joined November 2018
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Simon Lydiard FRSA 🇪🇺🇮🇪 retweeted
On Halloween night 1920. Kevin Barry prepared for execution the next morning, with support from his college friends.
'The boys from the college were up outside the gate and they said the Rosary. They also sang the Soldier’s Song, which did me more good than you can imagine.'
Simon Lydiard FRSA 🇪🇺🇮🇪 retweeted
Because he has a constitutional right to his citizenship. The US allows dual citizenship. He is the Pope. The Bishop of Rome and the Supreme Pontiff. He's also a natural born citizen of the US and has a right to vote. Have you tried crying about it?
Simon Lydiard FRSA 🇪🇺🇮🇪 retweeted
Sir Patrick Stewart says his favorite thing to do in Beverly Hills is tell fancy dinner guests that he’s a socialist.
When asked if he had ever considered running for public office, the legendary actor didn’t hold back about his lifelong political leanings.
“I’ve been a member of the Labour Party for 35 years and I committed my first act of civil disobedience when I was 5 years old. I have been a left-wing man ever since. There’s nothing like sitting around a Beverly Hills dining table with a lot of fancy guests and telling them that you’re a socialist.”
Simon Lydiard FRSA 🇪🇺🇮🇪 retweeted
In 2008, Patrick Stewart came to give the South Shields Lecture. People still talk about it. He gave a brilliant evocation of how his upbringing made him an actor and a socialist. And he was hilarious about his job interview for Picard. Great man.
Simon Lydiard FRSA 🇪🇺🇮🇪 retweeted
Wishing all my friends in the United States of America a happy National Cat Day. We don't have a National Cat Day in the UK, but we do have a National Cat...
(Pic @PjrFoto)
Simon Lydiard FRSA 🇪🇺🇮🇪 retweeted
A very Happy Birthday to the brilliant musician and songwriter Hank Marvin (Brian Rankin) who was born on this day in 1941. Best known as the lead guitarist of the Shadows. 🎸 #HankMarvin #TheShadows #FootTapper #FBI #Shindig #InTheCountry #Sam #Geronimo #OnTheBeach
Simon Lydiard FRSA 🇪🇺🇮🇪 retweeted
I was in the room multiple times when President Biden met with and prayed with Catholic bishops.
They didn’t run cameras, because he and those present didn’t want to politicize prayer and encounter for electoral gain.
When Biden lost his second child in May 2015, he prayed nearly all night in front of the Blessed Sacrament.
It’s the same thing he did in 1972 when he lost his daughter and late wife to a drunk driver.
He went to Mass every single Sunday as president, oftentimes next to the parish cemetery of his children, and relied on his faith to guide him through hell and high water.
You might not like his politics, but I encourage you to act with Christian charity towards the sincerity of his faith and take the view of the late Pope Francis, who called him a “good Catholic” in 2021.
Simon Lydiard FRSA 🇪🇺🇮🇪 retweeted
🖖 RIP Walter Koenig - #StarTrek's Chekov Passes Away at Age 90 💖
Koenig portrayed Ensign Pavel Chekov in The Original Series, all six original Star Trek films, and voiced President Anton Chekov in #StarTrekPicard!
1936 - 2026 💔
Simon Lydiard FRSA 🇪🇺🇮🇪 retweeted
Serbian people made their voices heard. First results show a convincing majority for change. Their democratic will deserves full respect.
Now is the time for the rule of law, genuine reforms & institutions that serve all citizens.
This is the path towards the European Union.
Simon Lydiard FRSA 🇪🇺🇮🇪 retweeted
🇷🇸 Congratulations to the Student List on winning Serbia’s elections, igniting a democratic rebirth across the Balkan nation.
🪧 From the streets to the ballot box, students, young people, and citizens have demanded accountability, justice, and change. In a record-turnout election, the newly formed anti-Vučić coalition secured a full majority in the country’s parliament despite serious concerns of corruption and voter intimidation.
🗳️ As PES President Stefan Löfven said: “Democracy is not simply inherited. It is defended, renewed and carried forward by every generation.”
🇪🇺 Today, their determination marks a hopeful new chapter for Serbia. Together with our sister parties, the Democratic Party (DS) and the Party of Freedom and Justice (SSP), we stand for a fairer, democratic, and European future.
Simon Lydiard FRSA 🇪🇺🇮🇪 retweeted
Wearing a poppy doesn’t give you the right to ride on the shoulders of those who fought and died for this country.
Wetherspoon actively supports the Royal British Legion’s Poppy Appeal.
So before demanding a boycott, perhaps explain what REALLY happened at the door.
Remembrance isn’t a prop for manufactured outrage.
Simon Lydiard FRSA 🇪🇺🇮🇪 retweeted
Brexit has been catastrophic. It's time to rejoin the EU.
standard.co.uk/news/politics…
Simon Lydiard FRSA 🇪🇺🇮🇪 retweeted
Old MAGA white lady says I should “go back to my own country” if I don’t like Donald Trump’s America.
So, I parked my buffalo in her driveway, set up my teepee on her front yard and said “I’m home, what’s for dinner?”
Simon Lydiard FRSA 🇪🇺🇮🇪 retweeted
The people who seem to be really angry about the fact that HMRC will be able to directly recover debts from bank accounts ,are the same people who were positively ecstatic when the same policy only applied to the DWP. Just an observation
Simon Lydiard FRSA 🇪🇺🇮🇪 retweeted
Elon Musk
Just what an incredible fall from grace…
From innovative, eco-conscious, cool nerd…
To depraved, entitled, evil, war-mongering, self-radicalised fuckwit.
Simon Lydiard FRSA 🇪🇺🇮🇪 retweeted
Ukraine is not yours to bargain away! Don’t betray Ukraine. #stoptrump #stopputin
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Hundreds of us came together outside the US Embassy in London to stand against deals with Putin and demand unwavering support for Ukraine.
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London, October 16, 2026
#StandWithUkraine