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Rob O'Brien (@robwriting) profile picture

Rob O'Brien

@robwriting

Br-Australian speechwriter @EMA_News. Documentary filmmaker 'The Adopted' 👇. Former Journalist @Independent @NikkeiAsia. #MECFS foot soldier. #grateful

 Amsterdammed
kickstarter.com/projects/meandmefilm/adopters-a-feature-documentary
Joined October 2009
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Photo by Rob O'Brien (@robwriting)Photo by Rob O'Brien (@robwriting)Photo by Rob O'Brien (@robwriting)Photo by Rob O'Brien (@robwriting)Photo by Rob O'Brien (@robwriting)Photo by Rob O'Brien (@robwriting)Photo by Rob O'Brien (@robwriting)Photo by Rob O'Brien (@robwriting)Photo by Rob O'Brien (@robwriting)Photo by Rob O'Brien (@robwriting)
#TheAdopted by numbers 161 - #Kickstarter backers 17,735 - Amount (€) raised thru Kickstarter 1,650 - Footage clips logged in post production 21 - Interviews 5 - Cinematographers 4 - Countries (US, NL, Germany & Belgium) #grateful #Documentary #film kickstarter.com/projects/mea…
Image from Rob O'Brien (@robwriting)
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Rob O'Brien retweeted
Ricky Gervais (@rickygervais) profile picture
Ricky Gervais
@rickygervaisOct 29
RIP Patrick Stewart. What an actor. I still can’t believe he agreed to do this scene. And he didn’t even mind when I ruined every take. Legend.
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Rob O'Brien retweeted
Rob O'Brien (@robwriting) profile picture
Rob O'Brien@robwritingApr 3
'I Swear' is such a gem of a film. Real purpose behind it, reflects a lot stigmatism we haven't addressed in our societies...even tho we have all the tools. A beautiful message behind it.
Thoml (@thoml75) profile pictureThoml@thoml75Apr 1
I swear : Portrait d’un homme atteint du syndrome de la tourette. Film drôle et émouvant, traversé par une bienveillante humanité, remarquablement interprété par Robert Aramayo
Image from Thoml (@thoml75)
Image from Thoml (@thoml75)
Image from Thoml (@thoml75)
Image from Thoml (@thoml75)
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Buckingham Palace Honours Sir Patrick Stewart (1940–2026) with Star Trek Theme Tune 🕊️ The Band of the Grenadier Guards performs the iconic Star Trek theme at Buckingham Palace in honour of Sir Patrick Stewart, following the sad news of his passing. Queen Elizabeth II knighted Sir Patrick Stewart in 2010, recognising his outstanding contribution to drama and the arts 🇬🇧 🎥 @KingsGuardTours 📆 30 October 2026 📍 Buckingham Palace #SirPatrickStewart #StarTrek #GrenadierGuards #BuckinghamPalace #BritishArmyMusic
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What is the plan to improve research & quality of life for these patients? Why remove health services specifically for them now? Where the fuck is your empathy? #longcovid #mecfs volkskrant.nl/kijkverder/v/2…
667 dagen in het donker: hoe postcovidpatiënten uit de maatschappij verdwenen

667 dagen in het donker: hoe postcovidpatiënten uit de maatschappij verdwenen

Ze leven achter gesloten gordijnen, aan bed gekluisterd. Voor de allerziekste postcovidpatiënten in Nederland is er nog steeds geen passende hulp of zicht op genezing. Vier van hen gunden ons een...

volkskrant.nl
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Rob O'Brien retweeted
Rob O'Brien (@robwriting) profile picture
Rob O'Brien@robwriting19 Jan 2023
Meanwhile, in the Netherlands. #mecfs – at Amsterdam, The Netherlands
NotRecovered (@Not_Recovered) profile pictureNotRecovered@Not_Recovered19 Jan 2023
The biggest German news broadcast is reporting about the #MECFS protest in front of the German parliament in #Berlin. #MECFSimBundestag
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This has aged well. #mecfs #longcovid
Rob O'Brien (@robwriting) profile pictureRob O'Brien@robwriting18 Aug 2022
Am finishing this story about how the Netherlands humiliates & harms #MECFS patients, shuts down ME experts, ignores legit medical tests & causes patient trauma thru its benefits tribunals. This is from watching the system undermine my wife for 3 yrs. #pwme #medtwitter
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Dutch health minister, in her infinite wisdom, cuts funding for #longcovid clinics & research. Will instead send patients to GPs, who are notoriously shit at identifying/diagnosing these conditions. Worst of all worlds. Bloody idiots. share.google/ZeYvFQWE9FVoA5A…
Doctors critical of gov't plan to cut funding for Long Covid research, put care on GP's

Doctors critical of gov't plan to cut funding for Long Covid research, put care on GP's

House doctors, medical specialists, and scientists are very critical of Health Minister Sophie Herman’s plans to cut funding for expertise centers on Long Covid and similar conditions, like ME and Q...

nltimes.nl
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Each time a new high profile case emerges...it's like the world is learning about this for the first time. #mecfs #longcovid
BBC News (UK) (@BBCNews) profile pictureBBC News (UK)
@BBCNewsOct 16
The Olympic sprinter now bedbound for 22 hours a day bbc.in/3TWaqpx
Beth Dobbin: British Olympic sprinter in bed for 22 hours a day after ME diagnosis

Beth Dobbin: British Olympic sprinter in bed for 22 hours a day after ME diagnosis

Beth Dobbin ran for Great Britain at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. Five years on, she is largely bedbound after being diagnosed with ME, a devastating illness for which there is no cure.

bbc.com
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Rob O'Brien retweeted
BBC News (UK) (@BBCNews) profile picture
BBC News (UK)
@BBCNewsOct 16
The Olympic sprinter now bedbound for 22 hours a day bbc.in/3TWaqpx
Beth Dobbin: British Olympic sprinter in bed for 22 hours a day after ME diagnosis

Beth Dobbin: British Olympic sprinter in bed for 22 hours a day after ME diagnosis

Beth Dobbin ran for Great Britain at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. Five years on, she is largely bedbound after being diagnosed with ME, a devastating illness for which there is no cure.

bbc.com
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Rob O'Brien retweeted
stuart murdoch (@nee_massey) profile picture
stuart murdoch@nee_masseyOct 11
I wanted to film the sunset for any ME/CFS people, long covid people, fibro people, or anyone with an illness that keeps them inside or in bed. It’s there waiting for you, I hope, I pray you feel better soon.
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Rob O'Brien retweeted
Adam (@ABrokenBattery) profile picture
Adam@ABrokenBatterySep 16
Having the reality of your illness denied “is almost as bad as the actual physical symptoms themselves.” Ed Yong, speaking about #LongCovid patients being disbelieved and dismissed, and how gender and racial bias affect their care.
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Rob O'Brien retweeted
Adam (@ABrokenBattery) profile picture
Adam@ABrokenBatterySep 5
“My daughter was told to exercise and ended up in a wheelchair... For GPs not to be aware of the harm that exercise can do is hugely damaging.” Janet Sylvester (MEAction Scotland), speaking about her daughter who has ME while giving evidence to the Scottish Parliament Sept 2026.
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So, I got royally knighted today. Woot!? Yes, I did. Adopted from Sri Lanka, knighted in the Netherlands. Who would've thought! The most important thing is that this award belongs to the whole community. Everything we do is teamwork. I'll write more after I recovered. #pwme
Image from Anil van der Zee © (@AnilvanderZee)
Image from Anil van der Zee © (@AnilvanderZee)
Image from Anil van der Zee © (@AnilvanderZee)
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Rob O'Brien retweeted
Adam (@ABrokenBattery) profile picture
Adam@ABrokenBatteryAug 28
. @AnilvanderZee has been awarded a Dutch knighthood. Refreshing to see someone fighting against bad ME/CFS research being honoured, rather than someone responsible for it. Very well deserved, and hopefully a sign that things are changing. nos.nl/artikel/2628647-fysie…
Fysiek uitgeschakeld maar belangrijke bron van kennis, lintje voor ME-patiënt Anil van der Zee

Fysiek uitgeschakeld maar belangrijke bron van kennis, lintje voor ME-patiënt Anil van der Zee

Anil van der Zee is benoemd tot Ridder in de orde van Oranje Nassau voor zijn aanhoudende inzet voor patiënten met slecht begrepen ziektes als ME en long covid.

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One war, two families. How a Dutch family adopted fallen Lansing hero lansingstatejournal.com/stor… via @LSJnews
One war, two families. How a Dutch family adopted fallen Lansing hero

One war, two families. How a Dutch family adopted fallen Lansing hero

In the 1980s, Huub Bessems' family started caring for Lansing's Hubert Thane Bauman II's grave. Now, the two families are connected across the globe.

lansingstatejournal.com
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Rob O'Brien retweeted
Rob O'Brien (@robwriting) profile picture
Rob O'Brien@robwriting15 Oct 2025
Whatever happens, #grief will have her way. humanparts.medium.com/whatev…
Image from Rob O'Brien (@robwriting)
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Rob O'Brien (@robwriting) profile picture
Rob O'Brien@robwriting28 Sep 2025
Update 27 for #TheAdopted: about an adopter from Eindhoven & the heroics of 464 Squadron during World War 2. Join the campaign! #grateful #education #history kickstarter.com/projects/mea…
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🦍One of Sir David Attenborough's most memorable moments? This encounter with a group of playful mountain gorillas in Rwanda in 1979. Happy 100th birthday Sir David! 🎉 🎧 bbc.in/4wnTPtc
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Many of you may recall last year I had the honour of visiting and meeting with late Erik Adriaensen, who cared for the graves our fallen aviators in Eindhoven. You can read more on this in the @abcnews long read below: abc.net.au/news/2026-04-26/d…
Thousands of Dutch families adopted the graves of people they never knew

Thousands of Dutch families adopted the graves of people they never knew

In The Netherlands, a quiet commitment to honour the young soldiers who were buried thousands of kilometres from home has continued for 80 years. 

abc.net.au
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Rob O'Brien retweeted
Adam (@ABrokenBattery) profile picture
Adam@ABrokenBatteryApr 19
Powerful testimony on #MECFS by Emma Shorter in the Scottish Parliament from 2018 “It turns fit and active people into ghosts… I know teachers who can’t teach, children who can’t play, and parents who can no longer hold their children.”
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