Britblog Roundup # 77

Welcome back. In UK blogging news this week, well, there’s a couple of books out.

Girl With a One Track Mind was, at least at one point this week, top of the Amazon pre-order lists. I have a feeling that she’ll be happy with the serialisation deal she got with The Sunday Times last week (there’s very good money in them you know) and a great deal less so with the same paper this week for outing her from behind her pseudonym. The cat is rather out of that bag now. Here’s her reaction.

Tom Reynolds’ book, Blood Sweat and Tea will be arriving in bookshops soon. He’s auctioning off a signed first edition to benefit the London Ambulance Benevolent Society. There’s also a piece of his in 2005 Blogged so I’ve added a copy of that to it as well, so that you can have the author’s entire printed output in one handy package. Currently just north of a hundred quid to a good cause, wonder how high it will go?

Now onto to our regular entertainment, your nominations for the blog posts that should be brought to everyone’s attention. You can send in ideas for next week by emailing the URL to britblog AT gmail DOT com.

One blog entirely new to me, The Spine. I don’t know who it’s by but it’s an excellent satirical take on the news. This for example, quite wonderful. Although if I could make a suggestion for the author? Either lighten up the page or get a faster server.

Natalie Solent has an excellent take on events in Cuba.

Harry Hutton has an open letter to Mel Gibson. There’s something a little strange about that lad you know.

Nosemonkey investigates the websites of the securocrats:

Still, as "we're all going to die" sites go, it's got nothing on MI5, which somehow has an even slicker-looking website than its fictional TV counterparts.

First, check out the logo of the main page - a spy agency logo designed by a 14 year old with an illegal copy of Photoshop and an evidently under-developed interest in onanism that has given him far too much time on his hands:

After the further demolition work he does I might advise not drinking in pubs near Vauxhall Bridge for a few weeks there Clive.

Blood and Treasure on...well, just read it, OK?

Stephen Tall reveals a slightly obsessive interest in the television statistics.

It throws up some interesting quirks. For example, the Royal Wedding of Charles and Di was watched by 39 million of us (ah yes, I remember it well); yet Diana’s funeral attracted fewer than half that, 19.3 million viewers, indicating they were wrong to split, as neither have found such success as solo artistes. I guess Charles is the Art Garfunkel to Diana’s Paul Simon.

Mr AI Dodge on being discovered through the net and writing a paper for a think tank.

Chris Dolley with some super stuff about the early days of computer games programming. Your tax money at work, of course.

Second Child Syndrome with an overview of the Cadbury’s salmonella thing. She is just hugging herself with delight at the outcome.

Err, Oystercards. Boy, am I glad I don’t live in London.

Martin Kelly puts in a claim to be the first to compare the Tommy Sheridan and OJ Simpson cases. Both entirely, unequivocably, innocent, of course.

Johnny Void on the hash (ahem) The Indy made of its report on drugs.

Barder pere on the situation with Israel and Lebanon. Difficult to say that the FCO types are all Arabists after reading this.

John B has returned to The Sharpener. A typically sound piece as well. We don’t ban fun things just because people die.

My London Your London with a review of The Vegemite Tales. Contains, so it is said, the funniest non-sex scene on the stage at the moment.

Philobiblon is most (extremely in fact) unhappy with Australia’s asylum policy.

Naijaman on the resignation of the Nigerian Finance Minister. Doesn’t bode well for those expats who might think of going back to help.

A good news story from Nee Naw. One life saved simply because a copper knew how to do CPR. Book a space on one of those courses soon folks!

Deek Deekster makes his escape from a one night stand. A red Ferrari no less is involved.

Antonia Bance on the value of blogging to a councillor. Leverage, it’s all about leverage.

Lady Bracknell takes issue with the language used by advertisers. She is far too genteel to actually put it like this, of course, but essentially, bastards, first up against the wall when the revolution comes.

And that is our Britblog Roundup for this week. Until next time:

Toodle Pip!