Joe Oliver
@joeolyver.bsky.social
Interested in History; particularly the Weimar Republic, Churchill post 1945, Theatre, Shakespeare, reading, writing, napping.
Completer finishe
Completer finishe
Reposted by Joe Oliver
I picked up a copy of the collected letters of JRR Tolkien for reasons, and this is the most bullshit table of contents I've ever seen. I'm actively angry that it exists
September 5, 2026 at 8:38 PM
I picked up a copy of the collected letters of JRR Tolkien for reasons, and this is the most bullshit table of contents I've ever seen. I'm actively angry that it exists
An excellent Simpsons themed birthday present and card from my great friend Amy
August 20, 2026 at 3:27 PM
An excellent Simpsons themed birthday present and card from my great friend Amy
Got some dem fine cards 😍
August 9, 2026 at 7:02 PM
Got some dem fine cards 😍
Hillary Benn going is a bit like the ravens leaving the Tower of London. Labour Prime Minister in history until now has had a Benn in the Cabinet at some point
MacDonald x2/Attlee - William Wedgwood Benn
Wilson x2/Callaghan - his son Tony Benn
Blair/Brown/Starmer - grandson Hillary Benn
MacDonald x2/Attlee - William Wedgwood Benn
Wilson x2/Callaghan - his son Tony Benn
Blair/Brown/Starmer - grandson Hillary Benn
Oh no, someone I’m genuinly sad to see leave their ministerial role… Hillary Benn has resigned as Northern Ireland secretary. I don’t know if he is going to be offered anything else or go to back benches, but his talent will be missed by me in that post.
July 20, 2026 at 5:12 PM
Hillary Benn going is a bit like the ravens leaving the Tower of London. Labour Prime Minister in history until now has had a Benn in the Cabinet at some point
MacDonald x2/Attlee - William Wedgwood Benn
Wilson x2/Callaghan - his son Tony Benn
Blair/Brown/Starmer - grandson Hillary Benn
MacDonald x2/Attlee - William Wedgwood Benn
Wilson x2/Callaghan - his son Tony Benn
Blair/Brown/Starmer - grandson Hillary Benn
Let’s party like it’s 1998…
July 15, 2026 at 9:08 PM
Let’s party like it’s 1998…
An entertaining daft debate is taking place about whether the ‘Northern end’ of the office is cooler than the rest..
June 24, 2026 at 3:23 PM
An entertaining daft debate is taking place about whether the ‘Northern end’ of the office is cooler than the rest..
Now we sit back and enjoy everyone saying ‘Starmer wasn’t so bad’
June 22, 2026 at 8:47 AM
Now we sit back and enjoy everyone saying ‘Starmer wasn’t so bad’
‘And since I have achieved all my objectives as Prime Minister in only two years there is no need for a third’
June 22, 2026 at 8:35 AM
‘And since I have achieved all my objectives as Prime Minister in only two years there is no need for a third’
My Mum says a woman in Sidmouth today asked her seriously if Britain will be communist now that Andy Burnham’s won
June 19, 2026 at 9:31 PM
My Mum says a woman in Sidmouth today asked her seriously if Britain will be communist now that Andy Burnham’s won
Big news tonight is that this raffle prize I won a while back is now relevant..
(Knew past me was right not to take the fancy bottle of shampoo)
(Knew past me was right not to take the fancy bottle of shampoo)
June 19, 2026 at 2:46 AM
Big news tonight is that this raffle prize I won a while back is now relevant..
(Knew past me was right not to take the fancy bottle of shampoo)
(Knew past me was right not to take the fancy bottle of shampoo)
I had great admiration and fondness for Roy Hattersley.
A beautiful elegiac writer as well as a politician
Remember Edna Healey saying he shared many traits with Dennis Healey traits - similar Yorkshire roots, Labour politics & wit (a comparison Roy would have delighted with)
A beautiful elegiac writer as well as a politician
Remember Edna Healey saying he shared many traits with Dennis Healey traits - similar Yorkshire roots, Labour politics & wit (a comparison Roy would have delighted with)
‘A giant of the Labour movement’: Roy Hattersley, former Labour deputy leader, dies aged 93
‘A giant of the Labour movement’: Roy Hattersley, former Labour deputy leader, dies aged 93
Labour grandee was MP for Birmingham Sparkbrook from 1964 until his retirement from the Commons in 1997
Roy Hattersley, the former Labour deputy leader and author, has died aged 93, his family has said.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer described Hattersley as a “giant of the Labour movement”. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
June 14, 2026 at 10:15 PM
I had great admiration and fondness for Roy Hattersley.
A beautiful elegiac writer as well as a politician
Remember Edna Healey saying he shared many traits with Dennis Healey traits - similar Yorkshire roots, Labour politics & wit (a comparison Roy would have delighted with)
A beautiful elegiac writer as well as a politician
Remember Edna Healey saying he shared many traits with Dennis Healey traits - similar Yorkshire roots, Labour politics & wit (a comparison Roy would have delighted with)
Drinks are on me this weekend!
May 30, 2026 at 11:54 AM
Drinks are on me this weekend!
Reposted by Joe Oliver
Beach Walk, Whitby, painting by Bridget Wilkinson.
May 29, 2026 at 7:26 AM
Beach Walk, Whitby, painting by Bridget Wilkinson.
Bag of giant chocolate buttons turned into one giant chocolate button in the heat. Going to eat it with a knife and fork..
May 24, 2026 at 8:33 PM
Bag of giant chocolate buttons turned into one giant chocolate button in the heat. Going to eat it with a knife and fork..
Reposted by Joe Oliver
Have we ever had a future prime minister explicitly mugging off Andrew Neil this badly?
May 16, 2026 at 8:32 PM
Have we ever had a future prime minister explicitly mugging off Andrew Neil this badly?
Obvs wish these people well but were there any slightly more consequential stories of rail disruption the BBC could have used..
May 7, 2026 at 6:03 PM
Obvs wish these people well but were there any slightly more consequential stories of rail disruption the BBC could have used..
Started the 23 hour unabridged audiobook of Alison Weir’s account of the Wars of the Roses, which should keep me going for a while on commutes.
It makes clear in the first few minutes it will only cover the first part of the Wars..
It makes clear in the first few minutes it will only cover the first part of the Wars..
May 3, 2026 at 7:10 PM
Started the 23 hour unabridged audiobook of Alison Weir’s account of the Wars of the Roses, which should keep me going for a while on commutes.
It makes clear in the first few minutes it will only cover the first part of the Wars..
It makes clear in the first few minutes it will only cover the first part of the Wars..
Appropriately today I’m in Stratford-Upon-Avon where (we guesstimate) Shakespeare was born on this very day 462 years ago in this very house 🤩
April 23, 2026 at 3:33 PM
Appropriately today I’m in Stratford-Upon-Avon where (we guesstimate) Shakespeare was born on this very day 462 years ago in this very house 🤩
Found this book which brought a burst of nostalgia
A tale of blatant discrimination against a woman with clear dyspraxia
A tale of blatant discrimination against a woman with clear dyspraxia
April 19, 2026 at 5:29 PM
Found this book which brought a burst of nostalgia
A tale of blatant discrimination against a woman with clear dyspraxia
A tale of blatant discrimination against a woman with clear dyspraxia
Reposted by Joe Oliver
The modern world in old Ladybird books.
Eating on trains, 1974.
Artist: Frank Humphris
Eating on trains, 1974.
Artist: Frank Humphris
April 17, 2026 at 6:54 PM
The modern world in old Ladybird books.
Eating on trains, 1974.
Artist: Frank Humphris
Eating on trains, 1974.
Artist: Frank Humphris
News Viktor Orban is conceeding the Hungarian election and Rachel Zegler won an Olivier Award coming in at the same time :)
April 12, 2026 at 7:42 PM
News Viktor Orban is conceeding the Hungarian election and Rachel Zegler won an Olivier Award coming in at the same time :)
As the misspelt church banner said
‘Chris is Risen!’
‘Chris is Risen!’
April 5, 2026 at 4:13 PM
As the misspelt church banner said
‘Chris is Risen!’
‘Chris is Risen!’
Reposted by Joe Oliver
!!!!
Footage captured from passengers on an airliner above Florida, showing the exact moment the Artemis II mission lifts off.
April 2, 2026 at 1:33 AM
!!!!
Bet he wishes he’d thought of that..
March 31, 2026 at 1:15 PM
Bet he wishes he’d thought of that..