Olly Benson
@ollybenson.uk
NHS Englander. Ex VCSE and BBC.
Mainly interested in public participation and engagement, so stuff around people, volunteering, building communities, health, power, digital, media etc.
Husband | 🚸 Dad x2 | 💔 #ACHD
🌍 Warwickshire, UK
ollybenson.uk
Mainly interested in public participation and engagement, so stuff around people, volunteering, building communities, health, power, digital, media etc.
Husband | 🚸 Dad x2 | 💔 #ACHD
🌍 Warwickshire, UK
ollybenson.uk
If you know, you know...
Asking without asking 😅☘️
YouTube video by Alana & Josh
youtube.com
November 12, 2025 at 9:42 PM
If you know, you know...
Heartbreaking Long Read from Pamela Gordon in the @theguardian.com.
When I met Craig he was 13 and homeless. I still thought his life might turn around. I was tragically wrong
The long read: I knew he was running away from something. It wasn’t until many years later that I discovered the truth
www.theguardian.com
November 11, 2025 at 11:10 PM
Heartbreaking Long Read from Pamela Gordon in the @theguardian.com.
. @rogermosey.bsky.social is always my go to person for the most insightful analysis of a BBC crisis. This is his take on the current one.
November 11, 2025 at 9:54 PM
. @rogermosey.bsky.social is always my go to person for the most insightful analysis of a BBC crisis. This is his take on the current one.
Reposted by Olly Benson
The reaction to the Panorama edit has been nothing short of hysterical. Yes the BBC has some impartiality problems. But its biggest isn't the one you think.
New piece from me.
open.substack.com/pub/goodalla...
New piece from me.
open.substack.com/pub/goodalla...
The truth about impartiality at the BBC
And the hysteria of the current "crisis"
open.substack.com
November 10, 2025 at 7:22 PM
The reaction to the Panorama edit has been nothing short of hysterical. Yes the BBC has some impartiality problems. But its biggest isn't the one you think.
New piece from me.
open.substack.com/pub/goodalla...
New piece from me.
open.substack.com/pub/goodalla...
Reposted by Olly Benson
A story of grief, community, and hope... 🧵
November 10, 2025 at 10:30 AM
A story of grief, community, and hope... 🧵
Not generally one for listening to true crime podcasts, but Nicola Thorp's #Charlene: Someone Knows Something tells an incredible tale following the disappearance of 14-year-old Charlene Downes in Blackpool in 2003. Very much a story that needs a wider audience.
Charlene: Somebody Knows Something
In 2003, 14-year-old Charlene Downes mysteriously vanished from her hometown of Blackpool. Chilling stories started to spread. And when two men are arrested for murdering Charlene, they are accused of...
pca.st
November 7, 2025 at 11:08 PM
Not generally one for listening to true crime podcasts, but Nicola Thorp's #Charlene: Someone Knows Something tells an incredible tale following the disappearance of 14-year-old Charlene Downes in Blackpool in 2003. Very much a story that needs a wider audience.
#Traitors Finale was 50% shouting "come on, don't muck it up now" at the TV and 50% trying to work out exactly where on the Speyside Railway the explosion was filmed.
November 6, 2025 at 10:30 PM
#Traitors Finale was 50% shouting "come on, don't muck it up now" at the TV and 50% trying to work out exactly where on the Speyside Railway the explosion was filmed.
Fascinating deep dive into the wonderful world of production/library music, and how so many of TV/Film themes that you instantly recognise were recorded as library music rather than specifically for that show.
And how those tracks are now being used in hip-hop and elsewhere. With @20k.bsky.social
And how those tracks are now being used in hip-hop and elsewhere. With @20k.bsky.social
The Secret Soundtracks of Movies & TV — Twenty Thousand Hertz - The stories behind the world's most recognizable and interesting sounds.
In the ‘60s and ‘70s, world-class musicians gathered in smoky studios to record tracks that you couldn’t buy in a store… but ended up everywhere. In this episode, Dallas and the TTH crew dive into the...
www.20k.org
November 6, 2025 at 5:04 PM
Fascinating deep dive into the wonderful world of production/library music, and how so many of TV/Film themes that you instantly recognise were recorded as library music rather than specifically for that show.
And how those tracks are now being used in hip-hop and elsewhere. With @20k.bsky.social
And how those tracks are now being used in hip-hop and elsewhere. With @20k.bsky.social
Slightly shocked by the genuinely good choice of Julia Unwin for the post of Chair of the Charity Commission.
‘An excellent choice’ – sector leaders react to Charity Commission chair announcement
Dame Julia Unwin has been revealed as the government’s preferred candidate for the role
www.thirdsector.co.uk
November 5, 2025 at 5:50 PM
Slightly shocked by the genuinely good choice of Julia Unwin for the post of Chair of the Charity Commission.
Happy International Volunteer Managers Day 2025!
Did you know there are over 500 Volunteer Managers who work in the NHS in England, supporting over 72,000 volunteers in hospital and community trusts?
#ivmday25
Did you know there are over 500 Volunteer Managers who work in the NHS in England, supporting over 72,000 volunteers in hospital and community trusts?
#ivmday25
November 5, 2025 at 9:19 AM
Happy International Volunteer Managers Day 2025!
Did you know there are over 500 Volunteer Managers who work in the NHS in England, supporting over 72,000 volunteers in hospital and community trusts?
#ivmday25
Did you know there are over 500 Volunteer Managers who work in the NHS in England, supporting over 72,000 volunteers in hospital and community trusts?
#ivmday25
This is probably the least scandalous scandal since Blue Peter misnamed their cat...
November 4, 2025 at 8:21 PM
This is probably the least scandalous scandal since Blue Peter misnamed their cat...
I like this from @freewheeling.info. rather than make fares simple, make them do the hard bit for you...
Train fares are a nightmare, but the main issues are the apparent arbitrariness, the amount of cognitive effort required by the user and a genuine fear of fines.
These are the problems to solve, but it’s not exactly the same as complexity.
www.freewheeling.info/blog/complex...
These are the problems to solve, but it’s not exactly the same as complexity.
www.freewheeling.info/blog/complex...
Complexity isn’t the issue with train fares — Freewheeling
There is a consensus that rail fares are too complex. There is a lot of truth to this but it’s nuanced. It’s very important we understand this nuance otherwise we’re in danger of fixing the wrong th...
www.freewheeling.info
November 4, 2025 at 7:35 PM
I like this from @freewheeling.info. rather than make fares simple, make them do the hard bit for you...
17 years ago, it was a Tuesday, 4th November, and I was in New York to witness the election of a leader who caught the zeitgeist, building up broad support that they ended up winning despite the odds being stacked against them.
Sadly, I'm not in New York today.
Sadly, I'm not in New York today.
November 4, 2025 at 3:18 PM
17 years ago, it was a Tuesday, 4th November, and I was in New York to witness the election of a leader who caught the zeitgeist, building up broad support that they ended up winning despite the odds being stacked against them.
Sadly, I'm not in New York today.
Sadly, I'm not in New York today.
The KLF episode of @msmirandasawyer.bsky.social's Talk 90s To Me is as gloriously bonkers as you'd expect it to be. Although it ends with an element of pathos.
Talk '90s to me | Instagram, TikTok | Linktree
View talk90stome’s Linktree to discover and stream music from top platforms like YouTube, Spotify here. Your next favorite track is just a click away!
linktr.ee
November 3, 2025 at 6:46 PM
The KLF episode of @msmirandasawyer.bsky.social's Talk 90s To Me is as gloriously bonkers as you'd expect it to be. Although it ends with an element of pathos.
Reposted by Olly Benson
Moving thoughts: memories of #Bedford.
Moving thoughts
Memories of Bedford
jembenson.substack.com
November 2, 2025 at 8:26 PM
Moving thoughts: memories of #Bedford.
Newsround reporting the Enniskillen bomb is, I think, my first memory of learning about the Troubles in N Ireland.
We stayed nearby (at Florence Court) this summer, and driving through the town I immediately recognised the location.
This is a fascinating series about the atrocity and aftermath.
We stayed nearby (at Florence Court) this summer, and driving through the town I immediately recognised the location.
This is a fascinating series about the atrocity and aftermath.
🔴 The Poppy Day Bomb podcast 🔴
🎧 podfollow.com/poppy-day-bomb
On 8 November 1987 an IRA bomb exploded in Enniskillen on Remembrance Sunday, killing 11 people
I was born 2 days later, arriving in the local hospital alongside those who'd been mutilated
🎧 podfollow.com/poppy-day-bomb
On 8 November 1987 an IRA bomb exploded in Enniskillen on Remembrance Sunday, killing 11 people
I was born 2 days later, arriving in the local hospital alongside those who'd been mutilated
The Poppy Day Bomb | Times Investigates
A bombing kills 11 people attending the Remembrance Sunday commemorations in the small town of Enniskillen, Northern Ireland.No one has ever been charged.A lifetime later, The Times’s reporter Mario L...
podfollow.com
October 31, 2025 at 5:39 PM
Newsround reporting the Enniskillen bomb is, I think, my first memory of learning about the Troubles in N Ireland.
We stayed nearby (at Florence Court) this summer, and driving through the town I immediately recognised the location.
This is a fascinating series about the atrocity and aftermath.
We stayed nearby (at Florence Court) this summer, and driving through the town I immediately recognised the location.
This is a fascinating series about the atrocity and aftermath.
This is very good news indeed (and excited I'm going to be involved in helping make this happen)...
Charities minister backs project to make volunteering data more accessible
www.civilsociety.co.uk
October 29, 2025 at 11:52 AM
This is very good news indeed (and excited I'm going to be involved in helping make this happen)...
Super exciting #job at the Electoral Commission, as product manger for their new digital strategy. Great to see @democracyclub.org.uk clearly mentioned in the JD, reflecting the work they did to get it this far.
Powered by MHR
ce1002li.webitrent.com
October 28, 2025 at 9:10 AM
Super exciting #job at the Electoral Commission, as product manger for their new digital strategy. Great to see @democracyclub.org.uk clearly mentioned in the JD, reflecting the work they did to get it this far.
They knocked down my old office to build this!
(Top tip, they need to keep it open for Warwickshire schools holidays rather than just Coventry ones).
(Top tip, they need to keep it open for Warwickshire schools holidays rather than just Coventry ones).
Huge shortfall in visitors to Coventry City Council's The Wave water park
The Wave in Coventry is getting about a million fewer visits annually than predicted, the BBC finds.
www.bbc.co.uk
October 28, 2025 at 6:20 AM
They knocked down my old office to build this!
(Top tip, they need to keep it open for Warwickshire schools holidays rather than just Coventry ones).
(Top tip, they need to keep it open for Warwickshire schools holidays rather than just Coventry ones).
Wyndham Rewards currently now winning the "What's GDPR?" record by emailing me for the first time since I cancelled a hotel I had booked whilst in the US covering the Presidential Election. When Obama won. The first time.
October 27, 2025 at 8:06 AM
Wyndham Rewards currently now winning the "What's GDPR?" record by emailing me for the first time since I cancelled a hotel I had booked whilst in the US covering the Presidential Election. When Obama won. The first time.
Date night to see Macbeth at the RSC. First time at The Other Place.
www.rsc.org.uk/macbeth/
www.rsc.org.uk/macbeth/
Macbeth | Royal Shakespeare Company
Daniel Raggett returns to direct Shakespeare’s story power and ambition in the intimate setting of The Other Place, with Sam Heughan and Lia Williams.
www.rsc.org.uk
October 24, 2025 at 6:03 PM
Date night to see Macbeth at the RSC. First time at The Other Place.
www.rsc.org.uk/macbeth/
www.rsc.org.uk/macbeth/
Amol Rajan is bookies favourite to be the new presenter...
BREAKING - Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman are to leave Strictly at the end of the current series.
October 23, 2025 at 12:00 PM
Amol Rajan is bookies favourite to be the new presenter...
Cycled Euston to Barts and back again for a heart appointment today. Great cycle route right up until Farringdon Road to West Smithfield which seems to have just been abandoned and the cycle map on TFL Go appears to contradict the actual road layout.
@willnorman.co.uk
@willnorman.co.uk
October 22, 2025 at 6:43 PM
Cycled Euston to Barts and back again for a heart appointment today. Great cycle route right up until Farringdon Road to West Smithfield which seems to have just been abandoned and the cycle map on TFL Go appears to contradict the actual road layout.
@willnorman.co.uk
@willnorman.co.uk
Does anyone else purposefully plan where they will finish reading a book? I recently had to make sure I didn't finish an audiobook whilst stuck in the commuter traffic on the Coventry ring road as it felt like it would devalue the work.
October 22, 2025 at 10:21 AM
Does anyone else purposefully plan where they will finish reading a book? I recently had to make sure I didn't finish an audiobook whilst stuck in the commuter traffic on the Coventry ring road as it felt like it would devalue the work.