Tim Burrows
@timburrows.bsky.social
Writer, Guardian and others. The Invention of Essex is published by Profile Books: http://bit.ly/3Bj9lLi
Guardian profile: https://www.theguardian.com/profile/tim-burrows
Linktree: https://linktr.ee/timburrows
Agent: ZRoss@unitedagents.co.uk
Guardian profile: https://www.theguardian.com/profile/tim-burrows
Linktree: https://linktr.ee/timburrows
Agent: ZRoss@unitedagents.co.uk
Pinned
Tim Burrows
@timburrows.bsky.social
· Nov 26
The invention of Essex: how a county became a caricature
The long read: From Loadsamoney and ‘Basildon man’ to Towie and Brexit – Essex has long been held up as both the authentic England and the crudest, stupidest symbol of Englishness
www.theguardian.com
Hello! As I'm new here, I thought I should start a thread of my writing from the last few years. First up, an essay-length dredging of the secrets of my home county, The Invention of Essex, for the @theguardian.com long read in 2019 www.theguardian.com/news/2019/ju...
Reposted by Tim Burrows
Love this so much, especially the juxtaposition of English folklore paths with an Amazon spokesperson going out of their way to deny a person driving their branded vehicle is an employee.
I followed the biggest story of the week: how an Amazon delivery van became marooned on the Broomway www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...
Abandon shipment: how an Amazon van got marooned on the UK’s ‘most dangerous path’
Driver reportedly checked with base and was told to continue when GPS directed van on to Essex mudflats
www.theguardian.com
February 17, 2026 at 7:12 PM
Love this so much, especially the juxtaposition of English folklore paths with an Amazon spokesperson going out of their way to deny a person driving their branded vehicle is an employee.
I followed the biggest story of the week: how an Amazon delivery van became marooned on the Broomway www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...
Abandon shipment: how an Amazon van got marooned on the UK’s ‘most dangerous path’
Driver reportedly checked with base and was told to continue when GPS directed van on to Essex mudflats
www.theguardian.com
February 17, 2026 at 6:48 PM
I followed the biggest story of the week: how an Amazon delivery van became marooned on the Broomway www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...
The support of Farage from broadcasters during the past decade betrays a kind of second-hand inverted snobbery. To some, with his beer and fags, he represents 'the public', rather than a man who, aside from a rump (and largely ageing) demographic, makes people's skin crawl
Latest party leader net favourability ratings, February 2026
Kemi Badenoch: -23
Nigel Farage: -37
Keir Starmer: -47
Zack Polanski: -8 (48% DK)
Ed Davey: -10 (36% DK)
yougov.co.uk/politics/art...
Kemi Badenoch: -23
Nigel Farage: -37
Keir Starmer: -47
Zack Polanski: -8 (48% DK)
Ed Davey: -10 (36% DK)
yougov.co.uk/politics/art...
February 12, 2026 at 10:54 AM
The support of Farage from broadcasters during the past decade betrays a kind of second-hand inverted snobbery. To some, with his beer and fags, he represents 'the public', rather than a man who, aside from a rump (and largely ageing) demographic, makes people's skin crawl
Reposted by Tim Burrows
Farage's stinking personal ratings are massively overlooked
Latest party leader net favourability ratings, February 2026
Kemi Badenoch: -23
Nigel Farage: -37
Keir Starmer: -47
Zack Polanski: -8 (48% DK)
Ed Davey: -10 (36% DK)
yougov.co.uk/politics/art...
Kemi Badenoch: -23
Nigel Farage: -37
Keir Starmer: -47
Zack Polanski: -8 (48% DK)
Ed Davey: -10 (36% DK)
yougov.co.uk/politics/art...
February 12, 2026 at 10:12 AM
Farage's stinking personal ratings are massively overlooked
'He said he has been locked in the same large, cold and damp room for 4½ months with more than 70 men...detainees are constantly hungry because meals served at tables in the centre of the room offer only child-sized portions. Fights break out over food. Toilet areas are “filthy”.'
‘Absolute hell’: Irish man with valid US work permit held by Ice since September
‘Absolute hell’: Irish man with valid US work permit held by Ice since September
Seamus Culleton has been in a detention facility in Texas for nearly five months despite having no criminal record
www.irishtimes.com
February 9, 2026 at 10:35 AM
'He said he has been locked in the same large, cold and damp room for 4½ months with more than 70 men...detainees are constantly hungry because meals served at tables in the centre of the room offer only child-sized portions. Fights break out over food. Toilet areas are “filthy”.'
Reposted by Tim Burrows
Just as we did with the fall of Cummings and then Johnson, we're going to get too much analysis on McSweeney and Starmer focused on personalities rather than the possibility that the crisis is one generated by deeper structural problems in the Labour Party.
February 9, 2026 at 9:48 AM
Just as we did with the fall of Cummings and then Johnson, we're going to get too much analysis on McSweeney and Starmer focused on personalities rather than the possibility that the crisis is one generated by deeper structural problems in the Labour Party.
Sometimes I wake up in a cold sweat in the middle of the night and have to check whether David Cameron really did launch the Tory austerity programme in 2010 – where the poorest 10th of the population saw a 38% decrease in net income over 5 years – with the slogan 'We're all in this together'.
February 9, 2026 at 9:42 AM
Sometimes I wake up in a cold sweat in the middle of the night and have to check whether David Cameron really did launch the Tory austerity programme in 2010 – where the poorest 10th of the population saw a 38% decrease in net income over 5 years – with the slogan 'We're all in this together'.
Reposted by Tim Burrows
Kyiv residents share photos and videos on social media showing their freezing apartments and how they are trying to keep warm.
January 29, 2026 at 9:36 PM
Kyiv residents share photos and videos on social media showing their freezing apartments and how they are trying to keep warm.
Daniel has been writing brilliantly on the British far right and immigration for more than 15 years, and I can't think of a book I need to read right now as much as this one
Hello, I have a new book out in the spring with Picador and I would love it if you could help me spread the word.
IF WE TOLERATE THIS draws on years of work, to help readers understand why British politics is hurtling rightwards and what to do about it.
Pre-orders: uk.bookshop.org/p/books/if-w...
IF WE TOLERATE THIS draws on years of work, to help readers understand why British politics is hurtling rightwards and what to do about it.
Pre-orders: uk.bookshop.org/p/books/if-w...
January 28, 2026 at 10:59 AM
Daniel has been writing brilliantly on the British far right and immigration for more than 15 years, and I can't think of a book I need to read right now as much as this one
Reposted by Tim Burrows
Philip Glass boycotting the Kennedy Center
Philip Glass boycotting the Kennedy Center
Philip Glass boycotting the Kennedy Center
Philip Glass
Philip Glass
Philip Glass
Philip Glass
Philip Glass boycotting the Kennedy Center
Philip Glass boycotting the Kennedy Center
Philip Glass boycotting the Kennedy Center
Philip Glass
Philip Glass
Philip Glass
Philip Glass
Philip Glass boycotting the Kennedy Center
January 27, 2026 at 4:17 PM
Philip Glass boycotting the Kennedy Center
Philip Glass boycotting the Kennedy Center
Philip Glass boycotting the Kennedy Center
Philip Glass
Philip Glass
Philip Glass
Philip Glass
Philip Glass boycotting the Kennedy Center
Philip Glass boycotting the Kennedy Center
Philip Glass boycotting the Kennedy Center
Philip Glass
Philip Glass
Philip Glass
Philip Glass
Philip Glass boycotting the Kennedy Center
Reposted by Tim Burrows
The BBC coverage is absolutely terrible.
It leads on "sharply contested narratives"
It has a dramatic skew to the US government
It has posted the video but has failed to report on what it shows: it shows the US govt account is untrue
It leads on "sharply contested narratives"
It has a dramatic skew to the US government
It has posted the video but has failed to report on what it shows: it shows the US govt account is untrue
January 24, 2026 at 11:00 PM
The BBC coverage is absolutely terrible.
It leads on "sharply contested narratives"
It has a dramatic skew to the US government
It has posted the video but has failed to report on what it shows: it shows the US govt account is untrue
It leads on "sharply contested narratives"
It has a dramatic skew to the US government
It has posted the video but has failed to report on what it shows: it shows the US govt account is untrue
Reposted by Tim Burrows
genuinely stunning image
January 24, 2026 at 1:37 AM
genuinely stunning image
Reposted by Tim Burrows
When my family and 120,000 other Japanese American were sent to prison camps in WWII, the government only allowed propaganda photos of things like schools and baseball games to be published. A school in a prison is evidence of evil, none of these people, especially children, should be imprisoned
ICE is sending these kids to the concentration camp in Dilley, Texas, where they're preparing to have so many children that they're opening a new school there. They're actively hiring teachers now. I reported on it last month. We have to get people out of there.
January 23, 2026 at 5:56 PM
When my family and 120,000 other Japanese American were sent to prison camps in WWII, the government only allowed propaganda photos of things like schools and baseball games to be published. A school in a prison is evidence of evil, none of these people, especially children, should be imprisoned
Reposted by Tim Burrows
Now that the White House is using AI to edit photos of their political opponents to create fascist propaganda I’m wondering if anyone could have seen this use of AI coming. Okay I’m hearing lots of people did and they were forced to watch corporations smother the masses with the technology anyways
January 22, 2026 at 11:55 PM
Now that the White House is using AI to edit photos of their political opponents to create fascist propaganda I’m wondering if anyone could have seen this use of AI coming. Okay I’m hearing lots of people did and they were forced to watch corporations smother the masses with the technology anyways
Reposted by Tim Burrows
The Brexit latest seems to have moved from strong independent sovereign nation to country entirely dependant on US funding and defence for its survival. Thanks.
January 23, 2026 at 7:13 AM
The Brexit latest seems to have moved from strong independent sovereign nation to country entirely dependant on US funding and defence for its survival. Thanks.
'When the Lykovs were discovered by the geologists, they were still furious with Patriarch Nikon and Peter the Great... Agafia, the youngest Lykov, had never seen a wheel.' Fascinating extract from Sophie Pinkham's new book in @theguardian.com's long read today www.theguardian.com/world/2026/j...
Forty years in the Siberian wilderness: the Old Believers who time forgot
The long read: In 1978, Soviet scientists stumbled upon a family living in a remote part of Russia. They hadn’t interacted with outsiders for decades. Almost half a century later, one of them is still...
www.theguardian.com
January 22, 2026 at 3:42 PM
'When the Lykovs were discovered by the geologists, they were still furious with Patriarch Nikon and Peter the Great... Agafia, the youngest Lykov, had never seen a wheel.' Fascinating extract from Sophie Pinkham's new book in @theguardian.com's long read today www.theguardian.com/world/2026/j...
This closing line gets to the heart of the Trump project – a magnified, everyday evil that is only unique due to its scale.
Trump makes concluding remarks. He says Gaza ceasefire push began because he is “a real estate person at heart, and it’s all about location, and I said, ‘look at this location, on the sea, look at this beautiful piece of property’”.
January 22, 2026 at 11:32 AM
This closing line gets to the heart of the Trump project – a magnified, everyday evil that is only unique due to its scale.
Reposted by Tim Burrows
The Columbia Heights school district says ICE detained four of its students, including a 5-year-old boy, as "bait" to draw out family members.
ICE detains 5-year old Minnesota boy; lawyer says agents used him as ‘bait’
The Columbia Heights school district says federal agents have detained four children in their district. School officials and a lawyer for the family say agents used 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramo as “bai...
www.mprnews.org
January 22, 2026 at 1:51 AM
The Columbia Heights school district says ICE detained four of its students, including a 5-year-old boy, as "bait" to draw out family members.
Reposted by Tim Burrows
It was not a great idea to elect an anthropomorphized sundowning boomer's racist Facebook feed as president.
Trump: "Somalia -- they turned out to be higher IQ than we thought. I always say, 'These are low IQ people.' How did they go into Minnesota and steal all that money?"
January 21, 2026 at 4:50 PM
It was not a great idea to elect an anthropomorphized sundowning boomer's racist Facebook feed as president.
Reposted by Tim Burrows
World-historical batshitness: "We probably won't get anything unless I decide to use excessive strength & force where we would be frankly, unstoppable. But I won't do that. Now everyone's saying 'oh good.' …I won't use force. All the United States is asking for is a place called Greenland."
Trump: Greenland “is the northern frontier of the Western hemisphere. It’s our territory.”
January 21, 2026 at 2:14 PM
World-historical batshitness: "We probably won't get anything unless I decide to use excessive strength & force where we would be frankly, unstoppable. But I won't do that. Now everyone's saying 'oh good.' …I won't use force. All the United States is asking for is a place called Greenland."
I like to think of this as the apathetically Thatcherite southerners' version of the Sycamore Gap
Toby Carvery owner faces eviction from north London site for felling ancient oak
Toby Carvery owner faces eviction from north London site for felling ancient oak
Felling of 500-year-old oak in Enfield provokes fury from council which leases land to Mitchells & Butler
The restaurant chain Toby Carvery is facing eviction from one of its sites after taking a chainsaw to an ancient oak tree without the permission of its council landlord.
The partial felling last April of the 500-year-old oak on the edge of a Toby Carvery car park in Whitewebbs Park, Enfield, provoked widespread public dismay and fury from Enfield council which leases the land to the restaurant’s owners Mitchells & Butler Retail (M&B). Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
January 21, 2026 at 10:41 AM
I like to think of this as the apathetically Thatcherite southerners' version of the Sycamore Gap
Covid-level disruption on education in Minnesota, but because white supremacy and not a virus
Saint Paul Public Schools, one of the biggest school districts in the state, is closed for the next two days because teachers need time to build hybrid learning because unaccountable masked, armed federal government goons have made it too difficult for nonwhite children to leave their homes.
January 20, 2026 at 1:26 PM
Covid-level disruption on education in Minnesota, but because white supremacy and not a virus
Reposted by Tim Burrows
if you use doorbell cameras you are a fascist enabler
January 19, 2026 at 4:37 PM
if you use doorbell cameras you are a fascist enabler
Least surprising defection so far: MP for Romford who wanted to make his constituency great again by holding a referendum to take it out of Greater London to become part of Essex again for the first time since 1965 despite no one particularly calling for it.
January 18, 2026 at 8:17 PM
Least surprising defection so far: MP for Romford who wanted to make his constituency great again by holding a referendum to take it out of Greater London to become part of Essex again for the first time since 1965 despite no one particularly calling for it.
Reposted by Tim Burrows
One year ago...
I hope this guy is living his best life and it's all been worth it for him
- as.ft.com/r/8f116a6c-f...
I hope this guy is living his best life and it's all been worth it for him
- as.ft.com/r/8f116a6c-f...
January 18, 2026 at 2:13 PM
One year ago...
I hope this guy is living his best life and it's all been worth it for him
- as.ft.com/r/8f116a6c-f...
I hope this guy is living his best life and it's all been worth it for him
- as.ft.com/r/8f116a6c-f...