Neil Drysdale
@neildrysdale.bsky.social
Aberdeen-based author, ghostwriter and crossword compiler. “Simmy”, the autobiography of Neil Simpson, will be published on May 11, 2026. Now looking for other book projects. Neil694@btinternet.com
Happy St Andrew’s Day to Scots, wherever you are in the world!
November 30, 2025 at 12:37 AM
Happy St Andrew’s Day to Scots, wherever you are in the world!
Then there is this. With the wonderful Patti Austin for company! youtu.be/a0TVgow_CVM
Moody's Mood
YouTube video by George Benson - Topic
youtu.be
November 29, 2025 at 4:06 PM
Then there is this. With the wonderful Patti Austin for company! youtu.be/a0TVgow_CVM
The best version by a country mile. George Benson is so talented, as were the Count Basie band members who joined him on this joyous track! youtu.be/BlxsKYrbnns
George Benson – Beyond The Sea (La Mer)
YouTube video by Shpresina
youtu.be
November 29, 2025 at 3:59 PM
The best version by a country mile. George Benson is so talented, as were the Count Basie band members who joined him on this joyous track! youtu.be/BlxsKYrbnns
Reposted by Neil Drysdale
Three formidable women - Pamela Harriman, Virginia Hall and Clementine Churchill - have lived in my head for a decade. Now I hear that an amazing 1.2 million of you have bought these books in English alone! Plus many more in nearly 30 languages. I am astonished, thrilled and touched. Thank you all!!
November 29, 2025 at 2:16 PM
Three formidable women - Pamela Harriman, Virginia Hall and Clementine Churchill - have lived in my head for a decade. Now I hear that an amazing 1.2 million of you have bought these books in English alone! Plus many more in nearly 30 languages. I am astonished, thrilled and touched. Thank you all!!
I still remember when former Rangers manager Graeme Souness had a journalist thrown out of a press conference in the late 1980s and the rest of the media backed the writer in question. I know it’s a different matter when we’re talking about the US President, but it’s the same principle!
November 29, 2025 at 1:44 AM
I still remember when former Rangers manager Graeme Souness had a journalist thrown out of a press conference in the late 1980s and the rest of the media backed the writer in question. I know it’s a different matter when we’re talking about the US President, but it’s the same principle!
Reposted by Neil Drysdale
I would call Pete Hegseth a war criminal, but we aren’t at war. He’s just a mass murderer.
November 28, 2025 at 7:39 PM
I would call Pete Hegseth a war criminal, but we aren’t at war. He’s just a mass murderer.
This is one of the privileges of working in journalism; the opportunity to talk to people with extraordinary stories. Erika Schulhof died just a few months after I made contact with her, but she never forgot her time in Aberdeen. I tried to do her justice! www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/past-time...
On my own: The remarkable story of Erika Schulhof's escape to Aberdeen from Nazi horror
She was the youngster who enjoyed a magical childhood in Austria before being forced to flee from the Nazis to a convent boarding school in Aberdeen.
www.pressandjournal.co.uk
November 28, 2025 at 11:48 PM
This is one of the privileges of working in journalism; the opportunity to talk to people with extraordinary stories. Erika Schulhof died just a few months after I made contact with her, but she never forgot her time in Aberdeen. I tried to do her justice! www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/past-time...
Reposted by Neil Drysdale
Australia just recorded zero cervical cancer cases in women under 25 for the first time since records began in 1982. The amazing result of HPV vaccination.
November 28, 2025 at 8:44 PM
Australia just recorded zero cervical cancer cases in women under 25 for the first time since records began in 1982. The amazing result of HPV vaccination.
Reposted by Neil Drysdale
When this is over I’ll enjoy watching Stephen Miller being held accountable the most.
November 28, 2025 at 3:39 PM
When this is over I’ll enjoy watching Stephen Miller being held accountable the most.
Highland actor Jimmy Yuill has paid a warm tribute to his “Wycliffe” colleague Jack Shepherd, who died earlier this week. The “odd couple” didn’t just share a house for five years; Jack saved Jimmy’s life when the latter was stricken with meningitis! www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/news/6903...
Wycliffe actor Jimmy Yuill pays tribute to late colleague Jack Shepherd: 'He saved my life'
The Golspie-based actor has talked about how his "Wycliffe" star intervened dramatically when he was diagnosed with meningitis.
www.pressandjournal.co.uk
November 28, 2025 at 12:07 PM
Highland actor Jimmy Yuill has paid a warm tribute to his “Wycliffe” colleague Jack Shepherd, who died earlier this week. The “odd couple” didn’t just share a house for five years; Jack saved Jimmy’s life when the latter was stricken with meningitis! www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/news/6903...
Reposted by Neil Drysdale
Pam Hogg obituary
Pam Hogg obituary
Fashion designer whose idiosyncratic mix of glam and DIY couture was worn by Björk, Siouxsie Sioux and Taylor Swift
www.theguardian.com
November 27, 2025 at 5:33 PM
Pam Hogg obituary
Reposted by Neil Drysdale
Never let it be said that the British press is out of touch
November 27, 2025 at 7:52 PM
Never let it be said that the British press is out of touch
I’ve watched the first episodes of two new TV series, based around Sherlock Holmes: “Mademoiselle Holmes”, which I liked, and “Watson”, which I’m more ambivalent about (though Robert Carlyle turns up later as Holmes). I wrote this about Arthur Conan Doyle! conandoyleestate.com/news/insight...
The Conan Doyle Estate, Arthur Conan Doyle's adventures as featured in The Press and Journal
We were contacted recently by a feature writer - Neil Drysdale of the Press and Journal, who was keen to write a piece about the 140th anniversary of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle?s journey on the whaling sh...
conandoyleestate.com
November 25, 2025 at 11:21 PM
I’ve watched the first episodes of two new TV series, based around Sherlock Holmes: “Mademoiselle Holmes”, which I liked, and “Watson”, which I’m more ambivalent about (though Robert Carlyle turns up later as Holmes). I wrote this about Arthur Conan Doyle! conandoyleestate.com/news/insight...
Reposted by Neil Drysdale
This is like when Kissinger got the Nobel Peace Prize
I’m a past winner of the Orwell Prize & won partly because I exposed Vote Leave’s unlawful activities.
Michael Gove was its co-convener & refused to answer a single q. He’s now a judge of the prize & our world is truly one that Orwell would recognise
bylinetimes.com/2025/11/25/m...
Michael Gove was its co-convener & refused to answer a single q. He’s now a judge of the prize & our world is truly one that Orwell would recognise
bylinetimes.com/2025/11/25/m...
Michael Gove Made Orwell Prize Judge Despite Record of Attacking Journalists and Dodging Scrutiny
Critics say "Orwell would have enjoyed the irony" of the former Conservative minister's appointment
bylinetimes.com
November 25, 2025 at 8:02 PM
This is like when Kissinger got the Nobel Peace Prize
Reposted by Neil Drysdale
Happy 83rd birthday to Billy Connolly. Here’s the story of how he and Gerry Rafferty appeared at an Arbroath club for the princely sum of £28. Within two years, they were on “Parkinson” and “Top of the Pops.”https://www.thecourier.co.uk/fp/past-times/2275831/arbroath-billy-connolly-gerry-rafferty/
Were you at the Arbroath folk club where Billy Connolly and Gerry Rafferty performed for £28?
It was a venue which attracted the cream of the crop through its doors during the Swinging Sixties - including several Scots who subsequently earned
www.thecourier.co.uk
November 24, 2025 at 11:23 AM
Happy 83rd birthday to Billy Connolly. Here’s the story of how he and Gerry Rafferty appeared at an Arbroath club for the princely sum of £28. Within two years, they were on “Parkinson” and “Top of the Pops.”https://www.thecourier.co.uk/fp/past-times/2275831/arbroath-billy-connolly-gerry-rafferty/
Reposted by Neil Drysdale
For a fleeting moment, the clouds perfectly mirrored the peaks of Manaslu (the 8th highest mountain in the world).
#stunday #eastcoastkin #photography #nature #classicmono #monochrome #blackandwhite #b&W #art #clouds #cloudscape #nepal #hiking #sunday #bluesky #scape #landscape #mountains #sky
#stunday #eastcoastkin #photography #nature #classicmono #monochrome #blackandwhite #b&W #art #clouds #cloudscape #nepal #hiking #sunday #bluesky #scape #landscape #mountains #sky
November 23, 2025 at 1:01 PM
For a fleeting moment, the clouds perfectly mirrored the peaks of Manaslu (the 8th highest mountain in the world).
#stunday #eastcoastkin #photography #nature #classicmono #monochrome #blackandwhite #b&W #art #clouds #cloudscape #nepal #hiking #sunday #bluesky #scape #landscape #mountains #sky
#stunday #eastcoastkin #photography #nature #classicmono #monochrome #blackandwhite #b&W #art #clouds #cloudscape #nepal #hiking #sunday #bluesky #scape #landscape #mountains #sky
Reposted by Neil Drysdale
TV tonight: the terrifying story of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s Iran detention
TV tonight: the terrifying story of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s Iran detention
Narges Rashidi and Joseph Fiennes star in a tense drama. Plus: Chris McCausland tries a self-driving car and glasses that talk. Here’s what to watch this evening
www.theguardian.com
November 23, 2025 at 6:54 AM
TV tonight: the terrifying story of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s Iran detention
Reposted by Neil Drysdale
I’d have thought nothing cuts more against our precious British values than selling out your country for Russian bribes…
And yet Reform, the right‑wing press, and all those self‑styled guardians of these values have nothing to say
…funny that.
And yet Reform, the right‑wing press, and all those self‑styled guardians of these values have nothing to say
…funny that.
November 23, 2025 at 12:00 PM
I’d have thought nothing cuts more against our precious British values than selling out your country for Russian bribes…
And yet Reform, the right‑wing press, and all those self‑styled guardians of these values have nothing to say
…funny that.
And yet Reform, the right‑wing press, and all those self‑styled guardians of these values have nothing to say
…funny that.
Reposted by Neil Drysdale
Newmarket MP Matt Hancock gave a £37bn Covid testing contract to Jockey Club director Dido Harding, who subcontracted it to Grand National sponsor Randox, employer of Tory MP Owen Paterson, whose late wife chaired Aintree racecourse. That's how the Tories handled the pandemic.
November 22, 2025 at 12:42 PM
Newmarket MP Matt Hancock gave a £37bn Covid testing contract to Jockey Club director Dido Harding, who subcontracted it to Grand National sponsor Randox, employer of Tory MP Owen Paterson, whose late wife chaired Aintree racecourse. That's how the Tories handled the pandemic.
I visited AberNecessities, the Aberdeen-based charity which is working tirelessly to help families and children in the region. Demand for their services has doubled in the last year and there has been an alarming rise in women fleeing domestic abuse! www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/lifestyle...
Behind the scenes at AberNecessities: 'We're a small team tackling a doubling in demand'
The north east charity is tackling 'huge' issues, but is doing its utmost to help families in the build-up to Christmas.
www.pressandjournal.co.uk
November 22, 2025 at 12:34 PM
I visited AberNecessities, the Aberdeen-based charity which is working tirelessly to help families and children in the region. Demand for their services has doubled in the last year and there has been an alarming rise in women fleeing domestic abuse! www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/lifestyle...
This is a quite beautiful love letter by Anthony Quinn to his late and much-missed wife Rachel Cooke. It also confirms something I’ve always felt about Rick Stein. But, above all, it is a wonderfully-written tribute to a very gifted journalist!
observer.co.uk/style/featur... absolutely beautiful piece about Rachel Cooke by her husband.
‘Her amazing smile was undimmed, and I would try anything to summon it’ | The Observer
observer.co.uk
November 21, 2025 at 9:06 PM
This is a quite beautiful love letter by Anthony Quinn to his late and much-missed wife Rachel Cooke. It also confirms something I’ve always felt about Rick Stein. But, above all, it is a wonderfully-written tribute to a very gifted journalist!
Very pleased that Denis Law’s family asked Fiona Kennedy to sing “Auld Lang Syne” at the Lawman’s memorial service in Aberdeen. In a week when football lifted our spirits in Scotland, that portrait of Denis also made me smile. Sport’s importance can be overstated, but sometimes it really matters!
November 21, 2025 at 8:35 PM
Very pleased that Denis Law’s family asked Fiona Kennedy to sing “Auld Lang Syne” at the Lawman’s memorial service in Aberdeen. In a week when football lifted our spirits in Scotland, that portrait of Denis also made me smile. Sport’s importance can be overstated, but sometimes it really matters!
As Aberdeen freezes, here’s a look at how the Dons have dealt with winter’s worst over the years. There was a famous game in January 1984 when the Aberdeen v St Johnstone contest was abandoned at half time- with the hosts winning 3-0! www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/past-time...
In photos: How Aberdeen FC dealt with winter's worst over the years
The Dons have always been used to freezing winter and blizzard conditions, but sometimes the weather won the day.
www.pressandjournal.co.uk
November 21, 2025 at 6:08 PM
As Aberdeen freezes, here’s a look at how the Dons have dealt with winter’s worst over the years. There was a famous game in January 1984 when the Aberdeen v St Johnstone contest was abandoned at half time- with the hosts winning 3-0! www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/past-time...