Man, we wish we hadn’t used this headline up two days ago.
BBC Scotland’s Debate Night programme last night was rather peculiar. It took place in a mostly-empty studio, but clearly not due to COVID precautions because the people who were there were all jammed tightly together in the middle. (In fairness, given BBC Scotland’s audience ratings they may still have outnumbered television viewers.)
On an all-female panel it featured, “by popular demand”, someone presenter Stephen Jardine described as “one of our best-loved comedians”, a former electrician called Susie McCabe, who we’d never heard of in our lives. (She apparently presented the channel’s Hogmanay show, something no sane adult has watched since 1982.)
She made one particular contribution that set social media aflame.
Because as someone else on Twitter mocked, what’s actually laughable is the idea that criminals would never engage in any kind of deception in order to commit crimes, and that someone like Peter Tatchell would be so idiotic as to suggest such a thing.
We’ve asked Alex Cole-Hamilton for comment several times without reply. (Although there has been an unverified third-hand answer via Willie Rennie and a Twitter user.)
Wings Over Scotland makes absolutely no assertions about why MSPs wouldn’t want to very clearly and unambiguously disassociate themselves from such an unpleasant character after information about him had been brought to light in a widely-read (over 200,000 views) article which was trending on Twitter all day yesterday.
For the avoidance of doubt, we have no information about any interactions between Douglas and any MSPs that we’re keeping secret. But we’re not the least bit surprised that people have started wondering what possible reasons a whole string of male politicians could have for not wanting to upset a male prostitute, particularly given the long and sordid history of male politicians and male prostitutes in the UK.
To quash such speculation, we once again urge all MSPs who have associated with Beth Douglas to clearly and publicly disavow him and assure voters that he will no longer shape or influence legislation passed in the Scottish Parliament.
Last week he was prominent in a protest outside Queen Elizabeth House against the UK government’s S35 intervention over the Gender Recognition Reform Bill. He spoke alongside MSPs including Patrick Harvie, Karen Adam, Ross Greer, Paul Sweeney and Alex Cole-Hamilton, who lavished fulsome and effusive praise on him, going so far as to say that it was for Douglas personally that MSPs had pushed the bill through.
Wings will have a major article related to the subject dropping tomorrow morning, put together in conjunction with The Glinner Update. Please do tune in from 8am.
Our sinister network of shadowy agents informs us that the document below has just been sent by Murray Foote to all SNP Parliamentarians. (Click to enlarge.)
It would appear that the SNP is feeling some heat.
The final result of our Twitter poll from yesterday was pretty conclusive.
(It was also by a distance the biggest response we can ever remember getting for one – normally our Twitter polls get around 3,000 votes.)
But of course Twitter polls aren’t scientific – they’re self-selecting and they draw from a biased sample, in this case people who follow Wings and are more likely to agree with us on most things. So we need a bit more data for a better picture.
The recently-restored Wings Twitter account has a little over 56,000 followers, the vast bulk of them accumulated at a time when this site had far less reason to criticise the SNP or the Scottish Government. So while this poll isn’t scientific, the indy-friendly nature of the respondent base makes it pretty interesting.
Those numbers closely mirror what every actual proper poll tells us about Scottish people’s opinion of the GRR itself – they oppose it by margins of between 3:1 and 4:1. So if the Scottish Government is counting on the UK’s intervention to increase support for independence, frankly it looks like they’re onto a massive loser.
…by which we mean “IQs in the history of the Scottish Parliament”.
Put a cushion on your desk before you start listening to this, gang, or you might hurt your jaw. Because surely nobody quite as paralysingly, catastrophically thick as this clueless, bumbling, deranged and dangerous imbecile has ever been allowed to make the laws of Scotland before. We wouldn’t let her make orange squash, to be honest.
And yes, we’re including Kezia Dugdale and Jamie Greene in that reckoning.
Mark Beggan on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “Colonial. This word is getting thrown about here as if it has some sort of special powers. Just add “colonized”…” Jul 24, 14:15
100%Yes on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “Scotland had a referendum in 2014, I know the Unionist mention it all the time. The day before the referendum…” Jul 24, 13:36
Northcode on The Wheels Of Industry: “There’s a lot of interesting history in your comment, but I think you might be mixing together several different concepts…” Jul 24, 12:51
Dan on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “Let’s see if this makes it through moderation filter. It states it is just over an hour’s read. https://www.decolonise.scot/scotland-stolen-scotland-restored-non-alignment-and-decolonisation-the-foreign-policy-of-a-nation-liberated-from-the-english-colonial-state-beyond-jim-sillars-discussion-paper-from-colo/” Jul 24, 12:32
MaryB on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “Rather than watching the colonial games, it’s much better to spend your time reading Christoph Doigne Thompson’s paper: Scotland Stolen,…” Jul 24, 12:18
Cynicus on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “Confused says:? 23 July, 2026 at 10:23 pm ?“EFTA came up, in the context of GDP/capita – .. …Some of…” Jul 24, 12:08
Oneliner on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “It was enough to make Faslane’s nuclear warheads sweat in their casings.” Jul 24, 12:05
Southernbystander on The Wheels Of Industry: “A place can never ‘recover’ from colonialism, and situations also vary a lot, as is how it is viewed; there…” Jul 24, 11:49
Northcode on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “It was a terrible show, Alf. Boak-inducing, fifth-rate, shoddy imperial cheerleading, right enough. I’m surprised there wasn’t a cenotaph for…” Jul 24, 11:42
Alf Baird on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “Aye Northcode, instead of “a loud, symbolic objection from the independence movement” all we got was Swinney singing the colonizer’s…” Jul 24, 10:44
willie on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “And whilst we are reflecting on the new Lord it might be interesting to reflect on the family history. Anas…” Jul 24, 10:21
willie on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “Sarwar follows a well trodden path of nominal Scots who get picked to be unelected lords and masters. Who in…” Jul 24, 09:43
Hatey McHateface on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “Thanks for watching it on our behalf, Northy. I trust you’ll continue to put in the shifts and report back…” Jul 24, 09:27
Andrea on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “I understand what you are saying, but wouldn’t you jump at the opportunity to get away from holyrood? It must…” Jul 24, 09:25
Hatey McHateface on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “@Xaracen Have you checked the status of the England-Scotland border and for how long that has been no more than…” Jul 24, 09:22
Northcode on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “Yesterday offered a striking sight: the remnants of the British Empire gathering to celebrate their shared colonial inheritance. And what…” Jul 24, 09:14
Hatey McHateface on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “Odd that you continue to lump Eastern Europeans in with the Africans. I’ve never noticed much of the Sharia, stabby…” Jul 24, 09:14
Xaracen on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “factchecker said: “The Act specifies the creation of a unitary country, not a partnership of two.” Nonsense! Since neither kingdom…” Jul 24, 08:57
Hatey McHateface on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “Aye, sam, we’re in the 21st century now. It’s ludicrously unrealistic to expect that hospitals should be able to count…” Jul 24, 08:39
Hatey McHateface on Ain’t it funny how things change?: ““Post colonial theory is of no help here” Death to the heretic!!! It’s the only language he’ll understand. Talking of…” Jul 24, 08:32
sam on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “Factchecker “Regarding piss poor management of resources etc, I agree – but it’s equally incompetent relative to England.” Regarding the…” Jul 24, 08:22
Hatey McHateface on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “@Aidan The CM blog is where the antisemites hang out. Although Robin McAlpine is not averse to donning the tea…” Jul 24, 08:22
Hatey McHateface on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “Prepare for a shock, Alf. BOO!!! I’ll go organise the clean up for you.” Jul 24, 08:15
Hatey McHateface on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “I listened to Swinney’s sad interview on BBC R4 this morning. The interviewer was struggling to hide his frustration and…” Jul 24, 08:10
Aidan on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “Now that he’s on pre-mod (I expect) he’ll go off and haunt some other forum.” Jul 23, 23:15
robertkknight on Ain’t it funny how things change?: “His King’s Colours didn’t go down too well either, with the Scots deciding upon their own design, which was contrary…” Jul 23, 23:12
Alf Baird on Ain’t it funny how things change?: ““I’m every bit as much a Sovereign Scot as you.” In a colonial society there are plenty of assimilated natives…” Jul 23, 22:41
Angus on Ain’t it funny how things change?: ““Ain’t it funny how things change?” Ain’t it also funny how things never change? Labour has been promising to abolish…” Jul 23, 22:35