The world's most-read Scottish politics website

Wings Over Scotland


Keep calm and carrion 91

Posted on July 27, 2019 by

Wings Unclipped 383

Posted on July 25, 2019 by

After it became the most-watched episode in the show’s history, the producers of The Alex Salmond Show made a double-length “Director’s Cut” of our recent interview, which you can watch below if you should feel so inclined.

The Oracle Hole 357

Posted on July 24, 2019 by

Yesterday we reminded you of how Wings predicted Boris Johnson becoming Prime Minister of the UK several years ago. But of course, other soothsayers are available, like this confident chap from August 2014:

In news that will come as a shock to absolutely no readers at all, McDougall wasn’t just lying, and wasn’t just wrong about one thing, but was both wrong and lying about pretty much everything he said.

Both of the Yes camp’s “scare stories” which were sneeringly mocked by McDougall during a BBC debate in Inverness actually came true – the Tories DID win the next election, and Johnson DID end up as leader of the party and then as Prime Minister.

(McDougall burst into tears at Scottish Labour HQ on the night of the 2015 election as his party lost 40 of its 41 seats despite his services as Jim Murphy’s speechwriter and adviser, his powers of chortling seemingly having deserted him.)

And it’s interesting to revisit the debate.

Read the rest of this entry →

All hail the new Britain 69

Posted on July 24, 2019 by

Let the bells ring out and rejoice.

Still, at least the Record hasn’t been so completely lacking in self-awareness as to point a finger at others in Scotland and say something like “far too many people who should know better are complicit in the tragedy”.

Read the rest of this entry →

Three years and a month 205

Posted on July 23, 2019 by

29 June 2016. Don’t say we don’t warn you, readers.

And this was February of the same year, when Barack Obama and David Cameron were still in charge of their respective nations:

You’ll always read it here first, folks. Even when you don’t want to.

The faithful toady 436

Posted on July 20, 2019 by

The Thing From The Crypt 56

Posted on July 19, 2019 by

We weren’t sure whether tomorrow’s Cairnstoon was going to be delayed by technical gremlins (it turns out it isn’t), so we prepared an emergency backup plan on the same theme and you may as well see it now as a sort of trailer.

It’ll be good every time they dig him up yet again in the future too.

(With profound apologies to Oliver Frey.)

Diversionary pointing 133

Posted on July 19, 2019 by

From today’s lurid Scottish Daily Mail cover splash about a “£1 BILLION TAX BLACK HOLE” appearing in the Scottish budget “despite [imaginary] Nationalist tax hikes”:

But hang on a minute.

Read the rest of this entry →

Grasping the thistle 547

Posted on July 16, 2019 by

Last night, grudgingly, we watched the whole of the final Tory leadership debate, for a contest in which pretty much everyone believes Boris Johnson has already gathered enough votes to comfortably win even though there are several days of voting to go.

The headline outcome the media appears to be focusing on is that both candidates proclaimed the Irish backstop “dead”, to which the EU’s response will without a doubt be “Is it, aye?”

So where does that leave us? Let’s have an update.

Read the rest of this entry →

The Eternal War 1

Posted on July 13, 2019 by

Galaxy Wars, released by Universal in 1979, is one of the first wave of "proper" arcade videogames (defined here as coded on ROM chips rather than being semi-mechanical or solid-state like Pong). 

Running on a hacked Space Invaders board (as most of the first wave did), it actually bears a lot of similarities to Taito's 1978 blockbuster. It's got UFOs running across the top of the screen, above a field of asteroids which move one way across the screen, then drop down a level when they reach the edge and start moving back across in the opposite direction.

The screen was a monochrome reflector – sometimes supplemented by sheets of coloured cellophane to mimic a colour display – and all the sound effects are ripped straight from Invaders.

It was a pretty dull game, and other than an inexplicable Japan-only SNES port in 1995 (which seems to have been the only ever licenced home version on any format) it made very little impact on posterity.

Until this week, when it suddenly threatened to become mildly interesting.

Read the rest of this entry →

The Expert 482

Posted on July 13, 2019 by

Forever England 146

Posted on July 12, 2019 by

Hey readers, remember that time when England went to war with Germany?

You know, just England, under its Union Jack flag. Nobody else.

Read the rest of this entry →

  • About

    Wings Over Scotland is a thing that exists.

    Stats: 6,859 Posts, 1,233,363 Comments

  • Recent Posts

  • Archives

  • Categories

  • Tags

  • Recent Comments

    • robertkknight on The Curious Fringes: “…the definition of mediocrity.Dec 30, 04:11
    • Anthem on The Curious Fringes: “As I said before, you’re talking mince! I.live in the area you clown.Dec 30, 03:43
    • twathater on The Curious Fringes: “Be prepared to be even more depressed Heather for it appears ALBA members are the new cult , they have…Dec 30, 03:19
    • Peter McAvoy on The Curious Fringes: “Why do the SNP still expect others to believe they support independence after the recent act damaging tourism by closing…Dec 30, 02:49
    • Northcode on The Curious Fringes: ““Holyrood is the conduit through which Westminster controls and manipulates Scotland…” Well put, Saffron Robe.Dec 30, 01:02
    • Saffron Robe on The Curious Fringes: “I agree, Northcode. Holyrood is the conduit through which Westminster controls and manipulates Scotland from within, hidden behind the veneer…Dec 30, 00:45
    • Insider on The Curious Fringes: ““WTF was the SNP doing with their £1.3 million per annum in British state Short money?” and WTF happened to…Dec 30, 00:22
    • Northcode on The Curious Fringes: ““…but it [Holyrood] is all we have for now.” If by ‘we’ you mean independence supporting Scots then… no, we…Dec 30, 00:18
    • Derek on The Curious Fringes: ““…in the same way that Alex Ferguson used West Coast establishment media bias…” Neatly done. According to my digging, there’s…Dec 30, 00:13
    • 100%Yes on The Curious Fringes: “I have no idea why people are saying it looks grime, its been grime since Sturgeon took on the roll…Dec 29, 23:58
    • David Holden on The Curious Fringes: “On the ball as usual but in this parish we have an ISP candidate so I have a vote I…Dec 29, 23:33
    • Northcode on The Curious Fringes: ““…and nothing will change…” Yeah, waking from a nightmare is always a bit disturbing, if not depressing. Looks like you’re…Dec 29, 23:14
    • Northcode on The Curious Fringes: “I understand, Sarah, and I do respect you for the great effort you have made – and the commitment you…Dec 29, 23:05
    • Bilbo on The Curious Fringes: “The reality in 2020’s Scotland, and everywhere around the world, is that social media has totally changed society where it…Dec 29, 22:48
    • Scot Finlayson on The Curious Fringes: “`Chinese eunuchs, serving in the imperial court for millennia, functioning as harem guards, palace servants, and political figures, wielding immense…Dec 29, 22:40
    • William G Walker on The Curious Fringes: “Well Done Heather McLean! So much sense from her. I particularly liked: “5 years of incompetent, ineffective, idiotic, corrupt, virtu-signalling,…Dec 29, 22:15
    • Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh on The Curious Fringes: “Of general interest. Hints of current Trump support for putative breakaway of oil-rich province of Alberta from the Canadian confederation.…Dec 29, 22:08
    • Andy Ellis on A matter of class: “I agree. However the fact that – at least at present – the strongest defenders of women’s rights and opponents…Dec 29, 21:54
    • sarah on The Curious Fringes: “Northcode, I am only asking the Rev to increase, if possible, his efforts for the improvement of Holyrood and the…Dec 29, 21:48
    • Northcode on A matter of class: “It’s six syllables, Alf… a big ask for the colonialists who fart aboot this joint.Dec 29, 21:12
    • Northcode on The Curious Fringes: ““Please, Rev. Scotland needs you.” I fear you might be wasting fingertip skin there, Sarah. Better following Alf’s suggestion and…Dec 29, 21:09
    • Alf Baird on A matter of class: “‘Colonialism’ seems a hard word for some to say.Dec 29, 20:52
    • Alf Baird on The Curious Fringes: “Yes Sara, the Liberate Scotland alliance is the only serious option for the independence movement in May’s national election: “We…Dec 29, 20:41
    • sarah on The Curious Fringes: “Exactly, Heather. This is why it is vital that we do all we can to inform people about the candidates…Dec 29, 20:39
    • Northcode on A matter of class: “That’s great, good for Ireland. The things a country can do when it isn’t colonised, eh? Maybe the President of…Dec 29, 20:36
    • Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh on A matter of class: “Teachtaireacht na Nollag ón Uachtarán Connolly / Christmas Message from President Catherine Connolly (22 Dec 2025) Is é seo an…Dec 29, 20:06
    • Colin Alexander on A matter of class: ““You can’t redefine facts just by saying words”. says Chatgpt. You mean like calling imperialism a union or commonwealth? “Yes…Dec 29, 19:53
    • Northcode on A matter of class: ““My contention is that the public persecution of Nurse Peggie (and numerous other Scots) is primarily due to ethnic discrimination……Dec 29, 19:08
    • Heather McLean on The Curious Fringes: “If I wasn’t feeling depressed before I surely am now “ the party that’s been in power for the previous…Dec 29, 18:51
    • Rev. Stuart Campbell on The Curious Fringes: “Yes, that’s very likely the cause of a couple of recent spikes in Scottish Greens polling.Dec 29, 18:35
  • A tall tale



↑ Top