The world's most-read Scottish politics website

Wings Over Scotland


Politicians in uniform 273

Posted on June 25, 2017 by

…are never anything to worry about.

We’re pretty sure that’s right.

Read the rest of this entry →

Come On Arlene 277

Posted on June 24, 2017 by

Sometimes it’s hard not to despair 299

Posted on June 23, 2017 by

We’re still on holiday, because five years of stuff like this ruins your soul:

Let’s look at the logic of that closely for just one minute, and then we’re going to go back to smashing our head off a brick wall to try to make the stupid go away.

Read the rest of this entry →

Where you stand 211

Posted on June 22, 2017 by

The media is aflame today with some rather woolly “news” to the effect that Theresa May might possibly, in some unspecified manner, have conceded a veto over Brexit to the Scottish Parliament.

We can see no evidence suggesting such a thing has happened or will happen, and would instead direct readers to a report published yesterday by Unlock Democracy. We strongly advise taking five minutes out of your day to read pages 26-33 of it, but if you’re really in a rush this paragraph will give you the basic conclusion:

Remember your place, lesser nations of the UK.

A fundamental difference in approach 202

Posted on June 21, 2017 by

Richard Murphy, political economy professor.

Read the rest of this entry →

Everybody needs a laugh sometimes 233

Posted on June 20, 2017 by

Brexit is already a shambles. Everyone south of Manchester is unhappy because it’s too suffocatingly hot to move, and everyone north of Manchester is unhappy because they’ve not got the sunshine. We could all, for various reasons, do with a chuckle.

So without further ado, readers, enjoy the “clueless metropolitan hacksplaining” hit of the summer: Kezia Dugdale, Comeback Queen.

Vote for the funniest line below.

Read the rest of this entry →

Happy Brexit Day 252

Posted on June 19, 2017 by

This map probably correlates quite closely with one of the strength of Leave vote.

It seems somehow appropriate that on the day negotiations begin (with the UK having no government, no mandate and no idea what it actually wants), large parts of the country are essentially already on fire.

Blurred lines 0

Posted on June 18, 2017 by

There's nothing about Ramboat (Genera, free, iOS and Android) that isn't interesting. The game itself is a short, punchy and fun pure arcade shooter that most obviously channels Metal Slug and Irem's much-underrated In The Hunt. Indeed, it's basically a very clever adaptation of the latter game for one-thumb control, but presented with all the beautifully-detailed character of the former.

But this isn't the article I've been meaning to write for years about the fascinating and often incredibly elegant and even revolutionary ways that developers have rejigged every traditional game genre for touchscreen devices in order to avoid going down the horribly unsatisfactory route of the "virtual d-pad".

Because the other most intriguing aspect of modern gaming*, particularly on mobile formats, is the monetisation of it. And in the case of Ramboat, the opportunity for an experiment presented itself.

Read the rest of this entry →

To nobody’s amazement 228

Posted on June 18, 2017 by

(From yesterday’s Herald.)

And remember, folks – those 12 Tory gains in Scotland were the difference between Theresa May being Prime Minister and Jeremy Corbyn leading a progressive alliance in Downing Street. That’s where Scottish Labour are at now.

The attainment gap 222

Posted on June 17, 2017 by

At the bus stop #2 324

Posted on June 16, 2017 by

An alert reader emails with a talking point:

Interesting idea, no?

The Failures 204

Posted on June 15, 2017 by

The SNP were there for the taking in last week’s general election. Across the country they typically lost something around 10,000 votes per seat compared to the 2015 tsunami, and the vast majority of those seats formerly belonged to Scottish Labour.

Yet while Labour did take back six seats of the 41 they lost two years ago (most of them by wafer-thin margins), they fell short in dozens of others despite the huge scale of the SNP’s losses.

And the reason is that, even riding the coat-tails of the Jeremy Corbyn bounce, Kezia Dugdale’s northern regional branch office delivered a showing that was at best barely any better than the 2015 catastrophe, and in many cases actually worse.

We’re still on a break, really, but it’s a rotten dreich day today and we’re waiting in for a parcel, and we completed all our domestic administrative tasks yesterday, so just to kill a bit of time we number-crunched all the seats where Labour came second.

The results, if you’re Kezia Dugdale, should be dismally sobering.

Read the rest of this entry →

  • About

    Wings Over Scotland is a thing that exists.

    Stats: 6,858 Posts, 1,233,129 Comments

  • Recent Posts

  • Archives

  • Categories

  • Tags

  • Recent Comments

    • willie on A matter of class: “Absolutely Scott Finlayson. Germany. like in the 1930s is in absolute full swing rearming to the absolute hilt. The white…Dec 27, 01:57
    • Saffron Robe on A matter of class: “A trio of very interesting articles, well worth reading – if a tad depressing!: www.ronpaulinstitute.org/europe-is-about-to-commit-financial-self-immolation-and-its-leaders-know-it/ www.brusselssignal.eu/2025/12/the-eu-could-be-gone-in-four-years-a-revolutionary-eruption-is-coming/ www.off-guardian.org/2025/12/23/land-of-confusion-the-great-reset-in-motion/Dec 27, 00:12
    • Northcode on A matter of class: “I’ve opened all my pressies. I’ve had my Christmas meal. I’ve watched some Christmas telly, But now I really feel.…Dec 26, 22:21
    • Northcode on A matter of class: ““I’m not a colonising colonist… I’m a civic nationalist,” said the colonising colonist.Dec 26, 21:18
    • agentx on A matter of class: “For God’s sake how false can people on here be? All this Peace and Goodwill to all men. Why can…Dec 26, 20:11
    • Anne on The Valley Of The Dolls: “Alex Salmond would have remained in charge of the SNP if we had won the referendum and this would have…Dec 26, 19:38
    • Scot Finlayson on A matter of class: “European empire builders have r@ped and plundered the planet for centuries, turned the Earth red with the blood of `foreigners`,…Dec 26, 19:35
    • Alf Baird on A matter of class: “So called ‘civic nationalism’ reflects this in the finding that (Bond 2015): ‘Many of those who contributed to the decision…Dec 26, 18:59
    • Alf Baird on A matter of class: “Like gender ideology, so-called ‘civic nationalism’ ideology is also “Delusional nonsense” of the ‘snake oil’ variety, and cost us our…Dec 26, 18:45
    • Andy Ellis on A matter of class: “Delusional nonsense I’m afraid James, which is sadly of a piece with the rest of the tsunami of bilge you…Dec 26, 16:20
    • James Cheyne on A matter of class: “Charles(not the R one). This is infiltration of people encouraged to move to Scotland has been on going for Centuries,…Dec 26, 14:26
    • James Cheyne on A matter of class: “That Britain and France encouraged this move, tells you all you need to know. This is what the person whom…Dec 26, 13:27
    • James Cheyne on A matter of class: “Maybe some of the Scottish people are not aware of what the warmongering EU attempted to do that was illegal.…Dec 26, 13:10
    • Charles (Not the R3 one) on A matter of class: “Willie wrote : “And of course the plantation of Scotland with English immigrants is moving apace. Glendale in Skye, famous…Dec 26, 13:09
    • James Cheyne on A matter of class: “If Scotland is stupid enough to go along with encompassing civic nationalism, EU and StarmerS dodgy plans, our land and…Dec 26, 13:00
    • James Cheyne on A matter of class: “I hope you all had a lovely Christmas day with family and friends, PR stunt for the king of England…Dec 26, 12:39
    • Tinto Chiel on Off-topic: “We had a great family time with the Wee Ones at Tinto Towers, thanks. That was very kind of you,…Dec 26, 11:43
    • Andy Ellis on A matter of class: “If the yanks are stupid enough to let MAGA burn their republic to the ground, than that’s on them and…Dec 26, 10:52
    • David Holden on A matter of class: “Merry Christmas to you all in here even the troll collective as it is the season of goodwill. The house…Dec 26, 10:17
    • 100%Yes on A matter of class: “& Happy New Year, 2026 here’s hoping its the end of the SNP for good.Dec 26, 09:12
    • Marie Clark on Off-topic: “Aye your right Tinto, it is quiet here. Shame that, but I suppose it reflects the state of Scotland and…Dec 26, 08:57
    • Chas on A matter of class: “It appears that Santa omitted to deliver ‘The Big Book of Spelling’ to somebody! Maybe next year but……………….. only if…Dec 26, 08:51
    • Scot Finlayson on A matter of class: “If USA falls we all fall. The rest of the world is a shit show, EU,Canada,Australia,Middle East,Africa,China,India Pakistan,South America,England,Russia. Elon`s…Dec 26, 00:29
    • Tinto Chiel on Off-topic: “Hope you had a good Christmas Day, Marie. Quiet in here, intit?Dec 25, 21:55
    • Aidan on A matter of class: “Merry Christmas all!Dec 25, 18:09
    • DaveL on A matter of class: “Take a look at this: https://ppvland.co.uk/scot-goes-pop/ It’s brilliant, what a guy send him money right now Comments are open…Dec 25, 18:04
    • Willie on A matter of class: “Pretty much like any other colonial institution, it seems, in imposing its alien cultural ‘values’ on the people of an…Dec 25, 14:41
    • Stuart MacKay on A matter of class: “Rallies are the perfect activity for forests, which can soak up the carbon emissions immediately. It’s not as if the…Dec 25, 14:01
    • Captain Caveman on A matter of class: “Merry Christmas! A fly press tastic happy new year! 🙂Dec 25, 12:05
    • Hatey McHateface on A matter of class: “I’m bloody annoyed now, Alf, because you’ve made me break the promise I made to myself. But please tell me…Dec 25, 11:28
  • A tall tale



↑ Top