Readers may be aware that Wings Over Scotland is (fairly remarkably, really) the UK’s second-most-read politics blog, behind the hardcore right-wing “Guido Fawkes”.
Our “competitor” isn’t a site we look at a lot – the comments make the Daily Mail readership seem like enlightened and thoughtful moderates – but last week someone asked us about a smear piece they’d run on SNP MP Corri Wilson, and we only just remembered today to check it out. Our initial findings weren’t well received.
It seems that Mr Fawkes and his minions aren’t too keen on scrutiny themselves.
Ever since Scottish Daily Mail political editor Alan Roden jumped ship to go and rearrange the deckchairs for Labour, his former paper has very noticeably toned down its hysterical “SNP BAD” content. We can go through the Mail for days on end now without finding some ludicrously distorted misrepresentation or screaming outrage piece about how a Nat MP found 20p down the back of their sofa without declaring it to HMRC or such.
But we suppose that it’ll at least be bleakly funny, whenever the second independence referendum comes round, watching Labour try to sell a vote for the UK as a vote for internationalist brotherhood and solidarity.
To be honest, readers, we gave up on taking any notice of David Torrance‘s mundane attempts at trolling in the Herald some time ago. But some alert readers pointed us towards this week’s column, suggesting that it was a bald rewriting of history some way beyond their usual bland irritancy.
This was the passage they objected to:
It’s a patronising piece of “shut up and eat your cereal” condescension for sure. But to be fair to Torrance, it does also happen to be true. Wait, not true. The other thing.
The starting pistol hasn’t actually been fired on the two-year Brexit process yet, but now we have a clear statement of when it will be: this morning on The Andrew Marr Show, the Prime Minister pledged that it would happen before the end of next March.
(We might end up broke, in other words, but at least we’ll be good old British broke, with none of those awful smelly foreign Euro-Johnnies around to see it.)
And nobody was getting a sick note.
And for supporters of independence, that’s about as good as news gets.
The Daily Telegraph just released a video called “100 Reasons Why Brexit Was A Good Thing”. It listed them to a soundtrack of “Jerusalem”, the same song that closed the Labour Party conference earlier this week with its stirring ode to just one of the four nations of the United Kingdom.
We’ve saved a few of the highlights below, just in case the Telegraph should delete the video in a fit of sanity. We’ve also added one fake one. See if you can spot it.
Low-wattage Labour list MSP Neil Findlay (rejected by the electorate of Almond Valley by a thumping 8,393 votes in May) puffed himself up to maximum socialism this week and attacked the SNP’s rather more popular Paisley MP Mhairi Black over a Scottish Daily Express story about travel expenses.
It might have been an idea if he’d read the piece all the way to the end.
twathater on A matter of class: “Dan has the Franchise Fanny nailed with all his grandiose sounding pish, a proud Scot BUT who has returned to…” Dec 22, 02:50
James on A matter of class: “Stained bedsheets, there? Careful, lads.” Dec 21, 23:19
James on A matter of class: “Uh-oh. Franchise Fanny just stained it’s underwear after mentioning it’s Heroine. It was popular in Scotchland right enough. Not.” Dec 21, 23:13
James on A matter of class: “Careful, DaveL; the Site Prick fancies you!” Dec 21, 23:04
James on A matter of class: “The Site Prick shilling for the Daily heil there. Quelle suprise!” Dec 21, 22:52
Captain Caveman on A matter of class: “Hey, maybe Fatso, maybe. However, at least I pay my own way, have a job and don’t look down on…” Dec 21, 22:52
Mark Beggan on A matter of class: “Our country is being stolen from benief our feet.” Dec 21, 22:47
James on A matter of class: “Quite right, Alf – ‘Unison’ is a ‘UK’ (London based) organization that supports the Yoon Labour party without question, and…” Dec 21, 22:31
James on A matter of class: ““As it happens, I lack a union-flag covered duvet.” ROTFLMFAO!!” Dec 21, 22:25
James on A matter of class: “Northy; Careful now, the site Prick wants to kiss your interface!” Dec 21, 22:10
James on A matter of class: “Aw, sweethheart, are you still carrying a torch for me? Thanks, but I’ll pass. What a sad bot you are.” Dec 21, 22:04
McDuff on A matter of class: “This country stinks from the SNP to the judiciary and just about every where else .I never imagined Scotland would…” Dec 21, 21:48
Hatey McHateface on A matter of class: “Turkey, sprouts and gravy, Dan? No True Scot would ever pollute the ethnic purity of his body with the hated,…” Dec 21, 21:37
Dan on A matter of class: “@Southern(not so)bystander Not saying it’s the case with the specific matter you are responding to; But I think that posted…” Dec 21, 21:35
Hatey McHateface on A matter of class: “Try posting “Bairns Not Bombs”. Works every time.” Dec 21, 21:20
Hatey McHateface on A matter of class: “This is just so desperately sad. Once again, I’m the only one to respond to Northy’s attention seeking – his…” Dec 21, 21:16
Hatey McHateface on A matter of class: “@Alf Have you considered translating the complete works of Fanon, Cesaire, Crivens and Jonesie into Scots? That would really supercharge…” Dec 21, 21:08
Northcode on A matter of class: ““No country, people or polity has a God given right to exist in perpetuity.” Unless it’s England, apparently: “There’ll always…” Dec 21, 21:01
Hatey McHateface on A matter of class: “@Alf 2:05 I want my Scotland to be run by the meritocratic best. I don’t want my Scotland to be…” Dec 21, 20:59
Dan on A matter of class: “Something to read and mull over. https://angrypict.substack.com/p/scotland-ai-convergence-and-the-case” Dec 21, 20:36
Southernbystander on A matter of class: “Hatey: ‘You didn’t used to pussyfoot around this’ Did he not? I once asked Alf after he labelled the English…” Dec 21, 20:32
Alf Baird on A matter of class: “Like any peoples language the Scots language plays ‘a vital role in shaping and defining ethnic identity’, serving as ‘a…” Dec 21, 20:24
Al-Stuart on A matter of class: “. Hi Stuart, I see the Scot-Goes-Splat fundraiser Jimmy McGrifty has now gone full stalker mode with his obsession about…” Dec 21, 19:55
Dan on A matter of class: “Franchise Fanny returns! But tae fuck with offering a shred of crimbo goodwill to fellow supporters of Scotland returning to…” Dec 21, 19:53
Cynicus on A matter of class: “Andy Ellis says: 21 December, 2025 at 4:09 pm “One wonders if the Post Colonial Snake Oil Salesman in Chief…” Dec 21, 18:44
Northcode on A matter of class: ““Lovely people the Finns…” I’ll write to the Finnish embassy in London and let them know you think they’re patronizingly…” Dec 21, 18:25
Northcode on A matter of class: ““How about the >5% of Finns who are of Swedish language and ethnicity, having lived in Finland for centuries?” You…” Dec 21, 18:09
Alf Baird on A matter of class: “Is that you on the colonial backshift, Andy? Hatey on his weel-deserved brak. Surprised ye didna ken that language aye…” Dec 21, 18:00
Mark Beggan on A matter of class: “Well God Bless you sir. Merry Christmas.My Grandfather would be proud of that.” Dec 21, 17:46
Andy Ellis on A matter of class: “@Northcode 4pm Ethnic Finns, or Suomalaiset, are a Baltic Finnic ethnic group native to Finland, with a rich cultural heritage…” Dec 21, 17:15
