Tom Royal
@tomroyal.com
Stupidity tries. Code, cats, cycling, existential dread, parenting in South London. Making America Kittens Again, again (sigh). Mostly at tomroyal.com
If anyone has a good IOSS solution for very small businesses I’d welcome a recommendation because I just spent a despiriting hour concluding that it would be vastly simpler to smuggle £50 of goods through the Eurotunnel* than put them in the post.
* fear not, I am too lazy to do this
* fear not, I am too lazy to do this
December 2, 2025 at 9:03 PM
If anyone has a good IOSS solution for very small businesses I’d welcome a recommendation because I just spent a despiriting hour concluding that it would be vastly simpler to smuggle £50 of goods through the Eurotunnel* than put them in the post.
* fear not, I am too lazy to do this
* fear not, I am too lazy to do this
So here's a hole to fall down - who's running the new Lewisham Model Market website? www.modelmarket.london
Model Market Lewisham 2026 – Street Food, Creators & Community Revival
Model Market is returning to Lewisham in 2026! Join the revival of London’s iconic street-food, makers, and creators market. Sign up for updates and get involved.
www.modelmarket.london
December 2, 2025 at 3:24 PM
So here's a hole to fall down - who's running the new Lewisham Model Market website? www.modelmarket.london
Welp, there (probably) goes another pretty useful way to avoid car ownership in the city. For the brief time that Zipcar actually covered my part of London, it was really useful.
December 1, 2025 at 3:06 PM
Welp, there (probably) goes another pretty useful way to avoid car ownership in the city. For the brief time that Zipcar actually covered my part of London, it was really useful.
Normally a big fan of Search Engine but this week’s E*ra Klein interview (“what to do in the face of brutality and chaos? Have you considered keeping quiet about it? I am very smart”) is almost enough to convince me to travel to the US just to pick a fight at Thanksgiving. Fuck me.
November 27, 2025 at 8:10 PM
Normally a big fan of Search Engine but this week’s E*ra Klein interview (“what to do in the face of brutality and chaos? Have you considered keeping quiet about it? I am very smart”) is almost enough to convince me to travel to the US just to pick a fight at Thanksgiving. Fuck me.
(They added another Rilo Kiley show in London, btw, if you missed the Roundhouse..)
October 24, 2025 at 12:23 PM
(They added another Rilo Kiley show in London, btw, if you missed the Roundhouse..)
Not today, AWS. Not today.
October 20, 2025 at 8:52 AM
Not today, AWS. Not today.
Tedious PSA - if you’re invited to book a Covid booster via the NHS app, maybe check in before you attend the appointment. I was just turned away despite having a booking in the app - pharmacists have been given a very restrictive list of eligibility criteria.
October 6, 2025 at 9:09 AM
Tedious PSA - if you’re invited to book a Covid booster via the NHS app, maybe check in before you attend the appointment. I was just turned away despite having a booking in the app - pharmacists have been given a very restrictive list of eligibility criteria.
Anyone watching the news from Hiut with interest, Companies House has updated.
September 30, 2025 at 1:56 PM
Anyone watching the news from Hiut with interest, Companies House has updated.
Reposted by Tom Royal
Presumably she already owns all the squares, and you can never win?
September 27, 2025 at 3:41 PM
Presumably she already owns all the squares, and you can never win?
The UK is not a real place and yet here I am in it
September 27, 2025 at 3:38 PM
The UK is not a real place and yet here I am in it
Welp, finally blundered across a vibe-coded web app in the wild. All the interior pages clearly defined in a single Javascript file, all wide open to the world. The only silver lining is there's no way for people to enter payment details (presumably because they couldn't get that bit working..)
September 26, 2025 at 2:32 PM
Welp, finally blundered across a vibe-coded web app in the wild. All the interior pages clearly defined in a single Javascript file, all wide open to the world. The only silver lining is there's no way for people to enter payment details (presumably because they couldn't get that bit working..)
Looks like Stripe is having an uncharacteristic wobble this morning?
September 19, 2025 at 9:13 AM
Looks like Stripe is having an uncharacteristic wobble this morning?
A friend just reminded me of the Nabaztag, and I'm happy to see people are still hacking them (last year, at least!):
bsky.app/profile/joel...
bsky.app/profile/joel...
September 17, 2025 at 10:00 AM
A friend just reminded me of the Nabaztag, and I'm happy to see people are still hacking them (last year, at least!):
bsky.app/profile/joel...
bsky.app/profile/joel...
Got an (unsolicited) free trial of the Duolingo AI thing and.. no, it’s still dogshit (it also suggested I use 高い instead of 高い, which is.. er..)
September 17, 2025 at 8:45 AM
Got an (unsolicited) free trial of the Duolingo AI thing and.. no, it’s still dogshit (it also suggested I use 高い instead of 高い, which is.. er..)
Ugh, fake Emergency Alert related emails (on a pretty good fake of the Gov UK branding) now going around.
We've seen several from "Companies House" lately, too.
We've seen several from "Companies House" lately, too.
September 12, 2025 at 1:31 PM
Ugh, fake Emergency Alert related emails (on a pretty good fake of the Gov UK branding) now going around.
We've seen several from "Companies House" lately, too.
We've seen several from "Companies House" lately, too.
In related news, I see it's now possible to cancel an NYT subscription online.
bsky.app/profile/ezra...
bsky.app/profile/ezra...
Charlie Kirk Was Practicing Politics the Right Way
www.nytimes.com/2025/09/11/o...
www.nytimes.com/2025/09/11/o...
Opinion | Charlie Kirk Was Practicing Politics the Right Way
www.nytimes.com
September 11, 2025 at 2:14 PM
In related news, I see it's now possible to cancel an NYT subscription online.
bsky.app/profile/ezra...
bsky.app/profile/ezra...
Enjoying the early 2000s internet vibe of the "register to maybe buy Radiohead tickets" ARG.
September 6, 2025 at 5:48 PM
Enjoying the early 2000s internet vibe of the "register to maybe buy Radiohead tickets" ARG.
Well who wouldn’t I guess
September 5, 2025 at 9:38 AM
Well who wouldn’t I guess
Back from our annual pilgrimage to the woods. Again very much recommending the countryside in Sweden as somewhere to get away from the city, look at the stars, maybe swim in the lakes a bit and chill out. Not too far, not too expensive (cough Norway cough) not ridiculously hot.
August 30, 2025 at 11:33 AM
Back from our annual pilgrimage to the woods. Again very much recommending the countryside in Sweden as somewhere to get away from the city, look at the stars, maybe swim in the lakes a bit and chill out. Not too far, not too expensive (cough Norway cough) not ridiculously hot.
August 25, 2025 at 1:50 PM
‼️ Creative Cloud users - watch out! ‼️
If you're an All Apps Subscriber with annual renewal, look out for Adobe hiking your plan up to a new CC Pro tier. Increases your cost by almost £150 (£644 vs £496) for some AI shite, even if you never used a single credit before.
If you're an All Apps Subscriber with annual renewal, look out for Adobe hiking your plan up to a new CC Pro tier. Increases your cost by almost £150 (£644 vs £496) for some AI shite, even if you never used a single credit before.
August 13, 2025 at 10:18 AM
‼️ Creative Cloud users - watch out! ‼️
If you're an All Apps Subscriber with annual renewal, look out for Adobe hiking your plan up to a new CC Pro tier. Increases your cost by almost £150 (£644 vs £496) for some AI shite, even if you never used a single credit before.
If you're an All Apps Subscriber with annual renewal, look out for Adobe hiking your plan up to a new CC Pro tier. Increases your cost by almost £150 (£644 vs £496) for some AI shite, even if you never used a single credit before.
.. and whilst I'm recommending things related to hotels on lakes in Japan, here's another one. Watching that show really made me want to go back to Tazawako, which is - probably? - still a bit off the tourist trail, and just a gorgeous place: maps.app.goo.gl/YEh8QZcfpgqS...
maps.app.goo.gl
July 18, 2025 at 10:50 AM
.. and whilst I'm recommending things related to hotels on lakes in Japan, here's another one. Watching that show really made me want to go back to Tazawako, which is - probably? - still a bit off the tourist trail, and just a gorgeous place: maps.app.goo.gl/YEh8QZcfpgqS...
I know I have a few followers interested in Japanese culture stuff, so an unsolicited recommendation: I've been very much enjoying this Netflix drama set in the Fuji Five Lakes area - it's a sort of gentle ensemble piece with a slight Twin Peaks-y vibe: www.netflix.com/gb/title/819...
Watch The Hot Spot | Netflix
Kiyomi is a single mom who's no stranger to life's ups and downs. So when she stumbles upon an alien, she ropes him into fixing her chaotic world.
www.netflix.com
July 18, 2025 at 10:44 AM
I know I have a few followers interested in Japanese culture stuff, so an unsolicited recommendation: I've been very much enjoying this Netflix drama set in the Fuji Five Lakes area - it's a sort of gentle ensemble piece with a slight Twin Peaks-y vibe: www.netflix.com/gb/title/819...