Author | Lightnews

Tom Witherow

Tom Witherow

@tomwitherow.bsky.social

2.9K followers 130 following 36 posts

News and special projects reporter for The Times. Uncovering scandals - the Post Office, gambling sector, NHS and more. Got a story that needs covering? My DMs are open or ask for signal/proton.

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Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Jul 22

ICYMI - here's a picture of the front page on Monday:

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Jul 22

I've appeared on @thetimes's daily podcast The Story -

Talking about the fallout of the Afghan leak and the terrible story of the Triple soldier's brother in Monday's splash.

Big thanks to presenter Manveen Rana and producer Olivia Case for making it all happen.

Listen here: pod.fo/e/2ffc78

The Story: The Afghan leak: what next?

After last week’s shocking revelations that a list of tens of thousands of Afghans who’d helped the British was leaked, has that already led to deaths - and what happens now?This podcast was br...

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Mar 16

This long read on Liz Truss is free to read on @thetimes.com today - along with all the team's award-winning journalism 👇

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Mar 10

New read - Will courting MAGA make Liz Truss great again?!

** Talks down Britain to its biggest ally as a “failed state” and preaches small government...

** All while costing UK taxpayers' £'00,000s.

** Now returning to UK with "free speech media network".

www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...

Make Liz Truss Great Again: ex-PM seeks redemption from Republicans

Now a political pariah in Britain, the leader outlasted by a lettuce is setting her sights on Trump’s America

www.thetimes.com

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Mar 10

She's running her American ticket with UK taxpayers' cash:

** The amount she has claimed to run her office may have hit £225,000.

** London neighbours railed against what they saw as “completely ridiculous” security of 2-3 Range Rovers + 5-6 guards.

www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...

Make Liz Truss Great Again: ex-PM seeks redemption from Republicans

Now a political pariah in Britain, the leader outlasted by a lettuce is setting her sights on Trump’s America

www.thetimes.com

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Mar 10

In the 18 months post-Downing Street, she received £348,533 in outside earnings and £107,504 in donations and gifts.

That doesn't include the earnings made since May 2024.

But very little of that was from the UK - lots from US/elsewhere.

www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...

Make Liz Truss Great Again: ex-PM seeks redemption from Republicans

Now a political pariah in Britain, the leader outlasted by a lettuce is setting her sights on Trump’s America

www.thetimes.com

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Mar 10

** New “free speech media network” in the UK likely to be YouTube or podcast network.

** She's hinted at something similar to Dan Wootton's 'Outspoken' project and one ally pointed to Triggernometry YouTube channel.

www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...

Make Liz Truss Great Again: ex-PM seeks redemption from Republicans

Now a political pariah in Britain, the leader outlasted by a lettuce is setting her sights on Trump’s America

www.thetimes.com

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Mar 10

** UK friends "not with her anymore".

** Even former arch-ally Baroness Coffey: "We don’t talk about our political paths."

** She has "disappeared" from Norfolk home & even “might be selling up”, said neighbour.

www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...

Make Liz Truss Great Again: ex-PM seeks redemption from Republicans

Now a political pariah in Britain, the leader outlasted by a lettuce is setting her sights on Trump’s America

www.thetimes.com

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Mar 10

New read - Will courting MAGA make Liz Truss great again?!

** Talks down Britain to its biggest ally as a “failed state” and preaches small government...

** All while costing UK taxpayers' £'00,000s.

** Now returning to UK with "free speech media network".

www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...

Make Liz Truss Great Again: ex-PM seeks redemption from Republicans

Now a political pariah in Britain, the leader outlasted by a lettuce is setting her sights on Trump’s America

www.thetimes.com

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Feb 27

Cloudless is a stunning portrait of family life on a North Wales farm as the life is disrupted by the faraway winds of the Iraq War.

I'm a couple of chapters in and am already massively invested in the characters -

Tap below to get your copy today 👇

www.waterstones.com/book/cloudle...

Cloudless by Rupert Dastur | Waterstones

Buy Cloudless by Rupert Dastur from Waterstones today! Click and Collect from your local Waterstones or get FREE UK delivery on orders over £25.

www.waterstones.com

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Feb 27

Huge congrats to my close friend Rupert Dastur on the release of his debut novel, Cloudless!

Waterstone's named him out as one of the most exciting new authors to watch.

He's a fantastic writer, the loveliest man and the book has been in the works for many years so it's well deserved (1/2)

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Feb 21

Act of total self harm by the Government 👎

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Feb 2

Any tips on how to get faster broadband speeds?

We're in central London and Vodafone (in this case) can only guarantee 6-7 Mbps.

No fibre to the house available here - so it's all BT infrastructure

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Dec 11

Readers of @thetimes.com had most of this last week -

Thanks to reporting of (now Times Radio host!) @nickwallis.bsky.social and @alimitib.bsky.social:

"Horizon IT pros won’t go to trial until 2027: Officers looking at perjury & perverting the course of justice" 👇

www.thetimes.com/article/78e1...

Horizon IT prosecutions won’t go to trial until 2027

Officers investigating the Post Office scandal are examining potential cases of perjury and perverting the course of justice

www.thetimes.com

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Dec 11

Big update on Post Office police investigation:

🚩 'Dozens' of potential suspects identified.
🚩 100 officers on the case.
🚩 Commander doesn't rule out senior execs or corporate charges.
🚩 Upbeat about chances - expects trials in 2027.

www.thetimes.com/uk/crime/art...

Post Office investigation: dozens of ‘people of interest’ identified

Officers are examining potential cases of perjury and perverting the course of justice but have said Horizon IT prosecutions will not go to trial until 2027

www.thetimes.com

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Dec 11

New: I spoke to the inspirational Waad Al-Kateab who won a Bafta for her film "For Sama" -

It documented the now London-based journalist's life in Aleppo during five years of uprising and war.

An amazing woman - End of Assad is "our happy ending" 👇

www.thetimes.com/article/a873...

Syrian Bafta winner: End of cowardly Assad is our happy ending

Waad Al-Kateab, who documented her life in Aleppo during five years of uprising in For Sama calls for foreign powers to leave after Assad’s collapse

www.thetimes.com

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Dec 4

You can follow @thetimes.com journalists here -

All listed on the starter pack below:

go.bsky.app/NqDPCtV

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Dec 2

Fewer than 2% of new dads have benefitted from shared parental leave.

It's 10 years since it began:

www.personneltoday.com/hr/shared-pa...

Fewer than 2% of dads take shared parental leave

Fewer than 2% of new dads have benefitted from shared parental leave in the 10 years since it began, according to new research.

www.personneltoday.com

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Dec 2

We're fulfilling a dream of getting our own border terrier in the New Year:

Stevie is going to be trained as a therapy dog to work with my psychotherapist partner...

So this article/pic of Brian (longest serving therapy dog!) with a patient is a complete joy!

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Therapy dogs having 'phenomenal' effect on Hull hospital patients

Pets as Therapy dogs have won praise for helping seriously ill people and putting smiles on faces.

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Nov 19

New: ‘My family have farmed here for 375 years’

Meet the farming influencers driving this morning's protest in Whitehall including the "accidental influencer" Olly Harrison, pictured below.

See you down there if you're going 👇

www.thetimes.com/article/fc07...

They’ll destroy family farming, say influencers driving protest

The demonstration, galvanised by social media personalities including Gareth Wyn Jones and Rebecca Wilson, is expected to overshadow an official farmers’ union event

www.thetimes.com

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Nov 18

Starter pack: Investigative journalists working for major UK titles and broadcasters.

Follow them below - and if you've been missed off drop me a DM.

go.bsky.app/ScQ3Y5s

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Nov 17

Didn't go for Glastonbury tix this year - but thought the dreaded queue seemed like a decent/possibly fairer idea than the old tech scramble.

But pals claimed who tried claimed you could keep buying sets of 5 tix once you were in!

Why is it so hard for Glasto find a fair way of selling tickets...

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Nov 15

A tentative entry into the world of starter packs with a list of -

Investigative journalists working for major UK titles and broadcasters.

Small list for now. Follow them below and if you've been missed off drop me a DM.

go.bsky.app/ScQ3Y5s

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Nov 15

Great bit of work on the Post Office's ongoing investigation into its "internal police force".

Daniel finds that Project Phoenix has resulted in two referrals to the Met Police - but those staffers are still working on full pay.

Watch below 👇

Daniel Hewitt @danielhewittitv.bsky.social · Nov 15

INVESTIGATION;

We’ve been digging into Project Phoenix - the internal Post Office inquiry into the way it’s own investigators conducted interviews and interrogations of hundreds of innocent subpostmasters which helped get them prosecuted.

Watch the full report on ITVX

www.itv.com/watch/news/r...

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Nov 15

Just over 530 final settlements have been processed in the last ten months.

At that rate it will take until 2029 to process the remaining claims - suggesting we're only about half way.

That can't be acceptable to the government.

Tom Witherow @tomwitherow.bsky.social · Nov 15

Headlines:

🚩 As of October 31, 2,765 out of about 5,700 possible victims had received full compensation, totalling £438 million.

🚩 That's just a quarter of the £1.8bn put aside.

🚩 Political delays, complex schemes, legal wrangling and bureaucracy have been blamed for slow progress