This is Iain’s list of top Conservative blogs compiled by a panel of 12 right wing bloggers. He wonders whether my "softer, more personal approach" was not to their liking, which is why they placed me at 19. And I am thrilled to be included in the top ten on the main list, which I have not yet seen, thanks to the votes of other bloggers and my readers.
My approach to blogging is that first and foremost I write about what interests me, then it has to be fun. I am not a dedicated political blogger like some others, my blog is more a miscellany of my life, I enjoy writing about any topical issue that catches my fancy. And that includes politics, as well as the environment, women’s issues, PR and the social media, and missing people.
So in these circumstances it’s a great achievement to be on this list, and it’s kind of nice sitting so close to Boris, ranked at 18 – figuratively speaking! But yes, politics is a subject close to my heart, especially as I am a Conservative press officer.
Congratulations to Dizzy and Croydonian for their excellent ranking; their dedication to blogging is so transparent, and they are both great guys too. And, of course, Iain quite rightly deserves to be No1. However, I did feel that Bel should have been placed higher than 43, she is a great political writer, and is very popular with her loyal readers.
Many thanks to everyone who voted for me, I thought you would like to see Iain’s list in full, with his introduction:
Guide to Blogging 2007: Top 100 Right of Centre Blogs
The GUIDE TO POLITICAL BLOGGING 2007 is published this week. Featured among the 288 pages are a myriad of blog lists. Now for the TOP 100 RIGHT OF CENTRE BLOGS. This list was compiled by a panel of 12 right wing bloggers. Bearing in mind who they chose as Number 1 I should make clear that I had no part in it!
The right of centre blogosphere is thought by many to be in a state of rude health. It is more diverse, radical and influential than its left of centre counterpart, but still there are only seven or eight right wing blogs which have a mass readership. This list was ranked by a group of right of centre bloggers. Their decision reflects in large part the rankings of the Top 500 list, chosen by more than 500 bloggers and blog readers, with one or two exceptions. The exceptions are James Cleverly and the Waendel Journal who are ranked more highly in this list, and Ellee Seymour who is in the top ten on the main list but only scrapes into the top twenty on this list. Ellee has established herself in the front line of British political blogging, but her softer, more personal approach may not have been to the the panel’s liking. You can’t win ‘em all!
Another female Blogger who has made an impact is Caroline Hunt, whose ‘devil may care’ attitude has attracted a number of admirers. Of the top four, Dizzy Thinks, in the person of Phil Hendren, has emerged as possibly the most improved blog of the year, which is reflected in his second position in this list and third in the overall list. He has broken a number of stories and his forensic analysis continues to impress. He doesn’t let his love of IT geekery dominate the blog, and he manages to find story after story in the pages of Hansard, which the mainstream media then follows up.
Guido Fawkes has not had his best year and he would be the first to admit it. His Newsnight appearance alongside Michael White was the blogging equivalent of David Davis’s 2005 party
conference speech. It wasn’t quite as bad as it appeared at the time, but it did do him – and indeed the blogosphere – a considerable amount of damage. Despite that, his traffic levels have held up well.
ConservativeHome has dropped to number four in this list and I am slightly at a loss to know why. It has had an excellent, if overdue, redesign and although it went through a rough patch
earlier in the year it is back to its fighting best. Not everyone likes its editorial stance, and it will be interesting to see how Platform 10, its new Cameroonian rival, competes in both analysis and storygetting. It will do well to rival Tim Montgomerie’s contacts, but perhaps that’s not the point. In fact, there is no reason why Platform 10 and ConservativeHome should be considered rivals. Time will tell.
Nadine Dorries is perhaps the brightest new entrant into the blogging world. The Tory MP for Mid Befordshire has some trenchant views and she’s not backward in coming forward in expressing them, much to the chagrin of the Conservative whips. In a very short time she’s created a cult. Her blog is the one most read by her fellow MPs – and not just Tories. John Redwood has become a truly prolific Blogger. He is very different in style to Nadine, but if you want insightful analysis into the economy, regulation and globalisation, John Redwood’s
Diary is the place for you!
1 2 Iain Dale’s Diary
2 5 Dizzy Thinks
3 NEW Guido Fawkes
4 1 ConservativeHome
5 14 Croydonian
6 8 Archbishop Cranmer
7 3 Burning our Money
8 NEW Devil’s Kitchen
9 NEW Tim Worstall
10 7 James Cleverly
11 23 Mr Eugenides
12 NEW Waendel Journal
13 NEW Nadine Dorries MP
14 NEW Adam Smith Institute
15 NEW Donal Blaney
16 64 Prague Tory
17 11 Tory Radio
18 4 Boris Johnson
19 9 Ellee Seymour
20 56 Caroline Hunt
21 NEW Daily Referendum
22 NEW EU Referendum
23 NEW Sinclair’s Musings
24 NEW An Englishman’s Castle
25 52 Theo Spark
26 NEW John Redwood MP
27 NEW Daniel Hannan MEP
28 36 UK Daily Pundit
29 58 Freedom & Whiskey
30 NEW Mike Rouse
31 NEW Roger Helmer MEP
32 NEW Islington Newmania
33 NEW City Unslicker
34 NEW Matt Wardman
35 48 Man in a Shed
36 18 Dodgeblogium
37 NEW Nourishing Obscurity
38 NEW Samizdata
39 NEW Taxpayers’ Alliance
40 50 Martine Martin’s Lebwog
41 NEW Daily Propaganda
42 NEW Musings of a Reactionary Snob
43 22 Bel is Thinking
44 NEW Prodicus
45 65 A Very British Dude
46 NEW WebCameron
47 NEW Priti Patel
48 NEW Richard Spring MP
49 28 A Tangled Web
50 NEW Edland 51 NEW Nation of Shopkeepers 52 NEW Not Proud of Britain 53 NEW The Bristow Blog 54 79 Thunder Dragon 55 NEW Glyn Davies 56 NEW Little Man in a Toque 57 NEW Globalisation Institute 58 NEW Britain & America 59 NEW Last Ditch 60 31 Gavin Ayling 61 NEW Vicky Ford 62 NEW Birmingham University CF 63 27 Ed Vaizey MP 64 NEW Is there more to life than shoes? 65 72 Conservative Party Reptile 66 41 A Conservative’s Blog 67 57 Last Boy Scout 68 NEW Tory Reform Group 69 NEW Ghost of the Hitch 70 NEW John Moorcraft 71 NEW Blognor Regis 72 NEW England Expects 73 NEW Rachel Joyce 74 NEW PJC Journal 75 NEW David Gold 76 37 Tim Roll Pickering 77 46 Remittance Man 78 NEW Tapestry Talks 79 NEW Platform 10 80 89 Curly’s Corner Shop 81 24 Road to EU Serfdom 82 13 West Brom Blog 83 NEW David Jones MP 84 NEW Istanbul Tory 85 NEW Neue Arbeit Macht Frei 86 NEW Pub Philosopher 87 17 Trevor Ivory 88 NEW Brussels Journal 89 NEW The Crossed Pond 90 NEW Not a Sheep Maybe a Goat 91 NEW YBF Activists 92 38 Contra Tory 93 NEW Scottish Tory Boy 94 NEW Hunter & Shooter 95 49 Civitas 96 NEW Cross of St George 97 NEW Nicolas Webb 98 NEW Martin Kelly 99 NEW Cornerstone 100 71 Laban Tall
Well done, Ellee. I reckon you shine out like a beacon amongst that motley bunch!
Congratulations, Ellee!
Very well done Ellee:)
Well done.
Well congrats Elle
down from nine, but still in the top twenty
[...] In praise of Ellee Seymour 25 09 2007 A year ago I met a newly enrolled CIPR Diploma student who blogged – Ellee Seymour who has just been named as a top blogger – an accolade that is much deserved. [...]
That is a real accomplishment when you think about it. Well done, Ellee.
It is simply a very good blog and we come here because we want to. What more can one say ?
Congratulations, Lady Ellee, for a well deserved place – nobody could disagree and many think you should have been higher. You work so hard on your blog.
Ellee, you have done really well to be recognised. Your blog has a fine blend to it.
Congratulations and well done Ellee – richly deserved recognition!
Well done Ellee – richly deserved recognition!
Congratulations Ellee. Recognition of one’s efforts is a very satisfying thing.
Bel, It’s bizarre. I regard you as a very astute and intelligent writer, a perfect blogger who always replies to her readers’ comments. Just carry on doing the same, I assure you that you are doing a great job.
“However, I did feel that Bel should have been placed higher than 43, she is a great political writer, and is very popular with her loyal readers.”
Thanks for your kind words, Ellee. I must say I did wonder what I had done (or not done) to be demoted 20-odd places from last year’s list.
I’m very thrilled about your placement, particularly in the top ten on the main list. It’s very well deserved, as regular readers of your blog will know. Best wishes, Bel.
Elle – I’ve always had your blog classified as being about *Life*, as that is always seemed to be what you are most interested in.
I have little doubt that you politics is much more effective for it also.