wandering the lido deck

Can I have your attention, please! HELP!! I have been down the rabbit hole once again looking for ONE particular photo. The last time I went down this kind of search, I saw it. I don't remember exactly where, but it's there. A photo of ... a little girl running in a beautiful backyard, a place in Ireland. This was a possible location that S/C had been for holiday. Anyone remember this? May or May not show the ocean on the background? Someone out there has this photo and post about it. Could you please share again?!! If not, at least point me in the right direction. It's driving me nuts not being able to find it again!

I don't know any details about it. Where it came from or anything.

👀👀😳😳

Innuendo abounds at the interview line:

The answer:

It's a good thing screenshots exist and are forever, because I'm sure you all have screenshots of moments when our lead actors were openly flirting on Twitter.

But if they want advice on how to act with their future co-stars so that no one ships them, here are some tips:

Never say with complete conviction and certainty that you know what time your co-star wakes up. Because there's only one way to be absolutely sure of that, and you know what it is.

Don't make double entendre jokes, such as saying you ate your co-star's pie or commenting on the size of a particular part of your male co-star's body.

If you have someone special in your life, never say that your co-star is your number one. That's disrespectful to the person in your life.

Don't publicly comment on social media about what you do in private. Nobody needs to know where you had a picnic or try to interpret your inside jokes.

Treat your loved ones in public as people you truly love, not as someone who has the mumps and you have to run away to avoid getting infected.

Never, under any circumstances, say that you and your co-star shower together. And if your co-star does say that, don't confirm it!

Don't tell another actor to keep their hands off your co-star.

Don't say that being away from your co-star for weeks is like having a death in the family. That's something only a lovesick, emo teenager would say.

When you're with your co-star at events, don't act like you're in a bubble, and especially don't wipe the dirt off your co-star's face using your saliva.

Don't say your co-star is your toyboy. If the question is about the character, answer using the character's name, not your own.

And if you're really not in a romantic relationship with your co-star, don't obsess over what people think. If nothing's happening, it means you don't need to prove anything to anyone.

If there's another pandemic and you're pregnant and filming, avoid doing intimate scenes with your co-star. How many tests give false results? Ask for a body double; it's not that uncommon, and you don't need to publicly demonstrate all that trust and intimacy with someone who doesn't even live with you.

Now, dear readers, what other suggestions would you give so that these poor, innocent souls are no longer victims of such a misunderstanding?

Sam is neither the best person nor the worst person in the world. And a troll blog is once again crafting a Sam narrative for its readers to eagerly consume while hopefully forgetting the content is about as questionable as yogurt past its “Use by” date.

For 11 years it’s been said a hundred different ways, but it’s still worth repeating: Sam keeps his private life private. Everything he lets fans see or that fans scrape off social media like a barnacle off a boat is as genuine and everlasting as a temporary tattoo.

Be well and take time for yourselves this holiday season, friends.

This narrative didn’t just happen to live on Tumblr- it was tested here, dissected here, and quite unanimously rejected here. And the reason it never left this platform is because Tumblr recognizes manufactured intimacy, brand adjacency, and single-pipe storytelling faster than anywhere else.

First: Why Tumblr?

From a PR standpoint, Tumblr is the safest place to test a personal-life narrative before letting it breathe elsewhere. It’s contained, fandom-heavy, and disproportionately invested, meaning you get fast, high-quality feedback without mainstream exposure. Tumblr users don’t just react emotionally; they analyze patterns, timelines, body language, and inconsistencies, which makes the platform an early warning system. If a narrative survives Tumblr scrutiny, it can usually be softened and repackaged for Instagram or gossip blogs. If it fails here, it can be quietly starved without headlines or retractions. For someone like Sam (whose core fandom lives on Tumblr and whose image has already been PR-managed for years) it’s the logical test lab: intense enough to surface problems, small enough to abort without public damage.

Timeline: The Widow Narrative

1) Distillery opening debut: Steph center stage, photographers present, child visible

• Why PR thought it would work: Establish a “new chapter” instantly. Homecoming energy. Serious, grounded, family-man optics without needing a formal announcement. The distillery is also a controlled environment where his brand and personal image can merge.

• Why it failed or raised questions: The optics were too loud for someone with a “private” brand. Leading with a girlfriend is one thing, leading with a child is another. It triggered immediate “since when does he do this?” suspicion and ethical discomfort.

2) Identification lag, then her name dropped to multiple fandom inboxes

• Why PR thought it would work: Speed-run attribution. Stop speculation spirals by guiding the audience to “who she is” so the narrative can move forward cleanly and look established.

• Why it failed or raised questions: Simultaneous inbox drops read like coordinated attribution, not organic discovery. It made the audience feel steered. Once people feel guided, they start looking for fingerprints everywhere.

3) One blogger becomes the main pipeline and pushes hard

• Why PR thought it would work: A single friendly funnel limits mess. Keeps it contained. Lets the story circulate in a controlled corner without triggering tabloid escalation.

• Why it failed or raised questions: Single-pipe distribution is the opposite of organic spread. Tumblr clocks that immediately. One outlet shouting while everyone else side-eyes it becomes its own red flag.

4) First Stratford weekend: inside-theatre photos appear from two angles and land as “anon” tips

• Why PR thought it would work: “Candid” proof of proximity. Theatre-adjacent optics help the prestige pivot. It signals she’s part of his world without needing public statements.

• Why it failed or raised questions: Too early, too convenient. Hardly anyone knew who she was yet, and two separate angles implies targeted attention. When “random” photos behave like planned beats, Tumblr stops buying “random.”

5) Second night Stratford: jacket photo in the line for drinks, again anonymously delivered to the same inbox

• Why PR thought it would work: Visual association. Borrowed clothing is an easy shorthand for intimacy. It’s low-effort symbolism that reads as “girlfriend” in one glance.

• Why it failed or raised questions: Teen-coded symbolism. Also, the repeated “correct inbox” problem. It’s not the coat, it’s the choreography. How do multiple anons keep finding the same pipeline?

6) Instagram optics begin: profile changes, public/private cycling, curated content dumps

• Why PR thought it would work: Controlled “soft launch.” Let the public connect dots without an announcement. Build familiarity. Reward the people paying attention.

• Why it failed or raised questions: It reads like signaling, not living. On/off privacy combined with a sudden curated dump looks like image management, which is exactly what Tumblr is trained to detect.

7) Mutual follows: wide net across his social/professional orbit

• Why PR thought it would work: Social proof. “See, she’s integrated.” Following people around him creates the illusion of legitimacy and longevity.

• Why it failed or raised questions: It reads like networking, not romance. Real partners don’t speed-run a boyfriend’s ecosystem.

8) Brand adjacency crumbs: distillery hat, lifestyle posts that mirror his commercial lane

• Why PR thought it would work: Keep the narrative useful. Tie the “new stability” story to his brand identity, making him look mature, settled, and business-minded.

• Why it failed or raised questions: Too on-the-nose. When the romance narrative doubles as product reinforcement, people stop reading it as romance and start reading it as campaign scaffolding.

9) Pub “double date” optics with Caitriona íona present

• Why PR thought it would work:

This read as a clear attempt at approval by association. Including Caitriona was meant to normalize the situation instantly and frame it as a relaxed, happy double date. If she’s there, it must be fine. It signals social acceptance, ease, and legitimacy without needing statements.

• Why it failed or raised questions:

The optics completely undercut the intention. In every photo, he looks disengaged, flat, or openly miserable, and his visual focus is consistently on his co-star rather than on his girlfriend. Whatever the intended framing, the images do not sell “newly in love.” Instead of approval, it highlighted a disconnect and made the setup feel forced.

Bonus Round: The child factor and the moral optics

• Why PR thought it would work:

Including a child was likely meant to fast-track seriousness and ground the narrative emotionally. Family-adjacent optics are often used to soften bachelor branding and project maturity, responsibility, and stability.

• Why it failed or raised questions:

This backfired hard. The child had reportedly lost a father figure barely a year prior, which immediately shifted the conversation from romance to ethics. Instead of grounding the story, it made the mother’s choices part of the narrative. The optics of leaving a young child in Ireland while repeatedly following Sam around created discomfort and invited scrutiny. Once a fandom starts debating parenting decisions rather than chemistry, the PR narrative is already unsalvageable.

Summary: Why PR thought it would work

• It offered a stability pivot for a long-time bachelor image

• It wrapped the story in “serious, grounded, family-adjacent” optics

• It was contained enough to test without mainstream risk

• It blended personal narrative with brand identity and theatre credibility

Summary: Why it didn’t

• The fingerprints were too loud (single-pipe anons, guided attribution, orchestrated optics)

• Instagram behavior looked managed, not natural

• Brand adjacency made it feel transactional

• The body language and “chemistry optics” didn’t support the story

• The child-in-frame element triggered ethical discomfort rather than warmth

• Once Tumblr clocked scaffolding, the narrative couldn’t travel

If you’ve made it this far, congratulations!

All three read as at least partially edited with the help of AI, something no serious, longtime player in this arena has ever done. Not even the trolls, not even the nasty sock accounts who take stock of every single movement of 'the other faction' and report for duty on the regular, in comment threads.

All three pretend to break down complex circumstantial elements into user-friendly pills, using bullets and bold/italics. The result is either dry or confusing.

As for the above post - three pages to tell us Mrs. Innuendo is way too pushy to make this particular plotline worth pursuing. Plus the little girl situation, that makes everything even more unpalatable.

But we knew all this, right?

Right.

With all due respect for the authors involved and the sincere wish to be wrong, may I ask: what the fuck is going on?

Oh, and lest I forget: next time you copy/paste, do a better job?

When the picture by Cait or Sam’s (I don’t remember) hairstyle/make up artist posted a pic of the two of them written “Cait and a new flame”

When Sam asked Cait about her ring and she told him he’s her favorite husband and he told her “I love you”

When Sam and Cait were caught kissing filming 2x01

When Sam and Cait were caught kissing by the window

Cait’s reflection in New York, clone in New York and Budapest, Costa Rica… anyway… they always end up being where the other is

When they spend 4 months in SA alone, no “SO”, casually going out

Matching rainbow, cabins, poems and every mysterious love things in 2015

When Sam said “oooobviously NOT together” and all the cast laughed

That Cait knows when Sam goes to the gym and at what time

Matching fist in bed

Watching their hottest sex scenes together in a bed… with alcohol

When Sam was watching football in the middle of the night at her place

When Sam was cooking pancakes on Valentine’s Day at her place

When Sam whistled at her butt at the T2 and she grinned a him

When Sam whistled at her boobs at the panel

That birthday video that clearly wasn’t meant to come public where they’re holding each other and looking at each other like a couple on their honeymoon

When Cait moaned Sam’s name during a sex scene

When we witnessed a couple issue talking about spending too much time at the gym and not enough time with her (14 hours a day working + time home isn’t enough Cait?)

Sam going on Ireland during the break meanwhile Cait goes radio silence. Same for Sam when Cait was is OZ.

Anyway i could go on but I’ll stop here feel free to add things, I encourage you!

There are dozens of receipts since Sam’s Valentine’s day pancakes.

I will add:

Sam’s photo on Cait’s/ their bed with Eddie, watching Cait racing London marathon!

The whole twitterfest on Sam’s birthday, ending with a glorious “Love youuu”!

And of course the monumental

Sam being jealous when Cait said she watched Trainspotting at the cinema on a date long time ago;

Sam always “accidentally” touching Cait’s boobs;

Acting like an old married couple at the Barbour event;

The “I would do anything for you” + hug;

The sexual tension and giggles at the “Couples theraphy” with Josh;

https://www.facebook.com/100057747226197/posts/pfbid0B5AVuBTjMNkQaRjd96bZHLzv7CJL6WvTK1zz8zECBsmNyuGJoxijcNXSE6zq6qX3l/

Dear Another Possibility Anon,

You mean this, right?

[Source: Rowan MacKenzie's FB page - posted one hour before your submission, October 26 2025]

I don't think this is another possibility, Anon. I think we simply found out the designer and possibly even the maker of that pendant, wouldn't you agree? I don't know if she made it herself, because I am not sure if she works in metal, also. But she designed it - nay contest about that, probably to meet the client's specifications.

In fact, she is a concept artist, as we are reminded by this post:

[Source: tkcc71_'s IG account, posted November 24, 2024]

I also think it's pretty clear who the whisky barrel friend is, by the way. Such a thoughtful gesture, indeed.

She does know C and, considering this, I find this detail very interesting, timeline-wise:

[Source: @artofromac's IG account, posted August 21, 2024]

Thank you for your submission. I think this clarifies everything about the pendant and it does not contradict all the rest.

She posted these on August 5, 2019, 2 days after she posted the "welcometospainsam&cait". So...I am assuming she was bombarded with hate responses on that post and that's why she removed the comments and did not allow any further comments and likes. There's only 2 of us from our community that I see in the "Likes" section. All the other handles are not familiar to me. Here's the welcome, etc. post. It's still there. I just took this screenshot today. Notice it says 317 weeks. She has not taken it down at all!:

This was my screenshot back in 2019:

Remember this, taken from 'Erself's Facebook account barely one month ago?

[Source: https://www.tumblr.com/sgiandubh/790088844806651904/honchos-either-are-exceptionally-stupid-as?source=share - posted on July 26, 2025]

Many considered it the author's fantasy privilege of sorts and contended the idea of SC finally saying 'enough' to twelve years of employment by *** and easy public spotlight.

But my gut feeling immediately alerted me the Horrible Little Woman might be telling the truth, this time. The reason being simple: now that the audience's attention (and by 'audience' I mainly mean The Casuals and potential Newbies) seems to be slowly moving towards BoMB, she just feels the urge to drop little truth raisins in this very tired narrative batter. It is about a wishful, but firm thinking of 'Erself trying to remain in control of this Frankenstein production project, even against the evidence of BoMB essentially being Matt Roberts' and ***'s brain child. That equates with fanfic taking the upper hand on canon, something she was always afraid of and hostile to. Whatever and now it's too late, despite her weak attempts to tell us she will write three books (oh, Mother of God, have mercy 🙄) on The Parents (so ahem - BoMB is supposed have three seasons, that was the plan?), which also equates to damage control. This is exactly where easy money play a perhaps welcome assuaging part, especially as far as ego loss is concerned.

We only had to go through about half a bag of 🍿, in order to have some sort of officially sanctioned confirmation. From Matt Roberts himself. In the New York Times, no less:

[Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/08/arts/television/outlander-blood-of-my-blood-matthew-b-roberts.html - posted August 8, 2025]

Not 'the leads', but 'the cast', which is a rather poor attempt, by a man not very gifted for words, to mitigate 'Erself's nuclear, but very clear 'the lead actors declined to keep doing it'. This is a clear attempt to sugarcoat something that must have been epic to watch, because even in this bastardized version, the man couldn't deny the shifting moment's intensity: 'they've been very vocal about it'. Oh, to be a fly on that wall, isn't it? Confirming, in the process, *** would have had no problem going on and on forever with OL, until at least 'Erself would call it quits, biologically or not.

Why would two people choose to vocally walk away from a contractual Golden Goose, bringing them wheelbarrows of cash and maximum media and industry exposure? Especially when you know you'd have to endure two years tops, until that fucking Book Ten will be in print and the canon dutifully adapted? Unless...

Unless they would have felt deprived not only 'of their most productive period' (think about all those projects being turned down for conflicting schedules), but of their best years, which sheds a different light on a different dynamic? They adamantly said no to the Faustian offer and fucked the beautiful, selfish dream of many Mommies, in the process. Which also means they had something much more important than vanity arguments (the 'our most productive years' being mentioned in a make or break context really made me LOL) to support their claim. A claim which is, in fact, an adamant refusal to go on with a further contract. I would be very interested to hear alternative POVs from my fellow Ned Gowans on our side (slainte, ladies!), but to me this feels more like a rather uneasy settlement of sorts, than a smooth operation (see what I just did, here? LOL). And something that was brewing for long enough, already, which gave the final leverage push 'the cast' needed to finally make themselves heard.

For how long, exactly? We can only speculate, of course, but what if this might be the inflection point, when *** started to think about a prequel being a solution to a potential storm?

Matt Roberts tells us, in the same interview, that the lightbulb moment came upon him 'right at the end of Season 4'. This is very interesting, because shooting for Season 4 ended in July 2018, after the EFH, but one year before the Remarkable Weekend. By everyone's agreement, Season 4 was probably the weakest ever of the OL saga, with many people in this fandom throwing the towel and choosing greener, less complicated entertainment pastures.

He also tells us that he gingerly approached 'Erself about this idea most probably at the Season 5 premiere panel, on February 20, 2020, which is one year and a half after the lightbulb moment and roughly six months after the Remarkable Weekend. You can watch it here:

There is no mention of a prequel in this panel. Perhaps it was a BTS chit-chat, which is normal (few things are, in this particular universe, heh). But there is a tiny detail that is, in retrospect, perhaps very telling - Matt Roberts telling us (talking about Season 5 Episode 1 finale) that 'is the difference, you know, in the way Diana writes and the way we edit, the way we create the show, is we're dealing with living and breathing people and Diana can do whatever the hell she wants, anytime she wants' (31:17 -> 31:33).

Just see her smirking at whatever he is babbling about, there. So nope, not an easy sidetalk at all.

If you imagine Roberts did not have ***'s go ahead before pitching the prequel idea to 'Erself, you are either very naive or have no idea about the way negotiations happen, on this planet. It is, therefore, easy to speculate Gabaldon's first answer might have been a flat no, since we know very well that Bees was still in limbo, at the time, with no end in sight for OL itself and since we also know the author's deep hostility to any OL-inspired fanfic. This is where Roberts might be twisting the facts to suit the official version - the cast saying the same flat no (with much more success) came only way afterwards. Following the same reasoning as above, something really serious (a rift, perhaps?) might have happened between Lightbulb Moment and Pitching Moment, prompting Roberts to try and sell a perfectly absurd idea to 'Erself. I have my own thoughts on this, and the timeline is certainly very telling, but as always - this is Believe-What-You-Want Land.

I had to rewatch the final announcement about Season 8 happening and I really think you should, too. I find it crystal clear, now:

[Source: Outlander ***'s Facebook account - posted on January 19, 2023]

Roberts preferred to go with the obviously curated version, as seen in the renewal announcement above: the cast unanimously telling the series audience (Fandom, Casuals, Newbies) that they intend to 'tell the story the way it should be'. We now know S pressed for a clean bye-bye to ***, giving the fans what they felt was deserved: a welcome closure. But the important thing is that SC made the announcement together, not in character at all (as it was touted to oblivion across the street), having eachother's backs and defiantly holding hands.

They did it their way. Because the Sinatra Doctrine is always about breaking free of something - lurkers from across the street might usefully consult Wikipedia: it is a proven historical fact. I doubt they have any idea of what I am talking about, even if it happened during their own lifetime (and mine).

You will not find the entire video on youtube anymore. However, I googled it and found the full video posted by Outlander Republic on youtube. I tried to bring it over by copying its URL and this is what happened. The URL is in red so that means it will not post on Tumblr.

Then I went to Outlander TV news and in the article it said if you want to watch the video, click here.

I clicked and this is what I got:

So folks there is an obvious effort to hide and prevent the entire Paleyfest video from 2015 to be watched! So if you want to re-watch, google it and if you click on the Outlander Republic one, it will bring you to youtube and you will be able to play the whole video it. Incredible, isn’t it how they are hiding this video? I have not re-watched yet and I wonder if anything has been deleted. Those who can, please download it.

“I love you.

Truly.

A lot.”

Did you catch that? He said “Truly” and “a lot”. My heart is fit to burst. 🖤

https:www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTJfO_cZc20

The first time I typed this I used the number 0 after Jf and it did not work. The second time after the Jf I chose a capital O and that did it.

When I got home, this panel was set to come on and I watched..I knew that there was something going on between them..from the moment I watched them appear in scenes, together. What sealed it, until The Wedding scene dropped, was when Caitriona, Claire tended Sam’s, Jamie’s neck wound in her ‘surgery’. The eye sex from Sam was so intimidating, that I felt like an intruder watching a slow burn sex scene between two individuals, not actors.

Add in Sam’s ‘I Love You’ whisper of endearment, there was no more 'maybe’…it was real. He loved Caitriona and without any qualms, he claimed her, publicly. I also think Kristin heard Sam’s comment as her facial expression went blank.

Two things that can never be taken back, time and words. Time passes and words can be modified, but never unsaid. They will be forever spoken….

I’ve never been much of a Graham McTavish fan so when I heard he was the “celebrity host” on a European river cruise it wasn’t of any real interest. The company that ran the tour - Avalon Waterways- basically promised a week of up close and personal stories from Graham. According to Avalon’s website:

So Graham had promised a week of “sharing in a flowing story that we would write together” (insert massive eye roll)…

It was with some amusement therefore that I found this review of the cruise on trip advisor:

😂😂😂

Being a dick to paying clients, because you think you are the cat's meow, ever since you landed the scheming uncle part in the OL saga?

Such an eyeroll, seriously. This aside, it seems to be the same cruise where this happened:

When S does this as a side event of the French Landcon, that's called 'shilling'. When Grandma does it as a cheap divertimento on his Avalon Waterways' Bitchy Storyteller Rhine cruise, that's supposed to be... what exactly? A copycat culturally enriching experience? Granted, Grandma offered the booze and Madame took the pictures (because let's just keep the🎪 in the family, right?). However, I have to -perhaps surprisingly - say that I do prefer S's transactional approach: perhaps less chances for drizzle, cold showers and mercantile hypocrisy ahead.

In other news, Grandma is scheduled as a guest of Edinburgh's Capital City Sci-Fi Convention (February 15-16, 2025), because this is a very lucrative gig, after all.

This being Bonnie Alba, however, prices are toned down accordingly, at a pretty decent level. Also, cash only for the extras, mind you: