3 hours ago, JamesPhuket10 said:

How long has the pension been frozen?

You could go back to the UK for a couple of months, tell the DWP via a simple phone call you have moved back to the UK, you pension will then be increased to the current pension rate for the rest of you life.

Then you could go back to Thailand and after three months tell them you have been out of the country for three months so you are clear with the law, you do not need to tell them where you are, just state you have been on extended travels.

It worked for me last year when I visited England, I called and some bored person working the phone from home answered, they just enter you details into the computer, they have no interest in what you are doing and in any case it is legal.

My pension and other income is paid into a UK bank account and then I transfer whatever I need to live on in Thailand using the WISE app.

Thanks for that info.

I was for many years a resident of France, but started coming to Thailand for about half of each year from 2001. For the first dozen years as an unpaid volunteer teacher of English to refugees from Burma. And then kept coming every year, always during the colder season in Europe, giving help on an individual basis when requested. Annual pension increment paid without problem.

I never heard of the declaration of absence after three months. But think that would apply only to a U.K. resident; as opposed to someone resident in the E.U. and therefore ineligible for any state benefits other than one's pension.

After arrival in Thailand end of October 2019, I was trapped here by the scamdemic. Return flight cancelled by the airline. Booked another. That was later cancelled. Booked yet another. Third one cancelled. Following day, 1st July, all international passenger flights banned, borders closed. Travel restrictions, both inter-provincial (Tak was "dark red") and international, continued until about mid-2022; latterly affecting mainly those who refused the experimental pseudo-vaccines, which included myself. After restrictions were lifted, health was much degraded (not by Covid, quickly dealt with using a standard anti-viral). Problems with eyesight and venous ulcers were dealt with by hospital visits to Chiang Mai and Bangkok from late 2023 to early 2025 (after previous useless visits to local hospitals for the debilitating ulcers).

Booked to return to France last June. But some weeks before, on rising from my laptop at 1 a.m., lost my balance and fell backwards, breaking a tibia on the edge of a steel storage-box. Journey cancelled. Simple fracture, bone healed rapidly without medical intervention. Six weeks later the surprised orthopaedic doctor asked to take a photo of myself holding my arms above the head.

I had earlier declined his offer of calcium tablets as no test had been done to show any deficiency. Osteoporosis, often associated with age, can be due to excess calcium, or more specifically to inadequate magnesium to balance the calcium. I continued supplementing with magnesium and vitamin D3 + K2, needed for calcium metabolism. And after a web-search taught me traces of copper are needed for bone repair (and according to spectrscopic hair-analysis I was deficient in copper and selenium) I further supplemented with those.

All set for return to France this year.

Alas! At nightfall on 3rd October last, hurrying to my mobile phone to take a call, my right foot caught on the bottom of a small step-ladder. I spun sideways and fell on a packet of boards, purchased to make myself a decent bed for my living-room. Broken hip-bone.

I'll spare the gruesome details of what ensued. But the result was five days in hospital and an operation about 10 p.m.on the third night to pin a titanium plate in position to hold the two pieces of bone together. They had to drill into the bone before inserting the titanium pins, doubtlessly intended to be a force-fit. But they were having to strike repeatedly, harder and harder, with an oversized ball-pein hammer. I was beginning to wonder whether they had used a drill-bit of too small a diameter; and with my whole lower body shaking under the blows I feared my bone would be smashed to smithereens. (I was under local anaesthesia from an injection in the lower spine).

Upon discharge from hospital, I was able only to hobble around slowly and painfully with the aid of a 'walker'. An 'adopted daughter', who had remained together with a female friend of hers throughout my stay in hospital (the two women sleeping on the floor) insisted I stay in her house where she and part of her extended family could look after me. And here I remain still, months later, walking with considerable difficulty, without a 'walker'. But able to cycle quite well, with lowered saddle. Thanks to a Trek bicycle - with no top-tube - imported from the U.S. in January of last year.

It is not the journey to Europe that is the problem. It is circumstances that await on arrival. 40 km return to nearest small town, no public transport, 1990 Citroen AX unused for nearly seven years, friends dispersed to Paris, to Lyon, and gone west, some to the U.K. others to 'The Gardens of the Hesperides', and monumental administrative problems arising from an enforced absence and, possibly, Brexit.

Edited May 23May 23 by ericbj
changed 'six' to 'seven', changed '2023' to' 2022

Use many but been using there 2 for years / no probs:

https://www.limetorrents.fun/home

https://extranet.torrentbay.st/

On 5/14/2026 at 9:22 PM, luckyscruff said:

I download all the time , Films and Tv from the following sites to my computer , All Free, Torrentday, TV Chaos and Xspeeds.eu .

Good Luck

Hey Torrentday is my site....did I give you an invite ? 😆 ive been on it since 2009. No need to use anything else everything is all there in one spot.

5 hours ago, xylophone said:

I still manage to download movies and TV shows from The Pirate Bay proxy site as well as from a proxy of 1337x.to . It takes a bit of fiddling about using AdBlock etc, but is doable.

Do you want an invite to torrentday. Private tracker with 0 bs.

I'm me your email and ill send you one.

3 hours ago, FlorC said:

If only I had a youtube login to watch age restricted YT video's.

I don't have a phone to make an account.

Any of you know a way ?

You don't have to use a phone.

If you are posting on aseannow from a desktop or laptop, all you need to do is go to gmail.com and open a Gmail account. That e-mail address becomes your YouTube username. I did this only today for someone who wanted to download apps to their smart tv, not just YouTube.

3 hours ago, VR333 said:

You don't have to use a phone.

If you are posting on aseannow from a desktop or laptop, all you need to do is go to gmail.com and open a Gmail account. That e-mail address becomes your YouTube username. I did this only today for someone who wanted to download apps to their smart tv, not just YouTube.

To make a gmail account you need a phone.

4 hours ago, mushroomdave said:

Use many but been using there 2 for years / no probs:

https://www.limetorrents.fun/home

https://extranet.torrentbay.st/

Do you need to worry about viruses when downloading?