...meanwhile, in Northern Europe— www.bbc.co.uk/news/videos/...

Call for Chapters: The Bloomsbury Handbook of Literature and Popular Music This interdisciplinary volume from @bloomsburybooksuk.bsky.social (2027) explores where literature and popular music meet - how they shape, influence, and inspire one another. More info: tinyurl.com/litpopcfc27

Quatermass! The rocket guy! Pew! Excellent, influential movie free on YouTube TONIGHT followed by Nigel Kneale documentary we made with @tobyhadoke.bsky.social @mrgeetsromo.bsky.social @bronteschiltz.bsky.social @drtauk.bsky.social @tommygorilla.bsky.social @eklectics.bsky.social

An amazing story. Just a matter of time before it's made into a motion picture, I think. www.bbc.com/news/article...

David Bowie's archive opens to the public this week, revealing a treasure trove of unrealized projects and personal items.

A job for an (under)graduate in publishing: www.findapprenticeship.service.gov.uk/apprenticesh...

This is not a surprise: AIs prefer other LLMs because it's not as bursty or perplexing as human text. Humans prefer LLMs for the same reason. This opens a space for humans to *be* bursty and perplexing, the things that delight us most, and that LLMs aren't very good at. futurism.com/chatgpt-deep...

Field Music Defend Their Doors Covers Band, Say Making A Living From Their Own Music “Bordering On Impossible" www.stereogum.com/2315170/fiel...

"Now I am become Reviewer 2, destroyer of worlds"

This really is worth a watch and has a lovely Michael Nyman score as a bonus.

in slightly different but not entirely unrelated news, my talk on The Doors as part of the Romancing the Gothic series is coming up, saturday 19th july at 10am and 7pm: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-gothic...

Our book was published by @bloomsburybooksuk.bsky.social today! Nice work @profkirsty.bsky.social ‬and #ChristianLloyd and ALL our amazing authors - some very experienced scholars, some brand new voices. Looking forward to our copies in the post. www.bloomsbury.com/uk/rereading...

Talking about 1981 Dr Who story The Keeper of Traken with @tobyhadoke.bsky.social - out now on all good streaming platforms :-) open.spotify.com/episode/1jXa...

Back as a talking head discussing the Legend of Nigel Kneale - genre pioneer, social critic, and architect of British telefantasy - with @bronteschiltz.bsky.social and @tobyhadoke.bsky.social on the Quatermass 2 boxed set for @hammerfilms.bsky.social 😀! hammerfilms.com/products/qua...

Back as a talking head discussing the Legend of Nigel Kneale - genre pioneer, social critic, and architect of British telefantasy - with @bronteschiltz.bsky.social and @tobyhadoke.bsky.social on the Quatermass 2 boxed set for @hammerfilms.bsky.social! hammerfilms.com/products/qua...

Researching Welsh Language Pop has turned up this lovely thing: youtube.com/watch?v=1UCl... "Titrwm Tatrwm", the title of the song, is the phonetic sound of rain falling.

Calling all Pop Music fans and authors! A terrific opportunity to get involved with a new book series from @manchesterup.bsky.social

This is bleak reading

Almost perfect pop music: The Sundays, from 1990. Amazing that this is nearly 40 years ago. www.youtube.com/watch?v=yARV...

"These are complex times for reality. You can’t move for people demanding your attention from beyond the grave." www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...

Keep on keeping on.

Delighted to be part of The Legend of Nigel Kneale—a sharp, thoughtful piece connecting Quatermass with sociology, anthropology, & postwar visions of Britain’s future. A brilliant team and a beautifully made package. Pre-order the Quatermass Xperiment collector’s set: hammerfilms.com/products/the...

Sananda Maitreya (formerly Terence Trent D'Arby) in interview, *yesterday*. He still has THAT voice. www.youtube.com/watch?v=3oAm...

This is astonishing. It’s a joy to witness the extraordinary connection between these two women. The way their sentences flow—seamlessly passing from one voice to the other—is remarkable. At one moment, they appear almost as one body, each gesture distinct yet perfectly in sync.

Violinist Jascha Heifetz playing with a light attached to his bow to follow his movements. Photographs by Gjon Mili for Life Magazine, New York (1952).

The British: finest trolling & sarcasm since 1949 askthepast.net/how-to-walk-...

Facing an increasing aging population and other societal shifts, people are looking beyond traditional family-based mortuary practices. www.sapiens.org/culture/japa...

OUT NOW! 💚 ‘Studio Electrophonique’ by Jamie Taylor is the amazing story of the home studio that helped launch British bands including The Human League, Pulp and others. The second book in our British Pop Archive series on @manchesterup.bsky.social 📚😎 manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/9781526183231/

The Monarch #butterfly embarks on one of nature's most incredible journeys, migrating up to 3,000 miles from #Canada to central #Mexico. These tiny travelers, with wings of vibrant orange, navigate the vast distances using the sun and Earth’s magnetic fields, defying the odds

Music streams hit nearly 5 trillion in 2024. Women pop performers lead the charge in the US apnews.com/article/tayl...

...and current archival research includes:

Well - according to the diagram, they're connected in parallel.

June 5-6, 2012: Ultra-high definition view the transit of Venus across the face of the sun Credit: NASA

Thanks Jon. So glad people seem to like it. Wonderful contributions from @0tralala.bsky.social, @nothinglane.bsky.social, @drtauk.bsky.social, @markayresrws.bsky.social, Gav Rymill, Marcus Hearn and others. And of course the ever wise and watchable @tobyhadoke.bsky.social.

The BBC Sound Effects team have made a huge library of foley samples available for free: sound-effects.bbcrewind.co.uk

ME: What's the matter? PHYSICIST: Everything. #science

Aviation watchdog to look at rules on ‘resilience’ after Heathrow closure

I discuss race and sociology in @stuartdenman.bsky.social 's documentary featured on the brand new BBC Doctor Who animation "The Savages". Terrific work from @0tralala.bsky.social, @tobyhadoke.bsky.social and all concerned, bringing this 1966 William Hartnell story back to life 🟦❤️❤️

"...and the dead shall sing." Nice work for the band, well done to Frank - who is an incredible, lightning-conducting front-person. What does this tell us about identity, memory, legacy, and the ability of popular music(ians) to age and/or mature?

An incredibly sad story.

Is there an application form? www.abc.net.au/news/2025-03...

One Track Lover (Down a Two Way Lane) www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bK1...

The Disciples: James Mollison’s portraits of music fans. ridiculouslyinteresting.com/2011/10/29/t...

A Scottish butcher's kebab pie has taken the top spot as "pie of pies" at the British Pie Awards. The fusion pie, made by Boghall Butchers of Bathgate in West Lothian, was crowned supreme champion at the event in Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Tribute album to our friend Martin Bedford now released on Spotify: Martin was a leader of the Sheffield Music Scene. The album is the community playing and raising money in his name. Some amazing UK blues players - and me. open.spotify.com/album/5ptqWZ...

Calling all music fans in the UK! 🎵🎸 Please fill in this survey to have your say on live music! It will only take 15 mins & all responses are anonymous. This is a great chance to shape the future of live music in the UK! 🤩🎤🎶 Survey link: musicfansvoice.uk

Roberta Flack, the Grammy-winning singer and pianist whose intimate vocal and musical style on “Killing Me Softly with His Song” and other hits made her one of the top recordings artists of the 1970s and an influential performer long after, has died.

The Fan Studies Network is deeply saddened to share the news that Mark Duffett passed away on 15 February after a short illness. Mark's work was incredibly influential in the field but more than that he was a kind and generous scholar who offered his support to so many of us.

Spinning the blues in the Lakes, UK.