Out today: Avril Coleridge-Taylor: ‘In Memoriam - To the RAF’ (1945). classical.music.apple.com/gb/album/184...

I am told shipments of my book are on their way by air/sea from the US, as OUP try to meet demand, which has exceeded their expectations. A reprint is also now underway. The key message is, if you want this for Christmas, ORDER IT NOW. It's had glowing reviews. Also available on Kindle immediately.

Because I respect and honour the sacrifice that service personnel have made; and I respect those who would not have placed them in danger in the first place; and I acknowledge that many more civilians now die in armed conflict than uniformed forces.

And yet the government thinks it appropriate to use this as its main communication tool. @commonsspeaker.parliament.uk

I suspect not many have picked up on this news. But it’s Good.

A correct analysis:

Tomorrow! With the @aam.co.uk!

Applications are open for NYCB & NCCB 2026! With courses for both bands in the Spring and Summer and performances in Birmingham and Manchester, this will be our biggest year yet! Apply online now at NYCB.paritor.com and be a part of it!

London Bridge (then the only river crossing) was brought to a standstill for 3 hours, as Londoners crossed to hear the dress rehearsal of Handel's music. They got a better deal than the real guests who had to endure drizzle and the buildings catching fire...

We’re updating what children learn at school so they’re ready for the modern world. That means strong foundations, plus new skills like spotting fake news online and understanding money, and access to arts and sport. Find out more. 👇

Read all about our 2025-26 season, as Principal Oboe Leo Duarte reveals to @continuoconnect.bsky.social the musical superstars that will feature in our concerts over the next year! www.continuoconnect.com/features/aca...

#OTD in 1605: The Lantern the Guy Fawkes was preparing to use to blow up Parliament; now in the Ashmolean Museum. A timely reminder that it was once Catholics who were regarded as an enemy-supporting fifth column in England.

Offspring are just back from seeing Benson Boone; those who left before the encores missed a surprise appearance by Brian May!

Turnout in the NYC mayoral election is the highest since 1993.

A true hero.

Hitting the studio later this week for a really interesting project with David Webb! With a PhD on Handel, I never imagined that my first project with the Academy of Ancient Music would be this repertoire.....

🏛️ PODYSSEY SEASON 2 - All the details! 📜 What. Where. When. 🍊 open.spotify.com/episode/6Aw1... 🍏 podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/a... @sturdyalex.bsky.social

I’ve become a Substack-er. Here chapter 3 open.substack.com/pub/the39sta...

Obviously in my youth we are completely immune to North-American cultural influences…

The new single from the album of Orchestral Works by Avril Coleridge-Taylor is featured on @applemusic #applemusicclassical 'Relaxing Classics' playlist. Listen now👉 music.apple.com/us/playlist/... Samantha Ege, piano @jkaconductor.bsky.social @tomedney.bsky.social @leahbroad.bsky.social

For those who doubted....

When I think about what contemporary opera can and should be - and whether "contemporary popular opera" could ever be a thing, I always think of Dead Man Walking: inews.co.uk/culture/arts...

The firstborn has already lost Whamageddon….

For Halloween; a gift from the February 2021 Lockdown archive (well there wasn’t much else to do)

“Their Majesties wish to make clear that their thoughts and utmost sympathies have been, and will remain with, the victims and survivors of any and all forms of abuse.”

Bonne Nuit.

Who is the quintessential establishment-faced British actor? The one you most associate with royals, ministers, judges, top civil servants, miscellaneous toffs, etc. I suggest Pip Torrens, Rupert Vansittart, Roger Allam or Alex Jennings

FT junior arts editor job!

Struggling to imagine the chutzpah it takes to say that someone "doesn't understand New York culture" because they're an immigrant.

The Gulf of Tunis

Moon over Carthage.

In a world ever more keen to highlight difference, the Tunisian museums and tour guides are refreshingly at pains to point out the continuities of Punic, Roman, Byzantine, Vandal, and Islamic cultures - and proud of things like this wonderful 6thC Torah Ark:

Would have thought this was an interesting precedent for dramas such as ‘The Crown’.

Addressed the museum guide in French and he replied in Italian which I am choosing to take as a compliment on my sartorial standards rather than any comment on my French accent.

And feline

Carthage; Punic and Roman

This was such a wonderful project to be part of!

The idea that the *advertising* industry is motivated by some form of social agenda rather than what will maximise sales is one of the most hilarious things I’ve heard this century.

Bonjour et sabah alkhayr.

Happy #WorldOperaDay! (But can you guess the show?)

Can confirm that the hotel offers the very highest degree of service:

Out of the office until November. #DelayedSummerHoliday

Thangam Debbonaire to head new UK opera trade body bachtrack.com/news-thangam...

Politics aside, the one thing Starmer has been consistently good at is letting his opponents have all the rope they need…

I think that this is good news. A powerful and charismatic advocate.

This was such a wonderful project to be part of!

Out today! A little teaser for the album due out on Nov 21st. The slow movement of her concerto is dedicated to Edward Elgar, and you can hear it in every bar…

First listen to our new Avril Coleridge-Taylor album! This is the second movement of her Piano Concerto, dedicated to Edward Elgar, played by @jkaconductor.bsky.social, Samantha Ege & BBC Philharmonic. I hope you like it 🥹🥹🥹 open.spotify.com/track/7sBFQ5...

Out today! A little teaser for the album due out on Nov 21st. The slow movement of her concerto is dedicated to Edward Elgar, and you can hear it in every bar…