Why am I being ghosted by the garage my car is at? Starting to suspect they might be holding it hostage…

An important reminder that the deadline for our call for papers is 30th January! The theme for our next issue is Embracing Challenges: Understanding Identities, Technologies and Research for a Better Global Future. Send your submissions and completed cover sheets to our email.

You might have suspected that the Leeds Postgraduate Review has some new members…and you’d be correct! The editorial team is currently in the process of changing hands. Meet the new team: Bairavi, Mian, and Sophie. You can learn more about us on our website.

Thinking of writing for us? Check out these samples from previous editions of the Leeds Postgraduate Review. If you like what you see, click the link in our bio to find out how you can get involved in our next edition.

The schedule is here! More info to come with talks soon, but spread the word and join the mailing list!

Are you a University of Leeds PGR? Are you interested in publishing your work? The next edition of the Leeds Postgraduate Review is looking for you! We are looking for full papers up to 7000 words due on 30th January. More information here: leedspostgraduatereview.wordpress.com/call-for-pap...

and on the fourth day of betwixtmas, in an absolute stroke of genius on my part, I left my heart medication back in the west midlands

Every time there's a breaking story about a celeb's treatment of women, everyone in the book world asks, "Is it finally Walliams?" Well, it finally is.

The call for papers for the next edition of the Leeds Postgraduate Review are open. Papers on the theme of Embracing Challenges: Understanding Identities, Technologies, and Research for a Better Global Future are due on 30th January 2026. More information can be found here: linktr.ee/leedspostgra...

While focus is often solely on asylum, and small boat crossings in particular, it's important to remember that Labour's hostililty against all migrants is harming not only individuals, but the whole country, with an estimated loss of £10.8billion, and zero actual benefits. www.ft.com/content/2b60...

If only there were a cautionary tale about being too eager to accept the apparent time-saving capabilities of new technology.

This is a massive problem with Labour’s immigration proposals. All migrant families affected will be made considerably poorer (because of extra immigration fees over several years plus dampened job prospects) and many (most?) of those families have children.

Awful news from Hong Kong. Comparisons are being made to Grenfell. But, in this case, three arrests have already been made. Over EIGHT YEARS after Grenfell, there has not been a single arrest or prosecution, despite obvious wrongdoing. www.theguardian.com/news/2025/no...

"Sir Keir told the BBC: 'Every minute that is spent talking about anything other than cost-of-living is a wasted minute in my book.'" OK, so why does his government keep banging on about immigration? www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Even with my bedrock low opinion of Labour, I was clinging to some shred of hope that even they would realise that stealing the last remaining possessions of people who have fled for their lives was a disgusting policy. Turns out there isn't a bottom to this particular barrel they are scraping.

Really sad to hear that Alice Wong has died. A brilliant activist and writer who made the world a better place.

This by Mahmood is frankly not only disgusting, but also massively disingenuous. It equates seeking asylum with illegality, there's nothing illegal about seeking asylum no matter the route. It ignores that Labour's policies penalise those in need of protection, and plays to hard right rhetoric.

Yesterday marked the inaugural School of English PGR Symposium. This event was the result of months of hard work from myself and the other organisers including @nrhopwood.bsky.social

We're blown away by the level of interest so far and looking forward to a great couple of days exploring accessibility and/in archives and collections!

Remember guys, @pcsunion.bsky.social staff at the BL are on strike for the next two weeks. Please don't cross the picket line to go to reading rooms, attend exhibitions or anything else. They've endured so much on low pay since the cyberattack in 2023 and the least we can do is have their backs now.

The School of English PGR Symposium is taking place on 11th November, featuring over 10 papers from SoE PGRs! Sign up here to come along forms.office.com/e/75eFxbbbiY

Spread the word! A new postgraduate and early career researcher seminar series at @universityofleeds.bsky.social! For those studying the Late Antique, Medieval, and Early Modern periods. We look forward to reading your proposals! #medievalsky #earlymodern #lateantique

Worth mentioning, there's nothing illegal about seeking asylum. Indeed the need for those doing so to use irregular routes is recognised in law, provided they present themselves, as they have to, to seek asylum to the relevant authorities. This is a grotesquely misleading comment by the Home Office.

"We absolutely need to stop the boats,” Polanski said, “but let’s stop the boats by offering safe and legal routes to asylum and not having people clinging on to dinghies for dear life.* www.newstatesman.com/politics/gre...

Could we please stop pretending that the flags being hung from streetlamps or painted on roundabouts are innocent expressions of patriotic pride? This is the far right marking out its territory. It uses these flags to intimidate its traditional victims and opponents. 🧵1/3

Yvette Cooper looked at current British asylum policies and thought, what we need is for *more* children to die in the English Channel

Extending the "move on period" came at the end of lengthy campaigning, and reams of evidence showing how 28 days led to homelessness, and more pressure on local authorities. This is a counterproductive, retrograde, move by Labour designed to chase Reform. Despicable! www.bbc.com/news/article...

Where government has failed - Taylor Swift might succeed: knocking migration stories off the front pages...

The Polari Prize issued a statement saying it believes its longlistees can hold “different positions on substantive issues.” This is like long listing a racist with authors of color then telling everyone it’s a mere “different position on a substantive issue”. Trans people are a fact. Not an “issue”

It's indefensible, says man who repeatedly defended it.

We can do better than the relentless misery this guy promises; do not let him or his people persuade you this is the best it can be.

oh absolutely fuck these moral fucking cowards

Today, after 14 years, I’m resigning from the Labour Party. Jeremy Corbyn and I will co-lead the founding of a new party, with other Independent MPs, campaigners and activists across the country. Join us. The time is now. Sign up here to stay updated: actionnetwork.org/forms/join-t...

Frankly I would believe Starmer regretted paraphrasing Enoch Powell somewhat more if he wasn't pushing ahead with the some of the most anti-immigration, anti-asylum, policies in decades. His "regret" doesn't make a difference when his actions are the same. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

Today’s morning panel focused on the impact of the Hostile Environment on/in community spaces. With stunning papers by Sophie Fennelly, Peach Hoyle, and Subhadip Mukherjee.

GM 🖤 Please take care of yourself

“Each nasty reactionary comment by Reform followed by the reward of an electoral gain feels as if it eats away at a diverse and decent society, pulling back hard-won tolerance whilst validating the worst prejudices.” My col. on the local election aftermath. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

You’re telling me that right wing voters that Labour was trying to appeal to voted for a right wing party anyway and left wing voters decided not to vote for Labour because they’re too right wing now? Who could have possibly predicted this.

if you are a cis person it costs you nothing to just say today that you see & hear your trans sisters & brothers & others over in the UK today -- and around the world, too, knowing that rulings like today's ripple out in ugly ways.

“I don’t know how you do it! I could never be chronically ill!” We didn’t get a choice. No one asked our permission. Disability just happens. It can happen to you too. We cope because we have no choice. We can’t trade our bodies in for new ones. We can’t “try harder” our way out of it.

I am beyond furious at the cuts that will be made to welfare support, including PIP and UC. It’s punching down, it’s condescending, it’s spiteful, and it’s cruel.

Ooh maybe it’s not all in their heads but a clearly documented post viral outcome …

my preorders for this week’s new releases have arrived and I can’t help but feel like it’s 2014 all over again

Seeing lots and lots of hatred towards people with disabilities - ableism and fascism are intertwined. People aren’t lazy because they can’t work, they’re SICK. And one day you will be too. So if you’re not moved by compassion to treat disabled people humanely, do it out of self preservation.

If you're indulging the 'real disabilities' vs 'over-diagnosed' narrative, you're carrying the can for eugenicists who don't believe that disabled people deserve life. It's exactly the same tactic used vs LGBT people: 'I respect gay people, but there are some who shove it down your throat' etc.

And about 1.2 million people will have their PIP cut — which means a lot more people will know friends and family who are affected. That’s a lot of constituents, even if they didn’t think it were morally wrong to start with.

Labour’s reported disability benefit cuts are not just about budgeting but a belief: paid work is a virtue (and people who don’t perform it deserve a worse life than everyone else). My col. in tomorrow’s paper. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Comrades! Now the audiobook's finally out, I have five codes for free audible copies of *Empire of Normality: Neurodiversity and Capitalism*. If you want one just like and share/quote this post. After 48 hours I'll pick five sharers at random to send the codes to.

No is Not a Lonely Utterance has some details! www.penguin.co.uk/books/470363.... If you're in the UK, it would be amazing if you could pre-order the book as it will help make it more visible & give it a longer life. This is really important because of how the mainstream media works here. Thank you!