The latest @richardiiisociety.bsky.social podcast is available, discussing Emperor Maximilian; Richard III & The Missing Princes. open.spotify.com/episode/5VhU...

For the 250th anniversary of Jane Austen's birth I couldn't resist sharing her observations on Richard III - we're all familiar with how Horace Walpole's 'Castle of Otranto' led to 'Northanger Abbey' but it seems his 'Historic Doubts' were discussed in the Austen household too.

Funded in large part by @r3-society-usa.bsky.social .

Very much hoping @yuanfenyang.bsky.social will be here.l

Liberal Democrats vs Reform UK Ltd: who’s really the underdog? The Liberal Democrats hold 72 parliamentary seats, yet the media have sidelined Ed Davey while Reform UK Ltd hogs column inches and airtime @politicalsatirical.bsky.social

Our thanks to @richardasquith.bsky.social for a fascinating talk. Members of the Richard III Society who missed it will have a chance to view a recording for a limited time.

Every MP should be required to read @lauralaker.bsky.social 's 'Potholes and Pavements'!

Silk that's over a thousand years old! I first heard about these relics of St Julian in July (in a keynote lecture @imc-leeds.bsky.social) and was awestruck to come upon them at the National Museum of Ravenna last week. Byzantine work, 9th-10th century.

www.theguardian.com/environment/... - good news about heat-pumps.

I'll be here! Talking about Harold Godwinson's much mythologised partner Edith Swanneck.

I was fascinated to learn that the earliest surviving evidence of writing in Italy comes from a woman's tomb from the 8th century BC and it probably says 'the one who spins well'. (Found at Gabii, now at the Diocletian Baths in Rome).

Are you a scholar of the fifteenth century and have an interest in the British Isles and its wider connections? If so, then you will want to know that @memsunikent.bsky.social will be hosting the 2026 Fifteenth Century Conference in Canterbury and the CfP is now open: www.kent.ac.uk/medieval-ear...

Are you interested in the roads and bridges of #medieval England and Wales? In our latest #blogpost, Dr David Harrison discusses his fascinating new map that provides crucial insights into the road network as it existed in the 15th century yorkisthistorytrust.org/2025/11/10/a... #Skystorians

I've written about mead and its popular perception for The Conversation. theconversation.com/the-truth-ab... Mildly concerned that by pointing out that the Vikings (probably) didn't drink (much) mead, I will have annoyed all the re-enactors, many of whom have swords oh dear.

Crucial action by @StopCambo: The Government wants to hear what you think about approving new oil and gas field Rosebank. Submit your comment here today: actionnetwork.org/forms/the-go...

Good news for nature www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

Dorothy Whitelock Lecture 2025: Guthlac: what the early medieval records tell us 3 December 17:15 St Peter’s College chapel, New Inn Hall Street, Oxford @ox.ac.uk Join the event in person or online. www.english.ox.ac.uk/event/doroth...

Nov 16: Feast of Margaret of Scotland (†1093). English noble who married Máel Coluim III, king of Alba. Church reformer and friend to the poor who founded a free ferry across the Firth of Forth for pilgrims heading to Cennrígmonaid (St Andrews). Her pocket gospel-book survives. #medievalsky

Duchy Chamber pleadings for the reigns of Henry VII and Henry VIII (DL 1/1-26) are now searchable to item level online. discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/browse/r/r/C...

Not enough attention is being paid to the effective closure of the bulk of one of the 2 or 3 most important public archives for modern British history. A terrible own goal for the BBC as a public-service agency.

The 2020 issue of The Ricardian was recently uploaded to @richardiiisociety.bsky.social's website free to access richardiii.net/research/the.... It includes papers from an @lincolnrecsoc.bsky.social conference, among them a case study of Cecily duchess of York's excercise of lordship in Lincolnshire

Needed to be near Holland Park this evening so arrived early and visited Lord Leighton's wonderful home.

This seems a logical action to take after my last post.

Let me excerpt the concluding paragraph:

Cecily duchess of York made generous donations to the English hopsice in Rome - something unusual in her family - so I am really looking forward to seeing the fruits of Philip Muijtjens research here: yorkisthistorytrust.org/2025/10/30/t...

I'll be giving a talk on King Harold's so-called 'Danish wife' Edith, so I thought I'd better watch 'King and Conqueror'. If you've seen it, you'll understand why I might feel I need to post an image of, for example, a glorious colourful book owned by Judith of Flanders during her marriage to Tostig

A wonderful story of nature bouncing back when given the chance...

A neat tool I just came across: Viabundus, a digital road map of northern Europe 1350-1650, that lets you calculate contemporary travel routes/times. In 1500, going Amiens → Köln by horse took almost 7 days and 13 toll payments. #medievalsky www.landesgeschichte.uni-goettingen.de/handelsstras...

Most histories of hoodies go with 12th century monks as the originator, but I like to show my students this one from 5th-7th century Egypt.

Trump is destroying a core piece of US #WomensHistory. Of course 19thnews.org/2025/10/east...

An introduction to a fascinating sounding project. Really looking forward to seeing its conclusions (especially where the narratives are being drawn from to be misshaped).

📜 A national project led by University of Exeter is reviving Henry VIII’s Valor Ecclesiasticus — a Tudor-era survey of England’s churches, land & people. Digitised & mapped for the first time, it’s a fresh look at 16th-century life. https://ow.ly/jeN050Xarsh

Sign ups are now live for our January Potting Shed cohort! Join us as we grow eco communities rooted in faith, sustainability, and nature. All the details here: hazelnutcommunityfarm.com/potting-shed...

Absolutely insane.

If anyone is looking for The Coronation Documents of Richard III - there's a copy in the Oxfam online book shop at the moment. Meanwhile the Canadian branch of the Richard III Society are auctioning two copies of the NPG catalogue on their website.

How much stronger does the case for proportional representation have to be?

Two of the most common climate misconceptions I see, even among knowledgeable folks, are that (1) most people aren't worried about climate change, and (2) if they were, they'd act. Not true! Data show (1) most people are worried, but (2) they won’t act if they don’t know what to do-and most don’t.

How can MPs act with urgency on climate if they don’t even know the deadline has already arrived? New UEA study finds public and politicians dangerously misinformed.

A glorious October day in my favourite city.

There's still time to register for our 7 Oct webinar (12.30pm) on greening our finances. We'll be joined by Eco Church & JustMoney Movement as we explore practical steps churches can take, such as choosing a greener bank account, investing in climate solutions & more. us06web.zoom.us/meeting/regi...

Lovely to learn this connection between a woman I have long admired (loyal Katherine) and one of my favourite houses.

Please help combat BBC news blackout of Green Party! @zackpolanski.bsky.social was the only party leader not interviewed by Laura Kuenssberg during their party conference. So please RT his cracking conference speech..

Natasha Hodgson @nrhodgson-hist.bsky.social also talked more about the findings of the @endsexisminschools.bsky.social report in the following Tes article.

Some good news. London is meeting legal limits for toxic NO2 pollution for the first time – almost 200 years earlier than predicted – following the Mayor’s "world leading air pollution policies," City Hall announces. The Ultra Low Emissions Zone - and similar policies - really do work.

Climate change is already damaging the nature, beauty and heritage we care for. Without deep and sustained cuts to emissions, nature faces an even more perilous future and the places people love will continue to suffer. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

RIP the wonderful Primatologist Jane Goodall. “You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.” A beautiful person.

Happy Petrov Day to those who celebrate. On September 26, 1983, Stanislav Petrov made the correct decision to not trust a computer. I've attached a short clip from a reenactment of the situation in the documentary The Man Who Saved the World. 1/11

An interesting post to read in conjunction with the article on medicinal plants in late medieval gardens that appeared in The Ricardian (just arriving with @richardiiisociety.bsky.social members).

The @ihr.bsky.social Late Medieval Seminar series for autumn 2025 is now published. Themes from ladies in waiting to the custom house, and a roundtable on editing sources. All seminars are hybrid (or fully online), also, I'm now one of the convenors! www.history.ac.uk/news-events/...