The Loop is well represented at #CDP25 with *5* volunteers from @theloopuk.bsky.social & The Loop AU & another *3* whose work was presented. I presented on our poppers paper published in BJC, written wth @markmccormack.bsky.social, @liamwignall.bsky.social & Henry Simmons. £0 doi.org/10.1093/bjc/...

Always exciting to get a new book through the post, especially one on the changing world of #drag. With a chapter by @markmccormack.bsky.social & I, as part of our wider @artscouncilengland.bsky.social funded queer nightlife research. @astonuniversity.bsky.social @liverpooluni.bsky.social

Tonight! 8pm BBC Panorama featuring @theloopuk.bsky.social in action testing at a festival last month & interviews with @ukguyjones.bsky.social & I.

#AcademicSky please amplify this is a new feminist social science journal focused o. #equality & #justice THANK YOU!

We’re recruiting a book review editor to join our existing team. Details👇 www.lexnetwork.org/gender-and-j... ✳️ Deadline 1. 8 .25 Please circulate @deirdreflynn.bsky.social @nicolabarker.bsky.social @fmeasham.bsky.social @leahfburch.bsky.social @whaireland.bsky.social @geogsara.bsky.social 1/2

Don’t leave your mates in a state. Looking out for each other at festivals and clubs isn’t just about safety, it’s about care, consent and community. For more advice & resources: wearetheloop.org/resources #DontLeaveYourMatesInAState #HarmReduction

With reference to TheLoopUK.bsky.social & #drugchecking. Thanks @davidhillier.bsky.social!

🌞Hot weather + 💊drugs = higher risk of dehydration, overheating & illness. - Sip water (+ salt/sugar) - Seek shade & wear sunscreen - #GoSlowStayLow - Know early signs of heat illness & seek help early #HarmReduction #JustSayKnow

Following the suspected nitazene-related deaths of 2 clubbers in London in May & ahead of festivals, we wanted to let you know, no nitazenes were detected by us at Parklife last weekend. But please be aware of the risks & carry naloxone. For more info visit our website: wearetheloop.org/resources

Drug checking service in Bristol TODAY - 11 Brunswick Square, BS2 8PE. Drop off substances anytime before 7pm. Come & find out about drug checking & harm reduction information. The service is anonymous & free! #HarmReduction #DrugChecking #NaloxoneSavesLives @bdpbristol.bsky.social

📣♾📣 2 deaths last weekend in London were from pills confirmed as #nitazenes & similar to pills tested by The Loop. They looked like oxys BUT it is not known what they were bought as. Take care whatever pills you take. Carry #naloxone, check in on friends & test if you can.

New documentary released this month - “Free Party: A Folk History” djmag.com/news/documen...?

Always an honour to read support for @theloopuk.bsky.social & #DrugChecking from bereaved parents. As we head into summer festival season next month, we need to keep spreading the #harmreduction messages, especially regarding the prevalence of double strength ecstasy pills. #TakeQuarterSipWater

Journal articles ✅ Conference papers ✅ Data analysis ✅ Book proposal ✅ The end of a productive Loop researcher writing retreat at the cutest cottage (not the castle!) Thanx to @markmccormack.bsky.social, Liam, Tom, Henry & Eddie for top food, company & creativity.

JOIN US and @liverpooluni.bsky.social Criminal Justice Unit on 21 May for NIGHTLIFE: SAFETY, SECURITY AND POLICING - a stakeholder event led by @fmeasham.bsky.social and ft @theloopuk.bsky.social, @bristolnights.bsky.social & more Free registration ⬇️ www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/nightlife-...

Wednesday 21st May 2025: 1-day nightlife conference organised by Ellen Reeves & I with our @n8prp.bsky.social & @liverpooluni.bsky.social Criminal Justice Unit hats on, gathering together a great range of contributors. Free tickets - limited places - book now! www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/nightlife-...

Pleased to be appointed to the London Nightlife Taskforce Advisory Group this week, at the invitation of the Mayor @london.gov.uk. I have been researching UK nightlife for over 35 years, including annual surveys of London gay clubs. Safety, inclusivity & harm reduction are key themes.

Very sad news from Macedonia. Indoor pyrotechnics by bands in nightclubs have an ignominious history - The Station (USA, 2003) & Colectiv (Romania, 2016) tragedies spring to mind. Check out the unforgettable documentaries on both. Lessons still to be learnt. www.theguardian.com/world/live/2...

New research shows that almost a third of all drug-related hospital presentations at one of the UK’s busiest hospitals involved ‘chems’

"He knows how to make sure that there is no evidence". Research by Professor Sandra Walklate & Dr Ellen Reeves, examined the challenges faced by victim-survivors, when your domestic violence abuser is a police officer, for @aunz.theconversation.com. Read more ⤵️ theconversation.com/he-knows-how...

I’ve still got my orange vinyl version! Nearly wore out the grooves on it. Discovering The Jam was utterly life changing & led to a whole merry-go-round of gigs, clubs, vinyl, hunting down 60s clothes & music, & all the friendships, fun & ferocious commitment to our tribe. What a time to live thru!!

There’s no love like the 1st band you see live (New St Odeon). The Jam was the soundtrack to growing up. We went to every gig we could, bought every record, devoured every word in interviews & inspired by them to discover 60s soul. What a drummer. What a trio. What fun. #RIPRick

Gen Z, drug checking & harm reduction. Professor Fiona Measham (@fmeasham.bsky.social) shares insights on Gen Z’s attitudes toward drugs, the impact of drug checking, and the work of The Loop (@theloopuk.bsky.social) on Times Radio. 🎧 Listen at 40:50 www.thetimes.com/radio/show/2...

Published a blog with @tomcarpino.bsky.social for Recon.com about the importance of sexual (and physical/mental) health at kink events! You can read here: www.recon.com/en/Blog/Arti... (I need to get a new "professional" picture...)

Thank you to @figlover.bsky.social & Jane Garvey for having me on your @listentotimesradio.bsky.social show today to discuss Gen Z attitudes to alcohol & other drugs. Also I got a chance to explain the value of #drugchecking & the work of @theloopuk.bsky.social. More info at: www.wearetheloop.org

Great to catch up with nightlife folks at @ntiaofficial.bsky.social summit & to chair the *best* panel yesterday, brimming with the wonderfulness of the insights of Philip Kolvin KC, Dr Caroline Copeland, Jason Harwin & Billy Chauhan, on responding to nightlife drug-related deaths. Thanks everyone!

Equally thrilled to have @theloopuk.bsky.social trustee Philip Kolvin representing The Loop & promoting #drugchecking at yesterday’s NTIA summit panel on drug-related deaths! 🙌🏻

I've had even more kinksters follow me in the last few weeks (HI!) - I'm still conducting interviews with autistic people who engage in pup play - if you want to take part feel free to DM me, or pass on my details to anybody you think would be interested!

Happy 1st Birthday! The Loop launched the 1st regular public #drugchecking service in the UK on 27/1/24. There is lots more still to do to make drug checking accessible to everyone in the UK - & The Loop is working hard on plans for 2025 - but you can’t put the genie back in the bottle now!

Distrust of police, poverty, lack of opportunity & thrill seeking were the drivers for children’s rioting in summer 2024, not racism | Children's Commissioner for England: www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk/resource/chi...

📢💫 Final Call Gender and Justice is seeking a a Senior Feminist Academic to join the existing teams as Co-Editor in Chief to shape critical feminist scholarship. Deadline this Friday 31/2/25🎯 Details bristoluniversitypress.co.uk/journals/gen... @fmeasham.bsky.social @yvettetinsley.bsky.social 1/2

Very moving interview with Ivor Perl. 24 hours later & still thinking about him turning right & living, his mother & younger brother turning left & being killed, when they arrived at Auschwitz, just because someone whispered for him to lie about his age. The randomness of life.

The Loop is providing public #drugchecking in Bristol this Saturday. Free, friendly & focused #harmreduction! 👇🏻👇🏻👇🏻

This is a beautiful tribute.

“The road to change isn’t always paved with patient parliamentary lobbying” True of both DCR & DCS in UK. It is worth looking at what didn’t happen as well as what did - no legislative change, no party political manifesto, no Parliamentary majority. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Long read by @dhillierwrites on millennial caners, with comments from me on #normalisation. Not often I get asked about the 1990s concept of normalisation of recreational drug use for a dance mag, although it is still going strong in academia! With nod to Russell Newcombe. mixmag.net/feature/the-...

If the aim is to reduce drug-related overdose, then people need to know what is in their drugs *before* consumption, not afterwards. Glasgow is planning a #drugchecking service nearby & that combined service can make a real difference. #ActionBeforeOverdose theconversation.com/drug-consump...

Great! Always good to see pleasure back in the academic mix. I think most of us agree it has to be, for the reasons you state. It is the ‘how’ which is the interesting & challenging part for researchers, which Karenza Moore & I explored a little in ‘The Problem of Pleasure’ (2013).

Whilst we await the imminent decision of the Policing Minister on the ACMD recommendation to exempt poppers from the Psychoactive Substances Act, here’s a paper pondering on the complexities of exempting 1 drug for 1 protected characteristic group whilst others are criminalised:-

The best thing about 2024? #drugchecking went mainstream, including @theloopuk.bsky.social starting regular drug checking in the UK & The Loop AU starting regular drug checking in 3 Australian states. Thanks, appreciation & admiration to the 1000s of Loop volunteers & supporters who contributed.

Planning on using drugs? Read up on key harm reduction information here! ❄️Look out for mates ❄️Research what you're taking ❄️Be aware of interactions & avoid mixing ❄️Go slow stay low ❄️Avoid sharing equipment ❄️Pace yourself on your own terms ❄️Know the signs of emergency ❄️Test your drugs

No mention of the associated #drugchecking service. If we are serious about reducing drug-related harm, *everyone* needs to know what is in circulation in the local drug market - adulterants, contaminants, fluctuating purity - to avert overdose & poisoning *before* consumption. #ActionBeforeOverdose

Guardian film of the year 💗 The magical #AllOfUsStrangers

Solidarity with #GiselePelicot & all survivors. She flipped the script. 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

We await the Minister’s response to the ACMD poppers working group recommendation on exemption which is due imminently. It is going to be interesting to hear which path she chooses & why.

Tomorrow! ✨♾✨ Still time to book a place on our day course, Responding to Drug Use in the Night Time Economy. This course is designed for anyone working in the NTE. www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/responding...

There is only 1 Person of the Year 2024

High & variable strength pills are causing serious medical incidents at UK clubs ATM. Please take care this weekend & over the festival season. Follow @theloopuk.bsky.social for the latest drug market & harm reduction information. #TakeQuarterSipWater

I wrote an article about my dad's death, and how it affected my views on assisted dying, published in the Times Free version here

I’ve been interviewed about other drugs, drug policy & (of course) drug checking in recent years so it was quite a trip to go back to the heady heights of millennial cafe bar culture, alcopops & 24-hour cities, to reflect on how policy affects the lives, & bodies, of young people into adulthood.