Fantastic!

This is also why teaching history even at school needs to deal with questions of source bias. I show my first years the classic image of Jeanne de Montbaston illuminating manuscripts in the family Paris workshop in the 14c and point out that we only know about her work because her husband died...

I miss the sea.

Privileged to have written Dickie Bird’s obituary for The Guardian. An eccentric innocent treasured by so many. Every time I met him it was an invitation to rediscover my inner child. www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/s...

The much-anticipated news is now here. I am very excited to announce that my book, soon out with York Medieval Press, is now available for pre-order! Hats off to @boydellandbrewer.bsky.social and the awesome Mont-Saint-Michel design team for the cover! boydellandbrewer.com/book/robert-...

I ran out of characters on the last post. And now the world has lost another character. Dickie was an eccentric and one of life's true innocents. Everytime I met him it was if my childhood had returned. Universally treasured in Yorkshire where we do not always agree on everything. RIP old mate.

Sad news. Dickie Bird was on fine form at Scarborough in July, patrolling the boundary edge, chatting to fans and signing autographs for children. A Yorkshire legend.

What do trade tolls have to do with the "Feudal Transformation"? My take, just published:

It is, however, a glorious autumn morning! Sun, mist, a chill in the air.

Oh great. Points failure on the way into Waterloo. Let the will I make my 1pm.seminar anxiety begin (yes, I left a 2-hour buffer).

Offre d’emploi – Research Associate – MOWLIT: The Medieval March of Wales rmblf.be/2025/09/23/o...

Friends rejoice! The copy of Julian of Norwich that once was lost has now been found!

"In a landmark study, OpenAI researchers reveal that large language models will always produce plausible but false outputs, even with perfect data, due to fundamental statistical and computational limits." www.computerworld.com/article/4059...

It is autumn. What has it got in its pocketssssesss? Conkerses, acornses, beech nutsssss... Precioussss

Happy feast day to all the Matthews!

'In an anonymous survey of department heads by the Institute of Physics (IoP), 26% said they faced potential closure of their department within the next two years, while 60% said they expected courses to be reduced.' Chemistry, Drama, English, History, Modern Languages, Nursing, Physics...

This is the feast of Theodore of Tarsus, d. 690, Archbishop of Canterbury. 🕯️ Let's look at a few early manuscripts of works that have been attributed to him. 🧵 The most securely-attributed work is the Laterculus Malalianus, seen here in the earlier of 2 surviving MSS, BAV Pal. lat. 277, 8c.

My knitting is not cosy and it is definitely not a social activity. Many of my colleagues can testify to my rage knitting in meetings. Gen X, see. www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle...

We always mark Theodore's feast at CCCU. Today, all at Morning Prayer were given a bottle of 'Holy Academia', last year's university ale named in honour of Theodore and Hadrian!

The point of going to university is to explore research and knowledge, not to start an effing business. The skills and experiences gained might help you start a business, as might the interactions with the people you meet, but it is not the purpose of a degree. Fed up of this manure.

I sympathise with anyone going through restructure. But the removal of departments has been going on for years, particularly, but not exclusively, in post-92s. Often this has involved redundancies. Why the fuss now?

This has been a thing for years in parts of the sector.

embraceme.org/news-1/embra... I find the Embrace the Middle East updates very helpful in terms of news from the ground in Gaza.

Today I can listen to the Levellers and call it teaching prep. Yes, I am teaching some modern history and heritage this year. And yes, my modernist disguise is about as convicing as 'a giraffe in dark glasses trying to get into a polar bears only golf club'. Blackadder never fails.

And the situation in Medieval history... I've had several conversations this summer about whether our field will survive. If I left my job now, not only would I.not be replaced by a medievalist, I wouldn't be replaced at all. 1/

And Anglicans. We celebrate Hildegard, too!

And, leaving on one side ethics and everything for two seconds, how the fuck does this save time? AI? Just say no.

A very happy feast of Hildegard of Bingen to all nuns and medievalists!

A final reminder that the deadline for abstract submissions is the end of next week #medievalsky Details 👇

One of this year's aims is to get the Bayeux Tapestry into as many modules as possible from various different angles. All my students WILL learn about this wonderful artefact.

On 22 October, we visit historians at the University of Suffolk and Suffolk Archives, to discuss partnership working. Our Ipswich visit includes a guest public lecture by Tim Grady (Chester) and a reception to meet fellow historians bit.ly/4medzcd - to which all are very welcome 2/2 #Skystorians

On 17-18 September, the Society is visiting historians across the University of Aberdeen to discuss 'fostering positive research cultures in difficult times'. Day 1 (Weds 17th) concludes with a guest lecture by Matthew J. Smith (UCL to which all in the region are warmly invited bit.ly/3IjbMVj 1/2

Excellent thread on #palaeography and its challenges.

There is a great deal to take in. I feel like a new member of staff, even though I am old.

The best advice to students beginning university can be summed up as: if in doubt, ask your teachers (or librarians, or student support staff, etc. as relevant) and not the plagiarism robot. The Guardian can send my fee to my PO Box.

Students: follow Margot and your tutors' advice, rather than this slop. Oh, and if you upload work that doesn't belong to you, it's breaking copyright and is also theft.

A weekend of contrasts. A lovely day at Usk Show on Saturday (with a win in the knitting class) and seeing family. Today, seeing the reporting of yesterday's far right march in England and wishing the media and politicians would call it what it is. 1/

Report back from the UUK meeting at our all-staff briefing suggested that pausing the REF is about connecting QR funding with 'specialisms', rather than each HEI returning over all units of assessment ... I hope that's wrong but ...

Absolutely. It's how research works.

'"You can’t have hobbyist research that’s unfunded going on in institutions. We can’t afford it.”' Such a badly formulated phrasing of the issues, so open to so many misinterpretations. If this is the level of thinking about research among sector leaders and policy-makers, be very afraid.

Exciting to hear that QMUL will then again be a very humanities university, as our humanities departments are the ones scoring high in REF, well above our science departments... [Sarcastic. This kind of language is coverage for cuts and misunderstands the cumulative role of small-scale research.]

You what now? Who gets to define 'hobbyist'? The REF 'funds' research. Anti-intellectual, utilitarian, ignorant approach from the UUK president.

'Of the undergraduate courses at low-tariff universities, 12 per cent have been struck off. This compared with 6 per cent at medium-tariff providers and 5 per cent at high-tariff institutions.' Worth reading in the context of the evidence and analysis in the BA's Cold Spots report. 2/3

Hmm, watching with concern.

A beautiful, peaceful piece by the magnificent Arvo Pärt - happy birthday! music.apple.com/ie/album/the...

Hot off the press, the British Academy's Cold Spots: Mapping Inequality in SHAPE Provision in UK Higher Education report. Read it if you care about universities or access to the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences for the rising generation. 1/5

Well, it has been a day.

We've had a staff briefing at Kent from our acting VC and we don't really know any further than has been reported. This is the beginning of a process that we've been told will be transparent. There were lots of questions but no answers yet. Talk to your colleagues. We are stronger together.

Absolutely astounded that the UCU and Unison branches at Kent and Greenwich were not consulted, and that staff only found out about the merger this morning via BBC news and Kent Online. Solidarity to all colleagues.