Hi! I’m Bethan, a PhD researcher focusing on the lived experiences and material culture of children in Medieval England. I’d love to connect with researchers, academics and history buffs with similar interests! :) • history of children & childhood • medicine, healthcare & hygiene (…)

Best foxglove in the garden ever and entirely free after self seeding!

European alternative to Google Docs and Microsoft Office launches on 9 June: free, open source and online, using existing building blocks. An important step in freeing ourselves from US control. www.zdnet.com/article/euro...

This old lady has returned from the vet’s after a barrage of tests. Thankfully nothing serious detected (yet) other than an overwhelming hatred of men! She refused to let the male nurse handle her but calmed down when a woman took over

"the Russell Group of Universities raised more cash from operations than the rest of the sector combined" That's 24 universities. 24. Making a killing. Literally.

1825: Found the old Frog in my garden that has been there this four years I know it by a mark which it recievd from my spade 4 years ago I thought it woud dye of the wound so I turnd it up on a bed of flowers at the end of the garden which is thickly covered with ferns & bluebells I am glad to...

Congratulations ! You have reached the Woodpigeon of encouragement. Great job! Keep going! 📷️ @carlbovisnature.bsky.social

So, @edzitron.com ate his Wheatties this morning

📢JOB ALERT 📢 We are looking to appoint a F/T open-ended Lecturer in Late Medieval / Early Modern History (1400-1700) @lancasteruni.bsky.social. This is an amazing opportunity that we are very proud to announce, so please spread the word far and wide! www.hr-jobs.lancs.ac.uk/Vacancy.aspx...

And on 16th June, @clairehistory.bsky.social is speaking at a Curious Histories online event about the Prisoners of Norman Cross. 6:30pm, pay what you can, all proceeds to charity! www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/prisoners-...

🙄 eldest was supposed to have a year placement in industry but couldn’t find one because no one is taking on undergrads. Youngest has similar issues finding work despite industry experience. This is not the answer

Not long to go now until my next talk!

Me trying to remember how to do my job after the long weekend:

A PhD student at Stanford noticed her classmates were asking Al to write their breakup texts. So she ran a study. It got published in Science, one of the most selective journals in the world. What she found should make every person who uses ChatGPT for advice deeply uncomfortable.

The poemwriting is not goingwell today.

I’m hoping someone can help out with dating these wallpapers! Possibly 18-19th century designs. If there’s any #Wallpapers historians out there can you shed light on these? They located in a much developed 17th century building. Please repost! Many thanks in anticipation.

This weekend my street has been turned into Ibiza with sweltering temperatures and (almost) nonstop music! The guy who started playing drum and bass at 10am yesterday was still playing it at 11pm (even after a neighbour shouted at him). He started at the same time this morning and is louder still!

The "butterfly cross" is a type of carving found in many historic buildings. It is thought to be apotropaic in its significance and was often placed on thresholds or doorways. The idea is that the symbol would protect the space from evil. This example was found in Buildwas Abbey. #apotropaic

My eldest made the most of the support offered by his university because it’s ridiculously expensive for fees, accommodation etc. He’s currently predicted a very high scoring 1st in a subject the government wants people educated in. Can someone explain how punching down makes unis better?

Neighbours started day drinking at 10am accompanied by a drum and base soundtrack. Thankfully the starlings and Dunnock are trying to drown him out 😂

Listen for the cuckoo! The River Welland looking east at Deeping Lakes

Absolute paradise down at #DeepingLakes this morning. The air was entirely full of birdsong but there was barely a person in sight. Managed to record lots of birds on the Merlin app and saw many others beside this. Very, very low numbers of water birds but the gulls were doing well #birds

Fascism isn’t announced on the news - it’s the historians who raise the alarm.

This week's Friday murder is set in Grosmont, a village which didn't actually exist in 1841. Despite a church, a reasonable permanent population and an ironworks, Tunnel - the area around the tunnel on the Whitby and Pickering line - didn't get named properly until the 1850s. Nevertheless...

Continuing on my search of Jean de la Porte, straw marquetry artist and possible etcher. If his name rings a bell, please let me know

How will UK HE recover from this? Disastrously shortsighted decision-making that is dismantling the very infrastructure of the humanities, and threatening the livelihoods of scholars and teachers who deserve so much better. Senior managers, what are you doing?

Reely interesting local history. I want to know everything about this story! Was it caught in the Nene or one of the tributaries? Who caught it? Who took it to Westminster? For context, this story is older than the Guildhall in the centre of the city!

Just wanna say that ‘Teenage mutant nuclear wildhogs’ scans perfectly with the TMNT theme tune

Anyway, someone we know used to work at a taxidermy museum and supposedly a member of the public turned up with a roadkill badger in a carrier bag and was offended when they didn't take it.

The church at St. Peter, Broadwell, Oxfordshire lives up to Ruskin's words: ‘..the greatest glory of a building is not in its stones, nor in its gold. Its glory is in that golden stain of time, that we are to look for the real light, and colour, and preciousness of architecture.’

Sometimes the most unassuming artefacts are utterly incredible! Take this piece of wood … It is a spear point worked from yew about 420,000 years ago! 🤯 Known as the ‘Clacton Spear’ it is the world’s oldest known preserved wooden spear! Natural History Museum, London 📷 by me #Archaeology

Yay for a doctoral project studying eel-human interactions! I approve!

Another gem from the Norman Cross records on Find My Past! 😂

Another gem from the Norman Cross records on Find My Past! 😂

New Associate Professor role in modern British History, just advertised here at Oxford. @lifelong-learning.ox.ac.uk @ox.ac.uk @kelloggoxford.bsky.social my.corehr.com/pls/uoxrecru...

'You Blew Me Away' sculpture by Penny Hardy #womensart

My youngest always makes me take the Glinton road, a route that slides from the edge of Glinton across medieval ridge and furrow, and sweeps past Nine Bridges before a 90 degree turn into Northborough. Every season has it’s own unique beauty and was a landscape John Clare loved

Let it be clear: you are wanted here.

Wishing you a calm and peaceful Sunday, from here in a buttercup-strewn Cambridgeshire 🥰

This artwork, titled Bulb Fields (also known as Flower Beds in Holland), was painted by Vincent van Gogh in April 1883. This is Van Gogh's very first garden painting using oil paints. He created it during his second year living in The Hague.

It was rather beautiful down at the town orchard this afternoon. Anyone know which bird the feather is from?

🌍 "In Senegal, researchers found that farmers using agroecology had 17 percent higher yields and 36 percent higher incomes than their conventional counterparts; in Brazil, these numbers were respectively 49 and 177 percent." www.aljazeera.com/opinions/202...

People who get AI to summarise everything so they can complete their doctorates should get the title ‘[tl;]Dr’

Safely returned from a few days researching in Amsterdam. Brushed up on my Dutch and ate like a queen!

Don't forget that it is @massobsarchive.bsky.social diary day. Anyone can contribute to this wonderful social history archive - anyone in the UK can submit massobs.org.uk/12th-may/

1825: It is often reported that the Skylark never sings but on the wing this report is worth little truth like a many others I saw one this morning sing on the ground

Today marks the start of #MEAwarenessWeek (11-17 May). More people are aware of #MECFS but work is still needed to counter misinformation and share medical information. Here are 6 myths and facts everyone should know about #MyalgicEncephalomyelitis. worldmealliance.org/2025/04/worl...

Lady Charlotte was born in Uffington near Stamford, Lincs. Daughter of the Earl of Lindsey and his wife Sarah Layard. Her half sister Mary Antoinetta became Marchioness Huntly and is known for her botanic and historical collections. I suspect their mother played an important role in their education

Lady Charlotte was born in Uffington near Stamford, Lincs. Daughter of the Earl of Lindsey and his wife Sarah Layard. Her half sister Mary Antoinetta became Marchioness Huntly and is known for her botanic and historical collections. I suspect their mother played an important role in their education

I found this and it may bring a smile!🙂 This is called the "feather-drying dance of the Great blue Heron"