RIP Steve. One of the most extraordinary people I have ever spoken with. Her refugee to tech entrepreneur philanthropist life story is amazing, but it's her sense of decency that sticks most in my memory, deciding to live "a life that had been worth saving" www.theguardian.com/education/20...

I cannot recall a game of Arkham when I have rolled this hilariously and consistently badly.

why in The Last of Us do they go on a first date to hunt zombies in the horrible supermarket, when they could instead hold hands at their local rural history museum?

In the queue for A Knight's Tale, one of our party has genuinely only just realised this isn't actually a faithful performance of Chaucer in the original Middle English

Not the best day for a walk

This is all going a bit wrong....

You can use a ZX Spectrum to "do everything from run a business to study your biorhythms you can brush up your history, even land a plane!" A more innocent time for IT perhaps.

A drizzle of MiGs

Historian from the future, readinge thrugh the March 2025 posts on thys site, Ich hope wyth all myne hearte that yower tyme ys bettir than these dayes we now endure.

Had a grand day out learning about the awesome work of the Avro Heritage Centre in sunny Stockport. Amazing to stand in the cockpit of a cold war era Vulcan bomber built to deter the USSR. Thank goodness those dark days of history are behind us.

When was the last time when Britain wasn't in crisis? I have a vague feeling there might have been a few months in the late 1990s, but that could just be nostalgia, otherwise it just seems like muddling through crisis (economic, social (real or imagined), the odd world war) seems to be the default?

Good to see my weekend's reading materials arrived before the storm hit

This is both an incredibly niche thing but I think it should be more of a thing. Caffè Nero subscribes to the British Newspaper Archive so it’s all free on their wifi. There. I said it.

Did not have "Former PhD supervisor in factual dispute with Trump, in national news" on my 2025 bingo card... www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

What's the correct etiquette for when you kick someone's water bottle into the swimming pool, because, A:you're very short sighted, and B: it was in a silly place anyway? Am I right in thinking it's pretend it didn't happen and walk away to the showers without making eye contact with anyone? Right?

Christmas tradition achievement unlocked. 🔓 🎄

My day so far.

Finally! My loves of cheese and worker placement games are brought together in one place.

Guess who didn't read the book but went to bookgroup anyway...

Friday cat has had enough this week

This is the sort of cat poop naval history crossover I joined this platform for

Have to love ̶M̶e̶d̶e̶a̶v̶a̶l̶ ̶M̶e̶d̶i̶a̶e̶v̶i̶l̶ Early Modern solutions for preventing book theft. Interesting morning at Chetham's delightfully atmospheric Library

This is HMS Fidelity. Built in Liverpool in 1920. Served as a Royal Navy commando and covert action ship during WW2. I think Fidelity might be unique among WW2 Royal Navy combat vessels. Her First Officer was a woman: the absolutely fascinating Lt Cdr (effective) Madeleine Barclay. /1

Huzzah, the absolute unit has arrived.

Had a great time this week making friends with Sno-Cat and other objects at the Science Museum's incredible newly opened national collection centre. www.bbc.com/news/article...

Such a wonderful resource - indispensable when writing Metropolitan Science or researching London's 18thC scientific instrument makers. I've dipped into the updated version and look forward to future explorations!

Those two years as an agricultural historian gave me an exaggerated sense of my gardening abilities. This is my *entire* beetroot crop.

On the day the UK finally phases coal out of the electricity supply system, it seems an opportune moment to flag a video I helped make a few years ago of what happens in a coal fired power station. I had forgetten just how HUGE that pile of coal outside was... Great explanation from Granville too

UK Coal xkcd.com/2992

"Could the owner of the house door that has been left on platform one please return to your door and collect it immediately"

Sad & strange that Port Talbot blast furnaces will soon be no more. Visiting my parents with someone not from PT years ago, they got out of the car, pointed to the horizon and yelped "my god it's on fire!" I was shocked to discover that this wasn't considered 'normal'. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Town square marketplace of ideas

It's not looking good for us TBH

Is it just me, or do Catseyes look a lot space invaders when they're not stuck in a road?

It seems impossible to write about how jet engines work without using words that sound every so slightly rude. Suck, squeeze, bang, blow to provide thrust. Ooh matron. 😳🤭

Well lets hope this new place is a bit nicer than the old place was.