Quote with a GIF of a powerful woman

Herts' decision to axe pretty much all its humanities UG courses feels a new low, even for UK HE. But the History issue cuts deep. I did my PhD in that dept, and one of its most impressive features was cultivation of a combined research culture across /all/ student levels.

On Friday afternoon before the Bank Holiday, colleagues in the Humanities department were called to a meeting on Tuesday. They were informed that the University Portfolio Review had decided that English Language, English Literature, Philosophy, History & Creative Writing UG degrees would close

This is wanton self-destructive savagery.

Local polling station was like Nuremberg with zimmer frames.

I can scarcely breathe with excitement about this.

'I have been reading Appian on the Roman Civil Wars... Spartacus is revealed as the most splendid fellow in the whole of ancient history. Great general (no Garibaldi), noble character, real representative of the ancient proletariat.' Happy birthday Karl Marx

#IoW #Folk types - I'm doing a short set (5-6 songs) in the Waverley folk night at Carisbrooke tomorrow, Wed, from 7pm. They are billing me as a 'traditional folkist'. I'm glad we got that cleared up.

Post your warning sign

Found this browsing a website shop today.

Post your warning sign

Nothing distracts me from working quicker than someone posting the Radiators in their pomp. (And yes, any picture of Phil Chevron will distract me).

Viz my previous post about cat books and cats

Reviewing two books about cats and folklore. In a sudden rush I got down the words 'Cats are bellends', but seem to have ground to a halt thereafter.

@oneeyegrey.bsky.social One for you?

Happy 85th Birthday to Ann Margret! She's a great dancer, but is she better than Billy Dainty? Only one way to find out!

'... a former dancer with the nearby Blackwell [morris dance] side, which ceased performing around 1867 when their fiddler was struck by lightning'

I don't often dream music, but last night's call-and-response choral stanza was great: [Leader] I would have you to think [All] Over Eccleshall's grave [Leader] I would have you to think [All, rall.] Over E-e-eclesha-a-all's graaaaave

If academic editors were stricter in eliminating overwriting, repetition and the tedious explanation of unnecessary, ugly and unhelpful neologisms, many edited collections could be streamlined into pamphlets.

On a course of antibiotics that taste of bad breath.

Their genius did not apparently stretch to being able to spell 'quartet' in a headline

If you see this, quote with a pic of you in glasses

Good morning all! For those who can't wait any longer: our book PERFORMING MAGNETISM is already available in open access, with huge thanks to @leuvenup.bsky.social Read it here: openresearchlibrary.org/content/d7d0... Or here: www.jstor.org/content/oa_b...

This is sad. Angela Pleasence was remarkable.

Finally got over to the reopened Southampton City Art Gallery on Saturday. Went for the Delvaux, Colquhoun, John Martin, but this Emma Richardson show absolutely snuck up on me unexpected and took me to amazing places. I'll be going back to this one southamptoncityartgallery.com/whats-on/emm...

I realise that this does put the rediscovery of 2 lost episodes of Daleks' Master Plan into context, but I have exactly the same levels of feverish excitement about both.

CfP for the latest in the joint @folkloresociety.bsky.social / RAI #Folklore and #Anthropology in Conversation seminar series. ‘When Loud Rumour Speaks’: Informal communication in the modern online world Thurs, 15 Oct 2026, 10-17, London CfP open till 30 Jun

The Doctrine of Werewolves

I've only just seen this, but it was appropriate it came up yesterday, the 50th anniversary of Phil Ochs's passing. This has long been my favourite song, the one I go back to and sing out as a restatement of what I must be in this world. It's about living proud enough to die. youtu.be/CXVBPRlm-qw

Wow. That 25p I've just spent on a Timebox compilation CD was excellent outlay. Ollie Halsall was ... quite a thing ... wasn't he?

Frank Conniff: My fellow writers might not want to hear this, but AI is a useful tool for certain aspects of the craft, like for instance when you’re engaged in the process of being a talentless shitbag hack who is too lazy to do any fucking writing.

Oooh. Just seen a preliminary draft programme for the forthcoming @folkloresociety.bsky.social conference and found that two of my former students from the last year are presenting. I am a bit chuffed with tutorial pride, of course, but mostly I'm just really delighted for them.

This stands as equally good advice for other disciplines and other time periods. He's just a great writer.

As we mourn the great Averil Cameron, I point you to her autobiographical talk from 2017: on being working class and female in Ancient History wcc-uk.blogs.sas.ac.uk/2017/05/22/s...

On this verge the finite mind must pause

A daiquiri with the dakini

More idle threats, brain, you've got nothing and you know it.

Trip into Ryde revealed that a) my favourite local comic shop, Fantastic Store, has a sale on, and b) Department is advertising a forthcoming Magic of Puppet and Masks exhibition from the Scottish Mask & Puppet Centre collection. (No link as Department's website's a bit rubbish, but it looks ace)

'A mandrill named Happy Jerry, who was trained to smoke a pipe and sit on an armchair'

Care4Calais has been attacked by racists and it doesn’t seem to have been reported anywhere. liam-record.com/2026/04/02/c...

Hi everyone, here's a little thing I wrote about ghost tours as a tool for historical research (?). If you don't have access but would like to read, let me know! www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

Here's a thing. Even if your venue is lovely, your event is ace, your joke is excellent, your point sound - if you have used that AI that makes everything look over-bright, unshaded, round-faced whimsically jolly cartoonish - I WILL SCROLL PAST QUICKLY. It's infantile and insulting shite. Just don't

That lovely feeling when a dear colleague drops you a line offering you a copy of a book by a scholar they know you're interested in. That slight ruefulness at knowing that of course you've already got a copy.

Oh dear god. 'As a valued member of our alumni community, we’re delighted to announce an exclusive MBA package... 'We’d like to invite you to take the next step in your leadership journey with our prestigious MBA programme.' How about just no?

For the first time this year, I put on a lighter jacket to go out. Found a conker in the pocket.

The wide disparity in numbers of incoming and outgoing books meant we had to buy some overflow shelves a while back. These are now too full for further new books. I am advised that this is a problem. (Looks guiltily at floor space in my study diminishing beneath piles of books...)

It's the season for beeflies, which are terrific insects. Unfortunately, this means my annual battle not to pronounce the word 'beefly' aloud as if it were an adverb.

Rough neighbourhood.

Can't quite believe I just scored both volumes of this affordably.