Discworld QOTD, from Mort

Queer history types! Can anyone recommend scholarship that looks at asylum / psychiatric hospital records through a queer or trans lens?

Read about one of the strangest ships ever built was launched at a Hull shipyard in 1874- a ship had a rotating cabin that aimed to prevent seasickness! Did it work? 👉 www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

A reminder for hard pressed UK researchers the "Great British Rail Sale" runs till Monday 12 January and you can get 50% off on some train journeys, and you can book ahead till end of March 2026. www.nationalrail.co.uk/great-britis... Perhaps it will make that library or archive trip a bit easier. 📢

Whilst you're all here, we're hoping to do a bunch of new videos this year showing off some of our collection and answering your weird archive questions. So, what would you like us to do videos on?

@melindahaunton.bsky.social I think you said you were looking for some interesting 'learning' things to do? Not sure if these would fit the bill

Not even the prompts. If you are a Twitter user in the UK and Twitter sticks a Grok CSAM image in your feed for WHATEVER reason, well congrats your device just downloaded child porn. And you are legally responsible for that.

🐈📦

my favorite thing about the benoit blanc movies is that they aren't really about benoit blanc. he is not grappling with demons from his past. we are not getting flashbacks to the husband whose murder he never solved. he just shows up and does his job like mary poppins for homicides

Watching Victoria Wood and for the 900th time I’m struck by how everyone (including her) talks about her size and she’s SO ABSOLUTELY NORMAL SIZE. Pernicious as it ever bloody was.

i post this story every christmas, and will keep doing so until it stops making me cry merry christmas xx

Discworld QOTD, from Hogfather

Just in case you never saw this on Twitter, it’s a masterpiece of a thread.

Twas the night before Christmas, and throughout the land The sleeping arrangements were carefully planned Down in the kitchen, a picturesque scene A mattress, a pillow, a washing machine

This is always a highlight of my Christmas Eve - grateful I don't have an entering enough sleep set up to qualify! Please read, laugh - and donate to very good cause

And the finest Christmas tradition has arrived — #DuvetKnowItsChristmas is today! 1) Follow @rhodri.biz 2) post your pics of your makeshift Christmas Eve sleeping arrangements and 3) give money to the homeless @centrepointuk.bsky.social

Discworld QOTD, from Snuff "You should look for those who can’t believe that the law would ever catch them, who believe that they act out of a right that the rest of us do not have. The job of the officer of the law is to let them know that they are wrong!"

Tomorrow evening it’ll be my annual duty to vaguely shepherd the activity on the #duvetknowitschristmas hashtag and urge people to give small sums to charity. 7.30pm? Something like that?

are you bored at Christmas? want an opportunity to escape from your relatives because you are Making Valuable Contributions to Scholarship? can I interest you in looking at (labelled!) slides from the early 20th century, architecture and archaeology? all I need you to do is write down the label.

"Think not of the books you've bought as a "to be read" pile. Instead, think of your bookcase as a wine cellar. You collect books to be read at the right time, the right place, and the right mood." - Luc van Donkersgoed

The cultural impact of Rob Reiner cannot be understated. Legend isn't big enough a word. It goes to 11. You can't handle the truth. As you wish. I'll have what she's having. I'm your number one fan. You guys wanna see a dead body? The very idea of a bucket list. The West Wing. All from his movies.

📣 'Archives to Action' has a programme! If you are a #humanities researcher or #archivist looking to connect your work to #policy. Or if you are in #legal practice or #policy looking for new ways to address old problems, this FREE one-day workshop is for you: www.northumbria.ac.uk/about-us/new...

I am really looking forward to running this event in January. It is a bit of a departure from the usual academic conference format and I hope will feature plenty of conversation and new opportunities for future collaboration. Join in, either in person or online: www.northumbria.ac.uk/about-us/new...

Major update to our map of Anglo-Saxon London... we've now added etymologies for each place name, so you can find out what your bit of London used to be called.... and why londonist.substack.com/p/mapping-an...

It looks like a furious duck wearing a scarf.

If they aren’t a registered charity and they aren’t registered with the Fundraising Regulator (example logo below), it’s probably one of these scammy orgs where the ‘profit’ is a tiny fraction of the money you handed over and some bastard gets rich on your good intentions. Give to a real charity.

Great culture can save lives. Literally. Amazing letter in today’s @thetimes.com about Tom Stoppard

Lovely start to #YayAdvent with this very festive candy cane clip. Thanks @tmmorton.bsky.social! And as always thanks to @gazpachodragon.bsky.social for organising this annual delight.

In conversation with Rupert Whitaker: a special event to mark World AIDS Day – 6pm 1 December 2025, Durham University Waterside Building pay.durham.ac.uk/event-durham...

Reading about AI being subverted by adversarial poetry and Russian drones' navigation systems jammed by Ukranian folk anthems, which suggests the opening future 'human rebels' scenes of Terminator may now have to be revised.

Great work from Rachel & the team at Edinburgh University Archives.

At some point, for the love of God, will someone ANYONE at long last take the council funding crisis seriously?!? Because THIS is what will break down a society, not some poor soul escaping incredible dangers, arriving on our shores.

THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS THIS

Sex ed should be mandatory and all students regardless of gender should study periods, childbirth, PCOS, and endometriosis.

Now open for booking: OU Law School's legal histories conference. This year's theme is 'moments of rupture' and we have an exciting range of speakers, topics, jurisdictions and periods. 20-21 November, online, free. Programme and booking at the link.

Good lords the tension!

PLEASE commission a buddy comedy with Nick and Joe where they have to continuously wear their outfits from this roundtable with no explanation to viewers

New books/audiobooks out this week by KJ Charles, Freya Marske, Anne Cleeves AND Jodi Taylor. Happy birthday week off to me!!!

I love how Russell T Davies always uses his platform to fight for progress - I hate how it is always so necessary

Last couple of days for Yayadvent/Yayswap sign up. If you're a nice, normal person and interested in an advent calendar and/or Christmas ornament exchange and want more info let me know!

Oh and for those who saw me sewing this last week - it's now finished! #ConfinedCocktails

Why aren’t Police Records in England & Wales covered by the Public Records Act? We've been campaigning on this since 2012 - blog for more info: www.campaignforrecords.org/blog/why-arent-police-records-covered-by-the-public-records-act #publicaccountability of interest @andyburnham.bsky.social ?

#yayadvent and #yayswap signups are now live. Though I'm around, this account is not actively monitored so please get in touch via the contact form on the website if necessary. yayadvent.weebly.com

Loved that performance of Bohemian Rhapsody at the Proms - so powerful with a full orchestra and choir

National Trust Members. It’s time to vote to keep the Faragists out. Best not to split the vote. Use the QUICK VOTE” link both for people and for motions.

As part of national Heritage Open Days, Hull History Centre is offering additional behind the scenes tours on 16-18 Sept, as well as a local studies book and map sale (16-18, 20 Sept) - see you there!

Job alert 🚨 Doncaster Archives are recruiting for an Archives Manager f/t permanent. Deadline 5 October 2025. Great opportunity 👇 uk.indeed.com/m/viewjob?jk...

In one of our archive strong rooms there is a shelf. The shelf does not contain the most exciting or interesting item in the archive but it does contain something amazing. Read this short thread to find out more. 🧵👇