One of the finest software engineers I've ever had the pleasure to work with had a degree in music. Another had a degree in Egyptology. The important thing was that their degrees taught them how to think. Their love of the subjects just made things better.

My latest: "Numerous studies show that majors in the humanities—typically, in departments of English, history, philosophy, religious studies, classics and languages—lead students to employment and life satisfaction outcomes as positive as those for majors traditionally championed as 'practical.'”

“Prioritising a narrow set of disciplines could mean we lose talented arts, humanities and social sciences graduates who help drive innovation and tackle huge societal challenges. Student choice is vital.” bit.ly/3KAReIQ

📚Join us on 30 Oct 2025 at Senate House for The History of English Studies in Britain symposium 🎤 Speakers include Carole Atherton, Gail Marshall, Ronan McDonald, Christopher Stray, Stuart Jones, & Stefan Collini Free (booking required)👉 tinyurl.com/43z9mxnc #EnglishStudies #Humanities #Literature

The Ronald Blythe Fellowship is John Clare Society's new scheme awarding a PhD student focusing on Clare a £1000 bursary to support their work. Please pass on - &/or contact me or Honorary Secretary of the Society, Karen Lakey, for further information: johnclaresociety.wordpress.com/contact-us/

I’ve documented protests for decades. The asylum hotel protests I’ve photographed have all been very small. When I first turned up at the Newcastle protest, and asked the police where the protesters were, they pointed to one man and said he’s over there.

BBC Today is reporting that “at least 94” data centres will be built in the next 5 years in the U.K. How can we possibly justify doing that when we can’t get a full electric car charging network built, & the power infrastructure is insufficient to connect new wind farms, never mind water shortages

At the risk of sounding like a character from the ‘Fast Show’ - isn’t this brilliant? A brilliant novel sure to be brilliantly illustrated by the brilliant @rickardsisters.com This is just, well, brilliant!

@robertsaunders.bsky.social I was just reading your excellent book on the 1867 Reform Act. It was really helpful. Thank you!

Footballer Héctor Bellerín’s reading list

I just signed this petition calling for better cooperation with the EU on the environment. Will you add your name, too? www.europeanmovement.co.uk/uk-eu-enviro...

#EnglishCreates English, History, all the arts and humanities subjects are critical for all of our futures universityenglish.ac.uk/englishcreat...

Decades of mechanistic talk about university degrees as if they were bundles of 'skills' and 'prep' are about to be proved completely wrong (obviously). Want to get a real boost? Do History or English.

Huge thanks to Helen Smith wordsmith.bsky.social for an excellent English: Shared Futures conference. It was inspiring, exciting, and fun, and especially moving to hear so many friends and colleagues speaking about why and how English matters to them

Excited to chair an online discussion this Thursday, hosted by @englishassociation.bsky.social, on why boys in the GCSE / A level system (not so much in Scotland) are drifting away from study of English. Featuring some brilliant speakers from across our subject: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/boys-and-e...

@drclaireocall.bsky.social is the keynote speaker at this ‘Violence, Health, and the Health Humanities’ workshop @uniofreading.bsky.social’s Centre for Health Humanities. It’s tomorrow 1-5pm @sophiefranklin.bsky.social

We're really sorry to hear of the death of our dear colleague Professor Simon James. From 2016-19, Simon was PI on the Arts Council England and Durham University collaboration, the Durham Commission on Creativity which investigated the benefits of creativity for young people.

He was a well-known scholar of the late-19th century, publishing especially influentially on Wells and Gissing. Simon was one-time editor of The Wellsian journal, and edited Vile Bodies for OUP’s landmark Collected Works of Evelyn Waugh.

Above all, Simon was the essence of generosity, an engaging and wonderful speaker, the person you’d be delighted to see at any conference or seminar, a rich and very present presence. University English sends its condolences to his family, friends, and colleagues.

"the antidote to our overlapping crises is not just better data or smarter technologies—it is expansive imagination. And that imagination is cultivated not in labs or spreadsheets, but through the critical, creative, and interpretive work of the humanities." wonkhe.com/blogs/our-fu...

More impact stories from #EnglishCreates including this project based in www.reading.ac.uk/english-lite... building local pride and championing working-class writers More great work at: www.reading.ac.uk/english-lite...

Championing Scots, influencing public policy, and working with communities and creatives

How English at www.aber.ac.uk/en/english/ is helping the NHS #EnglishCreates

More great impact from www.aber.ac.uk/en/english/ bringing literature and literary opportunities to new groups

And yet more: creative writing colleagues at www.aber.ac.uk/en/english/ help patients with long covid. More evidence that English can help to create a better, healthier world #EnglishCreates

Stop cuts to Modern Languages at Bangor University 👉Sign the petition: chng.it/K2zRY6Jqqt 👉Share the petition with family/friends/networks. 👉Send emails outlining your objections. For details and templates visit the website: www.stopcutsinmlatbangor.uk/home/

Be more Ken.

Tim Leunig here, with a warning to all those MPs who want to just allow universities to implode: in 100 constituencies the university is one of the top three exporters. Take Huddersfield: the uni there easily outstrips in turnover the biggest local company. timleunig.substack.com/p/internatio...

Calendars at the ready: it's just over a month until our Romany and Traveller History Day on 14 June! Come for a special day celebrating the stories of our Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities + music, blacksmithing, talks, our new GRT gallery launch, & more. merl.reading.ac.uk/event/romany...

🚨🌱 The Chancellor is reviewing all public spending. Please join me in signing the @campaignforthearts.org petition to remind the UK Govt: the arts make our lives happier & our communities stronger. Now is the moment to invest in them. www.campaignforthearts.org/petitions/sp...

Please share in your networks. Goldsmiths, UoL are offering 5 scholarships in Undergrad & MA courses for Palestinian students. The scholarships include: tuition fee waiver, £19,550 allowance, return trip to & from the UK. Eligibility details & further info at link👇🏽 www.gold.ac.uk/fees-funding...

New job at University of Reading to support our sanctuary, humanitarian, and global civic programmes: jobs.reading.ac.uk/Job/JobDetai...

Looking forward to the @univeng.bsky.social AGM today. Sessions on ‘interdisciplinary English’ and REF with Panel D Chair and Pilot members. @englishassociation.bsky.social @ies-sas.bsky.social @gailmarshall.bsky.social

It is also nearly impossible to tell if a university will go bust....universities borrow money from banks...If they get into financial trouble, they will renegotiate the terms of their loan with the bank...no bank wants to see a university which owes them money failing'.

"Cardiff has embraced the entirely bizarre proposition that the global and transtemporal examination of culture is possible even without the provision of languages at degree level. There are very many reasons why this is alarming." 👇👇

Senedd Members criticise ‘colossal’ Cardiff University cuts caerphilly.observer/news/1046668...

I doubt any Troll here who’s trying to smear ⁦Keir Starmer about decade-old events will be interested to read these pages from my book about his record prosecuting rape gangs. But he’s done more to bring them to justice than Farage, Yaxley-Lennon - or Musk -will ever do.

Removing the financial support enabling students in state schools learn Latin in the UK is an appalling and shortsighted policy. Please sign this petition to keep the Latin Excellence Programme - www.change.org/p/save-the-l... #AncientBlueSky

Just imagine the benefits of doing this for three years! #EnglishCreates Consuming arts and culture is good for health and wellbeing, research finds www.theguardian.com/society/2024...

Creative arts graduates succeed because of their background, not in spite of it wonkhe.com/blogs/creati... Important recalibration of creative arts careers data and impact by Katie Normington, VC of De Montfort and Professor of Drama, and graduate of English.

Call for unpublished female writers … ‘Discoveries invites all unpublished and unagented women writers aged 18 and up, currently residing in the UK or Ireland and writing in English, to submit their works of adult fiction to the Discoveries Prize.’

"There are cold spots in arts, humanities, and social sciences provision" - with huge consequences for inclusion, access, fairness of opportunity. wonkhe.com/blogs/there-...

"The end of the fossil fuel age is inevitable," said @antonioguterres @UN today at #G20Brasil "Let’s make sure it does not come too late – and that it comes with justice." #COP29 www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Pls Repost: building a list of people working on/in working-class literature. #workingclassliterature

Excellent advocacy on R4 Today for the importance of enjoyment, creativity, and relevance in GCSE English from Freddie Baveystock #EnglishCreates