Went hunting for fossil shark teeth today and was joined by a little assistant. The robin came onto the sand to investigate what I was digging up.

My proof that there is no benevolent deity is that exercise is good for mental and physical health. It should be the vastly superior chocolate eclair.

Love the ovulo decoration on Roman pottery, no matter how worn. #Mudlarking

Went out fossil hunting this morning. Found my first fish vertebrae, all around 55 million years old.

My next book, A History of the World in 50 Tyrants, is out in December. It's been a good time to write about horrible people.

Good piece in The Observer about the shenanigans (to put it lightly) at Unbound and Boundless that left us authors unpaid. Death of a publishing dream: how the Unbound revolution became untethered. share.google/rdQYUQEToow7...

Another former Unbound/Boundless book looking for a home. This would SLAY as a point-of-sale gift book for the holidays: bsky.app/profile/beng...

Still looking for a new publisher for A Feast of Folklore! Max Miller of Tasting History called it 'A must read the next time you are sitting down to a sausage roll.' You can't get higher praise.

So proud to have contributed to DK's book A History of Astrology, Divination and Prophecy.

My next book, A Short History of the World in 50 Tyrants, is out in December. If you order it online from Waterstones with this code you can get 25%off until the end of July.

Just finished A Feast of Folklore by @bengazur.bsky.social . Really fascinating and I hope it comes out with a new publisher soon!

Katy Perry reenacting the end of Aristophanes' Peace by nearly falling off a flying dung beetle is the perfect way to introduce the classics to people.

My second piece of gold from the Thames. Unfortunately, unidentifiable. But still, I'm rich! #Mudlarking

Lovely bit of a Delftware face from the foreshore. Similar in style to this image of William and Mary so probably a similar age, late 17th century. #Mudlarking

Magnificent masonic gravestone in Hastings. ITNOTGAOTU means In The Name Of The Great Architect Of The Universe.

Sat down on the beach on our holiday and immediately spotted a fossil shark tooth. It's going to be a good week.

Classical Pride at the Barbican! It's classical music, but gayer.

Sometimes I pick up every tiny scrap of Roman pottery I find while mudlarking. This is from one trip and each bit is still exciting. Love to discover decorated pieces.

By winter I'll have enough Roman heating flue tiles to keep the flat warm. #mudlarking

When the temperature gets over 30 I set my email reply to "I'm afraid my brain has liquified and dribbled out of my ear."

One of my smaller mudlarking finds is this tiny glass bead with even smaller ridges on the side.

Sometimes you have to search really hard for anything while mudlarking. Sometimes the river places objects right in front of you.

Finally after a very delayed trip at the depot because the post office it was sent from didn't stick postage on, I have A feast of Folklore thanks to @bengazur.bsky.social

Just received a copy of Folklore: A Journey Through the Past and Present! Can't wait to get stuck in. @odavies9.bsky.social @cerihoulbrook.bsky.social

No matter how small, I love finding Roman pottery. It was baking on the foreshore today. #mudlarking

I love my little toy spoon from the foreshore today. #mudlarking

The AIDS memorial quilts in the Tate Modern are so moving. So many lives lost.

Albrecht Durer's print of the Monstrous Sow of Landser from 1496. It was said to have “one head, four ears, two bodies, eight feet on six of which it stood, and two tongues.”

Finally got to see a print of Toby the Sapient Pig!

Can any mudlarking chums decipher this lead cloth seal? One day I'll get a well preserved one...

Sometimes the foreshore stares back at you when mudlarking.

One of my little fragments of Roman flue-tile on the Finds Database.

Made up a second frame of Roman textures from the Thames featuring Samian pottery, mortaria, hypocaust flue tiles, and one tiny tessera. #Mudlarking

Had the foreshore to myself for a restorative mudlarking session. Some nice bits of Roman pottery and a tiny cloth seal.

Hello all! Anyone in publishing who might want to acquire A Feast of Folklore feel free to contact me. I'm getting the rights back after the Unbound/Boundless debacle and it needs a good home after this nightmare. #WritingCommunity

Who's hotter? Athens around 440 BCE.

Slowly moving through the stages of grief over Unbound/Boundless. The money owed to us authors is bad enough (and it is really bad for those of us relying on the money coming in) but it has soured the dream of getting a book published.

Quick unfortunate update. I'm taking back the rights to A Feast of Folklore because of the situation at Boundless. The paperback will not be released by them so please don't pre-order it at the moment. Thanks.

Just handed my strange little curved object over to the Finds Liaison Officer. Turns out it's a Roman shale bracelet. #Mudlarking

Want to know where to see cheese chased down a street? Why a saint smeared cream cheese on her breasts? How to tell the future with cheese? Do I have the book for you! A Feast of Folklore, by... Erm... Me. uk.bookshop.org/p/books/a-fe...

A marble show? We had to go.

This is apparently called a Dutch Baby... All I know is Yorkshire pudding for pudding is delicious.

Popped in to return a book at my local library and lookit what was waiting for me on the New Book shelf. Woot! @bengazur.bsky.social

Need to curse someone? Write their name on an onion, stab it with pins, and place it in your chimney. This one was aimed at John Milton, a cobbler. #MythologyMonday For more food curses see my book A Feast of Folklore here: uk.bookshop.org/p/books/a-fe...

There's something so magical about spotting tiny beads on the foreshore. #Mudlarking

You see a piece of a Roman indented pottery, I see a Roman bum. It makes mudlarking fun.

I finally struck gold while mudlarking! This tiny gold bead. Did not dare do a gold dance for fear of dropping it.

I know there is a lot going on but if you have the time would you mind leaving a review for A Feast of Folklore? It really makes a difference. And if you love food and folklore and strange stories about cheese it might be the book you need. amzn.eu/d/e7hygD9

When in doubt I find comfort in the works of Emil Cioran. "I am displeased with everything. If they made me God, I would immediately resign."

Whenever I feel the temptation to speak about something outside my area of expertise I remember the time I thought I could cut my own hair.