Who knew there was so much to say about the bridge? And much, much more: Anne Lister’s travel tips.

From my last proper walk before it became far too hot for such things (for me, at least).

The end of a (very long) era, perhaps, but it’s a “superstar” of biodiversity hosting; and “legends never die” (this one made me choke!). (I quote from this short clip.)

On Fri 12 /06, someone drove onto Highgate Common between 3pm and 5pm and stole four, 12-foot metal field gates off their hinges, and a small wooden trailer. If you saw anything unusual, such as an unbranded vehicle driving around the reserve with a trailer, please let us know: 01384 221798.

This coat of arms is about 30% the same as Anne Lister’s. You can read about hers here! www.packedwithpotential.org/stories-arti...

I appreciate plants these days more than I would ever have imagined even a couple of years ago. I think this has sort of developed backwards, from a late interest in birds, to insects, to plants. We humans would be nowhere without all, or even any, of those things.

"The Reform dominated Calderdale Council will not fly the rainbow flag in the grounds of Shibden Hall, where 19th Century industrialist Anne Lister, also known as Gentleman Jack, wrote her famous diaries, including about her love affairs with women." www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

In Ashbourne, this is the most direct route between The Green Man and St Oswald’s Church, where Anne Lister and Mrs Lawton stayed and visited respectively in 1825. There’s a number of 18th century and earlier buildings, which they would have seen if they took this route.

Check out our new blog on Ann Walker's early travels!

Nature helps keep communities healthier, cooler and more resilient. The places with the least nature shouldn’t be first in line to lose more. Tell Government to close loopholes, not create new ones: action.rspb.org.uk/page/192593/...

This photo of a blackbird high on a balustrade is pretty poor, and blurred. But it reminds of its delightful surround-sound song filling central Buxton on a glorious, hot evening recently. 🐦‍⬛ It’s especially nice to think of now it’s cool and wet!

www.theguardian.com/business/202... This govt has no respect for nature or a future (with lots of jobs!) that could be built around (especially if funded to the tune of 1.3 billion) the natural environment.

They don’t need long to get up and running, but while they need that time PLEASE keep dogs on leads.

Today we head to the heathland at dusk, with the Nightjar. 🌙 With bark-like plumage that melts into leaf litter, Nightjars are masters of camouflage. Adults shelter their chicks beneath them by day, keeping them hidden and still until the night shift begins. #SpringStories

I love #Buxton. And I love these Buxton pigeons nesting amongst the anti-pigeon spikes. 🥰

A good number of both swifts and housemartins, all soaring and swooping and diving. A lovely start to a glorious day.

A tree appreciation post. It’s not a brilliant photo, but it was a lovely walk made even better by this tree.

I love the “clean up” function on my new phone - this photo had three people in two places before I played about with it!

Dippers are the UK’s only songbirds that swim underwater, walking along stream beds in search of food. Fledglings bob eagerly at the river's edge. Fluff-ball shadows of their parents, they'll be fed for around 2 weeks before they learn to brave the current. #SpringStories

This article about Isabella Norcliffe is so good that I think Anne Lister might have been peeved that it’s not about her! About “Tib”, and her life, family, and associates, it leaves no stone unturned. 👏

Every visitor plays a part in keeping Staffordshire’s wild places safe. Under the Staffordshire Moorlands Public Space Protection Order (PSPO), fires, barbecues, and fireworks are not permitted, and reporting concerns helps prevent devastating wildfires.

So pretty after the rain.

Halifax Minster is one of Yorkshire’s great parish churches and one of the oldest landmarks in the town. Officially dedicated to St John the Baptist, the church has stood on the site for around 900 years, with parts of the present building dating mainly from the 15th century. It

I wonder whether Anne Lister admired this awesome cupola on either of her two visits (1825 and 1835) to Chatsworth in the Peak District!

This one will be good!

📣 Last call! The CFP for the 2026 Summit will close at midnight ET! www.annelisterresearchsummit.org/call-for-par...

BREAKING NEWS!!!!!!! ***THE SWIFTS ARE BACK!!!*** WELCOME HOMMMEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Have you seen any? #uglycrying #birds #swifts #theyreback #BreakingNews BEST NEWS OF THE YEAR! BEST DAY OF THE YEAR!!!!!!!!!

Have you spotted a Sheffield Swift yet? Early reports from Totley & Heeley 25/4/26. Let us know in comments & report sightings on RSPB Swift Mapper🙏 👇 www.rspb.org.uk/helping-natu...

I can never see this beautiful crescent, or walk on the slopes opposite, without thinking of Anne Lister. The slopes (then St Ann’s Cliff) weren’t there on her first visit with Mariana’s honeymoon party in 1816, but were in place by 1825, her next visit to Buxton.

It’s a fine afternoon if you can say you spent part of it swallow- and chicken-watching!

So the garden cam captured a cat, yes, but it’s a cool ghostly cat! 👻🐈‍⬛

It's World Curlew Day tomorrow, and here is a reminder about why we celebrate:

The oak you’ve known for years, the patch of grass suddenly alive with bluebells, or the shortcut where traffic fades into birdsong... Local nature brings everyday joy. With big decisions ahead, MPs need to hear why it matters. Send your Postcard from Nature: action.rspb.org.uk/page/189621/... 💌

🧵Back to Shibden Hall where the Aisled Barn is a Grade II* listed early 17th-century structure that now houses part of the West Yorkshire Folk Museum. Built around 1600 (though first recorded in 1677), it is thought one of the finest examples of an aisled barn or laithe in the

We have just updated our guidance on what and when to feed garden birds: Feed seasonally. Feed safely. To reduce disease, we all need to make some urgent but simple changes to how we feed our garden birds. RSPB scientist @richgreg3.bsky.social explains more: tinyurl.com/mnt284ck 🧪 🪶

“The UK’s new pandemic preparedness strategy – and ending the country’s contribution to the Pandemic Fund as part of aid cuts – raises serious questions about whether the UK can protect itself”

#NetworkRail are getting bogged down in their own justifications but the point is that the swift nesting sites are blocked and they can unblock them. 📧email CEO Jeremy Westlake asking him to unblock them: [email protected] #SaveOurSwifts #UnblockTheNests

most read environmental story in The Guardian: Patrick Barkham’s coverage of the #NetworkRail saga about how thousands are people are calling for swift nesting sites to be unblocked‼️email the CEO of Network Rail asking him to unblock the nests [email protected]

www.theguardian.com/environment/... @networkrail.bsky.social You REALLY need to rectify your error as a matter of urgency.

If like so many you use bird feeding equipment, please read this very important advice from the RSPB. In short, to prevent the circulation of disease, it’s advised not to use feeders ftom May to October. And flat topped feeders not at all.

A little reminder for London friends, and any travellers passing through 💌 You’ve got until 12 April to see the wills of Anne Lister & Ann Walker displayed side by side in the Love Letters exhibition at @nationalarchives.gov.uk.web.brid.gy!

In celebration of the 235th Anniversary of Anne Lister’s birth, we are sharing this short clip about the connection between Ann Walker and Old St Matthew’s, Lightcliffe. Ann Walker was the partner of Anne Lister of Shibden Hall.

🎂 Happy birthday to the one and only #AnneLister! 235 years later, and she's still making headlines...

www.theguardian.com/environment/... This retrograde, cruel, environmentally disastrous and health-compromising step is another reason why I won’t vote Labour again (which I have always voted for till now). How sad.

Today’s walk was cold, but so worth it!

What WOULD Miss Lister think of her surname being autocorrected to “listening”. 😆

Halifax’s Borough Market.

🧵/ The NHS is about to undergo one of the most radical – and scandalous - changes in its history. From 1st April (the public are the fools in this), GPs will be contractually obliged to seek remote “advice & guidance” from hospital clinicians, making it even harder to see an NHS specialist.

On this day in 1834, Anne Lister and Ann Walker took the sacrament at Holy Trinity Goodramgate in York to seal their union, in what is often described as the first lesbian marriage in Britain.