So the 8th pope in my lifetime is #Pope Leo XIV. Interestingly Pope Leo XIII was the one that had most influence on my life’s activities! Hopefully this one will have the same impact as his namesake did in 1891. A champion for ordinary working people.

I always knew god ran the best dating agency! We popped into Cologne cathedral to say thanks/danke for the last four months 🙏

Great opening speech from Michael Crick at the @democracynetworkuk.bsky.social summit #DNsummit25 in Sheffield on the perils facing Democracy @politicsinaction.bsky.social @politicsproject.bsky.social

How do we respond to growing threats to democracy, discussing now at #DNSummit25

🚀And we’re off! Sarah Castell, CEO of @involveuk.bsky.social kicks off #DNSummit25 🙌 We’ll be posting live from the summit here in Sheffield, so follow along for updates! 👀

Anyone else old enough to remember this 1960s campaign? 😃

The University of Leeds has become the first Russell Group university to officially announce that it is quitting Elon Musk’s social media site X. It will, however, be alive and well on Bluesky. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-u...

Sick of google AI Gemini. Followed all the instructions to turn it off in admin. To no avail. It’s like chewing gum on your shoe! Or Pop up ads! 🤬 In my 60s I know how to write an email or letter. I get it, there is a generation who can’t write, spell or use a phone as a phone! But seriously! FO!

Well those in the south who still imagine the north as a place of towns of Victorian dark satanic mills. What on earth gives you that impression? 🤷🏻 This was a misty #Todmorden #WestYorkshire last night.

Possible gift for my goddaughter. She's a great sense of humour. Seemed a comic way to say "you are special" But I reflected on the message as I listened to @jessphillipsmp.bsky.social et al in parliament on #domesticviolence . Is it textualised slapstick or potentially normalising violence? 🤷‍♂️l

Friend just sent me this super pic. He just popped up on her handbag! Hard to believe it was a quick snapshot. #Robin *Taken this morning at Bampton Garden Centre, near filming of #DowntonAbbey

Over to tutors for marking but my team of 3rd year students working on a booking system project for @riversidecentre.bsky.social have completed a helpful report with sensible recommendations. Always a pleasure to work with enterprise students on this module. @universityofleeds.bsky.social

As thousands leave, could this signal the end for Musk’s X? Channel 4 News interviews Dr. Max Gerrath, expert & Associate Professor of Marketing at Leeds University Business School. Providing analysis on the significant transformations occurring in popular social media platforms. bit.ly/4gDb2Gp

Most towns ring in the new year with fireworks. This year in the #CalderValley it was flood sirens in the early hours😟 #Todmorden #HebdenBridge

Bye 🙋🏼‍♂️ 2024: memorable?Three funerals and no weddings. 🤔 A different colour but yet another uninspiring government. Think I’ll park this one. 2025? 🫣

On the 6th day of Xmas….Despite having the #CavityWall insulation removed because it caused a massive damp problem, I’ve had to resort to getting at the residue left behind myself, still causing low level damp! 😡One bin bag full just from this 6ft section.

Just a reminder to us we live in a rural area too and these guys are a significant part of the economy and community. Great showcase for their industry. #Todmorden #HebdenBridge #CalderValley 🚜🚜🚜🚜🚜🚜🚜🚜🚜🚜🚜🚜🚜🚜🚜🚜👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

Hmmm? 1kg of pork 435g of fat cut off. Visually it looked like about 15%. The birds will have great lunch today!

#Magdeburg 🙁🙏

“why be a farmer?” local farmer & academic Peter Gittins insights. 30 min podcast really worth a listen. Hear a lived experience & academic view. understand complexity of discussion on subsidies, inheritance tax, food supply & social harm of policies aimed at farming. whycurve.com/episode/trac...

Thumbing through my old address book (old as in ‘Filofax’ remember those?) for a list of potential Christmas card recipients, is proving a bit depressing, as more each year have shuffled off this mortal coil. (*note to self: cherish those who are left with genuine and personal Xmas messages)

Oh god it’s started again! 😞 I thought leaving Twitter would leave behind all those lazy basketball fans who think there is only one Stephen Curry in the world. “UK” is one clue my profile is another. #Slamdunk (whatever that means)

Always inspiring to hear business ideas and discuss startup strategies with students and post grads @universityofleeds.bsky.social #LeedsUniBusinessSchool

How do we build more and better? What would it mean if communities were at the heart of the development system? Proud to work with Local Partnerships & Browne Jacobson and on launching Constructing Consensus, with changemakers from local & national gov & communities.

Keir Starmer said the fight for trust will be “battle that defines our political era” Big ask? shouldn’t be. Needs to manifest at a local level though. Opportunities for collaboration & cooperation are being lost (ignored) regularly @wearenewlocal.bsky.social www.transparency.org.uk/keir-starmer...

Every second new follower is a scientist🧐Which bit of my profile (Bio) says Biochemist, genetic scientist, neuroscientist et al? Maybe I’ve been identified as a potential case study?😱

Super event last night @universityofleeds.bsky.social a really insightful panel discussion Q&A on rehabilitation of offenders by imbuing them with entrepreneurial skills to rejoin society. Particularly useful when the job market is limited to them.

Had lunch with a friend who is a Prof. Ethnomethodology. By the time I got home I had 20+ new followers on here. Mostly academics🤔 Am feeling hacked and algorithmed! 😱 Welcome anyway folks👨🏻‍🎓🧑🏼‍🎓👩🏻‍🎓

Enlightening and inspiring evening with Frances Milner, CEO of @LUFC Foundation. Leadership in the 3rd sector bringing in high value support for charities. @LeedsUniBSchool

Letters to his wife from boot camp 1940 to DDay to Brussels & finally #Hannover tell our uncle Tommy’s WW2 survival story. Due to be demobbed he died in an RTA just 2 weeks before coming home. 60 yrs later my Mum & Uncle found closure at his grave in #Celle #RememberanceDay2024

John Curry, just 19 years old Royal Medical Corp. medic. Killed in Gallipoli (Dardanelles Campaign) whilst tending to fallen comrades. #RemembranceDay2024

I’ve an inherent desire to see the club I supported as a kid do well. But no desire to pay into the obscene media financial support for that now elitist sport. As Alister Cook said “I prefer radio to TV because the pictures are better.” There’s less distracting flashing adverts too!

And you know when you have arrived #klangweg #Toggenburg

Train travel at its very best! #Switzerland 🇨🇭

Hope @bsky.app returns us to the relatively civil social media that Twitter once provided us with, pre Musk. As was once said "without change you don't get butterflies".