The Venus of Brassempouy (or Lady of Brassempouy) is one of the earliest representations of the human face. It was sculpted in mammoth ivory about 25,000 years ago. It was discovered in a cave at Brassempouy, France in 1892.

Something lovely for the weekend! Minoan cups made by Bronze Age potters some 3,800 years ago! Heraklion Archaeological Museum, Crete 📷 by me #Archaeology

Access to the custom union and single market would save small businesses across the UK, like Apparel Studio. If we want to undo the damage to our economy, we need to undo the actions that caused them.

We all need a laugh at the mo. Just don't let a cat see you laughing at it 😏

Wordle 1,666 2/6 ⬜⬜⬜🟩⬜ 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

Into The Woods. -1°C just after dawn. Pheasants.

»Das ist keine Strategie. Das ist ein Manöver. Übersetzt heißt es: Deutschland will Teil der Kulisse sein, aber nicht Teil des Risikos. Solidarität ja - solange sie nicht wehtut.« @arturweigandt.bsky.social auf n-tv

#NowSpinning Sibelius’s spooky and atmospheric melodrama Snöfrid. Paavo Järvi’s Estonian forces sound fabulous here.

Joan Baez wird heute 85 Jahre alt. Welch tolle Frau, welch tolle Sängerin. We both know what memories can bring They bring diamonds and rust! Wie wahr youtu.be/IrVD0bP_ybg?...

What makes a building good? My good friend @ecominimalnick.bsky.social and Jon Broom have distilled decades of experience between them to write this book. Recommended for anyone interested in efficient, elegant sustainable design

Swedish word of the day #swotd is sparkstötting (kicksled). This is a small sled w/ a chair on a pair of flexible metal runners. In order to gain speed, you need to kick the ground by foot. #Sweden

The fact that not including fascists in a right-wing government this time around is 'good news' tells you all you need to know about the state of the Netherlands. Yes, right-wing. None of these are 'centre' if you put the Overton window back where it was.

Die Ruhe vor dem Sturm ... #photography #scape #eastcoastkin

Status Quo #Hamburg 11.30 Uhr Impressionen (Schneehöhe, Windgeschwindigkeit etc.)

Die schwimmen nur bei Eiseskälte auf der Oder: Die sogenannten Brieger Gänse sind runde Eisschollen. Wenn sie gegeneinander stoßen, sollen sie Geräusche wie Gänse machen.

It's Stephen Hawking's birthday. The occasion to share this fantastic video he produced as part of his Genius documentatry series. Hawking elaborates on our place in the Universe, including our membership to the Laniakea supercluster of galaxies that we discovered back in 2014. 🧪🔭

What a time to be alive & out of the EU 🙄

Wordle 1,664 2/6 ⬜⬜🟨⬜🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

Apparently, I’m Supposed to be Pitied for Living in London open.substack.com/pub/iratusur...

We can’t get the whole population to the National Theatre, but we can foster connection within our libraries, music venues and village halls, writes Jess Plant, policy director at Creative Lives.

Skating On The Yorkshire Wolds ( yesterday ) Off for a few days , back soon , best wishes , James ⛸️

Mood over Crummock Water

Happy New Fear! The new Private Eye is out now.

Our mission to transform Oxford Street has kicked up another gear. The first board meeting has just taken place. Sticking to the status quo isn’t an option. Our proposals for Oxford Street are radical, and it’s the future that the overwhelming majority of Londoners want.

Every country needs to be following Finland's lead here. Media literary skills are going to be crucially important in the age of AI, where knowing what's real and what's not is going to be increasingly difficult apnews.com/article/fake...

You can see it coming... Trump will want Greenland as the price for Ukraine security It's time for the UK & Europe to really step up. Europe can be a superpower too, but for good. Never mind 3% or 5% defence spending, we need 10% & people need to be told why. We should never depend on America again.

Willkommen in der Eurozone, #Bulgarien! 🇧🇬🇪🇺 Der heutige Neujahrstag ist ein freudiger Tag für die europäische Integration: Wir begrüßen #Bulgarien als neues Mitglied im #Euroraum! Der Wechsel vom Lew zum #Euro ist ein starkes Signal für die gemeinsame Zukunft in der #EU. 💶 #EUSky #EuropaGrenzenlos

Some people demean ‘to ax’ as a variant of ‘to ask’, but it’s at least 1200 years old. It stems from Old English ‘ācsian’ with /ks/, a variant of ‘āscian’ with /sk/. Later, Chaucer used both ‘axen’ and ‘asken’. Swapping two sounds is called metathesis. More examples from English and its sisters:

British voters believe Brexit has made things worse in the UK, from the economy to immigration, and left the nation with even less control over its own destiny, according to a major new poll www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/poli...

Bristol Old Vic Theatre School is to resurrect its undergraduate provision, announcing the move a year to the day since it paused applications to its 3-year BA Professional Acting course. #NewsInBrief

6th January is the feast of the Epiphany #Epiphany BL Add MS 49598; 963 CE-984 CE; The Benedictional of St Æthelwold; England, S.; f.24v

#NowSpinning Rautavaara’s Cantus Arcticus. This is a marvellous gem. The composer casts a very special spell over and under the recorded bird sounds. It’s a desolate kind of beauty, but addictive and beguiling.

Habemus ... sneeuw! A morning fit for Breugel:

For the past 24 hours, the vessel searching for MH370 has been moving at low speed in a very specific area airlive.net/news/2026/01...

Trump Threatens Venezuela’s New Leader With a Fate Worse Than Maduro’s. The felon demands obedience, control of mineral wealth. He said: “We do need Greenland, absolutely”, and the US needs to maintain control over the Western Hemisphere. The imperialism of King Donald beckons.

View of Oxford in the winter sunshine from the tower of the University Church (built in 1280).

++ BAHN-ANSAGE DES MONATS, 12/2025 ++

"Die Lok, die uns gerade zieht, ist offiziell nicht in der Lage, uns zu ziehen. Deshalb müssen wir in Bremen eine andere Lok anhängen." (@JFCbam) #BahnAnsagen

BREAKING: “What is becoming increasingly apparent is the falsehoods that were peddled by Nigel Farage and others at the time of the Brexit referendum…all you had to do was leave the EU & you would have £350m a week for your NHS, well it hasn’t materialised” PM Keir Starmer

🤦 'Pathogens do not keep calendars or borders, and that the only durable defense is a living system of prevention, early detection, and rapid response.' 🤷 'Preparedness must be a core capability we fund, practice, measure, and improve every year.' www.infectioncontroltoday.com/view/interna...

The Wheel of Fortune turns for every leader sooner or later Cambridge, Corpus Christi College, MS 066; p.66 @parkerlibcccc.bsky.social @corpuscambridge.bsky.social

A Blizzard at the Yorkshire Coast. 0°C. Sandpipers.

A Mad King has usurped the power of Congress—which represents the American people. That is, he has seized power that belongs to you and me collectively. He has declared war without consultation with or approval from Congress. And with no imminent threat. This is a profound betrayal of the republic.

🔥 This is huge 🔥 NEW YouGov poll: British are now MORE pro-EU than France or Italy. 👉 50% would vote to be in the EU 👉 Only 31% want to stay out 👉 Strip away don’t knows 👉62–38 in favour of EU membership. 🔥 Brexit is no more and Parliament must catch up! www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/poli...

"We can and should debate and discuss whether the cost to us (of Brexit) in terms of our rights, opportunities and the estimated £250 million a day lost to the taxpayer was worth it a decade on from that landmark." Stephen Gethins MP, The Scotsman 3 January.

Bang goes the international rules-based order. Good luck Taiwan.

“Hey! They’re edible! … This changes everything!”

A Country That Runs on #Bicycles - In the #Netherlands #cycling is not a trend, a sport, or a weekend hobby. It is simply how life moves. From young children riding to school to elderly citizens cycling to the market, bicycle is woven into everyday existence #SmartCities #healthcare #ActOnClimate

'Road to the Farm' Bitumen & Paint Private Collection.

It’s crazy the UK has not yet rejoined the EU's roaming area. Another example of us being left behind