oh they've moved on to the lgb's.

But that is exactly how the suffragettes operated. With a nationwide organisation of sleeper cells of arsonists and bombers. I’m gratefully people have reached out and referenced my work today. I remain (I believe) the only academic expert on the terrorism of the suffragettes. Links below:

I can't believe there was a time when I thought I might get legal recognition of being non-binary, when just in the last three months, I've: - Pulled out of speaking at a conference which asked me to remove my pronouns - Withdrawn consent from a newspaper article for refusing to use they/them

Just wiped an entire 24-man raid in Final Fantasy because it’s a Scully heavy episode of The X-Files and I was too focused on that.

"No, Liz, it's not Evan Almighty. It's Ethan Almighty, a movie about a rescue dog. Kelsey Grammer plays the Governor of Kentucky. I'm the voice of the dog."

Time for another edition of "what the fuck does this say?" Category is: Occupation Was she a...CORMORANT?

Is anyone familiar with French newspaper archives? I've been using Gallica, but wonder if there's a better/wider source? Similar to the British Newspaper Archive?

Well then, ok.

hey quick question, am I having a stroke

I've not finished writing my talk for October, and it's just clocked in at over 100 slides. I do need to edit it, but my favourite slide so far is this, in a section that may come across as anti-men. It's not anti-men, it's just pro vengeance.

I did a Sex and the City rewatch recently which led me on to watching And Just Like That. I lasted five and a half episodes. Wooft. I thought it started out really well, but the plot was "isn't it funny watching people fail at being woke. Also the worst character ever written is here now."

Really embarrassing to admit this, but I sit with a calculator to work out people's date of birth when I'm doing archival work. Normally it's just a time saver thing, but earlier was: "OK, 21 in 1871, *taps calculator* 1871 - 21 = 1850...oh...oh Andy."

Today, I spent £45 on court records from 1883 because, through the evil deeds of a man, depressingly, I might finally find out his wife's name. The issue is: - He has several jobs in his life - He moves around a lot - 29 other men are born in the same three years as him with the same name

My forthcoming novel LAZARUS is a gay horror noir set in 1920s Paris. A ww1 veteran without a face is hired to examine a series of defaced portraits. His investigation leads him into a world of art, opium, sex, and the undead. Get the teaser here: beastcutter.itch.io/lazarus-teaser

So I've talked a lot about Ann Sophia Minette and her brothel at Hutcheson Street. What I haven't mentioned is that it was directly across from the old City Chambers, next door to a police office, one street over from the Trades Hall and right in the heart of the elite of the Merchant City.

To complement this great piece, you should listen to @k8lister.bsky.social's amazing podcast Betwixt the Sheets, specifically the episode with the remarkable Prof. Anjali Arondekar where they discuss sex work in Colonial India. I could have listened to them discuss this for hours.

Not me emailing the National Records of Scotland and saying "I don't have any historian pals to bounce this theory off of, so I am hoping you can provide something that no longer makes this a theory." Fuck sake man. Why can't I get a normal niche interest like warhammer, or fighting blokes?

Trying to research and write a book while having a very demanding and high pressure full-time job is not it folks. Someone get me a margarita and a lie down.

Currently tracking the life of a male prostitute from Greenock in the 1840s. I have found his marriage certificate in 1869 where he is listed as a merchant seaman and, as I am reading this man as what we would understand as queer, I did have a wee laugh.

The fun thing about being a historian, especially when working with census data/birth records/wills etc. is that as you progress you develop theory after theory, most of which will ultimately prove to be wrong as you uncover a new piece of information.

Hyperventilating from how good the ending to Hacks was. What a show. I genuinely can’t remember the last time a show finished where I thought “perfection” Also that ending song - it’s like they made it for me.

Just thinking about what a world where men are scrutinised to the same intense and baffling detail as Nicola Sturgeon currently is.

DONT WORRY - dashare.zone ADMIN

I’ve had it with these trees and flowers making their entire reproductive cycle my problem. Get a room! Bloody perverts. Don’t even get me started on grass. Get’s a wee haircut and auto-enrols you onto 4DMax OnlyFans experience.

I'm so sorry everyone, I didn't realise Harambe was a gorilla? I thought you were all sad about some guy or an anime. There are a lot of questions I have now that I should have asked a decade ago and like...my bad I guess.

Vermeer’s Girl With The Pearl Earring will be shown in Osaka, later this year, and the press conference was as Japanese as you’d expect #Vermeer

Need a wee bit of advice because what I'm doing is thoroughly unacademic, but I think necessary to help create a sense of place and time for my book, while connecting them to the people I'll introduce them to throughout the text. So, apologies this will be a wee bit of a thread as I explain 1/

I went off Drag Race for the longest time because I felt there was this big “let’s get some of the worst people you’ve ever met on the show” but I’m finally working my way through the UK version and it’s such a joy. I love it.

I'm really good at asking people out. Like don't ask me to explain or back this up with evidence because it does not bear scrutiny. But you should take my word for it and believe I'm off having sexy and mysterious adventures with tall strangers named things like Gustav. Or Kenneth.

I bought myself Paralives as a payday treat and I'm very excited to get home and play it. When I was wee I used to spend ages making big mansions for my sims to live in. Now, with endless austerity behind me, they only live in flats slightly nicer than my own. So people know they are a comrade.

Haven’t left my house or spoken to a human being in over a week because of Covid so going from that to “give a three hour seminar to a group of German students about gender, de-industrialisation and Scottish national identity in 24 degree heat” was an experience. Gonna get a Burger King.

Me in the revolution but it’s just being in someone’s kitchen and seeing their Kitchen Aid.

I'm back with a "can you read this address" because gurl I cannot - like is it...16 Shaft's...Lane? Does someone have encyclopedic knowledge of Glasgow's streets because I also do not.

You have the right to be the protagonist even though you're the worst character 🚨👀

Had a nightmare I caught hantavirus. Having generally had a very neutral reaction to this in the news, it’s nice to know my subconscious is reacting appropriately while I’m too preoccupied by fascism, the cost of living, war and whether I should make a new character in final fantasy.

With our limited options for potential prime ministers, I'm afraid I have to pick the one who vaped in an inflatable canoe and took bad tax advice over the transphobic, private healthcare loving, data selling shagger who looks like a sentient thumb in an episode of Spongebob Squarepants.

Shout out to my bus driver who has been running red lights, driving through road works and taking a very loose interpretation of speed limits. Does it make up for not turning up once since Monday? Not really, but I appreciate this level of anarchy. Tbf he probably just needs to go to the loo.

If you missed the king's speech in parliament, simply imagine an elderly man dressed as a Christmas decoration being mildly bewildered as he finds himself reading out an insipid Guardian editorial to a Downton Abbey cosplay party.

Pals, I'm just a bit tired of a monstrously wealthy, unelected man in a robe, crown and a sceptre, who turned up in a horse drawn carriage, sitting telling us they're going to work on the cost of living with all the integrity of 9 year old me telling mum I didn't eat the last jaffa cake.

Nothing stresses me out more than having to write a speaker bio for an event because; 1) I have horrendous imposter syndrome 2) I'm also low key obsessed with myself? 3) both of these intersect in "I need to look like I deserve to speak at this event" But I only have 50 words.

I cannot abide people who do not respect the unspoken rules of the bus stop queue. You’re not first by virtue of standing in front of me. My guy, I was born at this stop. I have a heritage here. What do you have? A rolled up Daily Mail and the kids every second weekend. Pathetic.

UK drops to 22nd on the ILGA-Euope Rainbow map. Just 11 years ago, the UK was rated as leading Europe for laws and policies related to LGBTIQA+ rights. Since then, we have faced successive governments actively undermining LGBTIQA+ rights. A shameful legacy for Labour and the Tories.

At a gig where I only needed to stand for about 2 hours in total and my back is in bits. I need one of you to a) beat the shit out of my spine with a bat b) suplex me c) run me a hot bath in that order.

I think regularly about how when I was 24 years old I was renting a 1 bed flat, had no savings and lived paycheque to paycheque. Now, 14 years later, I have climbed the ladder, increased my salary by £32,000 per year and I rent a 1 bed flat, have no savings and live paycheque to paycheque.

I just cannot imagine fucking things up so monstrously at my work, texting my boss on the Saturday and saying "lol my bad, will fix monday, you'll be so impressed" rocking up and being like

need a button I can press that just plays 1996 Lara Croft saying "no" An email? Colleague asks how you are? Have to do something basic, inconsequential and will take 30-45 seconds? Push button