I will never understand why men who don't know me repost me replying to someone they also don't know to their thousands of followers with zero context included. At least repost the initial skeet that has my main point in it?

My forthcoming book about Greek gladiators only had room for about 20 images, but I had hundreds to choose from. So I'm gradually collecting them all here! Please do follow and peruse: www.instagram.com/gladiatorsof...

What is with the fake references I'm seeing? They look credible, but then I go to search for them only to find that the author has never published anything about that site, or the chapter isn't present on the book's contents page. I never expected to see this kind of thing in academic databases!

If you're popping to Carlisle for this exhibition, why not go on the 7th March to coincide with me talking about gladiators? Can't wait to see the this wonderful exhibition one last time... Tickets avaiable here: tullie.org.uk/events/roman...

I sure do love spending a weekend online, tracking down a stele that nobody appears to have seen since 1988...

This is SUCH a great article! How did Cleopatra die??

Interesting article by A. Hardwick on teaching the Iliad in translation at undergraduate level. Freely available in The Journal of Classics Teaching: www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

How is this exhibition almost over! Feels like we only put it up last week… If you haven’t already, try and make a visit. It’s one I’m particularly proud of! 🐉🦄🧜‍♀️(🦅🦁)

I'm not even joking about this - I went into aldi for loo roll. I came out with 9 balls of yarn (I don't knit), an inflatable punching bag, and no loo roll.

Louis Robert saw a relief of four gladiators from Thyateira and stated with confidence that one was named kinaedos - so of course I got all excited about the possibilities because it's just so WEIRD. Finally got my hands on a high res photo, and it turns out the gladiator is named kandidos. Boring.

I'm starting a new series with Seed Talks! "The History of Greek Mythology", opening in Brixton & online on 18th February 🏺 More dates to come 🏺 www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-histor...

Heroic Appearances: Or, What Did Helen Look Like? sententiaeantiquae.com/2025/11/12/h...

When was the southern Levant first called Palestine (plst) (hint: around 1100 BCE)? What did ancient Israelites share with related peoples like Arameans, Philistines and Judahites? This chapter of my forthcoming Peoples Beyond Empires: A History of Ancient Israel, Judah and Palestine, lays it out

My laptop has apparently been paying the price of my ADHD - it's utterly clogged. Apparently I have NINETEENHUNDRED duplicate PDFs...

People of #Liverpool (and the surrounding areas), I will be giving a talk about LGBTQ+ history and my book next week at the Museum of Liverpool. Tickets still on sale: www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/whatson/muse...

I happen to know that this department is chockablock with wonderful people, and the social mission of Birkbeck is hard to beat

I don't want to see anyone mentioning '71,000 killed' unless you're also stating that this number DOESN'T include Gazans who died from enforced starvation, disease, exposure or being buried under the rubble of their homes that were levelled as they were still inside. Those are STILL MURDERS.

Next week at the Carena Institute of Sustainable Archaeologies (Birkbeck), we'll hear from Layla Renshaw about 'The Recovery and Identification of WWI Soldiers on the Western Front: Citizen Science, Nationalism, and Memorial Diplomacy'

2720 words down, 2 days to go.

Can I write a 10k article in 3 days? LET'S FIND OUT

My daughter (aged 10) is explaining the etymology of Thermopylae to her baffled grandmother. I don't know if this means she actually listens to me or if she's been doing AC Odyssey discovery tours again.

Oh, just @badancient.bsky.social discussing The Far Edges of the Known World with the crowd eating out of his hand...

I think it’s really cool and interesting when Boethius said, “it is our chiefest aim to refuse compliance with evildoers.”

Fireside this week on the blog! I muse on the unwillingness of the statute pfp crowd to advance their 'theories' about antiquity in formal, peer-reviewed settings (because they're cowards) and recommend an absolutely spectacular book by @badancient.bsky.social . acoup.blog/2026/01/23/f...

Across social media, I see lots of MAGA accounts mention issues within US history, including various awful foreign policies and war crimes. Reckoning with the unvarnished history of your nation is important! However, it always seems to be followed with "and that's why the Nazis weren't so bad."

What on earth is W social and what is it offering that Bluesky doesn't?

@ivanbrett.bsky.social is a discussion comparing how civilian and celebrity players engaged with and suspected neurodivergent people in the group worth having? I can't help but think Cat would have been treated very differently in a normal series...

What happened with #WCCWiki in 2025? How are women and non-binary classicists looking on #Wikipedia? Here's a thread to wrap-up last year, and to forge a path for 2026 ...

Are they going to banish a faithful simply because they don't mask their ADHD very well?

🚨I’m recruiting!🚨 We’re looking for someone with a passion for and good knowledge of Natural Science collections. They will be running regular workshops in Colchester’s Natural History Museum! Part time (18 months) findajob.dwp.gov.uk/details/1773...

Link to pdf of my paper on Ea-Nasir aka the ur-meme, free to download and share: discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10...

Since the Melian Dialogue - or rather the only line that anyone ever quotes from it - is having another moment, here’s a selection of links from the last time, in, erm, early January: thesphinxblog.com/2026/01/04/i...

I have 13 relevant inscriptions from Miletus in various epigraphy catalogues, all with the Greek written down, but rubbish descriptions of reliefs. I saw 5 relevant stones in Miletus Museum. WHY DOES ONLY ONE STONE MATCH THE CATALOGUE RECORDS

Wonky Greek inscriptions are making me want to cry, I was not built for this.

Hi! My name’s Em. I’m an undergraduate studying Classics and I really want to connect with my fellow nerds. I aspire one day to be in academia, and my interests are all things Greek literature (but I love Homer and Euripides especially). Follow to see my journey!

A year since my MA graduation ceremony, which has felt like it has both a) flown by, and b) lasted a decade

Gladiator gravestone from Caria: "He was the strongest of all opponents. He may have been lacking in height, but there were none in the arenas comparable in strength to the utterly mighty [name]. I always feel a pang when the name is lost, but we stan a short king.

Every time you see a pundit or academic who has evidently lost their damned mind, if you scratch the surface, you find out it was a product of Becoming the Joker to disagree with the people who were modestly critical of them on social media.

Yes, there are soulless digital gremlins tracking my every move for the purposes of targeted advertising, but I can't say they're no paying attention. This is the current ad I'm seeing at least 7 times a day and my willpower is disintegrating FAST. www.buildabear.co.uk/minotaur-plu...

Does anyone have access to the American Journal of Archaeology? My ICS membership doesn't give me online access to the more recent volumes, and I really don't want to have to spend a day/£20 getting a train into London to see their physical copy of 129.2. I miss institutional access...

Tickets are now on sale for the next Women of the Roman Arena talk: 🗓 7th March 🕐 1pm 📍Tullie Museum and Art Gallery, Carlisle 🎟: tullie.org.uk/events/roman...

In mid-2023 I was invited to speak about the 3rd Century Crisis at a conference in Copenhagen. By the time I was writing the paper later that year, the irony of writing about ancient crises from a position of safety in a world full of real violence (in the very same places) was almost too much.

Was asked Google what you can buy for £3: "small treats like chocolate bars, sticky notes, lip balm, single-serve snacks, or discounted versions of toys and novelty items" Personally we'd rather go for "the best lecture you're ever likely to attend". 👇

Just got home from a great talk by the one and only @belovedofoizys.bsky.social who I finally got to meet in person. Took my 13yo daughter too who had a great time!

Young, engaged people in the crowd (we love to see it!), chuckles at the jokes, and questions afterwards that showed people were interested and paying attention. There is no stronger drug than a talk that goes well!

What a wonderful space!!

Time to bimble up to the museum for my talk. Wish me luck!

Just published a paper on the complaint tablet to Ea-nāṣir meme, the decade-old tumblr in-joke that continues to impact the public understanding of the ancient world. Paywalled but email me if you want a copy. 🏺