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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

An incredibly moving and powerful performance of #Parsifal at @royaloperahouse.bsky.social with stellar cast including Brindley Sherratt, Stanislas DeBarbeyrac and Ekaterina Gubanova conducted powerfully by Jakub Hrusa bravi tutti 👏👏👏👏

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Really gripping and incredibly realistic scenario played out over four days #WarGame www.sky.com/watch/the-wa...

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Been really enjoying my 89th anniversary re-read of Tolkien’s The Hobbit with a re-read of Douglas A. Anderson’s excellent The Annotated Hobbit which includes the only complete version of ‘The Quest for Erebor’ A great way to explore Bilbo’s adventure with the dwarves. #tolkien #hobbit

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

Finished! this is a brilliant well researched book about Offa King of the Mercians (or perhaps the English) by @RoryNaismith with an excellent analysis of what we know about Offa especially through close analysis of charters and coins #Offa #OldEnglish #Books

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

Great day yesterday at IWM #Duxford for our annual Battle of Britain Airshow with our excellent supporters with a fantastic show featuring the Red Arrows and historical flying. #iwm #aviation

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

My conference paper “Tolkien's Philological Imagination - On Aelfwine's Spelling, the AB Tolkien's Philological Imagination - On Aelfwine's Spelling, the AB Language and the Inner Consistency of Philological Reality’ scholar.valpo.edu/cgi/viewcont... #tolkien #elvish #language

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

A powerful and moving way to end our brilliant @tolkiensociety.org #Oxonmoot2026 the annual visit to Tolkien and Edith’s Grave at Wolvercote Cemetery and our Enyalië (Rememberance) service also paid a visit to the grave of Tolkien’s Official Biographer Humphrey Carpenter. #tolkien

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

Great day yesterday at @tolkiensociety.org #Oxonmoot2026 fantastic papers (I gave mine) a live broadcast for the @podcast.athrabeth.com an epic debate and a shimmering masquerade and entings. #Tolkien, #Oxonmoot

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

A debate of epic proportions was held on this day at @tolkiensociety.org #Oxonmoot2026 - “The House Believes that Fëanor was wrong” with excellent arguments on both side head by Professors @dimitrafimi.bsky.social and Michael Drout #tolkien #oxonmoot

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

Aiya elenion Ancalima! The second day of @tolkiensociety.org #Oxonmoot2026 has dawned filled with lots of excellent #Tolkien papers and fun events #oxonmoot

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

Brilliant first day of @tolkiensociety.org #Oxonmoot2026 with brilliant papers by Christian Trenk, Dr Sara Brown and a fantastic keynote by Professor @dimitrafimi.bsky.social with a great round of Middle-earth Pictionary (our team won!) and the #Tolkien Quiz #tolkien #oxonmoot

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

Congrats to @glyndebourne for a brilliant Festival 2026 ending for me last night with an excellent performance of Mozart’s Abduction from the Seraglio with a brilliant cast - stand out for me was @MichaelMofidian as Osmin - great end to an excellent Festival #glyndebourne #opera

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

In my 60th Anniversary re-watch of #DarkShadows I just finished the Laura the Phoenix story arc a supernatural fire creature coincidentally at the same time I have been working through reading the Old English Poem of the same name (and perhaps an inspiration for the writers)

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 26/08/2026

Excellent the #DarkShadows 60th Anniversary Edition of #DaytimeGothic has made it across the Pond looks brilliant congrats @StuartManning and team @darkshadowscomment.bsky.social

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

Always a magical moment the musical call back after the first interval of Wagner’s #Rienzi at the Bayreuth Opera Festival #wagner #bayreuth

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

En route back to London from Bayreuth spent a great day in Nuremberg and visited the Palace of Justice and Courtroom 600 where the Nuremberg Trials before the International Military Tribunal were held between November 20, 1945 through October 1946. Then went to the Alt-Stadt for a #nuremberg lunch!

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

What a find at the Wagner Opera Festival in #Bayreuth - a T-Shirt with one of my fav passages from #Wagner’s Ring what the Wanderer says to Alberich It expresses that every being follows its own nature and cannot be forcibly bent it reminds me of line 455 from Beowulf “gaéð á wyrd swá hío scel”

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

The new production of Wagner’s Rienzi at the 150th Anniversary Richard Wagner Festival in Bayreuth is incredibly powerful a stellar cast telling a timely story about power and corruption composed by Wagner long before the Ring and Tristan and well deserved to be performed at the Festespiele House

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 17/08/2026

Himmlisches Wunder! Überall, wo man in Bayreuth hinschaut, ist #Wagner #opera #bayreuth

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 17/08/2026

Richard #Wagner kept an fascinating library at his home at #Wahnfried which I visited while here for the @WagnerFestival 2026 - over 2,500 books are on display in the main Salle and I spent some time reviewing the titles. #wagner #bayreuth

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 02/08/2026

This has to be one of the most powerful plays I have seen in a while. Simon Stone’s adaptation of the #Oresteia at the @BridgeTheatre powerful and gripping with tour de force performances by @davemorrissey64 @MaryLouiseParker @RosieSheehy @TomGlynnCarney and @ArchieMadekwe 👏👏

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 29/07/2026

Ok after watching #TheOdyssey I am now on a #Homer jag - re-reading some in the original and have started this book which is proving very interesting

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 26/07/2026

Saw #ChristopherNolan’s #Odyssey last night in 70mm IMAX fantastic film brilliant performances and incredible soundtrack by #LudwigGorranson I do have quibbles about the portrayal of Odysseus the πολυτροπος man and will now dig into the reviews including @InstantClassics podcast

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 19/07/2026

Wow! What a fantastic opening performance of Strauss’s Ariadne auf Naxos at #Glyndebourne tonight! Stellar cast a must see!! 👏👏👏#opera

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 09/07/2026

And so ends another excellent @imc-leeds.bsky.social Tolkien at Leeds 2026 with brilliant sessions, great fellowship and three new books to read! See you next year! #IMC2026

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 07/07/2026

Eglerio! Utúlie'n aurë! Today we have four #Tolkien at @imc-leeds.bsky.social sessions with a great paper line up! #IMC2026

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 06/07/2026

And my #Tolkien paper at @imc-leeds.bsky.social first Tolkien at Leeds session is now delivered - now I can listen to all the others and buy books #IMC2026

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 06/07/2026

First day of @imc-leeds.bsky.social #IMC2026 and #Tolkien at Leeds last minute work on my paper later today

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 05/07/2026

Eglerio! My book review of this excellent new #Tolkien volume from Walking Tree Publishers has been posted to the open access Journal of #Tolkien Research scholar.valpo.edu/cgi/viewcont...

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 02/07/2026

Lovely to return to my beloved @glyndebourne tonight to see Michael Grandage’s fantastic #BillyBudd (not seen in ten years!) with a phenomenal cast including Thomas Mole as Billy and my dream Captain Vere @fatboyclayton - one of #Glyndebourne’s best bravi tutti 👏👏👏👏👏 #opera

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 27/06/2026

Happy 60th Anniversary to #DarkShadows my celebratory Substack Post open.substack.com/pub/drandrew... @darkshadowsnews.bsky.social

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 15/06/2026

Cyrhaeddodd Heddiw! Ardderchog mae hyn yn edrych fel hwyl! #welsh #language #philology

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 12/06/2026

open.substack.com/pub/drandrew...

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

I’ve talked about #fundraising in many places but never until last night in the Oldest Operating Theatre in #London and doing it standing where the operations took place! Great session and went home at watched The Pitt @OldOpTheatre #oldoperatingtheatre #museums

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 06/06/2026

Eglerio! Will definitely be submitting an abstract for this online @tolkiensociety.org seminar in November on #Tolkien’s Invented Languages - deadline for submission end of July. www.tolkiensociety.org/events/semin... #conlangs #tolkien #Elvish

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 29/05/2026

Really interesting and comprehensive work of #Tolkien scholarship on the free to access Journal of #Tolkien Research scholar.valpo.edu/cgi/viewcont...

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 28/05/2026

My Ballet conversion continues! Fantastic performance last night of Frederick Ashton’s charming LA FILLE MAL GARDÉE at @royalballetandopera with incredible dancing including dream team of @MNunezOfficial and @VMuntagirov #ballet

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

Was great to return to Glyndebourne yesterday for the opening of the 2026 Festival and a new powerful production of Tosca directed by Ted Huffman and conducted by Robin Ticciati great way to start the Festival and fantastic Programme Book with cover by William Kentridge #opera #glyndebourne #LPO

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

Congrats to team #Glyndebourne for a brilliant opening night and new production of #Tosca @glyndebourne #opera c

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

Great way to start at a #Medieval conference - finding a brilliant free book! open.substack.com/pub/drandrew... #oldenglish #tolkien

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 20/05/2026

Hot from #Tolkien at Kalamazoo 2026 my round up on live sessions open.substack.com/pub/drandrew...

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 17/05/2026

Eglerio! And thats a wrap to #Tolkien at Kalamazoo 2026 - excellent papers, great sessions and good book room activity. Will be posting a Wrap Up to my Substack soon, #KZoo2026

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 14/05/2026

Eglerio! It is Day One of the International Medieval Conference at @wmuhumanities.bsky.social and #Tolkien at #Kalamazoo 2026 and I will report later on my Substack on the sessions, book room wanderings and general discussions #Kzoo2026

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 09/05/2026

Long before Comic-Con! Report from possibly the First Sci Fi Convention from Punch Magazine in 1891 “revelled at the Albert Hall, which last week was given up to a festival called “The Coming Race.” open.substack.com/pub/drandrew...

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 03/05/2026

My five star review of Professor @wmarybeard.bsky.social excellent new Talking Classics:The Shock of the Old has been posted to #Amazon #marybeard #TalkingClassics #books

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Dr Andrew Higgins @ashiggins.bsky.social · 28/04/2026

Great #fundraising event “Rethinking the Ask” at the Moco Museum last night in London which has an excellent exhibition of #KeithHaring art. #museums

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