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Pete Cowell

@cowellhk.bsky.social
181 followers 172 following 183 posts

Far-flung Scot. Long-term Hong Kong resident. Mainly books and music. All views my own.

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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
I just backed Archie Fisher - 'The January Man: 1961-77' box set on @kickstarter.com www.kickstarter.com/projects/212...
kickstarter.com
Archie Fisher - 'The January Man: 1961-77' box set
Archie Fisher was an icon, an inspiration, a pioneer. This box set celebrates his 'folk revival' era and adds unreleased magic.
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Scenes from Ap Lei Chau, #HongKong, yesterday.
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John MacDonald @1johnmacdonald.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
'O, Lochabair, mo Lochabair fhein gu bràth.' From Alice C. MacDonell's 'Lochabair Gu Bràth'. Amen.
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
What a great night we had playing at The Wanch last Saturday. The crowd were superb. Thank you! #HongKong
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
Beautiful blue skies in #HongKong this evening.
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
Important new study by the University of Edinburgh. I knew two brothers who were Travellers and who attended my school in Lochaber. They lived hard lives, no doubt about it. Hopefully this study will help eradicate the racism against their community. www.ed.ac.uk/news/scottis...
ed.ac.uk
Scottish Traveller study uncovers unique genetics | News | The University of Edinburgh
The first major genetic study of Scottish Travellers has revealed that the community is genetically distinct, with deep ancestral roots in Scotland.
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Orkney Library & Archive @orkneylibrary.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
The most important news of today is that it is #midsummer and in #Orkney we will have 18 and a half hours of daylight today. Sunrise at 0358 and sunset 2229. 🌞
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 23/06/2026
Glorious, gory and utterly brilliant. A triumph of a translation. #Books #BookSky #Iliad #AncientGreece #Homer #Troy #TrojanWar
Emily Wilson's recent translation of the Iliad, by Homer.
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
Post your favourite film from when you were 18
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 10/04/2026
Meanwhile, in Hong Kong... #catsofbluesky
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 03/03/2026
A wonderful meditation on Gàidhlig, place, history, mythology, love, memory, regret, God and life itself. I'm also very grateful to @aonghasphadraig.bsky.social for signing my copy. Actually the signed one is still in Shanghai with the brother, so I bought another to read until I pick it up in May.
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 03/02/2026
Finally arrived in Hong Kong. Really looking forward to reading this, @judithjesch.bsky.social! #BookSky
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westhighlandmuseum.bsky.social @westhighlandmuseum.bsky.social · 20/01/2026
The Northern Lights were spectacular in Lochaber last night 🌙 ✨️ Image credit: The Commando Memorial at Spean Bridge. Kim Ferguson of Kimages. #northernlights #auroraborealis #FANtasticPhoto #scottishhighlands #commandomemorial #speanbridge #lochaber #WestHighlands
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 13/01/2026
A hazy view of distant Lantau, taken from Yung Shue Wan ferry pier in Lamma last Saturday evening. #HongKong #Islands #StormHour
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Orkney Library & Archive @orkneylibrary.bsky.social · 04/01/2026
Stromness this afternoon. The sun sets as another snow shower arrives.
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westhighlandmuseum.bsky.social @westhighlandmuseum.bsky.social · 21/12/2025
Winter Solstice 2025 Sunset at the western end of Loch Eil near Fort William on our shortest day of the year. #wintersolstice #wintersolstice2025 #scottishwinter #wintervibes #winter
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 09/12/2025
Some recent Lantau scenes. Shame about the pollution but it's that time of year again... #HongKong
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 01/12/2025
"It's part of me, Scotland. I'm still immersed in it even though I am not there." – Irvine Welsh
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Bylines Scotland @bylines.scot · 30/11/2025
Happy St. Andrew's Day to each and every one of you! #StAndrew
media.tenor.com
a blue and white scottish flag is flying in the wind
Alt: a blue and white scottish flag is flying in the wind
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 24/11/2025
The old stamping ground. #Lochaber
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 08/11/2025
Excited Magpie Dry Irish Stout from the Heart Of Darkness brewery in #Saigon. Nae bad at all. #HoChiMinh #Vietnam #Beer
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 06/11/2025
I never thought I'd read a book about a member of the royal family. Yet here we are. Meticulously researched, written with flair and a genuine page-turner; @chinarhyming.bsky.social has done it again. This offers a superb insight into the life of a much-maligned woman. Read it. #Books #BookSky
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 30/10/2025
Somehow, I've joined a band and we're playing at this tonight: #HongKong #MacGowansTeeth #LiveMusic
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 23/10/2025
Well, the first delivery has arrived and it looks fantastic! Need to get a CD player this weekend... #DickGaughan
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Damian Shields @damianshields.bsky.social · 23/10/2025
Light over Glen Mallie #Scotland #Lochaber #Highlands www.damianshields.com
Light over Glen Mallie #Scotland #Lochaber #Highlands www.damianshields.com
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 16/10/2025
Hey, anyone in #HongKong know what happened with 852dude? His account seems to have disappeared. Enjoy his banter.
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 26/09/2025
@theguardian.com Wrong country:
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 22/09/2025
A hard-boiled, black-hearted trip through to Glasgow at the turn of the Millennium. Corruption and vice rule; booze flows like the poisoned River Clyde and horror lurks behind respectable, closed doors. It's a solid yes from me. #Books #BookSky #Glasgow #ScottishFiction
Louise Welsh's debut novel The Cutting Room.
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 17/09/2025
The Natural: one of the greatest, most nostalgic sports movies of all time. #RobertRedford
Robert Redford in The Natural.
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 10/09/2025
Well, it's no less terrifying than reading the news and realising we're living in a meaningless nightmare. So why not cut your losses and indulge in some Ligotti instead. #BookSky #Fiction #Horror
Picture of a book by Thomas Ligotti.
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Angus Peter Campbell @aonghasphadraig.bsky.social · 01/09/2025
My new novel 'Donald and his Seven Cows' is now available direct from the publishers @luathpress.bsky.social and from all good bookshops as well as online retailers. Enjoy! Tapadh leibh.
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 01/09/2025
#Edinburgh at the fag-end of the C17th: black hypocrisy, superstition, fanaticism and judicial cruelty. Juxtapose all that with the city's modern obsession with capturing the tourist dollar. What you're left with is this genuinely engaging, pitch-dark tale. #Books #BookSky #ScottishFiction
A picture of James Robertson's debut novel The Fanatic. The front cover is brown and depicts a corbie perched on Arthur's Seat overlooking Salisbury Crags and the city of Edinburgh beyond.
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 21/08/2025
Commuting in #HongKong has its upsides.
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 17/07/2025
Magnificent latest Rebus instalment by @ianrankin1.bsky.social. Just so engaging. Also, and maybe this is just me, but is it weird if a novel largely dealing with prison makes me homesick for #Edinburgh (and no, I didn't live in Saughton...)? Make of that what you will. #BookSky #Books
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 08/07/2025
Not a bad wee sunset tonight in #HongKong.
Warm orange sunset over Chek Lap Kok, Hong Kong.
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 08/07/2025
There's lyrical prose, and then there's George Mackay Brown. Here are two tales about the end of a way of life and the dawn of a new one. #Books #Booksky #Orkney #ScottishFiction
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 22/06/2025
The history and culture of #Orkney have long fascinated me, and this brilliant examination of the 15th to the 19th centuries didn't disappoint. Engagingly written and constantly surprising. Top marks. #Books #BookSky #History #Scotland
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 21/06/2025
In 2006, my band supported The Popes in Lincoln, England, on St Patrick's Day. Shane MacGowan, unfortunately, couldn't make it. The guy who took on vocal duties was Paul McGuinness, and he'd just been released from prison. Great bunch of guys and they were incredible. Here's an old pic of us:
Bottle of Smoke, c. 2001
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 14/06/2025
10 writers that you've read > five books. Think I need to read more women authors... Honoré de Balzac George Mackay Brown Charles Bukowski Fyodor Dostoevsky Thomas Hardy Flann O'Brien Ian Rankin James Robertson J.R.R. Tolkien Irvine Welsh #BookSky #Books
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 14/06/2025
"Now." #catsofbluesky
A black tomcat gives an imploring stare.
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Judith Jesch @judithjesch.bsky.social · 09/06/2025
From my forthcoming translation of the Saga of the Earls of Orkney ch. 100 birlinn.co.uk/product/the-... 2/2
birlinn.co.uk
The Saga of the Earls of Orkney | Birlinn Ltd - Independent Scottish Publisher - buy books online
This fascinating history of the Earldom of Orkney, which was established in the Viking Age, records the adventures, feuds and battles of powerful Norsemen during its first three centuries. The medieva...
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 12/05/2025
A painful read at times, but definitely worth the hype. #BookSky #Books #Australia #Fiction #BookerPrize
A picture of the cover of Richard Flanagan's 2014 novel The Narrow Road to the Deep North.
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 11/05/2025
Scenes from Tai O today. #HongKong
Village houses nestle beneath a mountainside next to water.A hillside with three aspects: bare, burnt and covered with foliage.
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 09/05/2025
There's some rough weather on the way. #HongKong
Dark rain clouds loom threateningly over steel and glass skyscrapers in Hong Kong's Central district.
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 07/05/2025
Morag of Dunvegan: a Skye love song popular in the Highlands, performed by Ailean Comhghallach. #Gàidhlig #Scotland youtu.be/GSc4ZHWlNJc?...
youtu.be
Mòrag à Dùn Bheagain / Morag of Dunvegan
YouTube video by The Tipsy Fiddler Pub, Shanghai
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 07/05/2025
Looking north from Puy de Dôme to other peaks in the Chaîne des Puys, a range of 80 dormant volcanoes in central France. I took this pic in February 2020, just before the pandemic rendered the whole world dormant for a time. My thought often strayed to these hills during those strange years.
A chilly scene from Auvergne in central France. From left: Puy Balmet, Puy de Côme, Grand Suchet and Puy de Clierzou, with other peaks in the Chaîne des Puys visible as they stretch northwards. It is a winter's day. The sky is blue with wispy clouds and the mountainsides are dun-coloured. A forest of larch and pine skirts the foothills. In the far distance, to the north-west, lie the empty lands of La Creuse.
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 06/05/2025
A sublime exploration of memory and lived experience. But there's magic realism in there too. Tender, mysterious; it's wonderful stuff altogether. @aonghasphadraig.bsky.social truly is a master storyteller. #BookSky #Books #ScottishFiction
A picture of the novel Eighth Moon Bridge by the Scottish novelist and poet Angus Peter Campbell. It sits on a brown table.
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 24/04/2025
Looking south towards the hills of Glen Tromie in Badenoch. #Scotland
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 23/04/2025
A #Shanghai street scene from July 2012, taken somewhere in the old French Concession.
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Pete Cowell @cowellhk.bsky.social · 23/04/2025
Historical fiction is hit or miss. Happily, this novel dispenses with most clichéd Jacobite tropes, and relies instead on intrigue and politics to drive the narrative. If you're looking for a good yomp, rather than a romp, in the heather, then this just might be the novel for you. #Books #Booksky
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