Sign in

Murray Tremellen

@drmtremellen.bsky.social
145 followers 147 following 313 posts

Historian and museum curator. #ActuallyAutistic. Views my own. He/him.

PostsRepliesMedia
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Is AI slop really going to be more transformative than the railways or the power loom?! Don't make me laugh. Here are some thoughts I shared previously over on LinkedIn...
010 1
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Really pleased to take delivery of Peter Lindfield and Dan Talkes' edited volume Revivalism and Architecture today--including my essay on James Wyatt's Westminster! 😊
010 1
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 25/06/2026
Yep, gotta love climate-change-denying Gen X nostalgia 🙃
A screenshot from Facebook, showing a photograph taken during the 1976 heatwave, with the caption 'we all had a wonderful summer and survived'A screenshot showing a comment posted on Facebook, saying, 'The 1976 heatwave caused 20% excess deaths and a significant increase in hospital emergency admissions compared to the same period in 1975 or 1974.'
000 0
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 19/06/2026
Heavens above. Does anybody seriously think that, just because he won a by-election in one constituency, Burnham now has a mandate to become PM, without even holding a leadership contest among the Parliamentary Labour Party? Can we please restore just a tiny bit of sanity to our politics? 😩
A quote from the BBC website, reading: 'A growing number of Labour MPs are urging Sir Keir [Starmer] to announce plans to hand power to the former Greater Manchester mayor [Andy Burnham], without the need for a potentially messy leadership contest.'
000 0
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 07/06/2026
010 1
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 11/05/2026
Incidentally, I typed that last post whilst I was sat on a train, wearing my ear defenders, commuting to my prestigious job as curator of a world-famous museum. I CAN cope with the 'real world', BECAUSE I have my ear defenders.
A white, bearded man in his 30s, sitting in a railway carriage, wearing a pair of ear defenders
020 2
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 11/05/2026
Can you imagine if a headteacher said 'we're not going to provide ramps for wheelchair users because it will make them more resilient and equip them for the real world'? That's the level of bulls*** we're talking about here. Stop denying autistic people the adjustments we need.
130 3
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 04/05/2026
A 'Rocket' for Star Wars day. A recent photograph of the original 1829 Liverpool & Manchester Railway locomotive at the National Railway Museum.
010 1
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 01/05/2026
Born #OTD 1769, Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington. He was Charlotte Brontë's childhood hero and was fictionalised in the siblings' juvenile writings, known as the 'Glasstown saga'. This bust is on display at York Mansion House.
000 0
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 23/04/2026
It's a bit late in the day, but to mark #StGeorgesDay, here's the bronze relief of St George and the dragon on the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway war memorial at Manchester Victoria.
000 0
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
Remembering the late Queen Elizabeth II, on what would have been her 100th birthday. This is the maquette for Richard Bossons' statue, on display in York Minster during 2024.
210 2
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
Jocelyn Horner's statue of the Brontë sisters at the Brontë Parsonage Museum this afternoon. It was #OTD in 1820 that the Brontë family moved from Thornton into the Parsonage at Haworth. It would remain their home for the rest of their lives.
000 0
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 18/04/2026
Slowly working my way through Christian Wolmar's excellent book The Liberation Line. Here's a fascinating insight into how wars were fought in the days before drones and Google Maps... 😲
000 0
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
A 'Meridian' at Sheffield this afternoon. Soon to be a thing of the past, as the new 'Aurora' bi-modes take over and these are transferred to Scotland. (Poor Scots! 😉)
110 1
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 15/04/2026
'He's the only person who can save Liverpool Street now...!'
010 1
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 09/04/2026
110 1
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 06/04/2026
Is it a model railway...or a Constable painting? Flintfield, just one of many wonderful layouts on display at the York Model Railway Show over the Easter weekend.
020 2
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 04/04/2026
New EMR Aurora unit (class 810) spotted at Sheffield this afternoon.
010 1
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 02/04/2026
A bit late in the day but, to mark #WorldChildrensBookDay, here's a couple of pictures of Wilbert Awdry's Ffarquhar Branch layout, photographed in operation at the Manchester MRS show last December.
010 1
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 02/04/2026
Can't really help with your stationmaster I'm afraid, but here's a gratuitous picture of Sutherland, wearing a replica of the opening-day banner shown in your photograph.
240 4
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 02/04/2026
Another refurbished Voyager spotted at Leeds City a few moments ago.
000 0
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 29/03/2026
"Now some historians will tell you that in 1461, a bloody battle--'scuse my language--took place here, with thousands of casualties. Stuff and nonsense..." 😉
010 1
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 21/03/2026
However...let's compose ourselves and enjoy a little timeline cleanse, shall we? This is what I was up to earlier today--enjoying the Spring Steam Gala at the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway.
000 0
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 21/03/2026
Just had a train cancelled at Leeds due to drunken football louts causing a disturbance. When I think of all the bullsh1t I've had to put up with over the years for being a 🚂 enthusiast--and causing no harm to anyone--yet football fans seem to think they can behave with impunity. It's disgraceful.
100 1
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 20/03/2026
"nO reliGiouS disPlaYs in trafalGar sQuare!"--the Far Right "chrisTmas iS a CHRIStIAN feStivaL!"--also the Far Right 🙄 #nigelfarage #reform #hypocrisy #islamophobia
010 1
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 13/03/2026
First glimpse of a refurbished CrossCountry Voyager at Leeds yesterday. First impressions are that...it's still a Voyager, but a bit more presentable 🙄
000 0
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 10/03/2026
Happy 226th Birthday to George Hudson, York's notorious 'Railway King', born #OTD in 1800 🥳
000 0
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 27/02/2026
I smiled when I spotted this at Leeds this evening. That's a name with a long, proud history of railway usage! 😊
000 0
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 24/02/2026
I could say the same of the old LSWR 'Paddleboats' but alas, those are all long gone now 😥
000 0
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 24/02/2026
An pleasant surprise at York this morning. It might be a controversial opinion, but I rather like the class 70s. They're not conventionally beautiful, but they're endearingly quirky.
230 3
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 22/02/2026
Bury: it's a town with a Peel 😉 I'm sure @victoriancommons.bsky.social will be pleased to see Sir Robert still standing proud in the town centre.
A statue of Sir Robert Peel standing in the centre of a town square.
120 2
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 21/02/2026
#OTD in 1804, Richard Trevithick's Penydarren locomotive successfully traversed the Merthyr Tramroad, South Wales—the first recorded journey by a railway locomotive. The word 'historic' is over-used, but this truly was. It was as revolutionary for the C19th as the internet has been for the C21st.
000 0
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 19/02/2026
Thinking about it, the last time the son of a monarch (again, not technically a prince) was imprisoned was in 1685, when James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth (and illegitimate son of Charles I), was arrested for leading a rebellion against James VII and II. He was subsequently executed for treason.
042 4
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 19/02/2026
So, when was the last time a British Prince was held in custody? Was it these two?! 😬
110 1
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 18/02/2026
Waiting for my connection at Leeds and somebody's left the remains of a full-blown picnic in the waiting room. On what planet do people think this is acceptable? Did their parents or teachers never instill them with any consideration for others? I despair... 😣
000 0
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 05/02/2026
So...did anybody watch the One Show last night? 😁 It was a real pleasure to welcome Angela Ripon to the Brontë Parsonage Museum and speak to her about the forthcoming Wuthering Heights film.
000 0
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 04/02/2026
Fascinating visit to the Royal Courts of Justice today with the Furniture History Society. Sadly, we couldn't take photos inside, but I can assure you we saw a great many interesting things!
010 1
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 01/02/2026
Popped into the Railway Museum this afternoon. Great to see the South Yard miniature railway back in operation, and 26020 enjoying a moment in the limelight on the Great Hall turntable.
010 1
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 26/01/2026
As a former Conservative, I've been saying this for years: the way for the party to broaden its appeal is to embrace One Nation policies, not to position themselves as Reform Lite. Trouble is, most of the party grassroots are Thatcherite neoloberals who can't seem to grasp this point.
000 0
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 25/01/2026
A Scottish locomotive for #BurnsNight. A fine model of Caledonian Railway 'Dunalastair III' class 4-4-0 No. 902, spotted at the Manchester MRS show last December. The prototype was designed by J. F. McIntosh and built in 1899.
020 2
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 24/01/2026
Happy Birthday to Sir John Vanbrugh, born #OTD in 1664! To mark the occasion, here's another picture from my visit to Castle Howard in July 2025. #vanbrugh #vanbrugh300 #georgianarchitecture #classicalarchitecture #castlehoward #baroquearchitecture #countryhouse #northyorkshire
000 0
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 01/01/2026
Happy New Year everyone! Since 2026 is #vanbrugh300 year, let's start as we mean to go on...here's a flashback to my trip to Castle Howard in July last year. #castlehoward #georgianarchitecture #classicalarchitecture #baroquearchitecture #northyorkshire #vanbrugh #sirjohnvanbrugh
020 2
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 16/12/2025
No, this was not 'simple rage'. This was Road Rage. When are we finally going to have a proper conversation about the appalling social cost of our car-dependent society--and ask what we can do to change it?
010 1
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 15/12/2025
So apparently my train from Leeds this morning is cancelled due to 'severe weather conditions'. Presumably things must be worse further north, but the rain is no more than a shower here...which makes me wonder which engine was rostered to haul the train! 🙄😂
010 1
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 28/11/2025
'Hitler vows not to attack Poland and insists Munich plan can avert European war' 🤨
010 1
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 24/11/2025
Thinking out loud here. Are the Budget leaks incompetence, as the press is framing them...or is this a deliberate ploy by Reeves? Almost anything she does will be unpopular; but are the leaks her way of testing the waters, seeing how people react and what she can get away with? 🤔
010 1
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 20/11/2025
000 0
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 19/11/2025
Proudly wearing my ear defenders on the train to work this morning. Honi soit qui mal y pense.
020 2
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 18/11/2025
When Richard Tice says that it's 'ridiculous' for autistic children to wear ear defenders, what he really means is: 'schools shouldn't be spending money on adjustments for SEN children, because then my wealthy cronies would have to pay a few pence more in tax'.
2101 10
Murray Tremellen @drmtremellen.bsky.social · 18/11/2025
Let's be clear what Richard Tice's REAL motive is for THAT comment about autism... 😩
010 1