Reposted by Frank FinlayAssociation of German Studies in Great Britain and Ireland @ags-gbi.bsky.social · 23/09/2026As many of you will be aware, the Council for the Curriculum, Examinations & Assessment (CCEA) awarding body in Northern Ireland is to discontinue GCSE and A-level German. This is a real blow to language education in Northern Ireland, depriving future generations of the opportunity to learn German. 013
Frank Finlay @frankjf.bsky.social · 14/09/2026Excellent explanation for a UK audience of the significance of the AfD’s recent win in Sachsen-Anhalt, with commentary from @annettedittert.bsky.social on @quietriotpod.bsky.social Well worth a listen podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/q...podcasts.apple.com 030
Frank Finlay @frankjf.bsky.social · 03/09/2026The @universityofglasgow was a splendid backdrop for last week‘s annual conference of the @ags-gbi.bsky.social 130
Reposted by Frank FinlayAssociation of German Studies in Great Britain and Ireland @ags-gbi.bsky.social · 28/08/2026As the conference draws to a close, let us thank Dr Stephan Ehrig (@herrehrig.bsky.social) and his excellent te am for their meticulous organisation of #AGS2026, which has run like clockwork. Thanks for having us @glasgow.ac.uk! See you all next year in Cambridge for #AGS2027! 0117
Reposted by Frank FinlayAssociation of German Studies in Great Britain and Ireland @ags-gbi.bsky.social · 28/08/2026After three years as Vice-President, Prof Anna Saunders (@profannasaunders.bsky.social) becomes the new President of the AGS today. We also welcome Dr Benedict Schofield (@benschofield.bsky.social) as Vice-President. We wish Anna and Ben all the best in their new roles! 0133
Reposted by Frank FinlayAssociation of German Studies in Great Britain and Ireland @ags-gbi.bsky.social · 28/08/2026Chairing the business meeting is one of the last duties of outgoing AGS President Prof Peter Davies (@pdavies.bsky.social). Enormous thanks to Peter for all he’s done for the discipline and especially his thoughtful leadership as President of the association over the last three years! 0134
Frank Finlay @frankjf.bsky.social · 30/06/2026This was during the last Euros. Hoping for tomorrow that things have finally moved on. “The crisis consists precisely in the fact that the old is dying and the new cannot be born; in this interregnum a great variety of morbid symptoms appear.” - Antonio Gramsci, Prison Diaries. Come on England! 000
Frank Finlay @frankjf.bsky.social · 30/06/2026At least all my dear German football friends can console themselves with coming up with the word that captures how a lot of other folk are feeling after last night’s historic penalty shootout defeat. 010
Reposted by Frank FinlayUCFL - University Council For Languages @ucflangs.bsky.social · 29/06/2026Colleagues at the University of Exeter need your support! ✍️ Sign the petition: c.org/yKcx6Zr29H The University of Exeter is to cut about 150 staff. The proposed reduction is almost exclusively focused on roles in the arts, humanities, and social sciences, among them Modern Languages and English.c.orgThis campaign needs you nowStop Redundancies at the University of Exeter 0614
Frank Finlay @frankjf.bsky.social · 19/06/2026First of the many pages devoted to @jonawils.bsky.social A New History of the World Cup in this month’s @lrb.co.uk @liberopodcast.com 000
Frank Finlay @frankjf.bsky.social · 19/06/2026Election Explainer in the New York Times: “There’s a lively tradition of joke candidates in Britain. That explains why Burnham was flanked on stage this morning by one person dressed as a fox and another in a trash can themed costume, who calls himself Count Binface.” 000
Reposted by Frank FinlayHetan Shah @hetanshah.bsky.social · 17/06/2026Mid-Career in academia can be a difficult time to pursue research due to other pressures. I'm pleased to say we've opened the call for @britishacademy.bsky.social Mid-Career Fellowships with funding for 6-12 months to complete a major piece of research www.thebritishacademy.ac.uk/funding/sche...thebritishacademy.ac.ukMid-Career FellowshipsThe Mid-Career Fellowships are designed both to support outstanding individual researchers with excellent research proposals, and to promote public understanding and engagement with humanities and soc... 14231
Reposted by Frank FinlayDIE ZEIT @zeit.de · 18/06/2026Erstmals ist in Großbritannien keine Frau zwischen 20 und 24 durch Gebärmutterhalskrebs gestorben. Der Grund: Die Einführung der HPV-Impfung.zeit.deStudie zu HPV-Impfung: HPV-Impfung schützt laut Studie vor Tod durch GebärmutterhalskrebsErstmals ist in Großbritannien keine Frau zwischen 20 und 24 durch Gebärmutterhalskrebs gestorben. Der Grund: Die Einführung der HPV-Impfung. 9753223
Reposted by Frank FinlayPhilipp Hölzing @philipphoelzing.bsky.social · 16/06/2026www.faz.net/aktuell/feui...faz.netDer Verlag S. Fischer verlässt FrankfurtSeit heute Mittag steht es fest: Mit S. Fischer verlässt der wichtigste Frankfurter Verlag die Stadt. Vom neuen Standort in Berlin verspricht man sich eine bessere Bewältigung der Buchbranchenprobleme... 01310
Frank Finlay @frankjf.bsky.social · 16/06/2026open.spotify.com/album/2sZDbh...open.spotify.comCape Town Revisited - Album by Abdullah Ibrahim | SpotifyAbdullah Ibrahim · album · 2000 · 15 songs 010
Frank Finlay @frankjf.bsky.social · 01/06/2026Happened to be on Leeds main station last evening and was surprised at the huge numbers of local Arsenal fans off the London train after the big parade. Never seen such a diverse bunch of football supporters in this part of the world, which was rather wonderful @philippeauclair.bsky.socialphilippeauclair.bsky.socialPhilippe Auclair (@philippeauclair.bsky.social)Writes and sings for Josimar, The Guardian and Tapete Records 020
Reposted by Frank FinlayInstitute of Languages, Cultures and Societies @ilcs.bsky.social · 27/05/2026"The future of modern languages will not be secured simply by attempting to reverse falling demand. It will depend on expanding access to the point where demand can genuinely be expressed" by @anademedeiros.bsky.social and @marcecazzoli.bsky.socialwonkhe.comModern languages has a future – and it’s all about accessContraction of modern languages provision is often painted as a response to falling demand. For Ana de Medeiros and Marcela Cazzoli, if you look across the whole education system then HE starts to loo... 155
Frank Finlay @frankjf.bsky.social · 20/05/2026When one of your favourite podcasts features one of your favourite films. Richly informative discussion of TheThird Man @ppfideas.bsky.social podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/p... 021
Frank Finlay @frankjf.bsky.social · 19/05/2026A nugget from @jackpittbrooke.bsky.social in @nytimes.com “(…) Abramovich, it was reported in 2019 book The Club, had briefly considered buying Spurs instead, but drove through Tottenham once in his Mercedes and declared that part of London “worse than Omsk” — a city in Siberia)”. 000
Reposted by Frank FinlayJack Pitt-Brooke @jackpittbrooke.bsky.social · 19/05/2026Can Tottenham break their Stamford Bridge curse tonight? My piece on the fixture Spurs find harder than any other www.nytimes.com/athletic/727...nytimes.comChelsea’s painful hold over the Tottenham psyche – anything that can go wrong often doesSpurs go to Stamford Bridge on Tuesday battling for their Premier League lives. It will not be a venue that fills them with confidence 3252
Reposted by Frank FinlayAlex Bamji @alexbamji.bsky.social · 15/05/2026We're looking for a Lecturer in Global Medieval History (ongoing) to join us in the vibrant School of History @universityofleeds.bsky.social ! Deadline 1 June. Full details jobs.leeds.ac.uk/Vacancy.aspx... #jobfairy #medievalsky #historyjobs.leeds.ac.ukJob Opportunity at University of Leeds: Lecturer in Global Medieval HistoryAre you an academic with proven abilities to carry out research and teaching in global medieval history? Do you have an established background in interdisciplinary global medieval studies? Are you est... 03546
Reposted by Frank FinlayHetan Shah @hetanshah.bsky.social · 07/05/2026Some worrying figures here www.thetimes.com/article/d758... 33225
Reposted by Frank FinlayCarole Cadwalladr @carolecadwalla.bsky.social · 15/04/2026You need to read this. @timothysnyder.bsky.social has been warning us since 2016 about Trump. He knows: he’s one of world’s leading experts on authoritarianism & always ahead of the game. V proud to publish him in @thenerve.news. He’s an essential voice. www.thenerve.news/p/donald-tru...thenerve.newsIf Trump intends to attempt a coup, here are five ways he could do itDespite the debacle in Iran, a president at war has several pressure points at his disposal to postpone, restrict and ultimately cancel democracy, writes the historian 19665343
Reposted by Frank FinlayFelix Tamsut @ftamsut.bsky.social · 13/04/2026The leading ultra groups from both clubs, FCSP's Ultra Sankt Pauli and Bayern's Schickeria München, hold a long-year friendship, also based on both groups' antifascist stance. Schickeria München's full story: medium.com/@ftamsut/unw...medium.comUnwaveringly left wing: Meet Bayern Munich’s biggest ultra groupMeet Schickeria München. 0202
Reposted by Frank FinlayIan Dunt @iandunt.bsky.social · 13/04/2026Peter Magyar has offered a template which can be used, without too much alteration, in defeating populists worldwide open.substack.com/pub/iandunt/... 501643575
Reposted by Frank FinlayOh God, What Now? – the politics podcast @ohgodwhatnow.bsky.social · 12/04/2026JD Vance, Marine le Pen, Sergei Lavrov, Geert Wilders, James Orr, Matt Goodwin, Alice Weidel, Frank Furedi, RT, Nigel Farage, Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin… your boy took a hell of a beating. 2407
Reposted by Frank FinlayDavid Higgins @davidhiggins.bsky.social · 10/04/2026My view is that researchers who submit/publish papers with fake citations should face serious sanctions (which is not currently the case). Accurate documentation of sources is really the bare minimum when it comes to research integrity and academic practice. www.nature.com/articles/d41...nature.comHallucinated citations are polluting the scientific literature. What can be done?Tens of thousands of publications from 2025 might include invalid references generated by AI, a Nature analysis suggests. 0277
Reposted by Frank FinlayTimothy Snyder @timothysnyder.bsky.social · 08/04/2026The Hungarian election is about Russian oligarchy and its support of the international far right. That’s why Vance is there. He is a node in that network. 9742191438
Reposted by Frank FinlayThe British Academy @britishacademy.bsky.social · 08/04/2026"The issue is the system, not the subject.” Professor Charles Forsdick FBA on higher education funding cuts hitting language courses hardest and the wider risks to skills, research and opportunity in Times Higher Education: bit.ly/4tFzJbDbit.lyUK job cuts hit English and modern languages staff hardest‘Vicious cycle’ of course closures means system ‘gradually losing breadth and depth of expertise’ 01811
Reposted by Frank FinlayMika @mikagratzke.bsky.social · 07/04/2026Guess what! I was in both groups at some stage. 001
Reposted by Frank FinlayDorian Lynskey @dorianlynskey.bsky.social · 31/03/2026The Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies is running a free course on the Holodomor and asked me to share it to help reach people who might be interested www.coursera.org/learn/holodo...coursera.orgFamine as Genocide: The Holodomor in UkraineOffered by University of Alberta. The Holodomor, one of the major tragedies of the twentieth century, became the subject of serious study ... Enroll for free. 25531
Frank Finlay @frankjf.bsky.social · 25/03/2026Delighted for colleagues in Linguistics to receive this recognition from their University for their outstanding achievement. 000
Reposted by Frank FinlayLeverhulme Trust @leverhulme.ac.uk · 24/03/2026Think you know what happened in 1066? Think again. Research by Leverhulme Major Research Fellow Professor Tom Licence @uniofeastanglia.bsky.social has uncovered that King Harold’s famous 200‑mile march to the Battle of Hastings never happened. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...bbc.co.ukVictorians got Battle of Hastings wrong, professor saysA professor's findings claim King Harold's 200-mile march to the Battle of Hastings is a Victorian 573
Reposted by Frank FinlayPhilippe Auclair @philippeauclair.bsky.social · 22/03/2026"A stiff drink is recommended". Just read this, need one. 35610
Reposted by Frank FinlayJürgen Zimmerer @juergenzimmerer.bsky.social · 21/03/2026#OTD Heute vor 36 Jahren wurde Namibia unabhängig, wenige Monate später Deutschland wiedervereinigt. Es ist sehr enttäuschend, dass es immer noch keine Anerkennung Genozid Herero Nama durch Bundestag u keine offiz. Entschuldigung gibt, von Wiedergutmachung ganz zu schweigen. /2 16614
Reposted by Frank FinlayLeo Baeck Institute London @lbilondon.bsky.social · 20/03/2026History in the GDR is rarely a straightforward story of ‘failure’ or ‘success’. Our new series, LBI Scholars in Conversation, opens by exploring exactly these grey areas with our Postdoctoral Fellow, Dr Alexander Brown. www.lbilondon.ac.uk/research/lbi... 072
Reposted by Frank FinlayUCFL - University Council For Languages @ucflangs.bsky.social · 15/03/2026The University of Essex has proposed to discontinue most of their undergraduate language provisions as well as the Languages for All programme as part of large-scale restructuring. Sign their petition to urge the Executive Committee to reconsider the proposal: docs.google.com/document/d/1... 03236
Frank Finlay @frankjf.bsky.social · 15/03/2026Jürgen Habermas Dies at 96; One of Postwar Germany’s Most Influential Thinkers www.nytimes.com/2026/03/14/b...nytimes.comJürgen Habermas Dies at 96; One of Postwar Germany’s Most Influential Thinkers 001
Reposted by Frank FinlayDIE ZEIT @zeit.de · 14/03/2026Jürgen Habermas war ein politischer Denker, der unermüdlich kämpfte: gegen die Irrationalität, für Vernunft und die bedrohten westlichen Werte. Ein Nachrufzeit.deJürgen Habermas: Ein leidenschaftlicher Aufklärer, bis zuletztJürgen Habermas war ein politischer Denker, der unermüdlich kämpfte: gegen die Irrationalität, für Vernunft und die bedrohten westlichen Werte. Ein Nachruf 05421
Reposted by Frank FinlayPaul Mason @paulmason.bsky.social · 05/03/2026Reds: A Global History of Communism - out in August 2026 geni.us/Redscovrevgeni.usReds:A Global History of Communism by Paul MasonShop now: 0176
Reposted by Frank FinlayMartyn Brunt @skybluebrunty.bsky.social · 10/03/2026You'll get more relevant facts and incisive analysis in this 30 minute episode, than in a whole week of watching the national news. If you prefer your opinions to come from experts, this is the podcast for you. 54513
Frank Finlay @frankjf.bsky.social · 10/03/2026www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...theguardian.comWhy independent bookshops strike fear in the heart of Germany’s culture tsar | Fatma AydemirFirst he came for Berlin’s film festival. Now it’s books. Wolfram Weimer seems to be on a mission to curb progressive thinking, says Guardian Europe columnist Fatma Aydemir 000
Frank Finlay @frankjf.bsky.social · 09/03/2026As outgoing Chair I am genuinely heartened and excited to welcome an exceptional group of new trustees.Their appointment leaves me with real confidence in the organisation’s future contribution to the region and the wider cultural landscape. yorkshirecontemporary.org/yorkshire-co...yorkshirecontemporary.orgYorkshire Contemporary appoints new Trustees | Yorkshire ContemporaryYorkshire Contemporary appoints new Trustees 000
Frank Finlay @frankjf.bsky.social · 09/03/2026The Burnden Park stadium disaster (often aka “the forgotten disaster”) was the worst loss of life at an English football ground before the 1980s. Thirty-three people died and around 400-500 were injured in a crush at an FA Cup tie between Bolton Wanderers Official and Stoke City. #BWFC 010
Reposted by Frank FinlayJohn Harris @johnharris1969.bsky.social · 06/03/2026These days I find that I can't be bothered To argue with them, well, what's the point? Better to take your shots and drop down dead Then they send you home in a pine overcoat With a letter to your mum Saying, 'Find enclosed one son, One medal and a note to say we won' 98315
Reposted by Frank FinlayProspect Magazine @prospectmagazine.co.uk · 06/03/2026Our classical columnist, Ian Bostridge, marks the 400th anniversary of John Downland’s death. The English composer was—is—one of the greats. But was he also a spy? A Catholic informer? An agent provocateur at Elizabeth I’s court?prospectmagazine.co.ukClassical notes: A trip to DowlandThe composer wasn’t just an English great—but a European one 032
Reposted by Frank FinlayPhilippe Auclair @philippeauclair.bsky.social · 04/03/2026A previously unknown species of butterfly which had been discovered in Peru in 2024 is now officially named "Vanewrightia borussiadortmund" after a BvB fan called Peter Klausmeier, struck by its colouring, spent 2,800 euros sponsoring its scientific naming. 57212