iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Reposted by Dan

Stephen Bush @stephenkb.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

My favourite thing about these is trying to work out what their actual jobs are

Reposted by Dan

Emma Monk @monkemma.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

🧵 As front-page headlines go, this has to be one of the most misleading I've seen in a long time It's an out-and-out lie But notice the trick they use to get away with it...👀 *They're* not lying - they're just quoting someone else who is👍🏻 In this case, the leader of the opposition🙄 1/33

Daily Express headline:

"More Freedoms Handed to New Arrivals than British Citizens"

Above an image of Kemi Badenoch

All with a Monk Debunked stamp on top

321004543

Reposted by Dan

Rachel MacGregor @anoldhand.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

Meanwhile I was in Bedford last weekend and took the opportunity to visit the Panacea Museum which was outstanding not least because they have Joanna Southcott’s box (replica on display) and Shiloh’s crib (not pictured). It’s an amazing story panaceamuseum.org

Large wooden trunk tied around with string and meaningful knots

Wall painted with the words “The simple facts are that God requires a few sensible matter-of-fact women to take on the housekeeping on Earth”

141

Reposted by Dan

Rhys Kaminski-Jones @rhyskamjones.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

I personally will not be happy until the British have ranked all their invasions in order of goodness. Is the "Glorious Revolution" still our favourite? Does anybody remember Fishguard? (Cofiwch Fishguard) Did the Beaker People come in peace, and were the beakers worth it?

1112224

Reposted by Dan

Mass Observation Archive @massobsarchive.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

Exciting news (well we think so)! We are looking for new people to regularly contribute to our archive! We accept applications from anyone based in the UK who has an interest in sending us their thoughts and opinions about life in the UK. #Skystorians massobs.org.uk/write-for-th...

massobs.org.uk

Write for the archive - Mass Observation Archive

Writing for Mass Observation You can apply to write for the archive here. Current Observers If you are one of our current Observers you may find our handbook for new Observers helpful. This has all th...

15762

Dan @fraternalwriter.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

Echoes of the catchiness of Tomorrow Belongs To Me

000

Reposted by Dan

Patrick - Here for the craic❗️🤷🏼‍♂️😉 @paddyopatrick.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

I’ve gone through a range of emotions today over this Disgust ✅ Outrage ✅ Frustration ✅ Indignation ✅ Exasperation ✅ Genuine Fear For the Future of Our Democracy✅ But all of them come back to a burning hatred of the rank Corruption Reform Represents 😡

news.sky.com

Politics latest: Crypto billionaires give £72m to Reform - as critics call for cap on political donations

Crypto billionaires Ben Delo and Christopher Harborne have each handed Reform UK £36m in an effort to "level the playing field" with Labour and the Conservatives. The record-breaking pledges have prom...

47926

Dan @fraternalwriter.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

Hope the criminal vigilantes are soon caught & that 'Restore' will support efforts to ensure safety of museum staff & visitors.

000

Reposted by Dan

Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

It's that time of year again: annual elections of Council Members for the magnificent National Trust. Should you wish to vote for the Nomination Committee's recommended candidates, they are on page 18 of your booklet. 'Restore' and 'Reclaim' are again in the fray. Votes are due in by 30 October.

The front of Osterley House, a red brick National Trust property in Hounslow. Their are 6 pillars at the top of the steps at the entrance, and green lawns to the fore.

56857

Reposted by Dan

Annalisa Nicholson @apuddleofmuddle.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

It's just weird isn't it when the British Museum is running a sold-out exhibition, when The Odyssey reports $1billion at the box office, when the V&A has just opened the most innovative and accessible museum model in Europe....and this is what our minister for research comes out with.

361219456

Reposted by Dan

Peter Mandler @petermandler.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

I'm a little surprised that Trump's outright censorship of the 'mainstream media' - by getting networks and local stations to exclude James Talarico from both the Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Kimmel shows - is getting so little coverage in the 'mainstream media'. Or even social media.

022

Reposted by Dan

Simon Jones @simonjones.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

Causes of mental illness in men in the first years’ admissions to Colney Hatch Asylum. ‘Over-excitement at the Great Exhibition’ dates it to 1851.

Table of causes and numbers. Source: Hunter & Macalpine, Psychiatry for the Poor (1974).

MORAL.

Domestic Grief, Affliction, and Disappointment

7

Unfaithfulness, Unkindness, or Intemperance of Wife

6

Bad Company

Loss of Situation and Dread of Poverty

7

Want of Employment, and sufferings therefrom

6

Reverse of Fortune, Loss of Property, &c.

)

12

Loss of Wife or Children

3

Disappointed Affection

3

Unhappiness at Home

Erysipelas

1

Erroneous Views in Religion

3

Sudden Shocks, Fright, &c.

29

Jealousy

3

Pride

3

1

Responsibility and over-anxiety.

1

Sudden Loss of Several Cows

1

Regret for a Theft

1

Suicide of a Brother

1

Over - excitement at the Great Exhibition

PHYSICAL.

Intemperance

and

De-

}

57

bauchery

1

Masturbation

5

Fatigue and Over-exertion..

3

Over-study

6

Injury to Head

14

Disease of Brain

2

Delirium Tremens

1

Fever Typhus

Yellow

4

Small-pox

Epilepsy

14

Paralysis

6

2

Chorea.

Injury to Retina.

1

Non-success in Business

3

Disease of Lungs

Liver

1

4

Old Age

Congenital Deficiency

16

1

140

89

45117

Reposted by Dan

George Monbiot @georgemonbiot.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

“The trouble with you, Spode, is that just because you have succeeded in inducing a handful of half-wits to disfigure the London scene by going about in black shorts, you think you’re someone. You hear them shouting “Heil, Spode!” and you imagine it is the Voice of the People.” Bertie Wooster

Daniel Thomas and his Black Shorts in London today.

2103239825

Reposted by Dan

Plashing Vole @plashingvole.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

The faculty’s ongoing massive and disastrous redundancy and course closure has been referred to: the word ‘change’ appeared on a slide. There will be no further discussion or questions.

7404

Reposted by Dan

Alex von Tunzelmann @alexvont.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

If you feel like donating to the RNLI, here’s a link. I just have. Their minimum donation is £2: I think it might be nice for them to receive a lot of donations this week, even if they’re mostly very modest. Just so they know a lot of people out here appreciate their work. rnli.org/support-us/g...

rnli.org

Donate to the RNLI and help save lives at sea

Your donations really make a difference. We depend on your generosity to educate people to stay safe and prevent tragedies on and offshore. Donate here.

4920921254

Dan @fraternalwriter.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

Chip in your name & a few quid to cover cost of an advert in local press

000

Dan @fraternalwriter.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Fascinating family. Perhaps Oliver calling his publishing firm Dragons' Friendly Society owes something to George Lansbury's politics?

010

Reposted by Dan

Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

Chucked the RNLI a small donation today. I hope they're getting a good surge of much-needed support right now.

16668167

Reposted by Dan

Charles Fourier @charlesfourier.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

Bill Bryson’s words seem appropriate to post right now

5145111507

Reposted by Dan

David Veevers @davidveevers.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

Hey, I’ve got a sector far more valuable than car manufacturing to the economy which has lost TENS of thousands of jobs and looks forecast to lose TENS of thousands more, just if any minister is interested…

916444

Reposted by Dan

will pooley @willpooley.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

If magic never really “declined”, what actually happened to it? Really pleased to see this new forum in ‘Magic, Ritual, and Witchcraft’ that extends my claims about doubts to suggest other terms, such as “counter-probabilistic wishing” and “wonder”. williamgpooley.wordpress.com/2026/09/03/w... 🗃️

williamgpooley.wordpress.com

Who doubts doubt?

Magic never went away. There is now a widespread – though far from universal – sense among historians that what Max Weber called ‘the disenchantment of the world’ and Keith Thomas…

313338

Reposted by Dan

Elizabeth Rabineau @lizrablondon.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

Absolutely fantastic book, written with both passion and detailed knowledge. Also…should be required reading for our new PM and his Cabinet, as well as for local councillors.

1126

Dan @fraternalwriter.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

Compare & contrast older men's outrage at dancing & clothing of young Catholic women in Ireland with attitudes towards defiant, jazzing young Jewish women in London www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1...

tandfonline.com

The Singing Strikers of 1928–29: Cultural Contestation, Community and Communists: Family & Community History: Vol 23 , No 3 - Get Access

Browse all journals

110

Dan @fraternalwriter.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

No evidence of need (beyond distraction from allegations of boss Mr Fword's corruption) yet inept, threatening, money-wasting, performative Reform-run Essex County Council want 'security guards' to police asylum seekers in Braintree, Colchester & Chelmsford.

000

Dan @fraternalwriter.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

Drilling down @ micro scale reveals that aggregated data conceals the complexity of voters' perceptions.

010

Reposted by Dan

History of Parliament @histparl.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

On this day in 1833, the Slavery Abolition Act received royal assent, abolishing slavery in the British Empire. Our colleague @joempbaker.bsky.social looked into the specifics of the act, and why it was necessary 26 years after the passing of the 1807 Slave Trade Act.

historyofparliament.com

1833 Slavery Abolition Act: The Long Road to Emancipation in the British West Indies

Today marks the anniversary of the 1833 Slavery Abolition Act receiving royal assent. But why was this bill necessary 26 years after the passing of the 1807

02620

Reposted by Dan

Charlie Lynch @charlielynch.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

One I did earlier. Did the ‘heterosexual revolution’ of the 1960s and 1970s happen in Scotland? Well, the Church of Scotland certainly thought so, and issued a pamphlet warning about the supposed moral and psychological dangers of sex before marriage… notchesblog.com/2021/11/23/d...

notchesblog.com

David Levison and the Heterosexual Revolution in Scotland

In a diatribe delivered to the Church of Scotland’s General Assembly in 1974, Leon David Levision preached that sex without love was ‘mutual exploitation and despoliation.’

155

Reposted by Dan

Plashing Vole @plashingvole.bsky.social · 24/08/2026

Sacking news arrives, 24th August. Apparently they're extending the process to…3 weeks ago.

Screenshot of a university email describing 7th August as 'within the next two weeks'.

288212

Reposted by Dan

Glen O'Hara @gsoh31.bsky.social · 24/08/2026

Where the hell are these bloated universities? When almost everyone has stripped out layer after layer, chucking everything out of the balloon to stay aloft? When many critical functions have been centralised, ripped out and hived off to a call centre? Are these unis in the room with us now Roger?

1210418

Reposted by Dan

Sustainable Farming @sustainablefarming.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

Vegetable harvests are collapsing. Not slightly. Not just by double digits. In many locations by more than half. Broccoli harvests across Europe have collapsed very fast.

14528285

Reposted by Dan

Dr Robert Bohan @robertbohan.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

Jason Arday^: I remember someone, who I respect, saying ‘the evidence was mounting up’ & I reviewed everything I had seen proof of WRT plagiarism & came up blank. Everything was anecdotal & I noted everyone exaggerates on their CV, but running wasn’t relevant* It was. He did.

16516

Reposted by Dan

Glen O'Hara @gsoh31.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

Britain's universities are changing. Far more of their 18-21yo undergrads will have to live in the parental home. Yet whole regions are becoming subject deserts and are going to have far less HE. So stupid: no plan, no policy, no-one in charge. Dumb as rocks. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

bbc.co.uk

More students planning to live at home for uni over 'insane' living costs

Students like Jessica say they worry about missing out on student life, but feel they have no choice but to stay at home.

97420

Dan @fraternalwriter.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

UK HE institutions facing reductions in staffing & offerings. While the PM blithely makes claims about AI’s ability ‘to write an essay', an important contributor to economic growth and social peace is in deep trouble, due, in large part, to government policies. Spotted an error? Amendments welcome.

List of UK HE institutions facing significant downsizing.

002

Reposted by Dan

Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan @london.gov.uk · 19/08/2026

Some outcomes are bigger than politics.

33782196

Reposted by Dan

Glen O'Hara @gsoh31.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

The fundamental nature of Higher Education is changing. In lots of England you can't afford to 'go away' to university unless your parents are well off. Meanwhile large parts of the country will soon lack a wide range of subjects. This is madness. www.ft.com/content/4bf0...

ft.com

Two-thirds of UK students run out of money before the end of term

Undergraduates say they are missing social events and missing meals to make ends meet

710144

Reposted by Dan

Chris Curtis MP @chriscurtis94.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

"lethal electoral threat"

10496

Reposted by Dan

wamesmecfs.bsky.social @wamesmecfs.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

The Heritage Study invites adults with Long Covid and/or ME/CFS symptoms for 2 years or longer to take part by surveys and/or interview. The aim is to understand people’s experiences and help improve future NHS services. tinyurl.com/mrxz2ktv

153

Reposted by Dan

DeclanKavanagh.bsky.social @drdeclankavanagh.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

Happy to share this statement from the British Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies, which responds to recent comments about my position as Senior Lecturer in Eighteenth Century Studies and work I supervise. Solidarity with all marginalised academics under attack by the peddlers of a culture war.

Statement from BSECS
Published on: 18th Aug 2026
BACK
The British Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies supports the work of scholars of the period from all backgrounds and career stages, working in all disciplines. The Society has recently reaffirmed its commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion in all its activities, and its opposition to bullying and harassment.
As such, members of the Society have been deeply concerned about the public hounding of academics by sections of the media and on social media platforms.
In the current 'culture wars', universities and their staff
- and Black scholars in particular - have been targeted to score political points about EDI, 'woke' culture and progressive causes. This tragically came to a head last week with the death of Prof Jason Arday, who had been subjected to weeks of hostile commentary and personal attacks.

A recent article in The Spectator typified this trend. In this article, one of our own colleagues and his doctoral students were attacked for their work on queer readings of fiction. We stand in solidarity with our colleague, and strongly object to any such attempt to bully scholars and students in our field.
Furthermore, we insist that the study of sexuality is a legitimate and urgent academic endeavour, not least because many of today's attitudes towards sex and gender have their roots in the eighteenth century.
Indeed, current scholarship on the eighteenth century is very much alive to the challenges faced by society today, in fields such as race, gender, class and the environment, among many others. The British Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies will continue to support those who carry out this important work, and we wish to assure our members that the Society will stand up to any attempt to harass them.
The Executive Committee of BSECS

820761

Reposted by Dan

Ant Breach @antbreach.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

It would be a terrible shame if this resource was lost for want of an archive - this stuff is still of major interest to policymakers today and is a crucial part of the social history that made the Britain of today (HT @municipaldreams.bsky.social )

24152