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Jeremy Benson

@jembenson.bsky.social
1.9K followers 3.3K following 6.6K posts

Adviser @aqaeducation.bsky.social, MAT and @RSPH.bsky.social trustee, ex-senior civil servant; classical music, #LCFC 🦊, England⚽️🏏, walks, photos, words; husband, father, generally curious substack.com/@jembenson 📍 Leicestershire, UK

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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Late stroll. A tree basks in its own streetlight. A drain is a nest of thirsty mouths lying in wait. A giant calculator lazes on a roof, waiting for more sunlight to accumulate. At my feet, the fence-shadow rushes backwards just as fast as those headlights go forwards. @imcmillan.bsky.social
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History of Parliament @histparl.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Following a recent workshop on the history of Westminster Hall, @jhdavey.bsky.social has explored the building's central role in Britain's political history.
historyofparliament.substack.com
Westminster Hall
Last week, the History of Parliament supported a workshop on the history of Westminster Hall.
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
'Leicester, for instance, narrowly missed out on Champions League qualification in 2020 & 2021. Would they have qualified had City, who finished above them, not been artificially juiced? Had they played in the Champions League then, would they be in the mess they're in now?' @jonawils.bsky.social
theguardian.com
Ever feel you’ve been cheated? Consequences could be profound after Manchester City guilty verdict | Jonathan Wilson
The Premier League could be hit hard by the aftermath of this case, while Manchester City fans may know they took 30 years to recover from a guilty verdict of illegal payments in 1906
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Jay Hulme @jayhulmepoet.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
I'm going to tell you a story and then, at the end, I'm going to ask you if anyone happens to have the niche knowledge I need to help... The story begins, as so many of my stories do, in an ancient church in the middle of a city. But it's not now. And it's not hundreds of years ago. It's the 1960's
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Signpost poetry. @imcmillan.bsky.social
Signpost near Church Stowe, with directions to Upper Stowe, Lower and Upper Heyford, Churchstowe, Farthingstone, Everdon and Maidford. Also, on a brown sign, the Old Dairy Farm Craft Centre.
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Former doors: an occasional series. #exdoors
Bricked up door at the church in Nether Heyford, Northants
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Impressive showing by Team UK at WorldSkills in Shanghai. 🥇🥇🥈🥉🥉🥉
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Picturesque stile in the sunshine, with footbridge behind, and yes that is the path climbing steeply up the hill behind… 😮‍💨 @lakesstiles.bsky.social
North-east of Farthingstone in Northamptonshire a slightly rickety wooden stile bathes in the September sunshine, with a wooden footbridge beyond that goes through a gap in some trees. Through the gap can be seen the line of the footpath ahead curving up a green and yellow hill. The sky above is blue with wisps of cloud.
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
I found a rare stile-gate combo. @lakesstiles.bsky.social
In the early autumn sun, a slightly overgrown stile sits next to a slightly ramshackle kissing gate, near Bugbrooke in Northants.
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Manchester City reportedly found guilty.
static.klipy.com
Popcorn Guy Enjoys Popcorn While Relaxing
Alt: Popcorn Guy Enjoys Popcorn While Relaxing
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
And yet still nothing about WorldSkills… 🤷🏻‍♂️
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
#FingerpostFriday
A weathered, old-fashioned signpost in the autumn sunshine at Greatworth in Northants. It has directions to Farthinghoe, Marston St Lawrence, Brackley, Helmdon, Syresham, Culworth and Sulgrave.
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
#AdoorableThursday Hinton-in-the-Hedges
The narrow, wooden, chocolate-brown church door at Hinton-in-the-Hedges in Northamptonshire. It has long black metal hinges, a pointed stone arch above and a sense of ancient stability. There is a grey drainpipe to the right of the picture. It was sunny, with the left side of the door in shadow and the shadow of a tree on the wall to the right of the picture.
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Late strolls. The clouds are moody, prefiguring the darkness of strolls to come. Pale orange lights and tree-hulks arrange themselves in irregular patterns along the line of the old railway. My crowd of shadows takes part in an angular relay as each streetlight passes. @imcmillan.bsky.social
A park in the dark: trees at different distances against the darkening sky and a line of orange light along the old railway.
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
St Pancras.
St Pancras station in London, from beyond the buffers looking towards the distant entrance to the engine shed, with a Eurostar train just visible to the right. To the top right of the picture the glass roof makes go-faster lines with its metal frame against the clear sky above. The wall to the left is speckled with autumn sunlight, picking out the top of the red brickwork along the side of the station.
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Make it make sense pt 2. #LCFC
Screenshot showing Leicester 6-1 up after 52 minutes against Fulham U21s in whatever competition that is.
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
I confess I don’t always understand Tom Cox but this is very funny. @dj-acid-reflux.bsky.social
substack.com
Photographs Of Scarecrows I've Met On Walks And Some Important Biographical Information About Them
My most recent books are:
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Hoping that @samfr.bsky.social might be persuaded to give his assessment of the UK's medal prospects in Shanghai, as he has been known to do for certain other international competitions... #WorldSkills
feweek.co.uk
WorldSkills 2026: Opening ceremony – follow live
Follow our live blog as the FE Week team brings you the latest from WorldSkills Shanghai
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Sidelined stile. @lakesstiles.bsky.social
A narrow path winds ahead between bushes. To the right, half-buried in the bushes, is a wooden stile. But the path goes to its left, with only a small step over a  piece of wood.
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Dr Darcey Gillie @dfgillie.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Me to security person at Dublin Airport: I was given a lemon as a prize today. Can I bring my lemon through security? Security person (solemnly): Yes, you may bring your prize lemon through security.
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Late stroll. The crescent moon is a picture-book cutout from the pastel sky. A lamppost proudly lights its perfectly round web decoration. The mysterious box locked to a lamppost has sidled away. A car-roof tucks itself into the boot for one last snuggle of the year. @imcmillan.bsky.social
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Minimalist stile. @lakesstiles.bsky.social
A wooden fence shaded by a tree with a green field behind and clear skies above. The single step of a stile in the middle of the picture is not immediately obvious.
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LutraLutra @reacctionary.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Somnambulation. I always think that the rack and pinion mechanism of the lock paddles look like a prehistoric bird ready to peck the eyes out of unsuspecting bargees...
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Signpost poetry. @imcmillan.bsky.social
Newbottle 1
Farthinghoe 2½ 
Hinton in The Hedges 2½ 
Evenley 3 
Brackley 4½ 
Kings Sutton 2
Croughton 2
Aynho 2
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MꙬse Allain @mooseallain.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
“Quack quack” "Quack’s quack?” “Quack” “Quack quack? “Quack quack quack!” #knockknockforducks
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
A Stile with a View. @lakesstiles.bsky.social
A wooden stile with a tree on the left and a metal gate on the right. It is quite overgrown. There is a green field behind it and the landscape stretches into the distance beyond that. There are fluffy clouds in the sky above.
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
This is a fascinating perspective on the #BayeuxTapestry.
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
I’m not particularly a football romantic but Oakwell is proper old-school, in a good way - for example we had QR codes on our tickets but they were scanned by hand at the turnstiles. Less said about the actual match the better, of course. #LCFC
A row of red turnstiles.A floodlight pylon looms in the Yorkshire drizzleThe pitch bathed in sunshine during the match, looking down from the away stand at the north end of the pitchEven football stadiums need postboxes I suppose.
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
It was great to meet Ian in person. Best to draw a poetic veil over the match itself…
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Matchday. My first trip to Barnsley, & #LCFC’s first since 2014 (when Vardy scored twice as we won 3-0). There have been a total of 28 goals in these 2 teams’ last 3 matches, so not expecting a dour goalless draw, but I’ve no idea what brand of chaos we’ll take to Oakwell given recent form. COYF… 🦊💙
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Dan Davies @dsquareddigest.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
The late DJ John Peel apocryphally once said to a colleague at radio 1 "I don't understand why this record isn't in the charts - everyone I know has bought it". The colleague replied "no John, you know everyone who bought it"
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
#FingerpostFriday
A signpost in the village of Teeton in Northamptonshire, with a tree behind. It has directions to Hollowell, Ravensthorpe, Guilsborough, Creaton, Thornby, Spratton and Holdenby.
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Nicolas Hénin @nicolashenin.net · 17/09/2026
Nice campaign by the Norwegian Consumer Council about the declining lifespan of products. Enjoy!
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Last week’s Radio 3 Composer of the Week is a brilliant listen: Stephen Sondheim, the great composer and lyricist, was responsible for so many innovative and unforgettable musical theatre songs and shows. I challenge anyone not to shed a tear at that final rendition of Old Friends in his memory.
bbc.co.uk
BBC Radio 3 - Composer of the Week Podcast, Stephen Sondheim (1930-2021)
Donald Macleod reflects back on the life and work of a Titan of Musical Theatre.
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
#AdoorableThursday Wootton
An unusually-shaped narrow door to the church at Wootton, south of Northampton: it has a rounded arch at the top with what looks like a bite taken out of it. It is made of light brown vertical wood strips, and has two long cross-shaped metal hinges, as well as a slightly rusty metal strip across the middle with patterns cut out and a small metal handle. The surrounding stone is various shades of honey.
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Adrian Teal @tealcartoons.bsky.social · 15/01/2026
This is haunting... It's the oldest piece of music for which we have both the words and the notes. A song to the Hurrian goddess Nikkal, it was written on clay tablets around 3500 years ago, and was discovered in the 1950s in the ruins of the ancient city of Ugarit. www.youtube.com/watch?v=w8tf...
youtube.com
THE OLDEST SONG IN THE WORLD
YouTube video by Peter Pringle
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Ian McMillan @imcmillan.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Early stroll. Clouds like a patterned ceiling. A man greets me from a lit doorway. The cockerel’s limited expressive range. A dinosaur and a fire engine in a front yard. Have I seen three different cats or the same cat three times?
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Late stroll. A window catches the sun and puts me in the spotlight. The footbridge steps are a deconstructed zebra. A shaft of evening light blazes across the path. A cat haughtily tells its white-tipped tale. Streetlights stand back-to-back & the orange one is taller. @imcmillan.bsky.social
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Jay Hulme @jayhulmepoet.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
Found a gravestone that definitely contains a trapped soul, and which comes to life at midnight in order to dispense grave warnings to anyone foolish enough to pass by at such a late hour.
A roughly carved face at the apex of an old gravestone.
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
TIL that Orazio Benevoli’s stunningly beautiful Missa Angelus Domini is a fine way to end a weekend (with thanks to @ifagiolini.bsky.social).
Album cover of the recording by I Fagiolini of two of Benevoli’s masses on the Coro lable. It is quite hard to describe but has the word ‘Missae’ in large, multi-coloured letters across the middle.
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
My three club football teams all played this weekend, registering two wins and scoring & conceding a total of thirteen goals. And guess how many of those were in the match I chose to go to…? ⚽️😭🤣
static.klipy.com
Fully Raw Kristina Shows Zero
Alt: Fully Raw Kristina Shows Zero
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
Annual stewing of apples from our tree. Very simple and utterly delicious. 🍏
A saucepan full of chunks of appleApple chunks now soften and stewed, and ready to be eaten
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
And that’s a wrap. See you in July ‘27... #bbcproms #lastnightoftheproms
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
Does Nicky Spence know he’s got the Loch Ness Monster on his shoulders…? #lastnightoftheproms
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
‘I thought we played well in the first half, but we’ve got to keep up the intensity when we get back out there, to make sure we end on a high’
Conductor Sakari Oramo being interviewed during the interval of the Last Night of the Proms
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
Not an original observation, but Yuja Wang is an extraordinary player. 🎹 #LastNightOfTheProms
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
Make this team make sense... 😬🤣 #LCFC 🦊
Screenshot from the Leicester City website of the team’s last three results: a 2-0 win at home to Plymouth, a 4-0 defeat at home to Oxford Utd and a 4-3 win away to Stockport County today.
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Some more about the Eleanor Crosses: the Northern Line tube platforms at Charing Cross have wood engravings showing how the nearby Cross might have been built, and I took some pictures of them last week.
jembenson.substack.com
The Northern Line Charing Cross panels
Supplementing my piece about the Eleanor Crosses, here are some of the pictures showing the building of the Charing Cross on the Northern Line tube platforms.
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
Don’t want to sound smug, but I saw Bayeux Tapestry forty years ago, before they were famous, at a small gig* in front of a handful of people in their home town. *museum
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Jeremy Benson @jembenson.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
Don’t want to sound smug, but I saw Bayeux Tapestry forty years ago, before they were famous, at a small gig* in front of a handful of people in their home town. *museum
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