iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

I was at Woking station many years ago when someone was trying to raise funds by shouting 'Help blind children!' I thought about responding: 'You hold them down, I'll poke them in the eye.' But obviously I didn't.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Yes, I was actually aware of Ella Langley's ‘Choosin’ Texas,’ thanks for asking. (Not my thing, but admire the craft, etc.) What I had not heard of before this week was Frank Sinatra’s 1970 concept album ‘Watertown’. I thought I was pretty across popular music of that era. And it is by FRANK....

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

Returning from a restorative couple of days in Rotterdam and Delft. The first city: a fascinating laboratory of urbanism, energy and movement, modern architectural statements everywhere you look, but with a commitment to family friendly public space too. Delft: picture-postcard pretty, canals....

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 07/08/2026

One more chapter of THE BOOK completed today. Apologies if you have been waiting for me to attend to something else. [Opens email inbox, screams...]

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 30/07/2026

Area man informed by daughter, on day of her graduation, that she cannot travel to ceremony without elaborate bouquet. 'I have 30 years' experience in UK academia,' he comments. 'When did this become a thing?'

An elaborate bouquet, purchased at short notice but thankfully just in time.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 03/07/2026

Well, that's another HOTCUS annual conference over. Things are pretty shitty in UK HE at the moment, but the quality of the work presented at the conference was really very high. And everyone looked fabulous too.

A group of c. 70 historians stand cheerfully on the steps outside the Samuel Alexander building at the University of Manchester. They have had a good day, but are now in the mood for a drink and some food. Some idiot suggests they pose for a photograph.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 01/07/2026

Off to the 2026 HOTCUS conference at the University of Manchester. Looking forward to seeing old friends, learning about new work and riding one of those famous buses. Will it feel like the future?

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

A rare public airing for the Oliver knees today. Apart from that, Lords is looking glorious.

Lords cricket ground bathed in sunlight, just before the start of the England vs West Indies T20 Women's World Cup match

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Reposted by Kendrick Oliver

Rachel Coldicutt @rachelcoldicutt.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

Also (sorry, but honestly) if I had to make a list of places cis men couldn't go to because a cis man had made a women "uncomfortable" there, it would be very long and there would be literally nowhere for men to go.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 05/05/2026

We may be a little later than some, but it was lovely to be at my cricket club this evening to see our first ever all-girls side take the field in their debut competitive fixture. The girls played amazingly well, only a few practices in. Many thanks to all those who helped us get to this moment,

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 01/05/2026

This must be the place - Talking Heads When the Lord - Suzanne Sundfor Farewell, farewell - Fairport Convention Same situation - Joni Mitchell Do right man, Do right woman - Aretha Franklin Shipbuilding - Robert Wyatt Boulder to Birmingham - Emmylou Harris

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 30/04/2026

I had a lovely time speaking to the staff and students at the University of Oklahoma's Department of History of Science, Technology and Medicine yesterday. Many thanks to the department for inviting and hosting me.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 28/04/2026

Once travelled to Fort Worth to work at the NARA office 9 miles out of city centre. Thought I would take bus from downtown to end of line and walk the rest of the way. Nearly died of heat stroke. Also tried to walk to the stockyard district and was stopped by the police for suspected vagrancy.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 28/04/2026

Ah, the romance of travel. Rough descent into Chicago this afternoon. Quite a few people puking. Buckets on the concourse at O’Hare to catch water from its leaky roof. At gate for onward flight, someone was wearing a ‘Guns, titties, beer & freedom’ t-shirt.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

In a conversation, really struggling to follow what the person I was talking to was saying about the history of modern art. Turned out they were confusing Pablo Picasso with Rosa Parks. (!) It was a huge relief when we finally realized what had happened. But I'll never get those twenty minutes back.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

Spent the evening at a tribute show for Nanci Griffith, performed by Clive Gregson, who was a member of Griffith’s Blue Moon Orchestra in the late 1990s and early 2000s, and the Hayes Sisters.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

Human thinks: 'Right, going out to a gig this evening. Just enough time to walk the dog round the park, collect and eat pizzas from the local van, and get to the venue for the start of the set.' Dog thinks: 'Excellent moment to discover a dead rat in the park and roll around its carcass.'

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 05/04/2026

The nice folks in the Department of History of Science, Technology and Medicine at the University of Oklahoma have invited me over to give their annual Michael Ruby Distinguished Lecture in a few weeks’ time.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 02/04/2026

The screening of Project Hail Mary I attended suffered from a visible grid of white dots throughout. We were handed refund vouchers as we left. But still, a good warm-hearted buddy movie set in space, blending The Martian and ET. If cinemas are going to survive, this is the kind of film they need.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 02/04/2026

Seems like a good moment to mention that I once wrote a book about American spaceflight and religion. www.press.jhu.edu/books/title/...

press.jhu.edu

To Touch the Face of God

The Sacred, the Profane, and the American Space Program, 1957–1975

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 31/03/2026

Attended what was billed as a bat walk in the local park this evening. The stupid bats didn't get the concept at all. Just flew around over our heads.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 29/03/2026

Nothing beats as fast as the heart of a small dog who has realized that her humans are about to give her a bath

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 27/03/2026

Not sure you can describe yourself as generous if you are also obsessed by the thought that your 'generosity' might be exploited

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 16/03/2026

Two distinct strands of my life woven together in this image. 1) 40 years of Talking Heads fandom; 2) the study of space history. David Byrne singing 'Heaven' tonight before, above and also within the Apollo 8 'Earthrise' photograph.

David Byrne and three musicians, dressed in blue, on stage at the Eventim Apollo, London. Imposed on the stage and backdrop is the famous photograph taken of the Earth 'rising' above the surface of the moon during the 1968 circular Apollo 8 mission. It looks as though Byrne and company are standing on the lunar surface, with Earth rising behind them.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 15/03/2026

This came on at a soul/jazz thing last night. I was confused. Had the DJ discovered some pre-Zutons version of 'Valerie,' though I was pretty certain the band had written the song? No, but it sure sounds like it should be the original. Dance floor gold, for what it's worth. youtu.be/fp1hbiLPyRw?...

youtu.be

Valerie - Junior Dell & The D-Lites

YouTube video by Original Gravity Records

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 28/02/2026

Samurai warrior attending the Middle-Aged History Professor Exhibit at the British Museum.

The photograph shows a samurai warrior at the British Museum exhibit. The warrior is looking in the direction of a middle-aged man. Maybe it is unclear who is the viewer and who is the subject. Hence the highly amusing caption.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 26/02/2026

Bummed to have missed this talk due to train shenanigans. Guess I'll just have to read the book, sigh....

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 19/02/2026

No legal expert, but I wonder if UCL felt more exposed to an adverse judgement than some other institutions. Rightly or wrongly, my university reverted to full in-person teaching in 2021-22, in line with the lifting of government restrictions. I think UCL adopted a more blended approach that year.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 18/02/2026

Extremely happy to discover this evening that James McMurtry is coming to London in October. Bought his first album back in 1989 and many of the others since, but have never yet managed to see him play live. Ticket now in (virtual) hand.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 12/02/2026

Another chapter of THE BOOK completed. More than two years in the writing, as I took a break midway to work on something else. 181 footnotes. I learnt a lot about early quantum mechanics and interwar nuclear physics in the process. This was fun (sort of), but I'm very glad it's now done.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 10/02/2026

Living the 15-minute city dream. Cara Dillon and Sam Lakeman tonight, literally playing down my street. Lovely stuff. Though they made my wife cry at one point, the bastards…

The photo shows Sam Lakeman and Cara Dillon on stage, Lakeman playing the guitar, Dillon singing (beautifully, obviously). Some greying or balding heads are interposed between the camera and the stage, because we are all getting old.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 08/02/2026

English person here. Sorry about Lewis, and the fire, and empire and everything. So I have now spent at least 30 minutes of my Sunday morning contemplating the use of the word ‘twat’ in this post. Another four-letter word ending in ‘t’ was available.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 05/02/2026

Three weeks ago my daughter bought me a large tub of flapjacks as a thank you. Lovely. I have had one every day since, sliding from delight towards enjoyment, into indifference, then boredom. I am now approaching despair. There is still a third of the tub left. The situation feels existential.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 27/01/2026

I am in this photograph, and if there is a similar one taken at HOTCUS 2026, I shall ruin that too. Brilliant conference, brilliant city, see you there, I hope...

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 26/01/2026

75 years late, I finally read John Wyndham’s The Day of the Triffids, on a flight over to Detroit yesterday for a family funeral. (Shout out to the pilot who landed the plane like a chaste kiss in near white-out conditions at DTW) (1/9)

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 23/01/2026

This was great. It gave me the seeds of an idea for a new seminar on my special subject module. Future students be warned, things are going to get even darker....

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 20/01/2026

I think this is right. The abrupt shift from 'well, we all have mad uncles and idiot citizens who vote for them' to 'no, enough of this' has been quite marked.

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Reposted by Kendrick Oliver

HOTCUS @hotcus.bsky.social · 19/01/2026

Applications for the 2026 HOTCUS Article Prize and Early Career Article Prize are now open. Both awards recognise outstanding research on twentieth-century US history published in peer-reviewed journals during the 2025 calendar year, and each comes with a £100 prize.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 18/01/2026

'Now I always have something smart to say, and people actually listen.' A fascinating ad, encountered on the NYT app - it reminded me of those 1920s advertisements suggesting that a liberal use of Listerine might make the boys (or girls) like them more. 'Microlearning' sounds just the ticket...

An advertisement in the New York Times shows a woman sitting on her couch drinking from a cup, having interesting thoughts. The ad text reads: 'How to become an interesting person. I used to feel like the dullest person in the room. Everyone had something to say - except me. And then I found this app. Instead of wasting time scrolling, I started spending 15 mins a day learning from the world's best books. Now I always have something smart to say, and people actually listen. I recommend that everyone try micro learning with Headway.' Other educational resources are available.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 03/01/2026

A lot going on this morning, not least with respect to Mark Carney's personal security arrangements, but fwiw a thread about something else - though possibly not completely irrelevant to the current moment. Last night I watched the Netflix documentary, ‘The Stringer,’ 1/12

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 26/12/2025

Quite unusual for me to be in UK over Christmas, so important when here to honour the Boxing Day tradition of attending a 0-0 draw. Nice to finally visit the Cherry Red Records Stadium and to witness Haydon the Womble (not shown) banging his recycling bin to ginger up the crowd.

The photo shows the Cherry Red Records Stadium , home of AFC Wimbledon. The game is about to start. Just prior to this, there had been a power outage and black smoke rose briefly over the opposite stand. This was probably the most exciting thing to happen all afternoon.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 24/12/2025

As the sole vegetarian guest at Christmas lunch tomorrow, I offered to bring along my own main course, which I have prepared in advance. Quite pleased with how it looks. Spiced potato and caramelised onion pie, seeing as you asked. To be served with veggie gravy, naturally.

A golden pie, clearly made by a very talented cook, on a cooling rack

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 16/12/2025

In the early 2000s, my wife and I lived for a year in Earl's Court Square. Nice apartment. The previous tenants had been two East European prostitutes. Their tenancy had apparently ended rather abruptly.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 03/12/2025

I'm teaching a new class next week on the confirmation of Einstein's theory of general relativity by the British expedition to observe the 1919 total solar eclipse. (thread 1/11)

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 30/11/2025

On the subject of Tom Stoppard: I have never seen The Real Inspector Hound, despite performing in the play at sixth-form college. I was the corpse, and had to keep my eyes shut throughout.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 26/11/2025

Some seriously deep cuts played tonight by Gen X indie cognoscenti faves The Clientele, in front of a suitably reverent audience at St Pancras Old Church. Next time, though, I'm bringing a cushion. Church seating is less forgiving than church doctrine.

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 26/11/2025

I attended a very touching memorial service for my PhD supervisor, Michael Dockrill, today. Michael died seven years ago. He was a model supervisor: kind, humourous and supportive (and prompt with feedback).

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Kendrick Oliver @koushist.bsky.social · 22/11/2025

Off to buy my son a new cricket helmet, to keep him safe when he watches the Ashes highlights

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