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Lesley Pitman

@lesleypitman.bsky.social
1.5K followers 2.4K following 1.5K posts

Librarian at large. Chair of CILIP ILIG. Used to be a Slavonic librarian. Posts a random mix of libraries, Russia, food (gluten free) and the joys of life in Tooting. hcommons.org/members/lesleypitman

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Lesley Pitman @lesleypitman.bsky.social · 9h
Following Esther Rantzen’s sad death that very moving clip with Nicholas Winton is being widely shared again, and the myth grows that he was a lone hero. If you admire him, as you should, please also remember Doreen Warriner, Trevor Chadwick, Beatrice Wellington, and their colleagues.
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Lesley Pitman @lesleypitman.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Local primary school just came out, and our front door bell rang. Nobody there, but two little figures running off down the road. I didn’t know knock down ginger was still a thing.
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The Ukrainian Review @theukrainianreview.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Academy of Sciences in Kyiv 🙏🇺🇦
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Lesley Pitman @lesleypitman.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
I am two episodes into Wargame, watching largely through my fingers (Gove!). I have questions. It is oddly devoid of context. What happened to Ukraine? Surely the Baltic would be next? There are lots of easier ways of attacking the UK than using expensive missiles. And where is the rest of Europe?
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Helene von Bismarck @helenebismarck.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
An excellent&long overdue essay on British (lack of) resilience, explaining just how dependent the UK is on circumstances it cannot guarantee itself, and why protecting your security means a lot more than to just spend more money on arms (although that is necessary, too). www.ft.com/content/ba80...
ft.com
How resilient is Britain?
As climate and geopolitical risks cast doubt on the UK’s ability to cope in a crisis, leaders are turning from ‘just in time’ to ‘just in case’ as a governing philosophy
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R @liburghal.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
"Generic White Man" is the most common cause of failure in this.
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Lesley Pitman @lesleypitman.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Oh this is mortifying.
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Dr Nazlin Bhimani @nazlinbhimani.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Some good news – a new library! Shakespeare’s Globe has opened a new public library and archive holding more than 6,000 books, original texts, recordings of productions and other treasures from the theatre’s history. www.thebookseller.com/news/shakesp... #Shakespeare #TheatreHistory #Renaissance
thebookseller.com
Shakespeare library and archive containing 6,000 books opens under the Globe theatre
The theatre has opened its newly renovated research and collection centre, which features London’s only publicly accessible dedicated Shakespeare library and archive
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Lesley Pitman @lesleypitman.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
I so hope that today’s news is good news for the BL, but it is just sad that yet again it is someone with no background in libraries or the cultural sector. Can we really not come up with anyone suitable? Thoughts with the staff today.
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Lesley Pitman @lesleypitman.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Even more true for those with life threatening allergies, of course. Is there any coordinated work on this, @lucygobag.bsky.social?
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Lesley Pitman @lesleypitman.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Any other coeliacs quietly stocking up on food you can safely eat? And that you might actually enjoy? This advice doesn’t quite work for us, and seems a little puritanical. There are many good things to say for chocolate, but one is that it keeps well. And in an emergency I will need treats.
bbc.co.uk
What food items should you stock up on in case of an emergency?
Extreme weather may be changing the way we need to shop, with the UK government urging people to stock up on canned goods.
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elia ayoub @ayoub.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Friend shared this video of a man unveiling the library he hid when he fled Damascus in 2011. It’s incredible
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Hanna Liubakova @hannaliubakova.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
#Belarus So much happiness today. Among those released are media professionals and not only: Andrei Aliaksandrau, Liudmila Chekina, Iryna Zlobina, Dzmitry Navazhylau, Tatsiana Kuzina, Pavel Belavus. Let's celebrate them & let's keep fighting for everyone who remains behind bars.
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Alex Andreou @sturdyalex.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
All day Piddington's womminfolk have been telling news how they will be terrified of "hundreds of young men nearby, free to come and go as they please." NOT ONE JOURNALIST has asked: "How did you cope when it was an army base? Who came and went then? Nuns?" Soon as you ask that, all becomes clear.
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Lesley Pitman @lesleypitman.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
I hope Andy Burnham takes more than two days off. Two days is not enough, even if you are Prime Minister. Especially if you are Prime Minister.
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Liesbeth Corens @onslies.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
University HR departments really forget what *H* in their name stands for, don't they? This gaming of the rules may be legally correct it definitely isn't morally. Much love to Wolverhampton colleagues and @plashingvole.bsky.social in particular.
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Lesley Pitman @lesleypitman.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Currently seeing all the publicity about the latest series of 7 Up, and amazed anew that by an accident of education I knew the mother of one of the posh kids. We worked in the same organisation, and that job took me into a different and strange world, simply because I learned Russian at school.
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Parody Nigel Farage @parodypm.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
More evidence of fighting age men swarming uninvited into our towns.
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Lesley Pitman @lesleypitman.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
Classic coeliac lunch today. Small emergency packet of Nairn’s GF cheese oatcakes from the bottom of my bag and a bag of crisps. They had sold out of GF sandwiches. It was 12:10.
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Tom Roberts @tpgroberts.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
Just keep muttering to myself "he was still trying to solicit another donation during the by election he held to avoid the investigation."
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Nadine Batchelor-Hunt @nadinebh.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
The moment Reform admitted on camera the “grim reality” is they can’t bag any British donors was the moment I realised how bad it was
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Lesley Pitman @lesleypitman.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
I wonder if there will be a problem pinning anything on Farage, as that big foreign donation wasn’t real and didn’t actually happen.
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Lesley Pitman @lesleypitman.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
BBC News website quiet so far on the big Channel 4 News scoop. Somebody is having an unexpectedly busy evening checking out what Reform has been up to. I wonder how long it will take.
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Samuel Moore @samuelmoore.org · 01/09/2026
This is why we had a whole open access movement. You can't leave this stuff up to the good will of organisations who may take access away at a moment's notice.
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dread & circuses ♥️🖤🤍💚 @likeapen.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
A real gut punch: "If we could not digitize everything in response to the global pandemic when we could not go anywhere, we certainly do not have the time or resources to completely digitize all world cultures before international mass displacements of populations due to climate change."
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Anna @superteadrinker.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
Is anyone aware of a recent academic or grey literature article on the effects of the BL cyberattack? I am writing about fragility of digital infrastructure in libraries and lack of experience in knowing what to do in data loss situations...
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Lesley Pitman @lesleypitman.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
Russia has destroyed one third of all the books printed in Ukraine this year.
bbc.co.uk
Russian strikes destroy 12 million books in Ukraine ahead of new school year
Ukraine says Russia is deliberately attacking its culture, after strikes on publishers and churches.
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Dr Vanessa @hpsvanessa.bsky.social · 30/08/2026
The loss of language competency is a huge restriction on UK research. So grim.
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Jo Wolff @jowolff.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
The biggest risk is never on the risk register. In this case the government pandering to manufacturered populism and prejudices refuses to take simple, costless, steps (taking students out of immigration figures) that would have preserved the sector.
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Helene von Bismarck @helenebismarck.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
You hope that humanity might evolve. And then, this.
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Lesley Pitman @lesleypitman.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
Just saw multiple copies of the Salt Path on sale in a hospital shop. Seems inappropriate.
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Lesley Pitman @lesleypitman.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
Wandsworth stays no overall control, and Reform’s vote share is a pitiful 1.6%. Good.
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Lesley Pitman @lesleypitman.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
Good news about the shingles vaccine. I just wish I could have it but I am simultaneously too young and too old, according to the NHS. Infuriating.
theguardian.com
Shingles vaccine linked to lower risk of heart attack and stroke, study finds
Researchers say benefits of two-dose Shingrix vaccine could be comparable to taking daily blood pressure medication
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CILIP @cilip.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
We are saddened to hear about the death of Dolly Parton. Dolly was an Honorary Fellow in recognition of her positive impact on children’s reading in the UK & globally, gifting millions of books to millions of children via her Imagination Library. Our thoughts are with her family.
Dolly Parton smiling and holding two colourful children's books, wearing a vibrant jacket.
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Lesley Pitman @lesleypitman.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
Beautiful rendition of a Neil Young song.
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Charles C Roseman @evoroseman.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
RE: freedom of speech, academic freedom, and race science. In this (long) thread, I’m going to 1) establish my bona fides on academic freedom and race science, 2) show why academic freedom and freedom of speech are different and… 1/34
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Library of Congress @librarycongress.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
The Library is devastated to learn of the passing of Dolly Parton, a music legend and titan of children's literacy. Her Imagination Library program has earned multiple Library Literacy Awards and, in 2018, she visited us to donate its 100 millionth book to our collection and host a story time. 🦋❤️
Dolly Parton reads to children in the Library’s Great Hall in 2018. Photo by Shawn Miller.
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Joel @itsjoels.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
This is the letter kids got at the end of Dolly’s Imagination Library. I defy you to read this and not cry.
Sorry, I can’t type that.
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Coyb @thisscoobydont.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Dolly left a positive mark in my local library in Birkenhead. Bet she had never heard of it but her gifts have planted seeds of the love of books far and wide x
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Alex Zalben @azalben.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Dolly Parton, among a thousand other amazing things she did in her life, gifted over 330 million books to kids through her Imagination Library program. Her passing is a tremendous loss to the world, but you can support the program today to keep it going imaginationlibrary.com
imaginationlibrary.com
Dolly Parton's Imagination Library | USA, UK, IE, CA, AU
Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is a book gifting program that mails free books to children from birth until they begin school in participating areas.
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Lesley Pitman @lesleypitman.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
The Escher exhibition at Somerset House is excellent, and the interactive elements are a lot of fun.
A photo of me taking a photo of me inside an Escher.
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Lesley Pitman @lesleypitman.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
I admire a lot of chefs and cookery writers, but tonight’s shout out is to Barney Desmazer. He is a staff writer on the BBC Good Food site, his recipes always work, and tonight’s black pepper chicken with lemon yogurt was delicious. I suspect many more people cook his recipes than know his name.
A spicy roast chicken leg, a lemon garlic yogurt sauce, and turmeric and pepper rice. Yum.
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Sarah T Roberts, PhD @ubiquity75.xyz · 22/08/2026
This is the nadir, the reductio ad absurdum, of deciding that every ounce of human expression is something called “content” — rendering all such “content” the same, therefore, equally valueless.
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Katya King @katyavdgk.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
Ukrainian publishers call for support after Russian attacks destroy 10m books www.theguardian.com/books/2026/a...
theguardian.com
Ukrainian publishers call for support after Russian attacks destroy 10m books
The country risks ‘the collapse of the entire book ecosystem’ following destruction of warehouses in July and August, say Ukrainian publishers
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Lesley Pitman @lesleypitman.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
Wow. Sigrid Rausing has emailed me a FINANCIAL-PROPOSAL! She has FINANCIAL BUSINESS PROPOSITIONS for me. My lucky day.
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Lesley Pitman @lesleypitman.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
Wouldn’t work for me. I only really know what I think when I start writing it down. Sometimes I surprise myself.
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Morgan Jones @morganj0nes.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
Wrote this article last year and still think about the Uxbridge backlash quite a lot. I think it summed up a lot of what was wrong with Starmer's Labour – and the benefits of Sadiq sticking by his guns are now clear to see. labourlist.org/2025/04/loca...
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Lesley Pitman @lesleypitman.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
Why Sadiq Khan isn’t a populist, but a true leader. He chose to do the difficult, unpopular thing and was proved right.
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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 )
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Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
'Examinations of London schoolchildren before and after the introduction of the city’s ultra-low emission zone (Ulez) found a restoration of lung capacity that had been stunted by exposure to pollution.' Brave politics, wise policy, good news.
theguardian.com
Ulez led to better lung size and function among London children, study finds
Researchers find capacity stunted by pollution restored after introduction of ultra-low emission zone
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