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James_AL_Downs

@magiclantern.bsky.social
4.3K followers 4.4K following 5.5K posts

Writer: 'Anton Walbrook' (2020) 'Joseph Pike' (2018) & 'A Carnal Medium' (2012), photohistorian, archivist of Middle East collections at Exeter University, runs the Digital Archive of the Middle East (dame.exeter.ac.uk), collector & bibliophile

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Dustin A. Chacón @lingdustin.bsky.social · 21h
I've heard people make claims that AI would lead to a new Renaissance, but I didn't imagine it'd happen like this:
Screenshot of a Tweet from Pope Leo XIV. It reads: 

"In this era of artificial intelligence, it is becoming urgen to distinguish human art from what machines produce. There is an ontological difference, even before an aesthetic one, between art and what a machine can generate through statistical calculation based on millions of images created by others. Algorithms lack the spark of humanity. For this reason, the Church wishes to renew an alliance with artists and cultural institutions to safeguard our humanity."
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John McCafferty @jdmccafferty.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
A crucifix mandrake, probably 16th century Extraordinary. (Schloss Ambras Innsbruck)
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David Barnett @davidmbarnett.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
In case you missed it - though I'm not sure how you would, as I was an absolute bore about it - my fourth folk horror novel TWISTED PIKE was released yesterday: www.canelo.co/books/twiste...
canelo.co
Twisted Pike by David Barnett | Canelo
Paperback and Ebook
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University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Believe it or nut - it's already October! 🍂 We hope you all have a lovely weekend. 📷 Illustration of oak, hazelnut & hornbeam from ‘The Flowering Plants of Great Britain’ (1855) by Anne Pratt [Baring-Gould Library 0691] #FridayFlowers #FlowersOnFriday #RareBooks
Photograph of an opened book featuring a full-page colour illustration of leaves, flowers and fruit of the Common British Oak, the Hazelnut tree and the Hornbeam tree.
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University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Good morning to everyone, but especially to all the raccoons, for today is their special day! This woodcut of a raccoon was printed in 1635 in 'Historia Naturae, Maxime Peregrinae' by Juan Eusebio Nieremberg. 📷 Baring-Gould Library 0689 Folio #InternationalRaccoonAppreciationDay #RareBooks
Cropped image of a page in an opened book. In the centre of the page is a large woodcut illustration of a raccoon. The title in Latin above it reads 'Mapach'.
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Matthew Teller @matthewteller.com · 01/10/2026
I had a lot of fun writing it. I hope y’all have fun reading it 😍
Front cover of new book “Finding Aladdin” by Matthew Teller
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Algerian Cinema: From Colonial Images to a New Generation algeriaconnect.com/algerian-cin...
algeriaconnect.com
Algerian Cinema: From Colonial Images to a New Generation | Algeria Connect
From revolutionary war footage to Cannes premieres, Algerian cinema spans over a century of filmmaking. Explore the key films, filmmakers and movements that shaped one of Africa's most consequential f...
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University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Today is National Sporting Heritage Day! Did you know our University Archive contains items relating to university sports going back more than a century, including reports, photographs, sportswear, balls, and even trophies? Here's a small selection! 📷 EUL UA #NSHD2026 #SportingHeritage #Archives
Sports column's relating to men and women's hockey from an early issues of St Luke's College Student's MagazineBlack and white photograph of men and women wearing tennis attire and holding tennis racquetsFlattened rugby ball, on which is printed 'Middlesex Seven-A-Side St Luke's (18pts) vs. Ldn Welsh (5pts) Twickenham 1952'. The ball is also signed with several signatures, presumably of players on the rugby team.Inter College Athletic Contests tropy of the University College of the South West
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The Public Domain Review @publicdomainrev.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Born #onthisday in 1547, Miguel de Cervantes, author of one of the most illustrated books of all time, #DonQuixote. Read Rachel Schmidt on how the varying approaches to illustrating it have reflected + impacted its reading through the centuries: publicdomainreview.org/essay/p... #otd
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Working late tonight trying to trim 150 words off this article so I can get it under 10,000 words in order to submit - down to the most hard-hearted 'Kill your darlings' stage which I always find hard. Hopefully it will be worth it in the end #Palestine
Negative image from a glass plate photograph, showing two figures picking fruit from a tree
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This Many Years Ago @thismanyyearsago.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
64 years ago, on the 27th of September 1962, Rachel Carson's book Silent Spring was published. It handled the environmental harm caused by the pesticide DDT and the disinformation spread by the chemical industry. Carson managed to sway public opinion and even policy. #otd #history 🗃️
Rachel Carson photo credit: Science History Images / Alamy
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
And will Reviewer 2 live up to their reputation?
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Today I passed a Sainsbury's petrol station in Exeter with diesel at £1.99 but have since heard that in parts of Scotland the £2 per litre threshold has been crossed. I still remember my dad's incredulity in Scotland in the 1970s when he first had to pay £1 for a gallon.
Photo of an Esso petrol station price chart showing diesel at the cost of £2.06 per litre, with pine trees in the background
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Royal Historical Society @royalhistsoc.org · 26/09/2026
This week the Society launched a new programme to support research bit.ly/4iFNuF0 The RHS / Social History Archive Partnership offers free access to resources in @socialhistarchive.bsky.social, published by DC Thomson. Applications for 6-month access to Archive content invited #Skystorians 1/2
bit.ly
Society launches new programme for researchers, in partnership with The Social History Archive - RHS
The Society is pleased to launch a new programme for researchers, in partnership with The Social History Archive, published by DC Thomson. The Social History Archive is a comprehensive online archive ...
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scha·den·freu·de @blisterpearl.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
The new AI captchas are really something ᵛⁱᵃ ˣᴷᶜᴰ
This image is XKCD #2228: "Machine Learning Captcha" by Randall Munroe, which satirizes how verification tests might exploit human fear and judgment during a hypothetical robot takeover.

text:
TO PROVE YOU'RE A HUMAN, CLICK ON ALL THE PHOTOS THAT SHOW PLACES YOU WOULD RUN FOR SHELTER DURING A ROBOT UPRISING.
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Mewling Tim @tim606.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Buy Chloe's pylons before I do. I have no wall space and very little money so you'd be doing me a solid x
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Chloe Cumming @chloecumming.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
On the subject of I’m a person and I need money, but also woo, art, smashing! I do still have lots of pylons in my shop. www.chloecumming.com/inkwater
Rusty reddy dark pylonLeaning ink pylon with watercolour, browns and greens Two small staccato pylons on a green hill with pink in the sky Windswept pylon in golden autumnal place
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
I bought these glass negatives in an antique shop the other day as a sneak peek in the box revealed they definitely weren't photographs of antiquities from Avebury & Silbury (or if they were, explosive revelations await us) As it turns out, the images aren't as exciting as I hoped: but still pleased
Photograph of six glass negatives on a light box next to their original box, which has a handwritten note about Avebury and Silbury, and the year 1922, on the lid. The images show cuneiform and hieroglyphic inscriptions plus part of the Rosetta stone
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Johnny Mains @johnnymains.co.uk · 12/09/2026
Work is looking very non-existent for the end of the year - if you're able to throw the price of a coffee my way, I'd be more than thankful. buymeacoffee.com/johnnymains
buymeacoffee.com
Johnny Mains
I look for lost ghosts in old fiction. I try and bring back authors lost to time. I also write my own fiction/non-fiction.I edit books for the British Library like CELTIC WEIRD, SCOTLAND THE STRANGE,
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
The kids are alright
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Anyway, if you move to Cornwall, you'll have your own folk horror tale to tell....
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
I'm always drawn to the social (as much as, if not more than) the supernatural elements, and he's good at that. It will be interesting to see where 'folk horror' goes as a literary genre
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
It's been a good summer of folk horror reading thanks to @davidmbarnett.bsky.social and now autumn brings a close (possibly?) to this uniquely wonderful quartet
Photo of four paperback books, three piled horizontally with their titles - Withered Hill, Scuttler's Cove and Scratch Moss - visible on the spines, with the fourth, Twisted Pike, standing upright and showing the red shape of a dog-like creature on the front cover
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TW @twesq.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
this is fantastic and I learned something new
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Digital Humanities Lab, Exeter @dhlabexeter.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Job Vacancy! For this role the candidate should have expertise in 3D modelling, photogrammetry, immersive design and visualisation in cultural heritage and humanities contexts. This post is available from 2 November 2026 on a fixed-term basis until 31/10/2027. careers.exeter.ac.uk/vacancies/12...
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University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
'...we sometimes come across other caravans. Of course they aren't nearly so lovely as ours!...' Theo Brown's 'The Joy of Caravanning' was digitised by @dhlabexeter.bsky.social. You can find it on our Digital Collections site! ➡️ specialcollectionsarchive.exeter.ac.uk/items/show/908 📷 EUL MS 388/94
Illustration of three people viewing a different caravan. The man points a stick at it, while the young girl looks towards us. The text below the illustration reads: 'In the course of our wanderings (for we often goe [sic] for walks,) we sometimes come across other caravans. Of course they waren't nearly [underlined] so lovely as ours! Mr Brown demonstrating on one.'
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University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
For International Caravan Day, we’re sharing a favourite from the archives! This delightful childhood notebook by folklorist Theo Brown captures a caravan holiday on Dartmoor in the 1920s through a series of charming stories and illustrations. 📷 EUL MS 388/94 #InternationalCaravanDay #Archives
Illustration of a caravan being being pulled up a steep hill by a van, with two people pushing the caravan from behind. The title above reads 'The Joys of Caravanin' and the text under the illustration reads: 'The Long Pull up a hill on Dartmoor. (Note the 'shovers' behind!)'.Illustration of a person standing on the steps of a caravan holding a brush. The text next to the illustration reads 'Then, of course, there are lots of dormestic [sic] jobs to be done be-fore one settles for the night - for instance, the can needs a sweep after the journey -'. Illustration of sleeping arrangements in the caravan, with one person sleeping above, and two people sleeping below. One person below is comforting a dog who is barking. The person above is saying 'Dry up' and the person below is saying 'Shut up'. The text next to the illustration reads: 'After a long day's journey, we feel we have earned some sleep, but if we have earned it, we don't get it. This is Mrs Brown trying to console the dog, who has just awakened the camp by its savage barks because it thinks it has heard a sound without.'Illustration showing a caravan being pulled down a hill by a vehicle, and is followed by several other vehicles. A sun smiles over the hills. The text below the illustration reads: 'The lorry arrives & we shackle up. Then we start. This is the long push down a hill on Dartmoor. (note [?]) We are keeping back a carabanc, ['and' crossed out] a Daimber (jolly good one too!) and a bycycle (a brand new Raleigh!). There are dosens more over the top of the hill really.'
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Victoria Rose Richards @aerialembroidery.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
80 hours of embroidery! This aerial landscape is directly inspired by Dartmoor and I'd say I have another 30-ish hours to go? I'm now starting to fill in the fields for the sheep, the tor area will be done last as I'm still deciding whether I want a slope or not 😅 I hope you like it! #art
An embroidery hoop containing a sewn aerial-view landscape. It depicts a moorland scene in a range of green shades, about 70% completed.
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Lee Rawlings sat in a chair, all set for tonight's dramatic reading of H.G. Wells' 'The Invisible Man.'
Photo of a cloth-covered table in a pub basement, with stone floor and walls. On top of the table is a glass head, with sunglasses and a hat
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Centre for the Study of Manuscript Cultures (CSMC) @csmc-hamburg.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Seal impressions can reveal ownership, reading practices, and the journeys of manuscripts across collections. A new DFG-funded project is creating a database of seals from manuscripts in the Islamic world. It will link images and descriptions and develop tools for automated recognition
uhh.de
New DFG Project for Exploring Seal Impressions
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Next time I pass this way I'll be more organised and arrange in advance to obtain the key for access, as I'd really like to see the interior of this chapel
Photo of an olf wooden chapel foor with cobwebs beneath the handle
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Passed by this lovely 15th century chapel at Ayshford this morning
Photo of an old stone chapel with a reed-banked canal in the foreground
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
My memories of 'Mr Wroe's Virgins' are somewhat hazy now after 35 years but were stirred when I caught an episode of 'The Unchosen' on Netflix the other day, leaving me wondering if this new series would be ploughing a similar furrow
Photograph of actors in historical costume, with Jonathan Pryce in red frock coat and wide-brimmed hat, standing alongside seven women dressed in white dresses and headscarves
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Ah, childhood Saturday mornings..
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
You can tell I'm on the second glass as I omitted the 'Iced' in LIIT, but also each spirit measure was 30 rather than 15, and (heresy?) I must confess to using honey in place of syrup
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Yes indeed, I was quite staggered at the lack of basic research
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Sorry to hear about the theatre mix-up (not as bad as the lady I met who walked on pilgrimage to a monastery only to discover it had been demolished 450 years earlier) but I've been trying homemade Long Island Tea for #ConfinedCocktails this evening & am now curled up with a book and a second glass
Photo of a glass of tea-coloured liquid with a lemon edge, stood on a tabletop outdoors
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Why not filter out AI slop by asking digital photographers to submit their original RAW images along with their selected edits?
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Intrigued and bemused as I may be, I'm not going to click on this.... but where does one even begin?
Image of a Daily Mail digital news story illustrated with a picture of a flying saucer silhouetted against a red sun over a pyramid-shaped mountain, and a headline about a CIA psychic spy having visions of Mars
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becimay @becimay.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
My TLS piece on the Exeter cuts ✨
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Absolutely. No excuse after this
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Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
'Only half of children in England have been to a museum or the theatre in the past year, while three-quarters have not been to an art gallery, research shows.' 'In her first interview since taking up the job six weeks ago, Airey said experience of arts and culture “should almost be a human right”.'
theguardian.com
‘I want us to be loud’: Arts Council England’s new chair aims to reconnect young people with culture
In first interview since starting job – and after visiting school where arts are central – Dawn Airey says she wants to fix ‘shocking’ lack of access
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
I know Jim Al-Khalili is brilliant at communicating complex science in easy-to-understand ways, but I do wonder if I'd be wiser reading this 'About Time' book rather than his latest 'On Time'
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Also, why didn't they walk out when he abused Catherine Lucey and other female journalists? And how can any attend the WHCA dinner and retain a shred of self-respect?
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
I had a large number of these as a child - they had been my dad's - along with other vessels including hospital ships and submarines. Varying degrees of style & detail, so different manufacturers, and a couple - such as HMS Hood - specifically identified
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Rima I Anabtawi @rimaanabtawi.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
"Within hours of a Feb. 28 missile attack that hit an Iranian school, some Pentagon personnel knew the US was responsible, according to officials involved in an internal investigation of the incident. That probe found what the officials now describe as a cascade of preventable failures."
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Wonderful! I was just showing these to photographs of Huda Sha'raawi at this conference to visitors yesterday and chatting about the history of feminism in Egypt
Two black and white photographs of Huda Sha'raawi speaking at a conference in Cairo, standing at a lectern while others listen
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marral @marralsham.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Everyone’s favourite archivist (and my brilliant colleague!) @magiclantern.bsky.social on Helen Lackner’s archives and the role of solidarity committees. Beautiful photographs included.
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University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Good morning to everyone, but especially to all the foxes, for today is their special day! To celebrate National Fox Day, here is an illustration of a fox from the book 'Animated Nature' (1828) by Georges-Louis Leclerc. 📷 Reserve 590 BUF #NationalFoxDay #FoxDay #RareBooks
Cropped image from a book showing a colour illustration of a fox in side profile, standing on a patch of grass. The illustration is decorated in shades of white, orange, brown, and green. The fox has an orange-brown coat, a white underbelly, a long snout, pointed ears, and a bushy tail with a white tip. It has a thoughtful expression on its whiskery face, as if it is pondering something...
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James_AL_Downs @magiclantern.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Sure, she's riffing on Aesop and Horace, but Potter's portrayal of Timmy Willie and Johnny Town-Mouse put it all in a nutshell
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