iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

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IHR Society, Culture & Belief, 1500-1800 @ihrscb.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

Our first event of term is on Thursday 1 October at 5.30 pm! @rosamundoates.bsky.social will be speaking on ‘Silent Histories: Deafness in Early Modern England’! Watch this space: www.history.ac.uk/news-events/... full programme will be up soon and you'll be able to sign up for in-person or online!

history.ac.uk

Society, Culture & Belief, 1500-1800

Supported by Mark Storey and Carey Karmel

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Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

'LSBU is far from alone in its desire to drive research academics into teaching-only roles. Similar plans have been explored by the University of Brighton and Sheffield Hallam University, among others, with the latter’s decision rolled back after a major public backlash.'

timeshighereducation.com

Have teaching-only contracts created a two-tier workforce?

The past decade has seen a dramatic rise in teaching-only roles in the UK, particularly outside the sciences. But does that amount to a welcome focus on education or a cost-saving wheeze that constric...

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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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Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

'The University and College Union (UCU)’s Edinburgh branch said staff had been called into “informal meetings at less than 24 hours' notice” and told not to bring union representatives.'

heraldscotland.com

Fear and anger as university set to announce 'massive course and programme closures'

Asked to respond, a university spokesperson said that staff and students were recently informed of changes to “our future academic offering across…

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Dr Laura Sangha @lsangha.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

'Portsmouth, Leicester, Exeter, Bristol and Nottingham will be among the cities that warm the most by the end of this century'. www.theguardian.com/environment/...

theguardian.com

Cities in Great Britain most vulnerable to extreme heat revealed

OS index examines which ‘urban heat islands’ suffer the most – and which cope the best with rising temperatures

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Dr Laura Sangha @lsangha.bsky.social · 24/07/2026

Last week, about a third of the History department were able to gather together on graduation day. Rather than lend our intellectual authority to the official procession and ceremony we invited our students to come and celebrate their achievements with us in a shady courtyard. They came. 1/

A group of world leading historians in their finery, some in gowns, stand together under a tree. Some carry signs saying 'Historian at risk', other raise a glass to the camera.

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ContempraInn 🌹 @contemprainn.bsky.social · 14/07/2026

The fabulous 18th-century Abbey Library of Saint Gall in Switzerland 🇨🇭

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Adam Rutherford @adamrutherford.bsky.social · 13/07/2026

I've signed and sent a letter - from authors, broadcasters, journalists, artists, scholars and performers - to express our deep concern at @exeter.ac.uk’s troubling plans to make mass redundancies within the Humanities Dept @uniofexeterhass.bsky.social. I would love it if you read and shared widely.

Dear Vice Chancellor, Provost, Pro-Vice Chancellor and Executive Dean for the Faculty of Humanities,
Arts and Social Sciences and Chair of Council (cc Director of Human Resources and Chief Financial
Officer)
We write, as authors, broadcasters, journalists, artists, publishers, academics and performers in the public
sphere, to express our deep concern at the University of Exeter’s plans to make redundancies within the
Faculty of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS). The cuts come at a point when Exeter is not in
deficit, and they are not distributed equally across the university. With 114 of the proposed 153 FTE
academic redundancies falling within HASS, the University is dismantling areas of established excellence
and international renown in a Russell Group University whose reputation is known to be outstanding in the
Humanities. Several of the disciplines subject to the proposed cuts, including Classics and Ancient History,
English and Creative Writing, History, and Theology and Religion are among the UK’s strongest according
to league tables, the Research Excellence Framework (REF), the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF),
and other recognised indicators, including QS World Rankings.
The extent of the proposed cuts is both shocking and misguided. Exeter is seeking to make up to 20
academics redundant in English and Creative Writing, out of a headcount of 62. In Languages and Visual
Culture upwards of 17 colleagues will be made redundant, decimating subjects including Art History and
Visual Culture, French, German, Italian, Hispanic Studies, Russian and Chinese. 5 posts will go or have
gone in Classics and Ancient History (2 academics have already left), out of a staff body of 20. In Theology
and Religion up to 5 academics will be made redundant out of a group of 13. In History over 17 colleagues
will be made redundant, out of a staff body of 53. In the Institute for Arab and Islamic Studies staff are
facing a headcount reduction of almost a third (6FTE out …

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Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 28/06/2026

'Several of Exeter’s strongest improvements came in indicators that carry the greatest weighting in the rankings – with Academic Reputation, Citations per Faculty, and Employer Reputation all improved significantly.' 1/3

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David Turner @profdavidturner.bsky.social · 10/06/2026

My 500 year history of disabled people's political activism is out now! Thanks to The Independent for making it their non-fiction book of the month! www.penguin.co.uk/books/455782... #disabilityhistory

penguin.co.uk

Disability

A ground-breaking history of modern Britain that puts the experiences of disabled people to the fore for the first time. Despite there being more than 16 million disabled people in the UK today, disa...

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James Fisher @jamdanfish.bsky.social · 13/06/2025

My 2nd article on the serfdom-like compulsory child labour schemes in C18th southwest England is now available (open access) doi.org/10.1017/S026... It was distinctive not merely as a type of unfree labour, but as a centralised method for allocating servants to farmers

doi.org

Bound to the soil (part II): the political economy of compulsory apprenticeship schemes in eighteenth-century rural England | Continuity and Change | Cambridge Core

Bound to the soil (part II): the political economy of compulsory apprenticeship schemes in eighteenth-century rural England

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Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 13/04/2026

Less than a month to go (29 April, 5:30pm) until our annual Lightening Talks event for the British History in the Long 18th Century seminar, showcasing new PhD student work. Join us in person or online at the IHR in London. It's free and open to the public. #Skystorians

history.ac.uk

Lightning Talks

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James Fisher @jamdanfish.bsky.social · 13/04/2026

Excited to see Sonia Tycko's book rethinking early modern consent and contract labour is now available. This is an important intervention for histories of coerced labour. 'Captured Consent: Contract Labor in English Charity, Colonization, and War, 1600–1700'

Front cover for book titled 'Captured Consent: Contract Labor in English Charity, Colonization, and War, 1600–1700' by Sonia Tycko, with an image of an indenture

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Tim Hitchcock @timhitchcock.bsky.social · 26/02/2026

Great to see @polly-lowe.bsky.social 's article on 'The body as property' available on open access:https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/0144039X.2025.2570609#abstract A really smart analysis of Harris's List of Covent Garden Ladies and 18th c. attitudes to commercial sex.

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Polly Lowe @polly-lowe.bsky.social · 26/02/2026

Have a read of my new article! It's part of a Forum: Human Commodification, so make sure to check out the other contributions too!

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Brendan Tam @brendantam.bsky.social · 20/02/2026

I’ll be presenting a paper at the IHR British History in the Long 18th Century Seminar next Wednesday based on my (worryingly) soon to be completed PhD research!

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IHR British History in the Long C18th Seminar @long18thsem.bsky.social · 13/02/2026

18TH CENTURY BRITISH HISTORY PHD LIGHTNING TALKS CFP Are you at the start of your PhD? Want to tell an eager and engaged audience about it in 5 mins? We want to hear the best PGR research about 18th Britain at our #LightningTalks event 29 April 2026. Please see the poster for further information!

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Tim Hitchcock @timhitchcock.bsky.social · 19/11/2025

Helen Esfandiary giving a great paper on elite maternal authority over the care of children in the context of the professional medical market place in the 18th c. @long18thsem.bsky.social @ihrlibrary.bsky.social

A woman standing at a podium delivering a lecture. A power point is on the right

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Tim Hitchcock @timhitchcock.bsky.social · 05/11/2025

Really pleased to announce the launch of the all-new, all-dancing, London Lives website - www.londonlives.org It has been thoroughly re-engineered to facilitate more types of search, and redesigned for phones and tablets. The team very much hopes peope like it. 1/

londonlives.org

London Lives

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Polly Lowe @polly-lowe.bsky.social · 17/10/2025

I'm really looking forward to sharing my findings about debates surrounding the Scottish Coal miners. Make sure to come along!

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Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 22/09/2025

History curious? You don't need to be in London (or the UK) to attend many Institute of Historical Research seminars, although if you're in Bloomsbury you'll enjoy doing so. Most are hybrid (online/in person). They're free, usually fortnightly and open to the public. Starting this week:

history.ac.uk

Events

Stay up to date with the upcoming events organised or hosted by the Institute of Historical Research

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Kiran Mehta @kiranmehta.bsky.social · 20/08/2025

If you needed another excuse to spend an evening at the lovely London Archives and enjoy the delights of Exmouth Street:

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