Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 23/07/2026But this IS a finding aid to the MacMillan archive! Includes detailed and extensive cataloguing of his diaries …. 110 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 17/07/2026Great piece from @hetanshah.bsky.social in @financialtimes.com on the future of the Humanities. Hope the new Cabinet will read this! giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...giftarticle.ft.comWe need humanities more than ever in the age of AISubjects like literature, languages and history are vital to a thoughtful and prosperous society 29254 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 26/06/2026Much has been written about the architectural statement of the planned new Trump Presidential Library, but in this piece for @theobserveruk.bsky.social I highlight the way he is undermining the legislation that makes presidential records available to the people. observer.co.uk/style/featur...observer.co.ukTrump’s presidential library isn’t for the people. It’s f...The purpose of a presidential library is to allow future generations to pass judgment and take lessons from history. Donald Trump has other ideas 0198 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 14/06/2026They are #Burningthebooks in Essex. www.theguardian.com/world/2026/j...theguardian.com‘Straight out of Trumpland’: LGBTQ+ members fight for Pride after Essex library banRochford LGBTQ+ community say Reform council’s ban on flying pride flags or holding events states they’re not welcome 0164 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 02/06/2026Here is my original article giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/... Ephemeral messages remove scrutiny from governmentgiftarticle.ft.comEphemeral messages remove scrutiny from governmentThe lack of record in affairs of state is a concern both for now and future historians 1102 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 02/06/2026I wrote about the democratic deficit created by politicians using ephemeral messaging systems in @financialtimes.com back in 2020 - dismayed that the problem hasnt been dealt with by the Cabinent Office. giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...giftarticle.ft.comKeir Starmer uses disappearing messages, admits Downing StreetPublication of latest batch of Mandelson files triggers fresh scrutiny of government record-keeping 33919 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 29/05/2026Great to see the fabulous new book, 'Prophecy: Prediction, power and the fight for the future' by @carissaveliz.bsky.social cited by @gilliantett.bsky.social in her column in @financialtimes.com giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...giftarticle.ft.comDon’t bet on Trump reining in the prediction marketsThe sector is expanding at breakneck speed in the US 3101 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 27/05/2026In this coming @ftweekend.com I have reviewed the edition (from Aperture) of the Diaries of the great photographer Josef Koudelka. For anyone interested in photography it is a must read … 1167 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 20/05/2026Its protection for them during the move - conservation grade! 100 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 20/05/2026The Muses have returned @bodleian.ox.ac.uk! On show from next week in the Weston before going onto the roof of the Clarendon Building! Can and get up close and personal with them before they go aloft! 26212 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 14/05/2026It’s all kicking off in @bodleian.ox.ac.uk MS. Bodley 264 25915 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 09/05/2026Happy birthday Alan (seen here in 2016 with Maggie’s Smith) @bodleian.ox.ac.uk 0270 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 08/05/2026My excellent colleagues have put in an extra layer of protection against the bots … 060 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 08/05/2026On Sir David Attenborough’s 100th birthday I share these photos (by Martin Parr) of him and Stephen Hawking at the opening of the Weston Library @bodleian.ox.ac.uk in 2015 - a career highlight. Happy Birthday Sir David! 1645 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 07/05/2026I should say that there is no book where the account of the BOD is a way to encounter the broader university - but it’s a very great idea and I hereby agree to take it on! 0140 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 07/05/2026Assuming you mean a book where the account of the library is a way in to the parent institution (?), I would recommend the very erudite book by Francis Newton _The scriptorium and library of Monte Cassini abbey_ (CUP) 110 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 05/05/2026We are working on a solution, but the level of traffic is at risk of overwhelming us ... 270 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 05/05/2026Some, but not many tickets left for this coming Friday's 'Wealth of Nations at 250' free event @bodleian.ox.ac.uk with Profs Joseph Stiglitz, Emma Rothschild, Sir Paul Collier, and Baronness Dambisa Moyo ... while stocks last ... visit.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/event/2026/m...visit.bodleian.ox.ac.ukThe Wealth of Nations at 250Join us for a fascinating panel discussion to mark the 250th anniversary of the publication of 'The Wealth of Nations' 0155 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 05/05/2026those were indeed the days. Have you been to sample our baked offering in this space Emily? 110 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 30/04/2026Prof Mercedes García-Arenal giving the second of her Lyell Lectures @bodleian.ox.ac.uk on Muslim Books in Christian hands in medieval and renaissance Spain 0151 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 17/04/2026Roll up, roll up for the 2026 Lyell Lectures! These will be given by Prof Mercedes García-Arenal on 'Muslim Books in Christian Hands: From Iberian Moriscos to Early Modern Europe' @bodleian.ox.ac.uk on 28, 30 April, & 5, 7. 11, May at 5pm. Free, but book! visit.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/lyell-lectur...visit.bodleian.ox.ac.ukThe Lyell Lectures 2026The 2026 Lyell Lectures, hosted by the Bodleian Libraries and delivered by Professor Mercedes García-Arenal 0196 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 17/04/2026Actually this time does not appear to be the result of bot activity, but the storage infrastructure. Should now be resolved .... 060 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 06/04/2026Our newest photographic acquisition highlighted in @thetimes.com www.thetimes.com/uk/photograp...thetimes.com‘Amazing’ unseen photos by Cecil Beaton and Lee Miller unearthedThe wartime images, processed and printed by the photographers’ assistant Roland Haupt, have been described as an ‘empirical time capsule’ 0429 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 02/04/2026Thanks Zachary. The @bodleian.ox.ac.uk quartos content (esp from the Malone collection) is being moved onto our digital.bodleian platform. You can find a few of the quartos there now, much much more to come before the summer. Not sure about the content from other libraries on the BL’s platform. 020 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 22/03/2026And not just Thames and Hudson. Other refugees included those who founded publishing houses such as Andre Deutsch, Paul Elek, Wiedenfeld and Nicholson and Phaidon. 040 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 22/03/2026I review ‘The art of the book’, the new history of @thamesandhudson.bsky.social in today’s @theobserveruk.bsky.social. It is a superbly illustrated volume - celebrating high quality-book making that brought ideas, art & culture to a wide audience at affordable prices. A gorgeous book! 2318 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 19/03/2026My review of 'The Art of the Book' which celebrates the 75th anniversary of @thamesandhudson.bsky.social is in @theobserveruk.bsky.social. It is a sumptuous book about the power of books (& the power of reading): & a publishing house as a cultural institution. observer.co.uk/culture/book...observer.co.ukHow Thames & Hudson brought art to the masses | The ObserverThe Art of the Book reveals how, over 75 years, the publisher has changed the way we think about culture 2238 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 18/03/2026Vielen Dank, dass Sie auf Bedrohte Bücher hingewiesen haben – das verdeutlicht die gesellschaftliche Bedeutung der Wissenserhaltung durch Bibliotheken und Archive – sie sind die Infrastruktur der Demokratie! 160 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 17/03/2026Greta piece on our new exhibition @bodleian.ox.ac.uk 'Pets and their people' curated by Prof Charles Foster (@exeter.ox.ac.uk) - astonishing array of materials from across our collections, and some wonderful loans too ... www.thetimes.com/culture/art/...thetimes.comWhy do I love my dog? Because she helps me access my real, primal selfA new exhibition at the Bodleian, Oxford, explores our obsession with pets. We don’t know who we are any more, says the curator Charles Foster, who once lived as a badger 1161 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 13/03/2026Vielen Dank für die Empfehlung von Bedrohte Bücher, herausgegeben von den netten Leuten bei @suhrkamp.de! 2102 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 12/03/2026Fantastic to be in conversation this evening @ucl.ac.uk at the Centre for Democratic Constitutionalism with Colleen Shogan, former Archivist of the United States on the place of archives in democratic societies. 1273 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 12/03/2026Pleased to be speaking at the House of Lords yesterday on the theme of Libraries and the growth economy- organised by @librariesconnected.bsky.social @rluk.ac.uk @ebscouk.bsky.social @cilip.bsky.social and to catch up with old friend Valerie Vaz MP 0194 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 12/03/2026Significant energy usage is triggered by these attacks … 0100 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 11/03/2026It’s the result of massive bot activity, downloading data at a scale which our infrastructure has found challenging. We have been finding this across all our metadata resources in recent months. 1345390 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 11/03/2026It’s the result of massive bot activity, downloading data at a scale which our infrastructure has found challenging. We have been finding this across all our metadata resources in recent months. 050 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 08/03/2026Delighted to be in conversation with Colleen Shogan, former Archivist of the United States, for this event @ucl.ac.uk this coming Thursday evening. Some places still left! www.ucl.ac.uk/laws/events/...ucl.ac.ukThe State of the United States: Safeguarding Knowledge: When Memory Becomes PoliticalThis event is organised by the UCL Global Centre for Democratic Constitutionalism. 2116 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 26/02/2026Thanks for upping this, John. #BurningtheBooks keeps being an authoritarian priority across the globe ... 0137 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 19/02/2026This is an excellent thread by my colleague @kastrel.bsky.social (in the Health Care Libraries team @bodleian.ox.ac.uk) 1162 0
Richard Ovenden @richove.bsky.social · 19/02/2026Free people read freely - unless you live in a council where political interference puts a stop to it. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...theguardian.comReform-run council says free library scheme for refugees ‘is not value for money’Party withdraws all Lancashire libraries from City of Sanctuary UK programme that supports new arrivals to UK 13110 0
Reposted by Richard OvendenMamtimyn Sunuodula @mamti.bsky.social · 15/02/2026Learn about some significant new finds in Bodleian Libraries’ Chinese collection including an important missing page from the world’s earliest text of Cantonese opera safely hidden inside a 40-volume imperial dictionary, two leaves of a rare copper plate print album commissioned by Kangxi Emperor.youtube.comNew discoveries in Oxford's Chinese collections (Mamtimyn Sunuodula)YouTube video by Henrike Lähnemann 0175 0