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Simon Briercliffe

@simonbriercliffe.bsky.social
2.3K followers 1.5K following 804 posts

Historian at the Black Country Museum and elsewhere: talk to me about the Black Country, Shropshire, modern and local British history, the Irish in Britain, museums, local heritage and all stops in between. Baby gaeilgeoir. simonbriercliffe.com

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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
My favourite is Kyrgyzstan, which is the sun seen through the opening at the top of a yurt.
Flag of Kyrgyzstan
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
We got taken to the theatre to see the Welephant live show!
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
More evidence that Black Country history is the best history.
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Fuming for you all here.
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Two fun arrivals in the post today: the new edition of @historyireland.bsky.social with an article by yours truly about an Irishman abroad; and a textbook for my next year of @cnagaeilge.bsky.social Irish study in Brum.
A page of History Ireland magazine featuring an article entitled 'An Accidental Celebrity - James Francis Egan' The cover of a textbook: Colloquial Irish 2
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Andy Mabbett @pigsonthewing.org.uk · 10/09/2026
In the late 1960s, Enoch Powell - after his 'Rivers of Blood' speech - agreed to do an interview at the ATV studios in Birmingham, on condition that "the black girl" [journalist Barbara Blake Hannah] was not there. www.bbc.co.uk/news/stories...
bbc.co.uk
Barbara Blake Hannah: The first black female reporter on British TV
In 1968 Barbara Blake Hannah got a reporting job with Thames Television, but some viewers strongly objected.
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Two fun arrivals in the post today: the new edition of @historyireland.bsky.social with an article by yours truly about an Irishman abroad; and a textbook for my next year of @cnagaeilge.bsky.social Irish study in Brum.
A page of History Ireland magazine featuring an article entitled 'An Accidental Celebrity - James Francis Egan' The cover of a textbook: Colloquial Irish 2
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
Heads up to anyone interested in learning Irish in the Midlands: enrolment now open for Conradh na Gaeilge courses in Birmingham: gaeilge.uk/learning-irish I've done these the last couple of years and they've been fantastic - great teachers, non-stressful format and pace, just loads of fun.
gaeilge.uk
Learning Irish - Conradh na Gaeilge Birmingham
Learning Irish Our Irish Courses Our Beginners’ Course: Learn Irish Now! A1.1  Conradh na Gaeilge Birmingham is delighted to announce that […]
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
(not that I am condoning golfers as a species, this experience also instilled a lifelong distaste)
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
Before I went back to study I did course admin for the UoB golf degree. I regularly got this kind of report - the usual response was to invite the commentor to sit in on a year 2 metallurgy course, it soon shut them up. www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midland...
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Dr Marc Collinson @marccollinson.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
Looking forward to this excellent event organised with @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social at the @bclivingmuseum.bsky.social promises to be a fascinating day of talks!
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Justine Pick @justinepick.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
Looking forward to this 'Beyond the Black Country' study day, co-hosted by @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social & @marccollinson.bsky.social Will also be delivering a short session on submitting to @midlandhistory.bsky.social journal A few spaces available on Sat 12 September 👇
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
Should also include a session on submitting to the journal with the wonderful Justine Pick, please don't ever employ me as an editor.
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
I have a few spaces available to attend a study day I'm running with @marccollinson.bsky.social @midlandhistory.bsky.social at the Black Country Living Museum on Sat 12th September. If you're into Black Country/West Mids history, or the local/national/global relationship, please get in touch!
Schedule of study day
Programme
10am Introductions (Simon Briercliffe and Marc Collinson)
10:15am Dr Elizabeth Thomson: ‘Beautiful Black Country Bricks: All the Colours of a Persian Carpet’
10:45am Jack Price, ‘Francis Brett Young, the Black Country, and Britain’s Experience of the First World War’
11:15am Break
11:30am Dr Esther Asprey, ‘Regional accents and some ‘Notes on Pronunciation’ at Walsall Grammar School in the 1960s – an evaluation of standard language ideology and the fight to reduce accent variation’
12:00pm Dr Judith Davies: ‘Anti-Catholicism in Dudley, Worcestershire in the middle decades of the nineteenth century’
12:30pm Lunch
1:15pm Tour of new developments at the Black Country Living Museum (Simon Briercliffe and Nadia Awal)
2:15pm Break
2:30pm Dr Savita Vij: ‘Transnational and national radical political networks, explored through the Indian Workers Association in the 1960s’
3:00pm Dr Matt Stallard – title tbc
3:30pm Dr Malcolm Dick: ‘Slavery, the slave trade, anti-slavery and the black presence in the Black Country c. 1700 to 1838’
4pm End
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 04/07/2026
Tá cúpla focal agam, go hoifigiúil
A certificate in English and Irish, plus a badge, confirming that the poster has been awarded the "cúpla focal fáinne", the very beginners level oral test in the Irish language.
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
I won't credit them by linking it, but the article makes some fun points about which authors we've chosen to label, despite us labelling absolutely everything 🙄
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
I hope this wasn't the cause of it, but excited to note that the Telegraph (and a verbatim repeat in GBNews) have now discovered our disclaimers and are reacting totally normally
Daily Telegraph screenshot, with headline "Museum puts trigger warning on Janet and John children's book"
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 08/06/2026
Black Country Murder Jug www.tiktok.com/@blackcountr...
tiktok.com
Spooky Museum objects from our collection 👻 Part 1: “The Murder Jug”. #spookyseason #blackcountrylivingmuseum
TikTok video by Black Country Living Museum
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SMD's pension @anothersmd.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
Why do I have to go to the local news section to find this story? Where are the protests demanding an end to the epidemic of white Brits murdering minorities? Will there be a national debate on the ills of cocaine abuse amongst white men?
bbc.co.uk
Man who stabbed student to death in Cambridge is jailed for life
Chas Corrigan, 22, will serve a minimum of 22 years for the murder of Mohammed Algasim last August.
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Modern British Studies Association @modbritstud.bsky.social · 03/06/2026
A reminder that you can join the hybrid keynote #MBS2026 tomorrow June 4, 5.30pm: Catherine Hall, 'Laying an axe to the roots': history writing for the present. Sign up link below, free to all www.birmingham.ac.uk/events/moder...
birmingham.ac.uk
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Mo Moulton @momoulton.bsky.social · 01/05/2026
Join me and @echomikeromeo.bsky.social on 4 June for an evening of trans history at the Birmingham LGBT Centre. Expect fun stories, unexpected connections, serious takeaways, and a little bit of hope. Free but register here: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/british-tr...
British Trans History: Stories for Our Times. 4 June 18:00, Birmingham LGBT Centre, Birmingham. Flyer with image from TGirlsonFim zine, purple and white drawing of a woman with personal narrative typed.
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
It's partly that, it's partly about the terrible framing of this as well. There's no attempt at trying to understand why a museum might wish to do this, so it's just rage bait.
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Niamh NicGhabhann Coleman @niamhroisin.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
I think it is worth calling it out for what it is. A really insidious wooden spoon, trying to stir up dissent at a time what such actions have real-life repercussions for many. Outrage farming. I’m totally sick of it!
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
It's all so exhausting. I realise I'm contributing to the general outrage by posting about it too...
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
This post was brought to you by the experience of pasting small disclaimers about potential content in every one of the 6000 books in our new library
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
You definitely don't need to write an article about it with some rent-a-gob local tour guide who has a vested interest in ensuring his Main Character is only seen as good.
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
This is such lazy reporting and manufactured outrage. This is bog-standard museum practice designed to prepare and safeguard front-of-house staff and provide more context for discussion, should it arise. It's not even in the written interpretation! www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Historian brands Rochester museum's guidance on Dickens' 'ludicrous'
Guidance to Guildhall Museum staff about Charles Dickens’ views on race and empire called unnecessary.
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 31/05/2026
I suspect it was very patchy and more landlord-specific, and that consistent decor started to become more of a thing from the 70s, especially if it was a big brewer like Banks's who always made "heritage" part of their brand.
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 31/05/2026
The timeline really tracks - when we were researching our pub at @bclivingmuseum.bsky.social (Edwardian but set in 1960), everybody remembered cast-iron tables, but it turned out they were only installed when Banks's refurbed c1975, to give it more olde-worlde vibe
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Irish Studies@LivUni @irishinstitute.bsky.social · 30/05/2026
"Men We Seldom See - Irish Migrant Legacies and the British Construction Industry" We are looking for Irish migrants who worked in any aspect of the British construction industry for at least one year, and are willing to be interviewed. ℹ️ www.liverpool.ac.uk/irish-studie.... #oralhistory #SpéirGorm
liverpool.ac.uk
Men We Seldom See | Institute of Irish Studies | University of Liverpool
Research project at the Institute of Irish Studies looking at Irish Migrant Legacies and the British Construction Industry
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History of Advertising Trust @historyofads.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
Wise words from The Cake and Biscuit Alliance in 1950 #NationalBiscuitDay
1950 advert for The Cake and Biscuit Alliance Limited  - 'Biscuits Keep You Going' (HAT20_2)
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
It's not really spring until Lady Emma Hamilton is out
A beautiful orange/pink rose
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
Fair, I can't hear Air on G String without picturing someone being stretchered off a football pitch smoking a cigar!
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
In the UK there are two contenders only. 1. Armadillos youtu.be/bqeGxMgVOHI?... 2. Accrington Stanley youtu.be/pieK7b4KLL4?...
youtu.be
Dime Bar Commercial [Armadillos] (Starring Harry Enfield) - 1995, UK
YouTube video by ceilingsoldier
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
Dudley High Street, looking towards St Thomas (better known as Top Church)
A black and white photo of Dudley High Street
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
The weather out here in the Shire has reached the point where I've just hung my trousers on the washing line and hosed them, rather than contemplate ironing.
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
You're in good company though
Sauron, with the quote "But they were all of them deceived, for another ring was made"
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 25/05/2026
First step towards Saint JRR of Tolkien.
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Piers Haslam 🌺 @phghaslam.bsky.social · 21/05/2026
Read the final part of my archival reflections from @norfolkro.bsky.social, about how rural Norfolk of yesteryear could be quite queer! It made me so happy to find these fabulous photos - I really wanted to share them 🏳️‍⚧️🏳️‍🌈 norfolkrecordofficeblog.org/2026/05/21/l...
A photo showing someone in a studio in a glamorous black evening gown with elaborate foliate patterns. They’re wearing an eye-catching choker with a white bejewelled star.A photo taken in a studio of someone taking up the role of a boy in a pantomime. They are wearing tights and an antiquated costume tunic with puffed sleeves.
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
Introduce yourself with 10 bands/musicians you've seen live Pulp James Brown REM The Breeders Gregory Isaacs Tanya Donnelly The Hives Mark Lanegan Nick Cave James [more than once edition] Frank Black Mogwai Bruce Springsteen John Grant Pixies Four Tet Kristin Hersh Laura Mvula Erasure Low
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Mic Wright @brokenbottleboy.bsky.social · 21/05/2026
What the government is doing to trans people is a society-wide version of Section 28. It is a level of bureaucratic cruelty that utterly decimates a whole group of people’s rights and puts anyone who doesn’t ‘look’ right in the eyes of others under constant surveillance. It’s a horrific thing.
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Máiréad Enright @maireadenright.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
Hup the barman 🇮🇪
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Katrina Navickas @katrinanavickas.bsky.social · 21/05/2026
Solidarity with all trans + people today. And if you're cis like me and have any agency in shaping your institution's policies regarding toilets etc, please exercise it in defence against those who want to take away human rights.
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Ian Kikuchi @curatorian.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
This story, insofar as it deals with the National Railway Museum, is utterly absurd. If you rock up to a museum event expecting to dump a load of stuff on the staff, and are then surprised to be politely refused, then you clearly have no idea what museums are for. www.cityam.com/a-state-of-t...
cityam.com
A state of the nation tale: The National Rail Museum won't accept a model railway set
From museums that won't accept model railway sets to the NHS's refusal to share data, British inefficiency is costing us billions.
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 21/05/2026
*Cries in social history museum*
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 21/05/2026
World champions at shooting ourselves in our own feet.
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 21/05/2026
😢
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
Reinstate Wrexham I reckon.
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Simon Briercliffe @simonbriercliffe.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
This is the dumbest thing Southampton have done since signing Ali Dia. Such a shame just as we'd finally found a manager who clicked after years - Eckert must have known though, right? It takes all the shine off a really impressive second half of the season. www.bbc.co.uk/sport/footba...
bbc.co.uk
Spygate appeal: Southampton lose appeal against expulsion from play-offs
Southampton lose their appeal against expulsion from the Championship play-off final for spying.
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