Jane Austen used 'however' at the beginning of a sentence, and so can you.

From the number of senior Fifa figures turning on Infantino it's clear they're hoping to save Fifa by sacrificing its leader. But how can Fifa ever claim credibility again after 1. Blatter-era corruption. 2. Blatter's successor trying to sell the World Cup. 3. Trump/Balogun.

The novel 'Rebecca' by Daphne du Maurier was published on this day (05 August) in 1938. Our collections include several items relating to 'Rebecca', such as this notebook, which contains chapter outlines for the novel. 📷 EUL MS 144/1/1/4 #OnThisDay #OTD #Archives #LiteraryArchives #DuMaurier

London people, what's a good West End show to go to, bearing in mind *We have vouchers for £100 for four people *Our two boys are 11 and 15 *We all aren't that keen on musicals *My wife is not a native English speaker Nothing will be perfect, we know, but what's the best compromise choice?

10/10, no notes

You know when there's a question you just never bothered to ask, then you see what the answer is and your brain, well, melts in confusion? I thought this bit was bad, then Richard talked about their air force OMFG

Richard Gadsden@po8crg.gadsden.online · yesterday

So... why did France fall in 1940? Almost all comes down to bad organisation. General Gamelin's headquarters did not have a radio. It relied on dispatch riders to communicate with the armies. French tanks didn't have radios and were commanded using signal flags from the command tank.

"History involves sorting and organizing hundreds of thousands of facts" I remain astounded by how loud and wrong people are about what history actually is.

The campaign of harassment and intimidation Raise the Colours have undertaken against council staff, contractors, and members of the public as reported by the Clarion today is shocking if not surprising. Excellent reporting. oxfordclarion.uk/the-clarion-...

The Clarion, 4 August 2026

We're doing a rain dance. You? While we wait for some sorely needed water, here is some news, not all of it cheerful. Including less than savoury details about Raise the Colours; celebrating Oxford Ci...

oxfordclarion.uk

Some towns didn't get xmas light put up because it was too dangerous for staff to install them.

Nate O@nateo.bsky.social · yesterday

Ex-PM Starmer said, in response to Raise the Colours terrorising people, ‘I am supporter of flags’, ‘I’m very encouraging of flags. I think they’re patriotic and I think they’re a great symbol of our nation’ and his family had ‘got St George’s flag in our flat’ www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

Amazing how an entity with as positive a brand as /the sun/ can trash its reputation in such a short time.

👀 #SE20Rain

Two very good points in this thread. I recently saw one, an AI event proposal where one part of the event (that I know the person concerned has a vision for) was described clearly and the secondary part, which they don’t really care about, was incomprehensible blancmange.

Dr. Elizabeth Sawin@bethsawin.bsky.social · yesterday

Lately I've been experiencing side-effects of the widespread use of "ai assistants" that I haven't heard talked about so much, and I'm curious if others have noticed it - maybe even the phenomenon has been studied or named.

Phantasms of imagined dystopian camps that never happened while the current US government is literally, physically putting innocent people in concentration camps camps is actually on point. Remember the Republican moral panic over the nonexistent, imaginary FEMA camps?

Jonathan Howard@joho.bsky.social · yesterday

These guys are freaking out over their own imaginations again.

Interesting take on the Ceuta farce. Morocco is aligned with Trump and Israel, who both hate Spain for not allowing its bases to be used to bomb Iran. So stage a migrant invasion to make Spain look bad and divide Europe. And most of the EU fell for it. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

The right’s exploitation of the Ceuta migrant ‘crisis’ almost guarantees that it will happen again | Ruben Andersson

The EU’s panic and the lack of solidarity emboldens smugglers and the far right – and makes Spain even more vulnerable, says Ruben Andersson, professor of social anthropology

theguardian.com

Escomb's St John the Evangelist (Co. Durham) is one of Britain's most complete Anglo-Saxon churches - built c.7th–8th century largely from reused Roman stone, with original windows, doorways and chancel arch still intact. Saved from demolition in the 1870s. A genuine time capsule.

The real story is that this is probably not uncommon, but the recipients don't generally become professors at the University of Cambridge

Emma Yeomans@yeomans.bsky.social · 2d ago

Calls for the Office for Students to investigate Liverpool John Moores University, after it passed Jason Arday's PhD thesis despite plagiarism and the thesis being 38,000 words over word count. He says received just one supervision in 2.5 years. www.thetimes.com/uk/education...

Saved to Onedrive is the document equivalent to ‘went to live on a farm with all its friends, no we can’t visit’

Furthermore, the people I follow include enough authors that I can buy their books, always have a book to read and know they will be fascinating. To create that from scratch would be near impossible. That it has evolved now at least twice, gives me hope.

Just been asked to formally confirm whether or not an essay I’ve handed in was written with AI assistance because apparently it’s very good, and sir, if I had written it with AI assistance it would not be that good 💅

Yesterday I republished a thread about the Bologna Station bombing on the anniversary. Today is the 52nd anniversary of another fascist atrocity committed in Italy as part of the so called "strategia della tensione", the 'Italicus' train bomb. Unlike Bologna, nobody has ever been convicted for it.

Nicholas Whithorn@nickwhithorn.bsky.social · last yr.

In the night between 3rd and 4th August 1974, crowded express train 1486 'Italicus' is travelling from Rome to Munich. At 0.45 it leaves Santa Maria Novella Station in Florence heading for its next scheduled stop in Bologna. It will never arrive [Thread] >> 1

My daughter has just sent me this lovely photo where you get an even better view of the puffin.

Come for the “crock of shit” quote, stay for the “actual ferry” quote which is somehow more damning

Kevin Schofield@kevinschofied.bsky.social · 2d ago

Former Royal Navy Officer Brands Reform's Small Boats Plan 'A Crock Of Shit' www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/a-croc...

Clean and regularly refilled water bowls and bee and butterfly baths are essential in this hot weather. Remember your garden friends as the drought continues. I've been out tonight to pour water on our smelly drain cover. Almost immediately bees and wasps were drinking at it, so things must be bad

Ah the old saying, fool me once shame on you, fool me 17 weeks in a row I’m the New York Times

Shipwreck@shipwreck75.bsky.social · 2d ago

Fool me once……

The guy on the – ahem – far right....

Adam Bienkov@adambienkov.bsky.social · 3d ago

Nigel Farage just took a question from a 'journalist' at his press conference, who turned out to be his former chief adviser Raheem Kassam, who asks him why the media are being so unfair to him

airbnb I’m staying at unintentionally created the toughest punk album cover of 2027

me when i am innocent

Adam Bienkov@adambienkov.bsky.social · 3d ago

"Questions about [my] money could go on for years," says Nigel Farage, when asked about the secret deal he struck with the convicted fraudster George Cottrell before agreeing to return as leader of Reform UK.

Sorry to report 60% of Bluesky’s population has been murdered by this post

Jo Michell@jomichell.bsky.social · 3d ago

if you replace it with '47 year old men who sit at a desk all week eating pastries and then run 19 miles on a sunday' it feels like less of mystery.

Increasingly thinking maybe I can get through the Years We All Ran without running

The Guardian@theguardian.com · 3d ago

‘I spent a week crying. I’ve never had an injury in my life!’ Why do so many fitness fans end up needing surgery?