Hooray hooray it’s another publication day! Huge thanks to the team at @hachetteus.bsky.social I love this cover 😊
Fay Bound-Alberti
@fayboundalberti.bsky.social
Writer and Historian. Interested in bodies, emotions, medicine. THE FACE: A CULTURAL HISTORY @penguinbooks @hachetteus
"We are used to quick-fix surgical solutions as an answer to appearance anxiety – while that anxiety is industrially manufactured, algorithmically amplified and monetised at scale." Cultural historian @fayboundalberti.bsky.social writes for New Humanist on the commodification of our faces:
Are we pushing our bodies too far?
Five experts explore the pressures we’re putting on our bodies, and where we should draw the line
newhumanist.org.uk
Are we pushing our bodies too far? Five experts ask where we should draw the line. Featuring: 💕 Viren Swami on how to fix our toxic dating culture 🐦🔥 Juliet Jacques on the power of reinventing our bodies 🙂 @fayboundalberti.bsky.social on how to save our faces from commodification
Are we pushing our bodies too far?
Five experts explore the pressures we’re putting on our bodies, and where we should draw the line
newhumanist.org.uk
First up, five experts explore the pressures we’re putting on our bodies, and where we should draw the line - including Olympian Ryan Pini on doping, @fayboundalberti.bsky.social on how our faces have been commodified, social psychologist Viren Swami on how to fix our toxic dating culture (2/9)
You’ve probably read about “looksmaxxing” in relation to Clavicular, the manosphere and social media. But what does it really tell us about neoliberalism and its impact on face value? My latest for Time magazine time.com/article/2026...
Face Value: Why ‘Looksmaxxing’ Is More Than Mewing and Mirrors
"What looksmaxxing really reveals is not a failure of individual young men, but a failure of everything around them," writes Fay Bound-Alberti.
time.com
Thanks Tom - this was a lovely conversation and we could have talked for hours! If you missed it and want to catch up, you can listen to the 9pm repeat or follow this link: www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m...
BBC Radio 4 - Start the Week, Consciousness and Identity
Tom Sutcliffe with Michael Pollan, Fay Bound-Alberti and Mary Costello.
bbc.co.uk
Tom Sutcliffe @tds153.bsky.social · 5mo agoAll about consciousness and the sense of self on Start the Week today, explored by means of everything from magic mushrooms to the literary novel and the selfie. Join Mary Costello, Michael Pollan, Fay Bound-Alberti and me just after nine on Radio Four.
Face-inating discussion with @fayboundalberti.bsky.social @michaelpollan.bsky.social #MaryCostello www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/... Thanks!
Start the Week - Consciousness and Identity - BBC Sounds
Tom Sutcliffe with Michael Pollan, Fay Bound-Alberti and Mary Costello.
bbc.co.uk
Tom Sutcliffe @tds153.bsky.social · 5mo agoAll about consciousness and the sense of self on Start the Week today, explored by means of everything from magic mushrooms to the literary novel and the selfie. Join Mary Costello, Michael Pollan, Fay Bound-Alberti and me just after nine on Radio Four.
There is no male equivalent of resting bitch face - resting asshole face is not a thing. Why? Misogyny innit. It was great to speak to Melissa Denes for her brilliant article on moveable faces in film. observer.co.uk/culture/film...
Why can’t film’s leading women age like Sean Penn?
The star of One Battle After Another is capitalising on his lived-in look, but Hollywood actresses are held to a different standard
observer.co.uk
Thanks to my lovely friends and colleagues and students who came to the launch of The Face last week. And to my Interface collaborators near and far who were unable to make it: a glass was raised 🙏
Thrilled that The Face is included in The Telegraph’s “Best Books of 2026 (so far)”! www.telegraph.co.uk/books/non-fi...
The best books of 2026 so far
Plus, the books to look forward to, from a study of Weimar Germany to the best of new British fiction
telegraph.co.uk
Men's faces are in the news - from Pete Hesgeth's chiseled jaw that conceals flimsier credentials to Trump's last-gasp hair and the is-he-or-isn't-he transformation of Jim Carrey. This is white male neoliberalism at its finest, as I wrote in my latest faces piece for @theguardian.com
‘There is no shame in being vain’: the relentless rise of impossible male beauty standards
Men’s faces are under scrutiny as never before, with more opting for cosmetic procedures than ever. What is behind this sudden and significant shift?
theguardian.com
Well that was rather wonderful and what a great book. Congratulations David! @kingschostm.bsky.social
King's CHoSTM@kingschostm.bsky.social · 5mo agoTwo weeks ago David Brydan's "Smart: A History of Intelligence" (Footnote) came out! Don't miss the chance to hear the author, and @fayboundalberti.bsky.social and Federico Turkheimer's comments in our Book Launch Party next Tue 03 March. Register via Eventbrite tinyurl.com/smart-brydan
“Who is feeding our children while we are making history?” That was Robert Chelsea’s question when asked about being the first African American face transplant recipient. Robert and I talked to Annie Kelly @todayinfocus.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/p/x4dd6m?CMP... #BlackHistoryMonth
The ‘guinea pigs’ who had face transplant surgery – podcast
Face transplant patient Robert Chelsea and writer Fay Bound Alberti talk through the promise – and darker side – of this pioneering surgery
theguardian.com
Face blindness isn't well known and nor is its history. People with face blindness do *know* people - just not in the ways we are expected to! To find out more see the Telegraph magazine - out this Saturday. Photos Felicity McCabe www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/02/22/living-with-face-blindness/
Hooray hooray publication day! Huge thanks to the team at Allen Lane 🐧
🔔 Coming up in our seminar: New Book Party! Smart: A history of intelligence by David Brydan (with comments by Professor @fayboundalberti.bsky.social and Professor Federico Turkheimer) 🗓️ Tues 3 March, 18.00-19.30 📍 8th floor, Strand building Register in Eventbrite ➡️ tinyurl.com/smart-brydan
Smart: A History of Intelligence
Venue: 8th Floor Open Space, Strand Building, King's College London
tinyurl.com
Our colleague @fayboundalberti.bsky.social will be talking about #loneliness @britishacademy.bsky.social on Thu 19 Mar 2026, 18:30 - 19:45 www.thebritishacademy.ac.uk/events/the-a...
Ask the experts: How can we connect in an era of loneliness?
Why do so many of us feel lonely in a world more connected than ever? Put your questions about loneliness and its impact to our panel of experts – and discover innovative ideas and practical solutions...
thebritishacademy.ac.uk
