Jon Turney
@jonturney.bsky.social
Writer & editor, past lives in science policy, sci-comm etc. Retirement pastimes include managing climate anxieties. New writing at UKjazznews.com and @theartsdesk.bsky.social jonturney.wordpress.com See also https://bristoljazzlive.co.uk
UK aviation emissions to be 50% higher than thought by 2050, government admits www.carbonbrief.org/uk-aviation-...
UK aviation emissions to be 50% higher than thought by 2050, government admits - Carbon Brief
The Labour government has signalled its support for a contentious third runway at Heathrow airport, with a final planning decision expected by 2029.
carbonbrief.org
“It’s one thing to go out and hold up a placard” Deputy Met Police Commissioner Matt Jukes said that the police take neo-Nazi threats more seriously than those peacefully holding placards. There have been over 3,600 arrests since July 2025 for peacefully holding up a placard.
Saving people at sea is what the RNLI does. Doing so without first asking to see their papers, their DNA or their faith did not used to be controversial. Now it gets them death threats. RNLI people won't be intimidated out of their beliefs and mission. Support them: rnli.org/support-us/g...
‘Their boat was sinking’: RNLI vows to keep rescuing asylum seekers despite attacks
Charity emphasises small boat rescues are tiny part of its work and speaks out after volunteers abused by far right
theguardian.com
A BIG DAY IS APPROACHING! Tomorrow is #theartsdesk's 17th birthday. Many years of the best independent arts coverage! Thanks to our supporters & readers for all your help! Start a subscription before end 09/09/26 to enjoy our Founders’ Rate £40/year *in perpetuity*. theartsdesk.com/subscription...
A game from a talented team here…
tor-in-the-mud@toothandshore.bsky.social · 2mo agoI am so excited to share the preview for KRALDUM, my solo mudlarking RPG coming this autumn to Gamefound for RPG Party 2026. lots, lots more to come, but you can read a bit about the project here and click follow to see how it develops. I'd appreciate it grandly! gamefound.com/en/projects/...
I don't know if it's just that this UK government missed the context of growing up in Ireland in the 90s, but they should probably be aware that gangs of lads in balaclavas don't have the best intentions for the public.
And listen up. Once more I am calling you to break out your clicking fingers and maybe even your wallets for a subscription as we push forward into theartsdesk.com's glorious expansion - this is the only place where you can find music festival reports like this, next to
'In #HumphreyBogart’s penultimate movie, he puts in a performance it’d be criminal to miss' ★★★★★ THE DESPERATE HOURS - Hidden gem in #Bogie's 50s filmography offers excitement & psychological depth says @realjohncarvill.bsky.social @arrowvideo.bsky.social Blu-ray www.theartsdesk.com/film/blu-ray...
Interesting. See also Helen Mialet’s excellent Hawking Incorporated for another analysis of some of this scienceobserved.wordpress.com/2015/01/05/t...
The opposite of a “lone genius”
There’s a new batch of commentaries on Stephen Hawking, and his career, prompted by the new biopic. Time, I think, to revisit Helene Mialet’s excellent study of Hawking, and “Hawk…
scienceobserved.wordpress.com
Philip Ball@philipcball.bsky.social · 4d agoI knew that some folks will not be delighted by this review of Graham Farmelo's new biography of Hawking, but so be it. The book itself is good - as I say, Farmelo lets people's words speak for themselves, and many are quite damning. www.theguardian.com/books/2026/s...
'As with #BillEvans’s music, emotional veracity draws a great deal of strength from atmosphere' ★★★★ EVERYBODY DIGS BILL EVANS - #GrantGee's first feature refuses to play by #biopic rules in this atmospheric evocation of the great #jazz pianist, says Mark Kidel www.theartsdesk.com/film/everybo...
Sure, I’m laughing at Farage’s “I wasn’t listening” too. But don’t forget to notice last 2 days also saw quite the most horrifying set of policies ever aired by absolutely the worst set of people ever seen in public life. And to work to stop them.
Hello culture vultures! The Arts Desk, which can boast a really outstanding range of writers and reviews, is, until Wednesday 9 September, offering a founder subscription which lasts for ever (do it!): theartsdesk.com/subscription... @theartsdesk.bsky.social
Help to subscribe to The Arts Desk | The Arts Desk
The Arts Desk’s team of professional critics offer unrivalled review coverage, in-depth interviews and features on popular music, classical, art, theatre, comedy, opera, comedy and dance. Dedicated ar...
theartsdesk.com
One has become somewhat inured to climate change denial, but measles denial was not one I’d ever thought might become an influential position…
Jennifer Ouellette@jenlucpiquant.bsky.social · 6d agoMeasles killed 6-week-old baby, coroner confirms after RFK Jr. disputed deaths arstechnica.com/health/2026/...
Dear BBC News, If you'd like to actually fulfill your mandate to inform the public of the reasons people take small boats please feel free to invite me onto any of your shows. I'm a world expert in this with an award winning book on the topic. Or you can just have a man stood shouting in the sea.
Met officer policing the Just Stop Oil Demo in Westminster today was wearing B&W Union Jack badge with a poppy -also mono - superimposed. Not a thin blue line… Anyone know what it means. It seemed rather creepy but that could be just me?
RIP Cassandra Wilson youtu.be/TKWxU7hnhjw?... (Wish she’d done more thjngs like this)
Sankofa
YouTube video by Cassandra Wilson - Topic
youtu.be
25 years since this thing came out. I’m very fond of it, it’s possibly the most personal thing I’ve made and, if I’m allowed to be proud for a day, I’m rather proud of it. All 8 eps up on Channel 4. #TheArmandoIannucciShows #Ch4 #ABigEgg
TVARK@tvark.bsky.social · 2w agoThe Armando Iannucci Shows Comedy Channel 4 (TalkBack) 30 August - 18 October 2001 Each episode focused on specific themes related to human nature and existentialism, around which Iannucci would weave a series of surreal sketches and monologues.
To book or not to book? bristoljazzlive.co.uk/2026/08/26/t...
To book or not to book? - Bristol Jazz Live
As the jazz schedule gets back into gear after a quiet couple of months, there’s picking and choosing to do again. Maybe a bit of planning too. Should that include booking ahead? We’re pretty spoilt i...
bristoljazzlive.co.uk
Yeah, I thought Bristol was wrecked by cars until we got to know Birmingham better…
Martin Price@mrmjprice.bsky.social · 3w agoPeak Birmingham: Flagship cycle lane closed because of a stalled development’s hoardings, parking suspended because of the development but still being parked in, the remaining pavement overgrown with bushes from another stalled development. Pedestrians forced into the carriageway.
One of the amusements of working in Books for Amnesty is definitely working out how the books in some large donations could possibly arrive from a single source :)
Richard Smyth@rsmythfreelance.bsky.social · 3w agoCharity-shopping a ton of old books today, including loads that I needed when I was researching questions for Mastermind. They're going to take one look at that box and think "oh, somebody quite weird has died".
Noting what the Economist argued and assuming the converse is a far better proposition has always been a useful heuristic but seems simply unavoidable nowadays
Archie Hall@archiehall.bsky.social · 3w agoBRITAIN WOULD BE BONKERS TO DITCH PALANTIR New @economist.com leader from me on Palantir. I most wanted to highlight its critics' troubling illiberalism—many seem far too blasé letting politics determine which businesses governments buy from. You can read it here: www.economist.com/leaders/202...
Hurrah for Julius Hemphill ukjazznews.com/marty-ehrlic...
Marty Ehrlich – ‘OPEN AIR – The Complete Saxophone Quartet Compositions of Julius Hemphill’ - UK Jazz News
Multi-reedist Marty Erhlich (b.1955) has long been a vital part of the New York scene, contributing to innumerable ensembles since the 1980s. He’s one of those outstanding players who might have gaine...
ukjazznews.com
SCOOP: 404 Media placed a tracking device in a shipment of rare books to see which AI company was buying it. What did we find? It ended up at an Amazon facility where Amazon scans and destroys books. Yes. This is literally the logo outside the Amazon warehouse door. Read now:
We Tracked a Shipment of Rare Books. It Ended at an Amazon AI Training Facility
We placed a tracking device in a shipment of rare books to see which AI company was buying it, and found an Amazon facility where Amazon scans and destroys books.
404media.co
Fatalities and casualties reduced by 34% on London roads after the speed limit was lowered to 20 mph. Are drivers just more obedient in London than elsewhere? No! It’s the speed cameras!
'20mph roads are working in London - they should be England's default'
TfL's Chief Safety, Health and Environment Officer has told government ministers they are being too "hesitant" and should take inspiration from Sadiq Khan
mylondon.news
Reading Iris Murdoch novels can feel…strange? E.G The Nice and the Good (1968), a comic novel that begins with a suicide, and has bits of characterisation like “Jessica had never developed the faculty of colouring and structuring her surroundings into a moral habitation”. Angela Carter she wasn’t :)
