Wonderful article in The Guardian yesterday featuring some BMHS members #musichall #variety…https://www.theguardian.com/stage/ng-interactive/2026/aug/29/showgirls-variety-stars-recall-days-on-stage-in-pictures www.theguardian.com/stage/ng-int...

The showgirl sisterhood: five former variety stars look back at their wild careers – in pictures

The ‘Golden girls of Eastbourne’ first crossed paths more than 50 years ago. They recall flammable feather head-dresses, wardrobe malfunctions and topping the bill over the Beatles

theguardian.com

New Community Engagement Survey findings are out (replaces Community Life Survey and DCMS' Participation Survey). Regional differences between people's perceived ability to influence decisions affecting their local area. Significant gap between London and the NE.

New! Martin Fitzgerald (@4hundredblows.bsky.social) joins me for a chat about Dallas, The Rock'n'Roll Years, Shoot magazine, Jackpot comic and much much more... including live mystery-solving! No, not THAT mystery. timworthington.org/2026/08/15/l...

Looks Unfamiliar: Martin Fitzgerald – Robert De Niro And Al Pacino Are Famously Not In Cool Runnings

Looks Unfamiliar with Martin Fitzgerald talking to Tim Worthington about Dallas, The Rock’n’Roll Years, Shoot Magazine’s ‘Focus On’ profiles, Jackpot comic and more&#8…

timworthington.org

Have we learnt nothing from Day Of The Triffids?

🚨New report out today! 🗣️ @profjanegreen.bsky.social: “What really matters right now for households, and for politics, are people’s feelings of economic security. “Having peace of mind about finances should something go wrong; being able to plan; feeling confident about the future.”

Think you know how much Britons' attitudes have shifted since the 80s and 90s? Take our quiz to find out if you're a Tangled Walkman, Wi-Fi Surfer, or the Ultimate Time Traveller… 👉 https://www.ipsos.com/en-uk/test-your-knowledge

Admiring the outfits and general photo-ready swagger of my grandfather Alf Court (1916-1992) this morning.

Social media used to be the water cooler. Now it’s old classmates, coworkers, garage sale acquaintances, and opinions nobody ordered. Jenny and Greg Swan talk about why we’re still using social, just differently. Listen at caveproject.co or wherever you get your podcasts.

Prompted by a recent @ballet-voices.bsky.social podcast, I look at early television broadcasts of Ninette de Valois' Checkmate, and this gives me the excuse to feature a favourite image from Magic Rays of Light: The Early Years of British Television. www.illuminationsmedia.co.uk/checkmate-on...

'Checkmate' on pre-war television - Illuminations

John Wyver writes: I am something of a fan of the Voices of British Ballet podcast, which features oral history recordings made since 2002 as well as new exchanges with dancers, choreographers and cri...

illuminationsmedia.co.uk

Social media is no longer social. Most of it is passive viewing of videos and pictures from people we've never met. But we're still studying social media like it's 2010. We've entered the post-social media era — and research needs to catch up. osf.io/preprints/so... preprint w/ Richard Rogers

COVENT GARDEN is DONE. Will be PUBLISHED by YALE UNIVERSITY PRESS in SPRING 2027, if everything lines up. Blow me, that was some work. 140,000 words (may well not be allowed to leave it that long tbh). If you want 400 years of London social history, this will probably tickle your fancy.

We've seen lots of posts online suggesting there's some kind of conspiracy involving the 2025 pandemic simulation Exercise Pegasus and the recent Meningitis B outbreak in Kent. There’s zero evidence of this. We delve into the facts 👇

What was Exercise Pegasus and does it have anything to do with the current Meningitis B outbreak? – Full Fact

Posts online suggest there’s some sort of conspiracy involving a 2025 pandemic simulation exercise and the meningitis outbreak, but there’s absolutely no evidence to support this.

fullfact.org

Missing Doctor Who Recovered! The Film is Fabulous! team are pleased to announce the recovery of two missing episodes of Doctor Who, from the serial entitled, ‘The Daleks’ Master Plan’: The Nightmare Begins (Broadcast: 13th Nov 1965) Devil’s Planet (Broadcast: 27th Nov 1965)

This question was run in PA in 1990. FDR had been dead 45 years

I’m quite pleased with this piece. Literary allusions, and an argument about what might have been and what London would have made of it. You should have seen the sections I deleted…

Lewis Baston@lewisbaston.bsky.social · 9mo ago

An essay I wrote about the idea of building motorways in London. It is - I am not joking - nuanced. That’s my brand. I hope www.onlondon.co.uk/lewis-baston...

We really need to stop asking items like this using agree-disagree scales or comparable formats. These estimates aren't informative. academic.oup.com/poq/article/... www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

An Improved Question Format for Measuring Conspiracy Beliefs

Abstract . In an era of increasing partisan polarization and media fragmentation, interest in the causes of conspiracy beliefs has been growing rapidly. Ho

academic.oup.com

Polling USA@usapolling.bsky.social · 10mo ago

Among Republicans - " The Holocaust of Jews and Nazi Germany was greatly exaggerated or did not happen as historians describe" Disagree: 56% Agree: 37% Manhattan Institute / Oct 26, 2025

Some great location stuff in here www.bfi.org.uk/features/70-...

70 years of The Ladykillers: how the locations look today

As the classic Ealing comedy turns 70, we went walking around King’s Cross to see whether Alec Guinness and his motley band of robbers would recognise it today.

bfi.org.uk

New polling on historical fiction % of U.S. adult citizens who [correctly say when the following books are set | aren't sure]: The French Revolution A Tale of Two Cities: 28% | 48% The Civil War Gone With the Wind: 55% | 30% World War II Catch-22: 28% | 53% today.yougov.com/society/arti...

Across 25 countries we surveyed earlier this year, trust in others varies widely. But it tends to be higher in high-income countries than in middle-income ones.

I just constantly think about this result, showing what kinds of people young men interact with on social media versus in real life. The algorithm constantly feeds you unflattering comparison. How can you open your phone without worsening the vibe? www.ymrp.org/polling

David Roberts@volts.wtf · 10mo ago

A theory about vibes: Human beings are deeply social creatures. Our need for a legible social order is rooted almost as deeply in our brainstem as our need for basic physical security. We need -- not want, need -- to understand who's in charge, who are allies, who are enemies, *how things work*.

Americans are more likely to visit Facebook and YouTube daily than other sites. Smaller shares are daily users of TikTok or X. www.pewresearch.org/...

kudos for the curator who decided Kenneth Williams was more culturally significant than Richard Burton.

We have just joined BlueSky! Since our foundation in 1880, we have reproduced an unrivalled selection of historic maps, plans and views of London. We also publish books and monographs containing original research. See more of what we have to offer at: londontopsoc.org

Nice design touch here in this promotional card for the Holland Bros in the #archive of @musichallsociety.bsky.social They are 'British Athletes Advanced', 'A genuine Herculean Equilibristic Novelty' and they've got great centre-partings too.

You can often find snippets of oral history to add to your research by searching newspaper archives for terms like nonagenarian, golden/diamond wedding, grand old lady/man. Older residents were often asked what their town/village was like when they were young. #oneplacewednesday

Hello 🦋 Swingers! All our podcast episodes about Agatha Christie in the Swinging Sixties are available wherever you get your podcasts! podfollow.com/the-swinging...

The Swinging Christies: Agatha Christie in the 1960s

Podcast · The Swinging Christies · Sex. Drugs. Rock 'n' Roll. Agatha Christie?? Agatha Christie may not be the first person you think of when you think of the Swinging Sixties, but her writing has muc...

podfollow.com

If you're a BMHS member, your Autumn edition of The Call Boy is arriving soon! Not a member yet? Join now to get our quarterly journal and enjoy 16 months for the price of 12 with our current offer. 👉 Learn more HERE britishmusichallsociety.com/join-us

Thrilled to announce that the #CockneyYiddishPodcast has been shortlisted for the independentpodcastawards.com/IPA25/en/pag... in the History and the Culture categories @engageqm.bsky.social @migrationmuseum.org @michaelrosenyes.bsky.social @jewishmuseumldn.bsky.social @thegentleauthor.bsky.social

RIP Patricia Routledge one of the best ever to do it.

1/ Today we published our new Every Story Matters record. It is part of the evidence in our eighth investigation: Children and Young People (Module 8). #EveryStoryMatters