As thousands of research academics are made redundant the whole system of free/cheap peer review will collapse.
Owen Davies
@odavies9.bsky.social
Historian and Folklorist. Writes books on witches, magic, ghosts, religion, popular medicine, and folklore.
Great to see Osterley House, National Trust engage again with the long legacy of the East India Company and its material cultures in Hounslow. Exciting to see another exhibition on this theme: Journeys: Wedding Shawls, Baghs and Phulkaris from the Karun Thakar Collection, open until 1 November. 1/4
Karun Thakar brings British Asians into Osterley House with National Trust exhibition
Exhibition of shawls invites visitors to rediscover estate's India links
easterneye.biz
In late 2023, the Society spent a day with Hertfordshire’s historians. We saw the quality, creativity and distinctiveness of teaching, research and engagement. We were told by a (now departed) senior manager that History was ‘a portfolio the university will guard very carefully’. bit.ly/4hLediN
Glen O'Hara@gsoh31.bsky.social · 3d agoSo it's farewell to the History subject area at the University of Hertfordshire, not the first nor the last to go. One of the best departments in the country, just extinguished like a snap of the fingers. Think of the waste. (1/2)
Thinking through the unedifying, un-evidence-based rush to an undefined, apparently unmodelled paradigm of 'specialisation, what's being lost/threatened? Herts History was an excellent example of performing to a top standard in REF, but also much more than that. Questions to think with include: 1/4
Glen O'Hara@gsoh31.bsky.social · 3d agoSo it's farewell to the History subject area at the University of Hertfordshire, not the first nor the last to go. One of the best departments in the country, just extinguished like a snap of the fingers. Think of the waste. (1/2)
So a whole lot of my talented Humanities colleagues are now unemployed as of today. A lot of understandable concern over Exeter. But for over two decades my Hums colleagues were in the top quartile for their research contribution to society. History top 10. Now gone with only a national whisper.
Every commentator saying too many kids go to university has to tell their own kid to not do a degree
The only reason Russell Group Humanities grads in politics and journalism chuff on and on about 'learning a trade' is the focus groups of hero voters assembled by... Russell Group grads. It's grim.
Every community has its legend – but not many have a legend about a pigman. Author and historian @cerihoulbrook.bsky.social says: "These kind of stories are macabre, they are thrilling, they are frightening." www.bbc.co.uk/news/article... 'Folklore' is out in paperback in September. #booksky
How a mythical pigman became a Cannock Chase legend
The myth tells of a half-man, half-pig hybrid created during World War Two in Staffordshire.
bbc.co.uk
Royal Historical Society open meeting (online) for historians working in universities, 4 Aug 2026 - ‘The crisis in UK higher education: the future for history’ www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-crisis.... It’s a definite sign of the times that places are almost gone.
The Crisis in UK HE: the Future for History
An open meeting for historians in UK higher education on what is needed to best support and protect the profession and discipline.
eventbrite.co.uk
Folklore!! If that got your attention then you might be interested in pre-ordering mine and @odavies9.bsky.social book in its beautiful paperback design through @waterstones.bsky.social - 25% off if you pre-order before end of day tomorrow
For those wanting a signed copy of the book, a Right To Reside card or to buy from one the best esoteric bookshops around, here is the promised link to Hookland at @treadwells-books.bsky.social. www.treadwells-london.com/product-page...
Hookland Fragments Volume One - David Southwell | Treadwells
Discover the Fortean mysteries and folkloric history of Hookland, England's lost county. Created by David Southwell and documented extensively on social media for many years, the fictional Hookland ha...
treadwells-london.com
A sneak preview of some of the contents in my forthcoming book "Art of Divination: A Visual History". Available for pre-order. www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ktY...
Art of Divination by Owen Davies
YouTube video by Yale Press
youtube.com
This 👇
Glen O'Hara@gsoh31.bsky.social · 3w agoI do strongly deprecate the disaster at Exeter Uni, and oppose its ludicrous ham-fisted cuts, but I'm afraid the furore about it is just so on the nose about Britain's class system it cannot be ignored. Oh no, not a university I think of as good and important! www.newstatesman.com/politics/edu...
If you want to know who Pigman is according to Staffordshire folklore, then take a listen here: www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...
Hidden Black Country - The Hunt for the Pigman of Cannock Chase - BBC Sounds
Did a secret experiment in World War II create a creature that lurks in Staffordshire?
bbc.co.uk
True here. We’re going from 12 FTE to 3 FTE SLs and a prof. The 3 people will teach 2 degrees (Lit/Lang and Creative Writing) and supervise our 23 PhD students. They may be on teaching and research contracts but there won’t be any time for research…or supervision…or preparation…or pastoral care.
Times Higher Education (THE)@timeshighered.bsky.social · 3w agoAnalysis of UK staff data finds skew to teaching-only roles in entry-level positions, with scale of cuts not reflected at more senior levels https://ow.ly/oikW50Znshy
This little guy in @odavies9.bsky.social 𝘈𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘎𝘳𝘪𝘮𝘰𝘪𝘳𝘦 is making my morning. Perhaps I’m still a bit sleep-deprived (and of course my tastes have always been a bit odd) but he’s just so cute. Also this book is 𝘧𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘤 and I’m stoked to finally be reading it.
I'm in the newspaper talking about how not to jinx the Norway world cup match tomorrow 😁 #askafolklorist
Derfor unngår «alle» dette før Norges kvartfinale
Norges VM-sjanser diskuteres – men tør du egentlig å si det høyt?
vg.no
Today is the North American release day of ‘Stories of the Stones’! ‘A highly rewarding and immensely rich read.’ — Prof. Duncan Garrow, author of ‘The World of Stonehenge’ Order through your favourite bookseller, or here: 🇨🇦 www.indigo.ca/products/sto... 🇺🇸 bookshop.org/p/books/stor...
As promised to link to my first actual Hookland book. It is only small, but covers a lot of the ghost soil. If enough of you buy it and like it there will be a Volume Two. www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1068598123 It will also be available in an actual bookshop soon.
EThOS platform restored! 'Following restoration work, all metadata records previously available on EThOS have now been restored, along with an additional 14,000 records added since the service was taken offline' - more to come https://www.bl.uk/stories/news/ethos-records-restored
EThOS records restored
We are pleased to share that EThOS (E-Theses Online Service) is now available again following restoration work after the cyber-attack.
bl.uk
fascinatingly* the French news is translating "Count Binface" as « le Compte Tête-de-Poubelle » rather than « Visage-de-Poubelle) which is, in fairness, more accurate (his entire head is a bin, not just his face) typical British media not asking the important underlying questions * ta gueule
I'm all for #CountBinFace but with my folklorist hat on, I have to call him out on his 99 policy. No evidence for it, and other alternative histories available. See my free article on the history of ice cream vans .... www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
A Folklorist Looks at Ice Cream Vans
Of all the commercial road vehicles that have toured the streets and tourist spots of Britain, Ireland, America, and Australia over nearly a century, none elicit more popular reminiscence and senti...
tandfonline.com
Astronomer Royal for Scotland | Catherine Heymans@astroroyalscot.bsky.social · 2y agoYou can always rely on CountBinFace who, this year, ran on the policy that he would bring into law that 99's (vanilla ice-cream in a cone with a chocolate flake) should cost 99p. 🍦🍦
Still not set on your summer 2026 history read? Save 50% on all MUP books in our Summer Sale until 9 July. Please note: discount will apply automatically at checkout, unless based in North America. North American customers, please enter discount code SUMMER50 at checkout 🛍️
In this blog, Steve Tibble details the 1321 Leper Conspiracy, a fabricated plot that led to torture, executions and persecution across France and offers a disturbing insight into how fear, greed and conspiracy theories could shape public policy. yalebooks.co.uk/the-leper-co... #IMC2026 #medievalsky
The Leper Conspiracy of 1321: How Fear, Greed and Hysteria Gripped Medieval France
The Middle Ages were capable of remarkable feats of planning and statecraft. They were also capable of extraordinary outbreaks of collective madness. In
yalebooks.co.uk
📰 New research uncovers the clearest evidence for the purposes of prehistoric Iberian stelae yet, indicating they marked graves and signposted important places along travel routes 🏺 #AntiquityResearch #ArchaeologyNews via @archaeologynews.bsky.social archaeologymag.com/2026/07/func...
Iron Age stelae in Iberian Peninsula served as grave markers and ancient road landmarks, new study reveals | Archaeology News Online Magazine
Excavations in southwestern Spain show decorated stelae marked graves and guided ancient trade routes across Iberia.
archaeologymag.com
I loved exploring the folklore of Hertfordshire - from bored devils and diabolical deals to graveyard lore - on 'Weird Britain', which aired on Blaze last night
What do these three Americans have in common? They all shot dead people they accused of being witches. And ended up in asylums rather than prisons. I discuss such USA witch shootings in my book "America Bewitched". This can happen again.
