Machine (it, the computer): ‘Rewrite this paragraph with Copilot’ Human (me, the writer): ‘No [insert expletive]. By the way, it’s Co-pilot’
Peter Doyle
@profpeterdoyle.bsky.social
Military Historian (and geologist) Trench warfare, terrain and material culture FRHistS
An old cart shed at the Thames Chase Forest Centre in Essex. Constructed from reclaimed beams, some 500 years old, this building stood through the Great War as its farm supplied food for the Home Front. In 1915, a year of military reverses, a worker daubed the fateful date on the timber. Why?
Thank you apple tree. Planted in the garden of a 1930s inter-war ‘housing boom’ house, you must have experienced war and peace, and gave sustenance to generations. Thank you for being there, and for shading me as I reflect on your life.
Having first seen DEVO decades ago, I saw them again, days ago. And what I’ve learned over this period is that their message is even more relevant today, as it was then.
Princess Mary’s Christmas gift for ‘Every Sailor Afloat, Every Soldier at the Front’ to a sailor of HMS Queen Mary, sunk with almost all hands at Jutland, 110 years ago. This frame could either be a poignant memory of a lost sailor, or survivor’s memory of his once proud vessel.
Interesting insights from David Olusoga at this evening’s lecture in London’s Cadogan Hall
I am delighted to be speaking at The WFA Somme 110 Conference on 4 July at the Army & Navy Club! I'll be talking about the Indian cavalry alongside @profpeterdoyle.bsky.social Linda Parker, & Stephen Badsey. Plus our president Spencer Jones will be chairing a panel discussion. Booking is now open!
President’s Conference: SOMME 110 | The Western Front Association
westernfrontassociation.com
Re-upping this for the Saturday crowd: On how Michael Balcon articulated Ealing Studios’ institutional identity and commercial and creative decisionmaking in moral, progressive, and patriotic terms. All reposts (and subscriptions) much appreciated. x
Dr Dion Georgiou 🇨🇾❤️🇬🇾@drdiongeorgiou.bsky.social · 5mo agoI've written a new post on Michael Balcon and the projection of Ealing Studios' institutional identity, in relation to the content of Ealing's films, arising from research for my article on the politics of Passport to Pimlico, its production & reception. A 🧵on its argument. #filmsky #skystorians🗃️
This story always makes me smile, especially the reference to the fate of the Bismarck… www.stowmarketmercury.co.uk/news/2150960...
Feisty swan ‘annihilates’ eight model boats on Needham Lake... Queen asked to sort the fowl-tempered bird out
A rogue swan is wreaking havoc at a Suffolk tourist hot spot, sinking boats and beating up ducks and geese who dare to share his water.
stowmarketmercury.co.uk
Silk postcards are avidly collected, though examples like this one, faded and grubby, are likely to be overlooked. But there is something about its message, ‘a kiss from the trenches’, that draws the eye and sponsors reflection: a simple message of love from a frontline soldier of the Great War
Your Britain: Fight For it Now - 1943/2026. Abram Games’ hard-hitting poster depicted modern health care (Finsbury Health Centre, with want and degradation lurking in the rear; a future worth fighting for in 1943- and today
The Salient. The physical remains of a war that still reminds us of how easy it is to slip into conflict, and how difficult it is to escape entrenched positions
@profpeterdoyle.bsky.social kindly spoke at our Annual Conference in 2024. You can catch up with it here....and all of our other conference talks and zoom lectures. youtu.be/gyJol5djRHA?...
Gallipoli 1915: the impact of terrain from ‘forcing the Dardanelles’ to ‘evacuating the beaches’
YouTube video by Gallipoli Association
youtu.be
theconversation.com/presents-fro... A piece I wrote a few years back on this iconic gift from 1914, a précis of my book on the topic.
Presents from a princess: the mission to deliver 2.6 million Christmas gifts to soldiers and sailors on the 1914 frontline
The story of how a teenage princess launched one of the first global charity campaigns.
theconversation.com
greekreporter.com/2025/12/23/c... thought this might need airing…
Iconic Christmas Truce Football Photo Shot in Thessaloniki, Greece - GreekReporter.com
This iconic Christmas truce photograph of British soldiers playing football has become famous, but it was shot in Thessaloniki, Greece
greekreporter.com
It’s become a ‘thing’ for me to re-read this classic at this time of year…
#HistBookChat trailer #2 for my book. Coming from @barnthorn.bsky.social in the New Year.
I was almost tempted… (as seen in Copenhagen this week)
Now open: call for the Royal Historical Society's First Book and Early Career Article Prizes, 2026. Eligible titles, published in 2025, may be submitted by the author before the closing date of 15 December. Further details and how to apply: bit.ly/3KnR47v #Skystorians
Royal Historical Society Book and Article Prizes, 2026: submissions now invited - RHS
The Royal Historical Society invites applications for its First Book Prize, 2026 and Early Career Article Prize, 2026. The call for submissions opens on Monday 29 September 2025 and runs to Monday 15 ...
bit.ly
Details of Tyson Smith’s bas relief panels from Liverpool Cenotaph. On one side the armed men from Liverpool in angular, tight ranks, stern faced; on the other the drawn faces and stooped figures of the families
The Hill80 report was completed some time ago, but only now officially submitted — which means I can finally share it! It’s in Dutch, but I hope you’ll still enjoy the content. 🔗 Read it here: oar.onroerenderfgoed.be/publicaties/...
oar.onroerenderfgoed.be
Hoylake & West Kirby War Memorial with sculptures by Charles Sergeant Jagger, a frontline soldier wounded in action. The sculptures are dark, intense: a brooding soldier and a mourning figure with a crown of thorns. Away from the busy street, this monument, rich in detail, depicts a deep wound
