I watch a lot of Paw Patrol but somehow missed the academic literature on its role as an allegory for neoliberal capitalism.
Peter Whitewood
@pwhitewood.bsky.social
Associate Prof & Head of History @YSJ. Early Soviet history and Stalinism. The Red Army and the Great Terror (2015); The Soviet-Polish War and its Legacy (2023). Working on POWs and the Soviet Red Cross. Occasional drummer https://shorturl.at/LRaWz
As there now seems to be some focus on the quality of PhD supervision more broadly, it’s relevant that the last PRES showed the highest levels of PGR satisfaction in a decade.
The Daily Mail has managed, within ten days, to complain that politicians’ clothes are both too expensive and not smart enough.
Nearly 200 laughing emojis, on the Facebook page of a mainstream national newspaper.
A whole article on the demise of the 99 Flake and not a single mention of the only political candidate who has a policy on it
Death of the 99 Flake? How Brits are shelling out up to £7 for cones
While most Brits are sick of the heatwaves this year, ice cream men across the country have been cashing in by charging up to £7 for their treats.
dailymail.com
Ukrainian studies in ‘crisis’ despite rising demand in Europe: most universities still treat Ukraine as a marginal topic even as need for specialists with deep knowledge of the country rises https://ow.ly/1aXl50Zv4zw
I’m interested in reading Paul Mason’s book, out later this month. There have been a few good global histories of communism published already (one by Archie Brown). This promises a more up to date story.
Reds
Reds tells the global history of communism, going beyond the turmoil of the 20th century, and exploring communist ideas, movements, and regimes. It starts in an…
bloomsbury.com
The state of this. Around 60,000 French soldiers died during the six week campaign of 1940. Suggesting they lacked ‘resolve’ is a remarkable thing to say about men who fought and died in huge numbers.
In a top piece of journalism, the single critic underpinning this piece is Lee Anderson
Behind the bewildering transformation of British universities, are management consultants being paid millions Really proud to have this vital piece on our unis are being gutted from the inside by @jheathershaw.bsky.social on Democracy for Sale. Do read democracyforsale.substack.com/p/inside-bri...
Inside Britain's university crisis
As teaching staff face job loss, their bosses have netted pay rises and bought advice from a “vampiric” management consultancy, writes Prof. John Heathershaw of the University of Exeter
democracyforsale.substack.com
I’ll admit, ‘Operation Fortress’ is punchier than ‘Operation Legally and Diplomatically Complicated’
Daily Mail@dailymail.co.uk · 3d agoNavy to tow boats back to France, says Reform: Party unveils 'Operation Fortress' to combat Channel migrants trib.al/tqIRBH9
Lowest number of graduate job openings since 2020. This is a core labour market problem that universities cannot fix, but routinely get the blame for.
UK graduate job openings fall to lowest level since pandemic
Indeed’s findings point to challenge facing Andy Burnham to boost youth unemployment and cut welfare bill
ft.com
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 · 4d 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)
Not encouraged by this column from Lucy Powell. Labour can’t convincingly absolve itself of all responsibility for today’s NEET figures. And beyond the rhetoric - about pen and paper - there’s very little here about what is actually wrong or what would fix it.
As Johnson didn’t try levelling up and just announced it repeatedly, Burnham in with a good chance
Boris Johnson tried levelling up. Can Andy Burnham do any better?
Giving mayors freedom to spend their share of income tax revenue is the PM’s big idea for ‘growth in every postcode’
thetimes.com
New post: those wanting Jason Arday to face 'justice' of some kind are not going to get what they want willd10.substack.com/p/how-the-ja...
How the Jason Arday affair will fizzle out
Truth is a social system. Sorry.
willd10.substack.com
Deeply embarassing for editorial standards at The Times to not just have to correct such an error, but then to not even spot their own columnist produce such a mad sentence repeating it
‘This is where democracy beats totalitarianism’: Ukraine’s drone strike force takes the fight to Russia www.theguardian.com/news/ng-inte...
‘This is where democracy beats totalitarianism’: Ukraine’s drone strike force takes the fight to Russia
Exclusive: at a launch site in the Ukrainian countryside, members of the elite ‘Magyar’s Birds’ brigade are turning Russia’s vast size into a weakness
theguardian.com
The rumours are true - York St John University now has Jeremy Beadle’s true crime archive.
Witnessing Jeremy Beadle’s true crime magazine collection
The You’ve Been Framed! presenter’s archive of printed ephemera is inspiring new tales of femme fatales and paranormal terrors
observer.co.uk
Ceuta has been a dramatic and short-lived incident, but it’s against the broader trend - unauthorised border crossings into the EU were down 40% in the first five months of 2026
Ignore the Russell Group-fixated headline. The universities with the largest declines are: Lincoln Bishop (down 51.4%), University for the Creative Arts (down 50.5%), Norwich University of the Arts (-40.4%), Falmouth University (-35.1%) and Goldsmiths, University of London (-30.0%). 1/2
Russell Group universities take £10m teaching grant hit - Research Professional News
Funding allocations confirm impact of £51m cut to Strategic Priorities Grant
researchprofessionalnews.com