I live across the street from David Bowie's childhood home. It's been a fun little fact since moving in 8 yrs ago. That all changed in January. Since then, I've found myself someplace I *never* thought I'd be: tired of Bowie. A 🧵 on celebrity, cultural memory, and community engagement...

David Bowie childhood home plans opposed by neighbours

A heritage group wants to build a visitor centre in the garden of the star's childhood home in Bromley.

bbc.co.uk

Our final paper is from my former student Ninnaku Oberholzer, who is sharing part of her doctoral research on 'Bodies that Heal: The Haemorrhoïssa, Sacred Touch, and Reparative Visual Criticism' #BNTS2026

Our final Reception, Critical Theory and Interdisciplinary Studies session of #BNTS2026 is underway, with @profpaulmiddleton.bsky.social presenting on music as exegesis in Walton‘s Belshazzar‘s Feast (which of course draws on themes from the book of Revelation as well as Daniel).

Our metal music morning continues with Tobias Ålöw who is presenting “Given to You by Mother Earth” Entextualization and Ideological Inversion of 1 John 2:16 in Ghost’s “Umbra” #BNTS2026

First up we have Julia Lindenlaub and Charlotte Naylor-Davis presenting The “Perennial” Sophia from Ancient Gnostic Literature to Modern Metal Music: The Sophia Myth and the Dragon Rouge in Therion’s ‘Gothic Kabbalah’ (2007). #BNTS2026

The Reception Critical Theory and Interdisciplinary Studies section is kicking off #BNTS2026 with a panel on metal music and the New Testament.

If you are a scholar, grad student, or post doc at an institution where there you do not have seminars in Biblical Studies and you'd like to attend/participate in the Birmingham Biblical Studies Seminar let me know! (Those who do have seminars are welcome to come too)

While I was on leave, a lovely review of my first book by Caroline Vander Stichele was published in RBL. I’m very grateful to Caroline for her careful and supportive reading, not least because it would have put a real dampener on today’s paperback release if she hated it!

Jason Arday was hounded to death by a bitter racist and the complicit media in this country. His accuser was sacked for racism, the media were warned repeatedly about the risks of their persecution and now a man is dead because they cared more about clicks than his life.

I love this book.

Dr Tom de Bruin@tdbiii.bsky.social · 3w ago

Wow. Another stellar review of my fan fiction and the Bible book. This time by @siobhanjolley.bsky.social in the Journal for the Study of the New Testament. The book is out in paperback, so it’s not too expensive anymore. And like usual happy to help people access it, send me a dm!

Proofs day never gets old... Very much looking forward to reading the full catalogue and seeing the show in Frankfurt when it opens next month! www.staedelmuseum.de/en/mary-magd...

It’s been a busy old time lately but all good things!

Jillian Marcantonio@jrmarcantonio.bsky.social · last mo.

the best part of my week: attending @siobhanjolley.bsky.social’s book talk at the National Gallery in London on Monday. wondering what the stories and images of saints have to do with our lives today? check out the book and her overall work!! no religious belief or art education required.

Information about a Mary Magdalene exhibition coming next year www.nationalgallery.org.uk/exhibitions/... www.nationalgallery.org.uk/about-us/pre...

Mary Magdalene: Woman and Myth | Across the UK | National Gallery, London

nationalgallery.org.uk

If you’re in London on Monday and fancy spending your lunch break in a lovely air conditioned room, come and join me for a talk on Saints at the National Gallery! www.nationalgallery.org.uk/events/lunch...

Happy Feast of St Mary Magdalene to all who celebrate! Seems like a perfect day to share that Mary Magdalene: Woman and Myth, a National Gallery touring exhibition will be coming in 2027.

Immediately following @willtullett.bsky.social and everyone who likes this because this is SO niche they must be my people. HT @katieturnerphd.com!

Will Tullett@willtullett.bsky.social · 2mo ago

The Argentinians love having a go at the REF so much that you‘d be mistaken for thinking they work in a UK university.

I have said it before, but I like to teach ancient texts topographically. That's what makes ToposText so fun. Every toponym from Livy, Thucydides, and over 800 more authors—plus trans. & links to the original Greek or Latin—from Spain to India. Such a cool thing to teach & read with. topostext.org

Exeter is one of the best TRS departments in the UK, staffed by wonderful humans doing outstanding research and excellent teaching. The shortsightedness of this decision is staggering, and there’s not much about the state of higher education that can still shock me. Please share and sign.

Francesca Stavrakopoulou@proffrancesca.bsky.social · 2mo ago

I’d love it if you’d sign this. It might not prevent me and my colleagues losing our jobs, but it will draw attention to the ideological vandalism being perpetrated by the wealthy execs running our university. Stop Redundancies at the University of Exeter - sign the petition below! c.org/NpvY4sR9gH

Does anyone know anyone with Hindi and Irish, even a bit of Irish? Have been speaking to a family who recently moved from India, and while the kid is entitled to an exemption they would like to learn some Irish. No comfortable in English yet, so someone to intro it with Hindi would be ideal.

There are 116 data centres in the Greater Dublin area. www.datacentermap.com/ireland/dubl...

Virgin Media News@virginmedianews.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Uisce Éireann is urging households and businesses to conserve water over the summer after record demand during May's heatwave. Water use in the Greater Dublin Area reached 685 million litres in a single day - almost 7% above the average. 🧵 More details below. [1/2]

NEW BOOK SERIES with @dgb-history.bsky.social: "Connected Worlds in Early Modernity" with series editors Christina H. Lee and Julia Schleck. Send proposals to the fabulous @erikagaffney.bsky.social All info: rensoc.org.uk/announcement... #EarlyModern #SkyStorians

I found this neat tool that lets you generate text and images just from your ideas. It's really good!

🎉 New book day! It’s been available early in National Gallery shops for a couple of weeks now but yesterday was official publication day for Saints. Available now at all good book shops and the billionaire bad ones too.

📢JOB ALERT 📢 We are looking to appoint a F/T open-ended Lecturer in Late Medieval / Early Modern History (1400-1700) @lancasteruni.bsky.social. This is an amazing opportunity that we are very proud to announce, so please spread the word far and wide! www.hr-jobs.lancs.ac.uk/Vacancy.aspx...

Job Opportunity at Lancaster University: Lecturer in Medieval/Early Modern History

The School of Global Affairs at Lancaster University is seeking to appoint a Lecturer in Late Medieval / Early Modern History (1400-1700). This is a 1.0 FTE indefinite appointment to start on 1 August...

hr-jobs.lancs.ac.uk

National Gallery, London, July 3: "Josefa de Óbidos: Painter of the Portuguese Baroque" a half-day symposium with Susana Varela Flor, Salvador Salort-Pons, Charlotte Chastel-Rousseau, Carmen Ripollés and Daniel Sobrino Ralston. Free and open to the public www.nationalgallery.org.uk/events/josef...

Learned from my publisher that my new book dropped early in the National Gallery shops today! If you would like to look at nice pictures of Saints and learn fun things about them, this is the one for you.

A fun afternoon dropping in to moan about the Mary movie and have some great conversation with John Dunne and Jeannine Brown's Jesus Film Class at Bethel. Luckily they weren't offended when I plugged @mattpagefilm.bsky.social's book immediately after talking about their new volume!

Excited to receive my hard copy of the Oxford Handbook of Mary Magdalene in the post!

Since people are clearly appreciating his work, here's my absolute favorite image by Allan Rohan Crite, his stunning and deeply felt "Streetcar Madonna" from 1946

Michael Lobel@mlobelart.bsky.social · 5mo ago

"Easter: The Lord is Risen" by African American artist & illustrator Allan Rohan Crite, who suffused his work with deep religious feeling and is now featured in an exhibition at Rutgers University's Zimmerli Art Museum, through late July zimmerli.rutgers.edu/art/exhibiti...

Reception folks! Theory heads! Submit your abstracts to @tdbiii.bsky.social and me by 13th April.

British New Testament Society@bntsoc.bsky.social · 5mo ago

📣 Reception, Critical Theory, & Interdisciplinary Studies chaired by Siobhán Jolley and Tom de Bruin We invite proposals for papers that analyse the reception of the New Testament from antiquity to the present and/or focus on the application of critical theory to the study of the New Testament.