Alex Johnson

The Philosophy of Sheds A blog about the lifestyle of shedworkers and those who work from garden offices and other shedlike atmospheres

Just seen the news that @shedworking.bsky.social is doing a book about sheds again, called The Philosophy of Sheds

www.shedworking.co.uk/2025/08/the-...

Hope there will be a few paragraphs about "Shed of the year", but I will buy it if Alex does a whole chapter!

Promotional poster for Bodleian Book Hospital at Blackwell Hall in The Weston Library, featuring a Richard Scarry pop-up book and a repair checklist on a 'operating table'. In the top right a logo that reads 'BBH' in the style of the NHS logo and on the left a round sticker that says 'Repaired at the Book Hospital'.

Collage of images from our last Book Hospital event showing Bodleian staff, children and parents engaging in reading and crafting activities. Includes one of our talented conservators reading to a group, another pretending to repair a book with medical gauze, and a young child attending a craft session making colourful paper projects. A round sticker overlaying the images reads 'Book Doctor In Training'.

A document titled "Book Hospital Check Up Sheet" including fields for 'Trainee Book Doctor's Age', today's date, and questions about the condition of a book, with checkboxes for types of damage and a space for drawing the book's damage.

Bodleian Book Hospital. 22 August, 11.00–15.00.

Bring flapless lift-the-flaps & scribbled on bedtime stories to the Bodleian Book Hospital where our Conservation Team will fix 'well-loved' favourites and show little ones how to care for treasured tomes.

visit.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/event/summer...

Just to let you know that the Metro Bank One Day Cup starts tomorrow - I can’t see one thing mentioning it on the BBC sports page tonight but it is happening…
There were some fantastic games last season - let’s support them 👍💪

One of my favourite books last year. Strong recommend.

My book is out in paperback in a fortnight. It's set in a dilapidated country house just after the war, a house first built in the 16th century, but to which a new bit was added whenever the family happened to have any money. While researching, I found a cache of old... 1/4

Illustration of a small boy in a red and white striped T-shirt holding a buttercup under the chin of a little girl who obligingly tips her head back

Buttercups - the way to find out if your friend likes butter.

(Treasure Magazine, 1963)
Artist: Clive Uptton

How much is a glass?

What a match! I think 2-2 in the series is a fair result. I would have liked Woakes to hit the winning runs though.

Another six more balls for Atkinson!

Six more balls for Atkinson!

Six balls for Atkinson!

This cricket is fantastic.

YouTube video by PrimalScreamVEVO Primal Scream - Velocity Girl (Remastered) [Official Video]

m.youtube.com/watch?v=-7N2...

This is lovely and probably very cool, but it’s also a whisper away from what @londonreviewbookshop.co.uk might post on a quiet Friday afternoon as a skit.

Lawrence Durrell Inscribed Volumes to Henry Miller to Auction A group of seven titles from Henry Miller's personal library including several inscribed by his good friend novelist Lawrence Durrell will come to auction at Freeman’s | Hindman.

Lawrence Durrell Inscribed Volumes to Henry Miller to Auction
www.finebooksmagazine.com/fine-books-n...

Now, then

A Day for Thorpey at the Kia Oval Test - Kia Oval

A Day for Thorpey www.kiaoval.com/a-day-for-th...

At 'the other place' I used to post photos of my books taken by readers that were significantly better than mine. Here's a more recent example, My Year of Reading Welshly by rachh2001 on the Instagram www.instagram.com/rachh2001/ ('blodau' = 'flowers').

A significant number of years since I last read it to my children, I can still recite the whole of Each Peach Pear Plum by heart. #babybuntingfastasleep

A lovely vintage railway poster, in a limited palette range based on green, looking down into a village in a dale

On #YorkshireDay, enjoy this lovely railway poster of the Yorkshire Dales by Ladybird artist Ronald Lampitt

An aerial view looking down over what would be John Major’s idea of quintessentially English summer day, with a small village, meandering stream and cricket match in progress

Other work of the Ladybird artists
‘Sunday Afternoon’
(The design for a jigsaw)
Artist: Ronald Lampitt

That doesn't sound like Anthony Trollope at all.

So who else skipped the article but leaned in to squint at the titles on the shelf behind her?

Last day! Preorder before midnight to receive 25% off.

When Books Go Bad by Alex Johnson | Waterstones Buy When Books Go Bad by Alex Johnson from Waterstones today! Click and Collect from your local Waterstones or get FREE UK delivery on orders over £25.

Last day to get 24% off my next book 'When Books Go Bad' from British Library in the Waterstones pre-order promotion - go to www.waterstones.com/book/when-bo... or the Waterstones app before midnight tonight and use code SUMMER25 at the checkout.

Bill 'em.

I'm sure he would. I will check with the boss about The Event. We have some cinephile friends who might also be interested so will sound them out too.

Adam Smith Adam Smith is a UK-based journalist specialising in film and culture. He is the author of The Rough Guide To 21st Century Cinema and a former features editor of

This is him www.yahoo.com/author/adam-...

I am not much of a planner, but at 23 I had a vague notion that I would work for Empire for free, they would recognise my genius (pretty quickly), take me on staff, and by 30 I'd be deputy editor, minimum. Actually, something on those lines happened to somebody I knew the year below me at university

YouTube video by Movieclips The Birds (1963) - Crows Chase Children Scene | Movieclips

www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkz9...