Valerie Wright

Featuring the #KelvinWheelies skatepark excavations in episode 1!

⏰ Time is running out! Submit your 8–10k word essay for the Leah Leneman Prize by 22 Dec 2025. Open to students & independent scholars working on women’s or gender history.

Share widely 🔗
womenshistoryscotland.org/projects-and...

The thread about Argyle House; “preposterously large and a potential rival to the Castle rock” Brutalist buildings are the Marmite of architecture - passionately loved or loathed - and one in Edinburgh was much in the news yesterday when it was announced that plans had been lodged for the demolition and replacement of Argyle House. But while other news sources make much click capital out of it having briefly appeared in some Netflix police show or another, here at Threadinburgh I prefer to get down to the nitty-gritty of the how, why and what of this much critiqued building. And just what it has to do with the Lyceum Theatre, Dalgety Bay and the Water of Leith Walkway...

The thread about Argyle House; “preposterously large and a potential rival to the Castle rock”

Brutalist buildings are the Marmite of architecture - passionately loved or loathed - and one in Edinburgh was much in the news yesterday when it was announced that plans had been lodged for the…

My new book, An Injury to All: The Unmaking of the British Working Class, will be published by Verso next year.

It's now listed, which makes it feel that bit more official!

I'm saddened to learn of the passing of Dr Elspeth King, the legendary curator of the People's Palace, and a fierce advocate for Glasgow and its history.

This was fascinating on the release of the film adaptation of Alasdair Gray's "Poor Things".

yoursforscotlandcom.wordpress.com/2024/01/10/p...

Our colleagues at @churchheritage.bsky.social have published a lovely blog from Matthew Dransfield to help ease your way into the weekend.

Read their first "Heritage Spotlight" piece looking at some of Scotland's amazing post-war churches here 👇

churchheritage.scot/2025/10/22/h...

Thank you for listening.

Had a fantastic time presenting and attending the @womenshistscot.bsky.social conference on Saturday. Congratulations to all the speakers and particularly @vawright10.bsky.social for her in depth history of women’s housing activism in Scotland. Thanks to @ymcfadden.bsky.social and the team

This year’s Sue Innes Memorial Lecture at @womenshistscot.bsky.social conference given by @vawright10.bsky.social on ‘Housing as a ‘Women’s Issue’: Women and Housing Activism in Twentieth Century Scotland.

And you can hopefully read all about it in the National newspaper next Tuesday. 📰

Building Modern Scotland Combining architectural and social history, this open access book tells for the first time the in-depth story of Scotland's new towns.One of the most significan…

You can find out more about 'Building Modern Scotland' here (and download for free) (2/2) www.bloomsbury.com/uk/building-...

Really enjoyed recording this episode of Artful Inquiry with @alistairfair.bsky.social - thanks to James, Miranda and the team at @edincollegeofart.bsky.social 🗃️ (1/2)

Recently @vawright10.bsky.social and I were interviewed for a podcast about the Scottish new towns book which we recently co-wrote (and which is available Open Access for free download via bloomsburycollections, though you can also buy a copy in print if you wish!)

⏰ Don’t miss out! Registration for the Women’s History Scotland Conference closes Friday 5 September!

Join us for a fascinating day! 👉 www.tickettailor.com/events/women...

I've just submitted An Injury to All: The Unmaking of the British Working Class to my publisher, Verso.

My book explores how a British working class which was powerfully grounded in politics, the economy and culture has been unmade since the 1960s. An Injury to All is due for publication next year!

Definitely - wind up very important transition for the new towns. Planning in the new towns always flexible and adaptable to respond to economic change. But arguably less of a holistic vision for the towns when they came under the control of larger local authorities. (End of Strathclyde Region too)

There's definitely a story to be told! We've argued that some people actively chose to 'remake themselves' in the new towns (many people interviewed at the time said they'd 'bettered themselves'). May explain changing voting behaviour too.

Also plenty of anecdotal evidence of early support for independence in Cumbernauld especially - we didn't focus on this but that story is waiting to be told!

Building Modern Scotland Combining architectural and social history, this open access book tells for the first time the in-depth story of Scotland's new towns.One of the most significan…

We consider some of these issues (though not from an energy perspective) in our book on the new towns in Scotland. (An early leader in motorway suburbia despite the original intentions? Early adoption of car dependent large scale private housing?) Had to plug - it's free to download

Paramilitaries, King Billy tattoos and a racist murder in Woodlands What can a senseless killing from 1975 tell us about the fight against fascism today?

Delighted to have an extract from Glasgow 1975 up on @glasgowbell.bsky.social this weekend - you can read it here www.glasgowbell.co.uk/racist-killi...

Women in Sport | Rhona Howie (in person) | National Galleries of Scotland Rhona Howie, skip of the Great Britain curling team that won gold at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City and deliverer of the final stone − the ‘stone of destiny’ − that sealed that famous triu...

Women's Sport and Art panel with Olympic Gold Winner Rhona Howie, Imogen Gibbon Chief Curator of Portraiture and myself.

Where: The National Galleries of Scotland, The Mound, Edinburgh, EH2 2EL
When: Tuesday 24 June 2025, 12.45–1.30pm (in person & online)

www.nationalgalleries.org/event/women-...

Live Methods was partly responding to the ‘crisis in empirical sociology’. Writing this special issue we were in another crisis- the brutal destruction of the social sciences– inc Goldsmiths, the intellectual home of the collection. It makes Live Methods, its spirit and aims more important than ever

My book is out on 28 October with
@versobooks.bsky.social 💥 It’s available for pre-order at £20: www.waterstones.com/book/up-in-t...

How do lived experience perspectives impact decisions in the Scottish Parliamentary process? Dr Clementine Hill O'Connor. Image is of the Scottish Parliament and features the University of Glasgow and Centre for Public Policy logos, and a photo of author Clementine Hill O'Connor.

NEW: How do lived experience perspectives impact decisions in the Scottish Parliamentary process?💡🗣️

@clemmiehilloconnor.bsky.social writes about her research which aims to better understand how this evidence is used and how it influences policy decision making.

www.gla.ac.uk/research/az/...

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Last couple of days to submit an expression of interest to our Workshop on Emotions and Scottish History in Edinburgh on 22 July ⬇️ 🗃️

The epilogue from my book. Siva said it best - “what Powell says today, the Tories say tomorrow and Labour legislates on the day after”

Cfp: Workshop on Emotions and Scottish History This Workshop aims to bring together scholars with interests in or around the intersections of emotions history and Scottish History to share ideas across periods and approaches, to reflect on common ...

Are you interested in Scottish History? Are you interested in Emotions History? Well, you are in luck - John McCallum and I are organising a Workshop on Emotions and Scottish History in Edinburgh on 22 July. Deadline for expressions of interest 21 May. 🗃️

All welcome and please spread the word. ⬇️

94% of the people raped in the UK are women, and 98% of the people arrested for rape or sexual assault are men. And — to repeat — around 3% of *reported* rapes result in a conviction. If you are looking for a feminist campaign, put down the LARGE GAMETES placard and start screaming at the CPS.

Had the privilege of attending a symposium on the launch of ‘Building Modern Scotland’ today, by @alistairfair.bsky.social @vawright10.bsky.social, Miles Glendinning and others.

Was impressed by the project’s engagement with planning, and the social and political context of of the Clyde region.

Thanks for coming Andrew and lovely to catch up.