Gary Rawnsley

Enjoyed this article on British Postwar Cinema by Geoffrey O’Brien in @nybooks.com (Dec ‘25). My essay on one such film - Chance of a Lifetime (1950) - is available below. www.nybooks.com/articles/202...

“Given global events, America's "Voice" is needed more than ever!” #VoA

One reason I always look forward to @nybooks.com landing in my letterbox is that it introduces me to stories, people, histories, and books I might never otherwise discover. This article 👇 is fascinating.

While on sick leave I am enjoying filling gaps in my knowledge. Ashamed to say I know relatively little about early English/British history so looking forward to reading Peter Salway’s History of Roman Britain #Booksky

Many congratulations to my School of Social & Political Sciences (University of Lincoln) colleague @bariscaylimessina.com on securing a contract for his important new book, Queer Under Siege: How Societies Threaten Queer Life.

Posting for World Book Day: Four (out of countless) books that were important to me in the 1970s & (in the case of The Machine Gunners) early 1980s. #WorldBookDay #Booksky

Today’s reading: James Macintyre’s fascinating new biography of Gordon Brown, Power with Purpose #Booksky

Happy birthday to Sir John Tusa. His two books on the BBC World Service were invaluable as I prepared to begin my PhD at the start of the 1990s.

A House for Miss Pauline is a remarkable book, beautifully written.

“If you truly wanted the Iranian people to rise up against decades of oppression, you wouldn’t have gutted VOA’s vital Farsi-language platform.” — Rachel Maddow, Feb. 28 #SaveVOA
Watch here
www.ms.now/ms-now/watch...

If These Walls Could Talk | Colin Grant In A House for Miss Pauline, the Jamaican novelist Diana McCaulay examines her family’s shadowy history by telling the story of a woman who builds her house with the remains of the manor of a former s...

This @nybooks.com essay by Colin Grant inspired me to pick up A House for Miss Pauline by @dmccaulay.bsky.social. What a beautiful novel: exquisitely written & richly evocative of time, place, & voice. It has firmly secured its place as one of my all-time favourites. #Booksky

Evil in the West Bank | David Shulman As long as the daily horrors in the occupied territories continue and the extreme right remains in power, democracy in Israel will be sick at the core.

A powerful essay by David Shulman in the latest @nybooks.com: “If you’d like to witness human evil at its worst, come with me any day to the West Bank.”

Sir John Curtice: Greens' win means future of British politics is more uncertain than ever Not only did Hannah Spencer become the first Green to win a by-election, she won it well.

Sir John Curtice’s analysis of the Gorton & Denton by-election. “Rather than winning narrowly, the [Green] party won 40.7% enough to put them … 12 points ahead of second placed Reform. It represented as much as a 27.5 point increase on the party's share in 2024.” www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Congratulations to Hannah Spencer of the Green Party. An historic night. First Green win in a by-election, pushing Labour into third @greenparty.org.uk

Really enjoy this series on Churchill hosted by @richardtoye.bsky.social (Author of the wonderful Age of Hope) & my old friend & former @aberuni.bsky.social colleague / Churchill expert Warren Dockter

Congratulations to Melvyn Bragg on the publication of the second volume of his memoirs, Another World. My copy has just arrived & I can’t wait to start reading. #Booksky

Check out this episode of Screenshot which discusses Kes as part of a broader consideration of how Yorkshire has been represented in cinema

Proud of our School of Social & Political Sciences students who took part in the BISA/FCDO NATO simulation joining peers from 31 UK universities + France & Canada. Representing Spain, they tackled security on NATO’s eastern flank. Thanks to @adefty.bsky.social for supporting. @mybisa.bsky.social

Many congratulations to author Shida Bazyar & translator @dances-with-voles.bsky.social on being included on the International #Booker Prize longlist. The Nights Are Quiet in Tehran is a remarkable novel that deserves wide readership. I adore this book! #Booksky

Remembering TENNESSEE WILLIAMS - who left us 43yrs ago today, aged 71.

Paths of Resistance | Joshua Hammer Those who challenged the Nazi regime knew they were almost certainly doomed to failure. What roused them from complacency to defiance?

“The rewards of collaboration make it all too easy to choose the path of silence” - Joshua Hammer in the new issue of @nybooks.com Sage words to read on the day of the State of the Union address
www.nybooks.com/articles/202...

A Bitter Winter in Ukraine | Tim Judah Four years after their full-scale invasion, the Russians are trying to freeze Ukraine into submission by relentlessly attacking the country’s energy grid.

On the 4th anniversary of Russia’s invasion of #Ukraine, I recommend this excellent article by @timjudah.bsky.social in the latest @nybooks.com
www.nybooks.com/articles/202...

Too much to expect a Toby Ziegler / Sam Seaborn level of oratory in today’s State of the Union?

Presenting the longlist for the #InternationalBooker2026, supported by Bukhman Philanthropies.

Find out more about the books, authors and translators: thebookerprizes.com/ibp2026

Delighted that The Writing Life podcast has featured Celeste Mohammed. I was thrilled to hear her speak about her work during her visit to the University of Lincoln last year - an inspiring & memorable event. Thanks to
@uolhumanities.bsky.social Global & Transregional Studies research group #booksky

One of my favourite BBC Radio 4 programmes is This Cultural Life. Inspired by the latest episode I read my first Julian Barnes novel Metroland published in 1980. Enjoyed this quirky & often humorous story
#Booksky

“You don't understand. This isn't 'Plans 1 through 8 from Outer Space', this is 'Plan 9', this is the one that worked. The worst movie ever made!”

L: Private Eye front cover, yesterday.
R: News headline, today.

Stay ahead of the news; buy the Eye.

Just heard on the #BBC Winter Olympics commentary: “If Stephen Hawkings was a snowboarder, that’s the trick he would do.” #WinterOlympics

Chinamaxxing: A TikTok trend captures China’s soft power sparkle Chinamaxxing is adding more gloss to the recent flourish of Chinese soft power.

Interesting story. So-called “Chinamaxxing” - is the TikTok generation in “the west” really embracing #China & Chinese lifestyle? Does Chinamaxxing represent a full & accurate picture of China today? And what is the US “kill line”? www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...