Alan Davey

BBC One - Civilisation, Heroic Materialism, Kindness Kenneth Clark considers the rise of kindness as a virtue of 19th Century civilisation.

Kenneth Clark on the virtue of kindness. Kindness. When he recorded this, its place as the core value of modern civilization must have seemed firmly established. Yet look at us now. (And yes, he's white, patrician, and complacent. But he's also right.) www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p...

BBC Radio 3 - The Early Music Show, The Medici Popes - Part 2: The most unfortunate of Popes The music surrounding two 16th Century Popes: Leo X and Clement VII.

Am loving this Early Music show from @hannahcfrench.bsky.social about Medici popes and their music. Shows the proper impact of radio as a form - giving us vivid access to a world of interest and discovery. www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m...

Welcome to the Black British Folk Revival.

Guest curator Angeline Morrison and friends take over Cecil Sharp House with folk sounds, songs, and stories that shine a long overdue light on the African Diaspora's love for, and ongoing conversations with, British folk.

Sat 4 Oct
bit.ly/4f02wBB

Applications for grants of £500 for folk artists to support anything that will help their professional career development.

Apply before midnight on 19 October.
bit.ly/4nm60RD
Image shows previous awardee Suntou Susso

Hell’s teeth I despair. www.lbc.co.uk/article/brit...

I always find the place names on the destinations board when travelling to Cornwall really evocative and exciting. Off to the magical kingdom for a Hall for Cornwall board meeting.

It was Goldberg Variations btw

Moon over Peckham last night after an extraordinary concert by Jean Rondeau in the car park as part of Bold Tendencies’ extraordinary season. It was intense and boy we need Bach more than ever.

How Nigel Farage's 14% at the General Election contrast with the public

He resonates with a quarter of the public - but the media's overcompensation to populist claims means he simply does not get asked why he doesn't try to reflect the public view

www.britishfuture.org/reform-voter...

Looking forward to starting a PhD in composition at Trinity Laban this September.

German diplomat at Versailles: 'I wonder what future historians will say about all this.' Clemenceau: 'Well they won't say Belgium invaded Germany.'

Historians dismayed by ‘scandal’ of BBC cutting access to... Critics say new limit to trove of information sounds knell for independent research

‘… social historian David Kynaston, told The Observer he suspects “a serious scandal is unfolding”

John Wyver, Ian Greaves, Erica Wagner and others on the growing battle to prevent damaging changes to the BBC’s priceless behind-the-scenes archives:

Deal to get ChatGPT Plus for whole of UK discussed by Open AI boss and minister Exclusive: Deal that could have cost £2bn was floated at meeting between technology secretary Peter Kyle and Sam Altman

Why?

www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

A fabulous page turner of a book - I finished it yearning for more of the characters - and being a wireless man I have not seen the TV series yet..thank you man with golden pen @drmatthewsweet.bsky.social and please - more Book, Trottie Jack Nora and Dog!

www.amazon.co.uk/Bookish-warm...

Another story about a very rich man determined to strip London's cultural assets. And another story that highlights the job that the London Evening Standard *hasn't* been doing: reporting on London.

The Guardian view on bringing back Play for Today: a reboot that feels right for the times | Editorial Editorial: As our politics becomes ever more polarised, Channel 5’s move to revive one of British television’s most influential series deserves to succeed

Yes…..https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/aug/19/the-guardian-view-on-bringing-back-play-for-today-a-reboot-that-feels-right-for-the-times

Channel 5 revives BBC’s Play for Today to ‘help shape future of British drama’ Series aims to follow original in tackling ‘thornier issues’, and to support talent from lower-income backgrounds

Good on them. That’s PSB …. www.theguardian.com/media/2025/a...

BBC Radio 3 - Private Passions, Ursula Jones Michael Berkeley's guest is the co-founder of the English Chamber Orchestra Ursula Jones.

A must listen - a conversation with Ursula Jones - a great supporter of music and of young people in music - someone whose musical curiosity takes them to gigs in Peckham as well as the usual places…
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m...

This was the postdoctoral fellowship I held before taking my position at @suny.oneonta.edu!

This is an incredible opportunity- feel free to reach out if you’ve got questions.

“Putin would eat you for lunch.”

Today, exactly that happened.

As thousands more teenagers scramble for university places, I have to ask – why? | Simon Jenkins Student debt increasing, graduate salaries dropping, high-skilled jobs thin on the ground – higher education in the UK is a mess, says Guardian columnist Simon Jenkins

🚨🚨HE'S DONE IT AGAIN HE'S GOT LITERALLY EVERYTHING WRONG 🚨🚨 www.theguardian.com/commentisfre....

Wow! This has just landed: penned by the wonderful @elizabethalker.bsky.social and already drawing me in to its story - a great and elegant idea that gets to bring in lots of interesting music and interesting people. What a brilliant thing by a brilliant person. ❤️

BBC Radio 3 - The Early Music Show, English Satire and Opera in the 18th Century Performance and news from the world of early music.

ICYMI: I was Hannah French's guest on the Early Music Show yesterday discussing the viciousness of English Satire (literary and musical) in the 18th Century - hard to imagine how hostile we were then to foreigners (Italians), religious minorities (Catholics) and singers of ambiguous gender:

This morning’s morning music

Tony Blair is wrong – AI will not magically solve our public services Too many people might be left out of its revolution.

'Taking the time to do things right isn’t anti-innovation – it is what is required to get deep-rooted change in social systems.'
My piece on AI and public services in this week's @newstatesman.com
www.newstatesman.com/comment/2024...

Wonderful and inciteful keynote lecture by @beccamerkelbach.bsky.social at the International Saga Conference in Katowice. Her work on worldbuilding has given me a lot to think about: her concern for the future of humanities timely: her analysis of what fiction does contains part of an answer.

Attending the session in which, for some reason, both the PhD candidates working with me are presenting their projects. They got a good turn-out and are doing a great job😊

Centrum Badań Nordystycznych i Staroangielskich przy Uniwersytecie Śląskim | Katowice Centrum Badań Nordystycznych i Staroangielskich przy Uniwersytecie Śląskim, Katowice. 1,602 likes · 283 talking about this. Centre for Nordic and Old English Studies, Faculty of Humanities,...

By the way, if anyone wants to listen to my keynote next Friday (or to any of the other, much better ones during the rest of the week), you can do so here – they will all be live-streamed: www.facebook.com/CBNiSUS