David Lawton

if you’ve ever watched the apprentice, that’s the world without arts or humanities degrees

By building a powerful counter-elite

Had a wonderful time in Albania but rather disappointed they no longer offer a free haircut and shave at the border - I would certainly have been eligible

From the archive: a letter from Farage to an elderly Enoch Powell asking him to come and give the electorate 'another jog' in 1994

After finishing the latest Adam Curtis, I'm convinced it would be improved with all captions and narration removed, leaving the viewer with a pure stream of clips between which we are left to free-associate the historical meaning

Another contradiction between popular and elite Euroscepticism, is that while Brexit may have mobilised discontent with globalisation, from the 1990s most Eurosceptics espoused a hyperglobalist vision for the future of British capitalism.

Exactly. Brexit may have been sold as anti-elitist, but it was always the result of a very particular elite project. An ‘elite populism’ runs through the history of Euroscepticism in which manifestly elite figures mobilise ‘the people’ against a malign and illegitimate pro-European establishment.

You can get 25% off my book UP IN THE AIR: A HISTORY OF HIGH-RISE BRITAIN at Waterstones, with the code SUMMER25 until Thursday 31 #WPreorder

Thank you. I'm very interested in reading the book when it's out!

Thank you Eve!

Thanks Katie, it was challenging but enjoyable in the end!

Thank you Kate!

Thanks Alfie! I'll send you a message

Last week, I passed my PhD viva with no corrections. I’m so grateful to everyone who supported me during this research. If you are interested in reading my take on the transformation of conservative attitudes to European integration after 1975 please feel free to DM me. Now for some rest! 😮‍💨

Stevens knocking it out of the park

YouTube video by Institute of Historical Research INTERVIEWS WITH HISTORIANS - E. P. THOMPSON

OMG, the @ihr.bsky.social has uploaded a bunch of old interviews with historians on their youtube channel and I'm now deeply invested. Summer treat for #SkyStorians!

Look at this interview with E.P. Thompson by an embryonic Penelope Corfield!

I'm thrilled to have been published in Past & Present.

Diving into the fractious politics of rich-country macroeconomics after 1973, I use the neglected case of protectionist Keynesians to rethink what happened, and why. I highlight statecraft, geopolitics, and Maier's 'territoriality'. (1/2)

Congratulations Colm!! Look forward to reading this

Picture of a panel of fabulous historians

Final round table on the purpose of British history writing in today’s political, cultural, and higher education landscape #QMCBS

Programme details available here: projects.history.qmul.ac.uk/qmcbs/britis...

Historians of bsky!! the lineup for this conference looks fantastic with 24 brilliant panels of experts running over two days. Register here 📌

Sage Journals: Discover world-class research Subscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher.

There is an excellent article by @davidlawton.bsky.social on William Rees-Mogg's attempt to judicially review the Maastricht Treaty, challenging the right of the executive to do this without Parliament. (Quite a contrast to his son in 2016-19...)
journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10....

The toppling of the Edward Colston statue

From the creation of lectureships to the closure of programmes, the last five years represent a tumultuous period within the study of #BlackBritishHistory

Join us for a roundtable: Black British History in 2025
🗓️ 6th March
⏰ 17:30
📍 IHR Wolfson Room NB01

www.history.ac.uk/events/black...

Just putting finishing touches to British History Today programme at Queen Mary, 1-2 May. Thanks to all who submitted. And apologies to all those we couldn’t fit in. Details should appear soon at: projects.history.qmul.ac.uk/qmcbs/

Thanks to all who submitted proposals for British History Today: projects.history.qmul.ac.uk/qmcbs/. We have been overwhelmed with panel and paper suggestions. You should hear back from us in the next day or two

A quick reminder that the deadline for panel and paper proposals for our conference, British History Today, is in 10 days time! Please send to qmcbs@qmul.ac.uk.

OpenAI Pleads That It Can’t Make Money Without Using Copyrighted Materials for Free OpenAI is begging Parliament to allow it to use copyrighted works because it's "impossible" for the company to make money without them.

'I can't make money without breaking the law and therefore you should let me break the law' is one helluva flex. futurism.com/the-byte/ope...

Today, the UK government announced a proposal to change copyright law - for the benefit of AI companies - that would cause huge, irreversible harm to creators.

More info below, but most importantly here's what you can do (wherever you live):

1. Email your MP. Template letter in 🧵 👇

1/10

More detail will appear at projects.history.qmul.ac.uk/qmcbs/. Opening plenary is on ‘Writing the history of Britain today’. Thrilled to have Alana Harris, Sarah Crook, Miles Taylor and Mike Braddick participating. @dralanagharris.bsky.social @sarahcrook.bsky.social

Plenary on the evening of 1 May is Julia Laite, ‘British History from the Middle of Nowhere’ and hosted jointly with Raphael Samuel History Centre @julialaite.bsky.social @rshc.bsky.social