Lucy Jameson

A photograph of a very grey and overcast day in Durham. The photo specifically is of a nature reserve in Durham, with quite a lot of bare trees, and some very green (and wet!) grass.

I think the doctor’s orders are to get outside, do gentle exercise, and listen to an episode of the Maintenance Phase podcast about raw milk?

@yrfatfriend.bsky.social @michaelhobbes.bsky.social

ESRC Funded Studentships in Politics at University of Liverpool Apply for a ESRC Funded Studentships in Politics. Discover a wide range of PhD opportunities at jobs.ac.uk.

FUNDED PhDs! We are advertising for three ESRC-funded PhD scholarships! Any specialism permitted, depending on departmental supervision available. Spread the word! www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DPH631/e...

A photograph of the River Wear and Elvet Bridge taken from New Elvet. In the background you can see Durham Cathedral and Castle peeping up from behind the trees. The ‘Princey B’ party boat is in the foreground.

Today I was teaching in the same seminar room that I had my first ever seminars in as an undergraduate, which felt like a full circle moment.

I came to uni through an access scheme and very nearly didn’t get here, so this all feels so surreal 6 years later. Protect access schemes. They are vital ❤️

Despite the AI overview suggestion, this is *not* the signature of John Lennon.

Tested out the photo search for a laugh (and because I’m getting desperate).

Reader, this is the signature of a superintending engineer in the Post Office.

John Lennon was a dynamic character but I don’t think his capabilities stretched to engineering work 13 years in advance of his birth.

I understand very well that the area I was born and raised has a complicated and complex history, I’ve seen it first-hand. But I know this has gone beyond a simple conversation. A bigger intervention is needed.

Every street in Ferryhill / Chilton has a Union Jack on it, and this has been celebrated. Having worked with previous MPs of our consistency on these issues in particular, I know for a fact they do not even place asylum seekers / refugees here because of the vitriol espoused by racist locals.

Graffiti on the side of a house in Chilton, County Durham ‘Stop the Boats!’

I went back home yesterday (ex-pit village in County Durham) and someone had graffitied onto the side of a house. This is an area that once upon a time came together as a proper community, but since the rise of the EDL and BNP etc, esp from early 2000s, has seen more division than ever.

An NUFC-heavy weekend!
Jigsaw completed, watched Woltemade’s debut and first goal, and secured tickets for NUFC v Bradford City. Not sure any of these hobbies can be considered relaxing, the Geordie Boys like to keep us on our toes!

History of Molecular Biology Collection This unparalleled collection includes Rosalind Franklin's historic 'Photo 51,' which revealed the double-helix structure of DNA.

News in the history of molecular biology. The Science History Institute in Philadelphia has acquired a huge archive of correspondence and other scientific material from the pioneers of molecular biology (Franklin, Klug, Perutz, Delbrück etc, with items from Crick and Watson, too). 1/n

If I’m finished before Saturday’s game I’ll be delighted 😂

A jigsaw puzzle of the Newcastle United football badge, with the blue banner completed (and a lot of the jigsaw still to be completed)

Trying to engage in more relaxing hobbies outside of the PhD and ironically found something more stressful and difficult:

'We still live in fear a year after the riots' A year after anti-immigration protests, minoritised women say they are often too afraid to go out.

Shameful proof, if more was needed, of the extent to which all this is just plain old racism and nothing to do with the safety of women and girls.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

sickeningly disingenuous attempt to pretend to care about women’s inequality, when in reality the very real misogyny women face in this country has been merely weaponised to fuel their racist agenda.

And 3) because from a quick glance at the social media accounts of the same people plastering these ‘protect our women’ comments everywhere, they readily make misogynistic jokes at the expense of women. It’s never been about protecting women. It is racist and fascist rhetoric wrapped up in a…

which many women have identified as degrading and derogatory, 2) because the same people shouting about protecting women are silent about d.v. cases (e.g. domestic abuse incidents increase by 26% when our national team plays, 38% if they lose, and 11% the day after, regardless of the outcome)

I don’t have anything eloquent to say about this yet, but with all the flag painting/waving recently, I’ve noticed that some men are justifying their racist behaviours as ‘protecting their daughters… etc’. I find this ironic for a few reasons: 1) they often refer to women as ‘females’ online (cont)

‘Operation Raise the Colours’ Organised by Well-Known Far-Right Extremists – HOPE not hate Union Jacks and the crosses of St George have begun to appear on lampposts up and down the UK in recent days. Much of the...

In case you think the original post unmeasured: hopenothate.org.uk/2025/08/22/o...

Seen some St George’s Fiery Crosses on my morning run. This is not innocent - there’s no historical precedent of displaying the Cross or the Union Flag outside of sporting events, royal stuff, and maybe govt buildings except by fascists. Fascist involvement in founding this campaign no coincidence.

Blown away by the response to our conference 'Opposition to Thatcher'. Already lots of top abstracts in place, so set to be an unbelievable confidence this November at @qubelfastofficial.bsky.social

Still 1 Week left to submit abstracts. Please share with those interested. 💖

Wakefield museum tour guides' pay demands 'unaffordable' Around 40 members of staff at coal mining museum to go on strike after pay talks broke down.

Forty staff members at the National Coal Mining Museum in Wakefield plan to strike over pay. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

My Florence + the Machine inspired nails from February (which were horrendously grown out by the time of my archival visit) - yes that is an anatomically correct heart painted on my index fingernail.

I’m on my way to LDN for the archives, and the last time I was there I had Florence + the Machine themed nails (photographed).

F+TM have just announced the next album, so the academic/music manifestation worked! If you need me, I’ll be bopping in the archives tomorrow to the new title track!

Bella chilling in her bed (waiting for me to give her some ham)

Bella fetching the ball - her favourite game!

I have a very good research assistant helping me today and tomorrow 🐶

Had a dream last night that I completely tanked my maths and music exams by sitting in the exam hall and writing *nothing*.

I left secondary school 8 years ago and haven’t had to sit an exam for about 3 years. Pleased to know I will be haunted by my GCSEs forever 😃

The launch was excellent, and brilliantly well-timed as we approach the Miner’s Gala!

We heard some fantastic singing of Durham mining songs by Rickleton Primary School children, a lecture by Dr Fiona Hill, and celebrated the newly renovated Pitman’s Parliament. A fantastic afternoon!

#booklaunch

Front cover of Mining the Memories: Stories of Durham Coalfield Communities

Acknowledgements page

My section on ‘Mining Illnesses’

I really enjoyed yesterday’s book launch for ‘Mining the Memories: Stories of Durham Coalfield Communities’.

I was delighted to contribute a brief synopsis for the book, sharing some examples of mining illnesses.

#mining #mininghistory #miners #redhills #durham #coalfield #hstm #disabilityhistory

The illustrations in the booklet were painted by Elizabeth Twistington Higgins, a polio survivor and ballet dancer. She rose to prominence with her beautiful artwork, which she painted by mouth. She also wrote a memoir called ‘Still Life’.

Here’s a video too!

player.bfi.org.uk/free/film/wa...

International Year of Disabled People 1981 with four postage stamps, one of a person with a guide dog, one with sign language, one with a person in a wheelchair, and one with a foot painter.

The illustrations throughout the booklet were made by polio survivor Elizabeth Twistington Higgins, who made a career from mouth painting after becoming paralysed by polio and ending her career as a ballet dancer. “Illustrations by Elizabeth Twistington Higgins MBE, a former ballet dancer who in 1953 became totally paralysed as a result of poliomyelitis. As a member of the Mouth and Foot Painting Artists Association she has become an internationally famous mouth Mieter and for her work was awarded the She now also teaches and choreographs ballet and directs her own company known as the Chelmsford Dancers”. “The wheelchair Disabled people can get around, provided that consideration is given to their needs. More ramps, ramped kerbs and wider doors can make it possible for disabled people to enjoy everyday activities that most people take for granted and help everyone, particularly those with prams or shopping trolleys. Access is important in the high street, at public buildings, and particularly at work so that disabled people can use their abilities to the full. Too often disabled people find it hard to get jobs, or are employed at a level below that of their ability. “People with severe disabilities have talents too. Physical disability does not mean mental impairment, and mouth and foot artists encourage people to look beyond the disability to the person, and their personality as expressed through art. While artists can use their special skills, modern technological developments enable other disabled people to operate sophisticated electronic and other equipment - when available - for communication and improved mobility”.

Information from the booklet quotes here: “The stamps were designed by John Gibbs” “Guide dogs enable blind people to get about with relative ease, compared with the many more blind or partially sighted people who rely on their white cane and the help of family and friends. All blind and partially sighted people rely on verbal information we receive visually - from television, posters, newspapers, magazines and books. Blind and partially sighted people, like all disabled people, need understanding and support rather than pity or sympathy, to use their abilities to the full” “Sign language is one way of communicating with deaf people. Imagine what it is like to feel alone even in a crowded room. All communication has to be visual. Everyday equipment like doorbells or alarm clocks are of no use unless specially adapted. Speak clearly when talking to a deaf or hard of hearing person -do not shout - and you can both enjoy an exchange of news and views. Hearing loss does not mean loss of intelligence, and deaf and hard of hearing people want to communicate as much as everyone else. The installation of induction loops in public buildings is enabling people with hearing aids to share in that communication. Hearing impairment can date from birth, be caused by illness, be a result of ageing, or prolonged exposure to excessive noise, particularly in heavy industry” - Stephen Crampton

(Cannot quote all of text due to space). Quote begins halfway down the left side of the booklet. “No one knows exactly how many disabled people there are in the world, but estimates suggest the figure is over 450 million. The number of disabled people in India alone is probably more than double the total population of Canada. In the United Kingdom, about one in 10 people have some disability. 'Disabled people in this context are those who are physically handicapped, deaf, hard of hearing, blind, partially sighted, speech impaired, mentally handicapped, mentally ill, or suffer from handicaps such as epilepsy. Disability is not just something that happens to other people: as we get older, many of us will become less mobile; hard of hearing or havefailing eyesight”. “Disablement can take many forms and occur at anytime of life. Some people are born with disabilities. Many others become disabled as they get older. There are many progressive disabling diseases. Some people are disabled in accidents. Many others may have a period of disability in the form of a mental illness. All are affected by people's attitudes towards them. Disabled people face many physical barriers. Next time you go shopping or to work, or visit friends imagine how you would manage if you could not get up steps or kerbs, or on to buses and trains. How would you cope it you could not see where you were going or could not hear traffic? But there are other barriers: prejudice and ignorance can be even more formidable, and harder to break down. The International Year of Disabled People is of enormous value in drawing attention to these barriers and showing that it is the individual person and their ability, not their disability, which counts. We must learn to look beyond the disability to the person. The four stamps reflect some of these themes”

My partner bought me the International Year of Disabled People 1981 postage stamp series, as my PhD thesis investigates disabled innovation and expertise within the British Post Office. Aren’t they great!

#hstm #disabilityhistory #stamps #postagestamps #postoffice #histmed #histsci #histtech

Brilliant, thank you very much! 😊

Final post - my grandad’s only ever time donating blood was after an incident in Abu Dhabi. A harbour accident where a container crane collapsed killed several people, some seriously injured meant there was a vital need for blood. #hstm #blooddonation

A point of interest for #hstm scholars - my grandad’s smallpox vaccination certificate. Received in 1973! My #histmed #histsci brain is buzzing!

(All of these documents of course posted with permission)