Just to clarify, I didn't find MY husband on the bus as I don't have one (a bus or a husband). This is getting unnecessarily confusing.

117 Fiction and Research YouTube video by Helen Kara

New video: Fiction and Research 🎥

Can fiction help researchers tell deeper truths?

I explore how fiction can help us honour multiple perspectives, represent complexity, and protect participant anonymity.

Watch here: youtu.be/ipij5Z9FTr4

#ResearchMethods #CreativeMethods

Northampton couple who met on bus ride double decker to wedding The pair are now married after meeting during their commute last summer.

I found my husband on the bus.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/videos/...

LTHEchat 361: Moving beyond intention: What does an anti-racist curriculum really require? Join us on Bluesky for #LTHEchat on Wednesday 22nd April at 8pm GMT with guests Heather Pennington (@heatherpennington.bsky.social) and Rachel Johns (@johnsrm.bsky.social) to discuss anti-racist cu…

Don’t forget to join us tomorrow for #LTHEchat which will explore anti-racist curriculum, and what it really requires with
@heatherpennington.bsky.social and @johnsrm.bsky.social on Wednesday 8-9pm GMT/BST. Read the blog post at lthechat.com/2026/04/19/l...

Press cutting Lancashire Telegraph, 20 April 2008: Shepherd's pie recipe rumpus. Subhead: Petrol bomb threat in tomato topping row. By ANDREW BELLARD A dispute over the contents of a shepherd's pie proved to be a recipe for brotherly disharmony. Blackburn magistrates heard that John Garvin thought that the pie his brother Michael made should have been topped with tomatoes but Michael disagreed. The upshot was that John, who was hit over the head with a shovel, reacted by threatening to petrol bomb his brother's flat. And he ended up spending a night in custody to allow tempers to cool. John Garvin, 47, of Montague Street, admitted a breach of the peace and was bound over in £100 to keep the peace for 12 months. Catherine Allan, prosecuting, said the brothers lived in separate flats next to each other. On the day of the culinary dispute they had been drinking together since 7am. "The argument started because there were no tomatoes on the shepherds pie that Michael made for tea and John thought this was wrong," said Miss Allan. John called his brother an offensive name and then said he was going to petrol bomb his flat. "Michael was concerned by this threat because on a previous occasion John had started a fire in his own flat," said Miss Allan. Liz Parker, defending, said her client did not accept making a remark about petrol bombing his brother's flat. "He does say that his brother hit him over the head with a shovel and it is very clear there was a lot of trouble over nothing," she added. (The article has a pullout quote which says “It is very clear there was a lot of trouble over nothing” - LIZ PARKER in large letters) District Judge Peter Ward, who imposed the bind over, asked in court: "You can make shepherd's pie without tomatoes can't you?" But 'legal' opinion at Blackburn magistrates, where the issue became quite a talking point, was divided. A female defence solicitor said it should be made with lamb and topped with sliced tomatoes and that a pie made with b…

And lo, it came to pass that the 18th anniversary of the greatest local news story ever told came upon us, and we were sore amazed

More vital sessions for parents/carers etc coming up from our fabulous team at Autism Central. Free, as NHS has funded these:

Spotting warning signs in young people (self-harm, suicidality and acute crisis) 12-1pm 29th April link at www.autismcentral.nhs.uk/events/spott... and/

Happy Monday! It's a bright and sunny day here, still slightly chilly but that's okay.

I'm at the final part of finishing off a report with all the fiddly bits to do, but I'm very excited about it.

How's your week shaping up? What are your plans?

It's Quiet Uptown - Hamilton (Original Cast 2016 - Live) [HD] YouTube video by Asaki Takaya

‪Petra Boynton‬
‪@petraboynton.bsky.social‬
· now
"There are moments that the words don't reach
There is suffering too terrible to name"

Remembering someone very special today who left us far, far too soon. (They were obsessed with this musical).

youtu.be/I5N7xCSOrQg?...

It's not an impression I have of psychology, maybe it's more an issue in neuroscience. There's certainly a case to be made for clear communication, but that doesn't mean losing integrity, rigour, or technicality. It's also appropriate to disseminate in more than one format - for diverse audiences.

Family from Devon reunited with daughter's 55-year-old book Nicola Lomax says she was drawn in by the book's cover and wanted to find its original owner.

This is both heartwarming and will probably also give you a moment. Never hesitate to do a kind thing, you never know where it might lead.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Iris Long, Scientific Mentor to AIDS Activists, Dies at 92

It’s hard to express how important Iris was to ACT UP’s scientific development. She was the catalyst who started it all. Iris Long, Scientific Mentor to AIDS Activists, Dies at 92 www.nytimes.com/2026/04/17/h...

Steven was very bold, Missus less so, although she trusted me when needed. Flop has never been as confident which is probably a good thing. He's very happy doing his own thing with his mate who as yet doesn't have a name.

I did not want to become a friend to seagulls since Herring gulls are not my favourite, but Steven and Missus insisted. Steven kept me company during lockdown by regularly banging on the door for food, asking to be hosed down on hot days, and sitting with me while I sat outside reading to him.

For those who followed me on Twitter/X you may remember the ongoing adventures of my resident seagull Steven and his mate Missus. Sadly, while they both reached a very good age they are no longer with us but their offspring, Flop, has a mate and they are now noisily building a nest.

I think we should be wondering A LOT about public policy and AI. I imagine those working within local government, civil service and the third sector (to name a few) know how bad it is but I don't think anyone outside does.

AI's used for report and policy writing because 'nobody reads this stuff'. No point in being persuasive and precise. It's already decided if what you're writing about has value. If yes, it'll be fed into AI with other papers to produce a summary that also won't get read but actions will spring from.

This is a really odd argument because I think at the heart of it, there is a deep misunderstanding about what writing is for. I write to communicate my thoughts and ideas, and to bring people along with me, which AI cannot do for me because it isn't me.

Yes, it never leaves you, does it? 😥

Blog submission guidelines We accept pitch submissions from NSUN members (individuals with lived experience of mental ill-health, distress, or trauma as well as user-led groups).

We’re interested in publishing blogs which explore Mad liberation, social justice, UK mental health and disability policy, and the work of grassroots groups.

Paying £150, submit your pitch for a blog via the link below.

www.nsun.org.uk/our-members/...

The university model is built upon and maintained by a cohort of people who have never known financial hardship, housing issues, or had their basic needs denied. They may still have problems, we all do, but their ability to navigate and thrive is significantly higher. Their safety net is secure.

I can remember clearly the feeling of shame following simple exchanges of asking how I'd navigate conferences that require paying up front. 'Just put it on your credit card!', 'Use your savings'.

People in positions of comfort don't understand (or forget) how not having basic things shuts you out

There's lots of students at university also like this. Staff too. People whose way is paid for, who have the buffer of finances, family, housing. And all the overwhelming confidence and entitlement that brings. Making it impossible to comprehend the barriers others face. Nor respond sympathetically.

The Call for Proposals for the 3rd MethodsNET Conference (Oct 28-30) is OPEN! 🌍

Join our global community of researchers. Submit your before May 6. We can’t wait to see your work!

Submit here: event.fourwaves.com/methodsnetco...

#MethodsNET #AcademicSky #ResearchMethods

“The world is being ravaged by a handful of tyrants, yet it is held together by a multitude of supportive brothers and sisters…as numerous as the stars in the sky and the grains of sand on the seashore.”

~ Pope Leo

www.vatican.va/content/leo-...

Appreciate people will hold very different and strong opinions on this so always open to hearing and learning more. Particularly around ethics, honouring participants, data protection, environmental costs etc.

Even with consent and anonymised data I don't think we should use AI for transcript analysis. I don't see how it honours peoples time, stories, experiences. Or gives us deep understanding. Worrying if AI's used here due to lack of skills or time, or a vague hope something might 'emerge'.

My current fury with AI is where you see researchers making a huge deal over being trauma informed and seeking highly challenging and sensitive information from people who have no idea their stories and deepest secrets are going to be fed into AI because this makes analysis 'quicker'.

It's unpopular but in so many organisations now it's pushed for general use. Why? People are busy, overworked, underskilled and under immense pressure to perform. They don't have time to read, process, or act on anything so there's no incentive to produce any quality, thoughtful or rigorous work.

Three panel comic. Panel 1: scene from the movie Aliens; Ripley is in a mech suit and delivers her iconic line: “get away from her, you bitch!” Panel 2: the xenomorph queen lunges at Ripley in the robotic suit and they engage in a fight. Panel 3: later, the xenomorph queen is standing in the shower, mid wash. She says, “‘it takes one to know one, honey.’ That’s what I should have said.”

'With no sign of the financial picture across higher education brightening, the government is encouraging universities to specialise and share resources, partly through reforms to research funding.'

Without defining specialisation or so far as one can tell modelling its impact. So it's vibes. 1/4