Rome Explore this photo album by PD Smith on Flickr!

More photos of my Roman holiday on Flickr...
www.flickr.com/photos/pdsmi...

A few more glimpses of heaven in Rome. Then it’s ciao and back to Blighty…

Thank you!

Wonderful to be back in Rome. Such a beautiful city, full of colour and light, narrow alleys and grand public spaces…

Higgs Boson was UK triumph, but British physics faces 'catastrophic' cuts Britain is preparing to cancel its contribution to one of the Large Hadron Collider's next major upgrades.

"You're killing the tree by removing the roots."
Higgs boson breakthrough was UK triumph, but British physics faces 'catastrophic' cuts.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Loved Carrie Cracknell’s production of Tom Stoppard’s Arcadia @oldvictheatre.bsky.social. Such a wonderfully clever and moving play that weaves together science and literature. Recommended!

Good for you! 🙂

There’s a crisis in non-fiction book sales. What’s to blame? We’re buying 17 million fewer factual books than six years ago. Is the rise of podcasts to blame? Or publishers’ obsession with celebrities and influencers?

“Nothing says ‘I have a great attention span’ like hefting around a 1,000-page book about Beethoven or the Peasants’ Revolt or something.”

Buy nonfiction!

www.thetimes.com/article/d1be...

Bones of Anglo-Saxon kings return to cathedral after DNA ‘jigsaw’ The remains, believed to be of 25 individuals including Emma of Normandy, were jumbled together in mortuary chests at Winchester Cathedral

“The chests are so integral to our history. They sit at the centre of the cathedral & they are part of our historical DNA & connect us right back to our Anglo-Saxon past.” Fascinating story.

Bones of Anglo-Saxon kings return to Winchester cathedral

www.thetimes.com/article/712e...

Wintry Winchester this morning…

Can a new mayor take Paris back to its glory days? Anne Hidalgo’s opponents say she has undermined retail, waged war on drivers and failed to halt a middle-class exodus. Voters will soon have their say

“There used to be people from all different social classes, but more and more Paris is a city for the rich.”

Can a new mayor take Paris back to its glory days?

www.thetimes.com/article/b5db...

Happy Christmas to you all. Have a lovely day! 🎄

Memories of Christmas past — in pictures Delve into the Times archive to explore a century of festive celebrations, from carols at a Second World War bomb site to Santa’s shift at Harrods

Some great Christmas photos from the Times archive.

Memories of Christmas past — in pictures

www.thetimes.com/article/5848...

Kafka’s grave in Prague today

British breakthrough brings nuclear fusion a step closer Predicting how plasma behaves in a fusion power plant can take days using powerful supercomputers. A new tool backed by Britain can do it in seconds

“It turns an almost intractable problem into something that feels within reach — which, to me, is very exciting.” Fascinating!

British breakthrough brings nuclear fusion a step closer

www.thetimes.com/article/2fee...

I didn't know that - interesting, thanks!

Wonderful! Such a great play too.

Brilliant talk this evening at Winchester College by @bendorgrosvenor.bsky.social about his new book The Invention of British Art. Fascinating!

The last rose of the year from the garden…

A great year for sweet corn - today’s lunch fresh from the garden. Delicious!

Here are my two Guardian paperback picks for August!
The Green Ages by Annette Kehnel & Ootlin by Jenni Fagan.
Links to the reviews below. Enjoy! 🧵
#nonfiction #books📚

This month’s best paperbacks: Gabriel García Márquez, Craig Brown and more Looking for a new reading recommendation? Here are some great new paperbacks, from a posthumous novel to an absorbing account of how nationalism shaped a country

Beautifully written, with flashes of dark humour throughout what is a shocking, heartbreaking memoir, Ootlin tells the story of Fagan’s childhood in care. The winner of the 2025 Gordon Burn prize, this is an astonishing story of survival.

www.theguardian.com/books/ng-int...

This month’s best paperbacks: Gabriel García Márquez, Craig Brown and more Looking for a new reading recommendation? Here are some great new paperbacks, from a posthumous novel to an absorbing account of how nationalism shaped a country

Kehnel’s wonderfully original study will transform your attitude towards the medieval period. She shows how sustainability was central to the medieval approach to life and that they “knew the limits of our planet better than we do now”. @profilebooks.bsky.social

www.theguardian.com/books/ng-int...

Here are my two Guardian paperback picks for August!
The Green Ages by Annette Kehnel & Ootlin by Jenni Fagan.
Links to the reviews below. Enjoy! 🧵
#nonfiction #books📚

Fresh from the garden this morning

Nice haul of French beans from the garden today.

Loved the Hiroshige: Artist of the Open Road exhibition at the British Museum. Worth seeing!

www.britishmuseum.org/exhibitions/...

This month’s best paperbacks: Deborah Levy, David Nicholls and more Looking for a new reading recommendation? Here are some fantastic new paperbacks, from a Booker-shortlisted novel to a groundbreaking history of a continent

Jacobsen’s deeply researched book is a minute-by-minute account of how nuclear war could happen today. As gripping as any thriller, she shows the horrific reality of nuclear war and the threat it poses to the very survival of human life on our planet.

www.theguardian.com/books/ng-int...

‘The English civilian population is the least hysterical in the world. They can take an awful pounding and still keep on planting lobelias.’

Raymond Chandler, in a letter written during the Battle of Britain.

‘The English civilian population is the least hysterical in the world. They can take an awful pounding and still keep on planting lobelias.’

Raymond Chandler, in a letter written during the Battle of Britain.