David Hendy

Happy 100th birthday to David Attenborough My piece for the latest issue of the New Statesman, on his remarkable broadcasting career @newstatesman1913.bsky.social

‘In terms of quality, it is a pitiful fraction of the real thing’

'Brighton wrapped its arms around me' - Asylum seeker' www.theargus.co.uk/news/2666470...

One of those morning walks around Lewes when I treat myself to both life in the East and life in the West

If you’re in favour of ‘no unions’ and ‘low taxes’, frankly I’d much rather you did leave us alone and take your greedy, grasping, selfish selves to Dubai as quickly as possible.

Something our universities should note every time the appalling Turning Point UK try to set up their stalls on a British campus

Some restorative moments today listening to the sea at Seaford in the autumn sunshine

Reform says “a handful” of bad apples slip through vetting. It’s not a handful. We’ve exposed Reform councillor after Reform councillor, and many of them are still in the party. Here are some of the worst👇 hopenothate.org.uk/2026/10/16/t...

Strange how all of these Reform characters keep turning out to be racists. Of course, it’s too early to say if there’s a pattern developing. Just bad luck I suppose.

Two things that are in trouble but this government doesn’t give a shit about for some reason: 1. The BBC 2. Universities

Another glorious sunrise earlier this morning over Firle Beacon, glimpsed from my Lewes bedroom window

Dear tv and radio producers. Thankyou for the invitation. But, no, I do not want to appear on your show to defend the idea that I am English, after 50 years of living and working here, because the increasingly feral right want to turn this into a "debate" and you cannot see how you're being played

The "left behind" we always hear about? 🤔 "Watson divides his time between the UK and US and founded the recruitment firm Futura Energy Group, which describes itself as “a specialist recruitment and build-with talent partner for companies operating across AI”" www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...

For today’s @ftweekend.com I am at the restaurant inside the high end Mayfair furniture shop RH London. And it’s chaos. Warm water. Can’t mix cocktails. Run out of hamburgers. Dull food for bored oligarchs who don’t eat. Have a few quotes and a pic of a £22 baked potato. www.ft.com/content/5993...

or as the far right would say ‘legitimate concerns’

We should talk about the “social contagion” of these prejudices among middle-aged people in positions of influence. Rapid Onset Midlife Bigotry

Sorry at what point do the government feel the need to do something about BBC funding, or are they just going to watch it be salami-sliced to extinction?

BBC cuts, which include two long-running series with the words ‘thinking’ in the title.

I’m pleased to announce that I’m now represented by Caroline Dawnay at Lexington Literary

Esther Rantzen gave one of her last full length interviews- about her life, her career - to the Connected Histories of the BBC project at the University of Sussex. All two-and-half hours of it are free to view here: connectedhistoriesofthebbc.org/play/?id=410

Dada perfection

Happy 80th to the Third! Here’s the anniversary doc Alan Hall made for their 60th… m.soundcloud.com/fallingtreep...

Today would have been the 80th birthday of the Third Programme - BBC Radio 3’s remarkable predecessor. My latest for the BBC marks the occasion with a dip into the programme archives, unearthing some forgotten gems from the Third’s early years…

The sky tonight in St Ives as the sun set was… just incredible (No filters, by the way)

A satisfying full Harvest Moon tonight here in St Ives

The worst part of being American is that they will never truly know the joy of Alan Partridge

I ran an absolutely 100% human, zero AI-involvement at any stage passage of my writing through an "AI detector," curious if it could really tell human from AI work, and it said my own writing was "84% AI written" then asked I wanted to pay to have it "humanized." So there's that to keep in mind.

‘… rather than selling the 5-hectare (12-acre) site to the community-led Mayday Saxonvale project, Somerset council has agreed a deal with a real estate investment company based in Soho, central London.’

‘… a work of reckless ambition.’ A new novel by @akblakemore.bsky.social is always a visceral, linguistic treat. And as an old medievalist, I just can’t wait to get hold of a copy of ‘Doom Painting’

who's up for robbing banks while shouting "stop the boats" so no-one arrests us?

Presenting the Booker Prize 2026 shortlist. Find out more about the books and authors that make up this year's list. thebookerprizes.com/bp2026

Here's everything you need to know about the six remarkable books on Booker Prize 2026 shortlist, and the stories behind them. thebookerprizes.com/the-booker-l...

‘This is writing at its best. There’s plenty to enjoy, some blissful escapism and prose to die for’ We are delighted to reveal the Booker Prize 2026 shortlist. ➡️ Discover the full list: thebookerprizes.com/bp2026

I wonder if the only solution is political activism beyond the normal as no political party wants to fight for UKHE. So, perhaps UCU starting a single issue political party to field candidates in university towns and cities that threaten Labour MPs in marginals.

Broadcast media and higher education are soft power -- important enough, you would think, for a government of a small country trying to punch above its weight internationally -- but they can also be EXPORTS, something that no modern government seems to understand?!

(Things are AWFUL in broadcast media, too -- I'm agreeing with @willardfoxton.bsky.social here, not saying universities have it worse. Both things that Britain does really well, for which we are actually internationally renowned, and the government has chosen to piss both of them away for Reasons)

literally thousands of jobs in higher education were cut *last year alone* and there's been almost no media coverage and no government action

There are subjects on which Mr Ratcliffe has some knowledge or expertise. Immigration in society is clearly not such a topic: the BBC had to clarify that his comments 6 months ago were based on a massive mistake + misunderstanding of his key claim. His new comments were entirely contentless.

‘We construct borders, literally and figuratively, to fortify our sense of who we are; and we cross them in search of who we might become.’ Frances Stonor Saunders, 2016 www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v3...

Exciting news (well we think so)! We are looking for new people to regularly contribute to our archive! We accept applications from anyone based in the UK who has an interest in sending us their thoughts and opinions about life in the UK. #Skystorians massobs.org.uk/write-for-th...

We were very sorry to hear about the death of the historian Frances Stonor Saunders. Saunders wrote six pieces for the paper; her final book, 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘶𝘪𝘵𝘤𝘢𝘴𝘦: 𝘚𝘪𝘹 𝘈𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘮𝘱𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘊𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘴 𝘢 𝘉𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘳, was first published in three parts in the 𝘓𝘙𝘉. Read all of her pieces here: www.lrb.co.uk/contributors...

the things that Brighton university management has decided it simply… no longer recognises? it also no longer recognises UCU or Unison? again: how is this legal!!!!

UCU members at Brighton University face the threat of derecognition. We have called an emergency rally tomorrow at 1:15pm. It would be amazing to see as many #TUC26 delegates as possible in attendance. 58-67 Grand Parade, Brighton and Hove, Brighton BN2 0JY

Following the good news that the Rights of our Trees motion was approved by Lewes Town Council last night, here is a celebratory decorated version of the Tree Charter for Lewes. It was designed by the talented Lynda Durrant, fullcircle-design.co.uk

University life 2026