Allie Nickell
@alliethinks.bsky.social
Likes history, genealogy, art, movies, small furry animals and terrible jokes. Possesses a (mostly) logical mind and a vivid imagination. Born and rared in Belfast, and back there after wandering round Scotland and London.
Reposted by Allie Nickell
Reposted by Allie Nickell
Well what an unexpected opportunity I had this morning, this poor Goldcrest flew into the office window so I kept it warm until it recovered a need flew away. A very special encounter #birds #thegardenjungle #wildlifephotography #birdwatching #shropshire #UKwildlife #birdphotography #photography
November 11, 2025 at 10:16 AM
Well what an unexpected opportunity I had this morning, this poor Goldcrest flew into the office window so I kept it warm until it recovered a need flew away. A very special encounter #birds #thegardenjungle #wildlifephotography #birdwatching #shropshire #UKwildlife #birdphotography #photography
Reposted by Allie Nickell
Thinking about the 130 or so British librarians killed in WW1. Their colleagues raised funds to create a lasting memorial to their sacrifice. Sadly, the tablet they commissioned is now displayed behind the scenes at the British Library, visible only to staff.
#fwwhist #PubLibs 💙📚
#fwwhist #PubLibs 💙📚
December 11, 2023 at 6:01 PM
I love the call of the eider ducks, it always sounds like there's some good gossip 😄
November 11, 2025 at 10:20 AM
I love the call of the eider ducks, it always sounds like there's some good gossip 😄
Reposted by Allie Nickell
everything is bonkers right now and we need a timeline cleanse. let’s play a game. if I handed you a blank check but you could ONLY spend it on an Advent calendar, what absurdly pricy collection of little treats are you buying yourself?
November 11, 2025 at 5:02 AM
everything is bonkers right now and we need a timeline cleanse. let’s play a game. if I handed you a blank check but you could ONLY spend it on an Advent calendar, what absurdly pricy collection of little treats are you buying yourself?
I enjoyed 'Mr Burton' (the first half more than the second), but the scenery was a bit Uncanny Valley - or possibly Uncanny Valleys, in this case.
November 10, 2025 at 10:23 PM
I enjoyed 'Mr Burton' (the first half more than the second), but the scenery was a bit Uncanny Valley - or possibly Uncanny Valleys, in this case.
Reposted by Allie Nickell
As Francis Crick put it, ‘I’m afraid we always used to adopt – let’s say, a patronizing attitude towards her.’ I wrote about DNA pioneer Dr Rosalind Franklin, and how she was deliberately excluded from her male colleagues' conversations.
Conversations with scientists
British chemist and X-ray crystallographer, Dr Rosalind Franklin (1920-1958)
open.substack.com
November 9, 2025 at 7:03 PM
As Francis Crick put it, ‘I’m afraid we always used to adopt – let’s say, a patronizing attitude towards her.’ I wrote about DNA pioneer Dr Rosalind Franklin, and how she was deliberately excluded from her male colleagues' conversations.
Reposted by Allie Nickell
Was really struck by what a lovely inspiring exercise this is, like a primary school version of Mary Oliver’s Instructions for living a life
Pay attention.
Be astonished.
Tell about it
Pay attention.
Be astonished.
Tell about it
November 10, 2025 at 9:35 AM
Was really struck by what a lovely inspiring exercise this is, like a primary school version of Mary Oliver’s Instructions for living a life
Pay attention.
Be astonished.
Tell about it
Pay attention.
Be astonished.
Tell about it
Reposted by Allie Nickell
Juat discovered via @whenisbirths.bsky.social that Sesame Street debuted on this day in 1969. This came to mind, pretty much instantly.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_tr...
#Muppets
www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_tr...
#Muppets
Sesame Street: Martians Discover a Radio
YouTube video by Sesame Street
www.youtube.com
November 10, 2025 at 8:17 AM
Juat discovered via @whenisbirths.bsky.social that Sesame Street debuted on this day in 1969. This came to mind, pretty much instantly.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_tr...
#Muppets
www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_tr...
#Muppets
Reposted by Allie Nickell
Teaching a baby otter to swim:
November 9, 2025 at 8:49 PM
Teaching a baby otter to swim:
Reposted by Allie Nickell
Late on #SuperSeabirdSunday and early for #BlueSkyMonday, but I know that any time is good for the #Puffin appreciation crowd! From my 2024 visit to Skomer Island.
#Birds #UKWildlife #Photography #EastCoastKin 🌿
#Birds #UKWildlife #Photography #EastCoastKin 🌿
November 9, 2025 at 8:50 PM
Late on #SuperSeabirdSunday and early for #BlueSkyMonday, but I know that any time is good for the #Puffin appreciation crowd! From my 2024 visit to Skomer Island.
#Birds #UKWildlife #Photography #EastCoastKin 🌿
#Birds #UKWildlife #Photography #EastCoastKin 🌿
Reposted by Allie Nickell
The NYTimes article on Mamdani at Bowdoin is "a wreck, but of a form so pure, so purely Timesian, you almost have to admire it. It certainly is instructive." lithub.com/maybe-dont-t...
Maybe Don’t Talk to the New York Times About Zohran Mamdani
It’s remarkable, the people you’ll hear from. Teach for even a little while at an expensive institution—the term they tend to prefer is “elite”—and odds are that eventually someone who was a studen…
lithub.com
November 8, 2025 at 10:45 PM
The NYTimes article on Mamdani at Bowdoin is "a wreck, but of a form so pure, so purely Timesian, you almost have to admire it. It certainly is instructive." lithub.com/maybe-dont-t...
Reposted by Allie Nickell
Every bit the weary traveller still — though I can’t entirely blame the journey home from Yorkshire.
Fatigue and I aren’t friends, just long-time companions.
But I’ve finished the squirrel movie!
A moment of stillness, rustle and joy.
Long-term illness shapes the rhythm of life… so does love.
Fatigue and I aren’t friends, just long-time companions.
But I’ve finished the squirrel movie!
A moment of stillness, rustle and joy.
Long-term illness shapes the rhythm of life… so does love.
November 9, 2025 at 6:19 PM
Every bit the weary traveller still — though I can’t entirely blame the journey home from Yorkshire.
Fatigue and I aren’t friends, just long-time companions.
But I’ve finished the squirrel movie!
A moment of stillness, rustle and joy.
Long-term illness shapes the rhythm of life… so does love.
Fatigue and I aren’t friends, just long-time companions.
But I’ve finished the squirrel movie!
A moment of stillness, rustle and joy.
Long-term illness shapes the rhythm of life… so does love.
Reposted by Allie Nickell
November 9, 2025 at 5:02 PM
In any cemetery this would be shameful, but here they are trying to erase the memory of the men who built the cemetery and buried its dead. We *must* remember them.
1/ The US Government has quietly removed a memorial to Black soldiers who died in World War II from the Netherlands American Cemetery in Margraten, South Limburg. The move follows a complaint from the right-wing Heritage Foundation to the American Battle Monuments Commission. ⬇️
November 9, 2025 at 12:41 PM
In any cemetery this would be shameful, but here they are trying to erase the memory of the men who built the cemetery and buried its dead. We *must* remember them.
Reposted by Allie Nickell
Welcome to Super Seabird Sunday where we ask you to share photos, videos & artwork of seabirds to brighten up timelines. Here are some Puffins from the Isle of May to get us started #SuperSeabirdSunday
November 9, 2025 at 7:32 AM
Welcome to Super Seabird Sunday where we ask you to share photos, videos & artwork of seabirds to brighten up timelines. Here are some Puffins from the Isle of May to get us started #SuperSeabirdSunday
Reposted by Allie Nickell
When you’ve successfully persuaded people that being anti-racist is a Bad Thing called “woke”, you can go about your day being openly racist, doing racist things, spreading racist ideas, quite happily.
Two panels commemorating the contribution of Black American soldiers towards the liberation of the Netherlands in World War Two have been quietly removed from a cemetery in Limburg. It follows a complaint by right-wing think tank The Heritage Foundation to the American Battle Monuments Commission.
November 9, 2025 at 8:13 AM
When you’ve successfully persuaded people that being anti-racist is a Bad Thing called “woke”, you can go about your day being openly racist, doing racist things, spreading racist ideas, quite happily.
I've just had a spam email with the subject line 'Congratulations! Premier Inn Pillows Set Inside!'. I'm almost tempted to click on it to see if some pillows shoot out of my laptop, airbag style.
November 8, 2025 at 9:01 PM
I've just had a spam email with the subject line 'Congratulations! Premier Inn Pillows Set Inside!'. I'm almost tempted to click on it to see if some pillows shoot out of my laptop, airbag style.
The original version of this painting showed the coffin flanked by two naked, emaciated British soldiers and two cherubim. The public loved it, the Powers That Be did not. Orpen later painted out the figures - but as the paint fades with age, they have started to re-emerge. 1/2
November 8, 2025 at 6:13 PM
The original version of this painting showed the coffin flanked by two naked, emaciated British soldiers and two cherubim. The public loved it, the Powers That Be did not. Orpen later painted out the figures - but as the paint fades with age, they have started to re-emerge. 1/2
Reposted by Allie Nickell
sometimes an Oxford comma can make all the difference
November 8, 2025 at 12:36 PM
sometimes an Oxford comma can make all the difference
Reposted by Allie Nickell
Nov 8: Feast of Gartnait of Kinneddar, Moray, a major ecclesiastical site of northern Pictland. Its box-shrine fragment showing the Old Testament David rending a lion’s jaws, left, has a close parallel in the St Andrews Sarcophagus, right. 📸Historic Environment Scotland #medievalsky
November 8, 2025 at 8:21 AM
Nov 8: Feast of Gartnait of Kinneddar, Moray, a major ecclesiastical site of northern Pictland. Its box-shrine fragment showing the Old Testament David rending a lion’s jaws, left, has a close parallel in the St Andrews Sarcophagus, right. 📸Historic Environment Scotland #medievalsky
Reposted by Allie Nickell
#Ootd isn't an outfit, but accessories Paul Poiret produced from designs by his Atelier Martine. All have bright, whimsical, floral patterns- a 1912 bamboo umbrella, a 1911 silk and wool cap, and a pair of 1924 "the Roses" shoes of embroidered velvet and silk chenille. #fashionhistory #paulpoiret
November 8, 2025 at 5:27 AM
#Ootd isn't an outfit, but accessories Paul Poiret produced from designs by his Atelier Martine. All have bright, whimsical, floral patterns- a 1912 bamboo umbrella, a 1911 silk and wool cap, and a pair of 1924 "the Roses" shoes of embroidered velvet and silk chenille. #fashionhistory #paulpoiret
Reposted by Allie Nickell
"If you publish your book now, in the teeth of my opposition, history will condemn you”
“the tone used to describe Rosalind's work in the Epilogue
is perfectly reasonable,
but contrasts ludicrously with
the descriptions of her
in the text itself.”
-Francis Crick
Letter criticizing Watson’s book 🧪
“the tone used to describe Rosalind's work in the Epilogue
is perfectly reasonable,
but contrasts ludicrously with
the descriptions of her
in the text itself.”
-Francis Crick
Letter criticizing Watson’s book 🧪
November 8, 2025 at 12:04 AM
"If you publish your book now, in the teeth of my opposition, history will condemn you”
“the tone used to describe Rosalind's work in the Epilogue
is perfectly reasonable,
but contrasts ludicrously with
the descriptions of her
in the text itself.”
-Francis Crick
Letter criticizing Watson’s book 🧪
“the tone used to describe Rosalind's work in the Epilogue
is perfectly reasonable,
but contrasts ludicrously with
the descriptions of her
in the text itself.”
-Francis Crick
Letter criticizing Watson’s book 🧪
Have just seen my old flat on the national news 😂. It was never boring on that street.
I miss the view from my old flat in London, which was like a soap opera and News at Ten rolled into one 🍿
November 8, 2025 at 10:51 AM
Have just seen my old flat on the national news 😂. It was never boring on that street.