David Matthewman
@djm4.bsky.social
Sheffield,-UK-based liberal leftie geek, into SFF generally and Dr Who specifically. Likes cycling and birdwatching, but very much playing both on easy mode. LOFC fan in exile. Pronouns he/him/himself
Also on Mastodon as @djm4@mastodon.me.uk
Also on Mastodon as @djm4@mastodon.me.uk
GROGGS, the Cambridge University discussion board. I was at Churchill College, which was very techie and had a bank of BBC Microsoft acting as terminals for the Phoenix computer system just upstairs from the bar. Moss evenings, several of them would be occupied by people logged into GROGGS.
January 17, 2026 at 9:08 AM
GROGGS, the Cambridge University discussion board. I was at Churchill College, which was very techie and had a bank of BBC Microsoft acting as terminals for the Phoenix computer system just upstairs from the bar. Moss evenings, several of them would be occupied by people logged into GROGGS.
Reposted by David Matthewman
Think I'm going to reread "The Year Without Sunshine" tonight. (This is a @naomikritzer.bsky.social appreciation post. ❤️ ) 🧵
"The Year Without Sunshine" by @naomikritzer.bsky.social hits even harder now (but in a good way).
Award-winning story, set in Minneapolis. Very appropriate for this place and this time. It's about community & taking care of each other. (10,883 words).
www.uncannymagazine.com/article/the-...
Award-winning story, set in Minneapolis. Very appropriate for this place and this time. It's about community & taking care of each other. (10,883 words).
www.uncannymagazine.com/article/the-...
January 17, 2026 at 3:00 AM
Think I'm going to reread "The Year Without Sunshine" tonight. (This is a @naomikritzer.bsky.social appreciation post. ❤️ ) 🧵
Reposted by David Matthewman
I love how clear & straightforward & enthusiastic this is, & hope anyone who’s felt daunted by the process or prospect of a process takes a look!
Did you know that you, yes YOU, can vote in the Hugo Awards??
@mollytempleton.com breaks down the process, including how to register before the January 31st deadline!
@mollytempleton.com breaks down the process, including how to register before the January 31st deadline!
Anyone Can Vote in the Hugo Awards — And Here's How - Reactor
You — yes, you! — can nominate work and vote for the winners of the 2026 Hugo Awards!
reactormag.com
January 14, 2026 at 12:09 AM
I love how clear & straightforward & enthusiastic this is, & hope anyone who’s felt daunted by the process or prospect of a process takes a look!
The boating lake at Mill houses Park in Sheffield. Stranded swan boats cast a sequence of shadows over the ice.
January 10, 2026 at 4:45 PM
The boating lake at Mill houses Park in Sheffield. Stranded swan boats cast a sequence of shadows over the ice.
Reposted by David Matthewman
AND, 1st time *ever*, as we have a decent supply of them small-patch printed, we put our Doctor Who (4th Doctor Tom Baker) scarf lanyards 10% off! Overseas folks: I put 2 in the package for price of 1 since shipping is so high.
Link torchandarrow.etsy.com/listing/8227...
Shop torchandarrow.etsy.com
Link torchandarrow.etsy.com/listing/8227...
Shop torchandarrow.etsy.com
January 9, 2026 at 5:11 PM
AND, 1st time *ever*, as we have a decent supply of them small-patch printed, we put our Doctor Who (4th Doctor Tom Baker) scarf lanyards 10% off! Overseas folks: I put 2 in the package for price of 1 since shipping is so high.
Link torchandarrow.etsy.com/listing/8227...
Shop torchandarrow.etsy.com
Link torchandarrow.etsy.com/listing/8227...
Shop torchandarrow.etsy.com
Wow! Matty's been so quiet all series and then comes out with that.
Also, that first question was technically two questions, but then the next question was more of a wish, so it all balances out. #TheTraitors
Also, that first question was technically two questions, but then the next question was more of a wish, so it all balances out. #TheTraitors
January 9, 2026 at 9:11 PM
Wow! Matty's been so quiet all series and then comes out with that.
Also, that first question was technically two questions, but then the next question was more of a wish, so it all balances out. #TheTraitors
Also, that first question was technically two questions, but then the next question was more of a wish, so it all balances out. #TheTraitors
Reposted by David Matthewman
I was uncertain about how much to say about this in public, but I do have a small platform here and on this occasion I guess I’ll stand on it.
December 26, 2025 at 7:14 PM
I was uncertain about how much to say about this in public, but I do have a small platform here and on this occasion I guess I’ll stand on it.
Reposted by David Matthewman
Reposted by David Matthewman
Reminiscent of the time the Archbishop of Canterbury said maybe poor people should be fed and was accused of “virtue signalling”
Extremely funny to call the pope “holier-than-thou”
December 25, 2025 at 9:23 AM
Reminiscent of the time the Archbishop of Canterbury said maybe poor people should be fed and was accused of “virtue signalling”
Reposted by David Matthewman
If you’re in the UK & are so inclined, from Dec 25 to Jan 5 you can get the Kindle edition of THE RIVER HAS ROOTS for 99p as part of their 12 Days of Kindle event! This means in the UK you can also get that price matched at other etailers, like Kobo! Merry Christmas!
www.kobo.com/gb/en/ebook/...
www.kobo.com/gb/en/ebook/...
The River Has Roots ebook by Amal El-Mohtar - Rakuten Kobo
Read "The River Has Roots The Sweeping, Magical Solo Debut by the Best-Selling Co-Author of THIS IS HOW YOU LOSE THE TIME WAR" by Amal El-Mohtar available from Rakuten Kobo. Follow the river Liss to t...
www.kobo.com
December 25, 2025 at 6:25 PM
If you’re in the UK & are so inclined, from Dec 25 to Jan 5 you can get the Kindle edition of THE RIVER HAS ROOTS for 99p as part of their 12 Days of Kindle event! This means in the UK you can also get that price matched at other etailers, like Kobo! Merry Christmas!
www.kobo.com/gb/en/ebook/...
www.kobo.com/gb/en/ebook/...
Reposted by David Matthewman
I remember Christmases dealing with mum's dementia, from the "your turn to explain why it's called Stinking Bishop" rota to trying to explain that my niece didn't hate the keyboard she'd got her, she'd just forgotten the hour she spent watching her play it. Adding in fake memories too? Horrific.
The comments on this are all about how sweet it is and I feel insane. Using AI to make fake memories of your grandma with dementia and telling her they happened and then filming her reaction
December 26, 2025 at 9:23 AM
I remember Christmases dealing with mum's dementia, from the "your turn to explain why it's called Stinking Bishop" rota to trying to explain that my niece didn't hate the keyboard she'd got her, she'd just forgotten the hour she spent watching her play it. Adding in fake memories too? Horrific.
Reposted by David Matthewman
Tasha Suri's The Isle in the silver sea
Hey smart people QT this with the best book you read this year
December 24, 2025 at 5:33 PM
Tasha Suri's The Isle in the silver sea
Reposted by David Matthewman
Reposted by David Matthewman
Ok so
The headline is a bit misleading. AI shows racist bias in that psychiatric model (not surprising)
The slides issue is more complex--the AI detects markers that are correlated with race and then can't diagnose because it's been trained on too many white ppl (1/?)
futurism.com/health-medic...
The headline is a bit misleading. AI shows racist bias in that psychiatric model (not surprising)
The slides issue is more complex--the AI detects markers that are correlated with race and then can't diagnose because it's been trained on too many white ppl (1/?)
futurism.com/health-medic...
Doctors Catch Cancer-Diagnosing AI Extracting Patients' Race Data and Being Racist With It
A new study reveals an alarming bias present in four leading AI cancer screening tools, related to race, gender, and age.
futurism.com
December 21, 2025 at 12:01 AM
Ok so
The headline is a bit misleading. AI shows racist bias in that psychiatric model (not surprising)
The slides issue is more complex--the AI detects markers that are correlated with race and then can't diagnose because it's been trained on too many white ppl (1/?)
futurism.com/health-medic...
The headline is a bit misleading. AI shows racist bias in that psychiatric model (not surprising)
The slides issue is more complex--the AI detects markers that are correlated with race and then can't diagnose because it's been trained on too many white ppl (1/?)
futurism.com/health-medic...
7am train from London to Sheffield, and it's one of the new 810 fleet! Very shiny and comfortable (OK, I'm in First, but Standard looks nice, too).
December 18, 2025 at 7:15 AM
7am train from London to Sheffield, and it's one of the new 810 fleet! Very shiny and comfortable (OK, I'm in First, but Standard looks nice, too).
Reposted by David Matthewman
Mais je lis quasiment partout :
"And is Wife"
"Et sa femme"
Elle avait un nom, cette dame :
Michelle Singer Reiner
Elle était actrice, productrice ET photographe.
MERDE.
"And is Wife"
"Et sa femme"
Elle avait un nom, cette dame :
Michelle Singer Reiner
Elle était actrice, productrice ET photographe.
MERDE.
December 15, 2025 at 6:26 AM
Mais je lis quasiment partout :
"And is Wife"
"Et sa femme"
Elle avait un nom, cette dame :
Michelle Singer Reiner
Elle était actrice, productrice ET photographe.
MERDE.
"And is Wife"
"Et sa femme"
Elle avait un nom, cette dame :
Michelle Singer Reiner
Elle était actrice, productrice ET photographe.
MERDE.
Reposted by David Matthewman
Rob Reiner, le producteur de Princess Bride, Misery, Stand by me et Quand Harry rencontre Sally est mort, possiblement assassiné.
C'est bien triste, j'aimais son boulot à ce monsieur.
C'est bien triste, j'aimais son boulot à ce monsieur.
December 15, 2025 at 6:26 AM
Rob Reiner, le producteur de Princess Bride, Misery, Stand by me et Quand Harry rencontre Sally est mort, possiblement assassiné.
C'est bien triste, j'aimais son boulot à ce monsieur.
C'est bien triste, j'aimais son boulot à ce monsieur.
Reposted by David Matthewman
He ran towards the gunfire.
He ran *towards* the gunfire.
He ran *towards* the gunfire.
a good and necessary read for many
December 15, 2025 at 6:20 AM
He ran towards the gunfire.
He ran *towards* the gunfire.
He ran *towards* the gunfire.
Reposted by David Matthewman
Every few months now I re-read this "Who Goes Nazi?" piece from 1941 and am blown away by how it captures the people we are dealing with 80 years later.
harpers.org/archive/1941...
harpers.org/archive/1941...
Who Goes Nazi?, by Dorothy Thompson
harpers.org
October 1, 2025 at 11:59 PM
Every few months now I re-read this "Who Goes Nazi?" piece from 1941 and am blown away by how it captures the people we are dealing with 80 years later.
harpers.org/archive/1941...
harpers.org/archive/1941...
Reposted by David Matthewman
When this guidance is published (given legal standing), as it almost certainly will be, as a trans man I will not be allowed to use non-unisex public toilets. Which is almost every public toilet.
Just want that to sink in, there.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Just want that to sink in, there.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Equality boss expects people to 'follow rules' over single-sex spaces
Dr Mary-Ann Stephenson said
www.bbc.co.uk
December 13, 2025 at 9:40 PM
When this guidance is published (given legal standing), as it almost certainly will be, as a trans man I will not be allowed to use non-unisex public toilets. Which is almost every public toilet.
Just want that to sink in, there.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Just want that to sink in, there.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
At Barnsley to watch Leyton Orient play. Slightly ashamed to admit it's my first live match of the season. The afternoon sky is very pretty, but not that conducive to seeing any action on the pitch. #LOFC
December 13, 2025 at 2:51 PM
At Barnsley to watch Leyton Orient play. Slightly ashamed to admit it's my first live match of the season. The afternoon sky is very pretty, but not that conducive to seeing any action on the pitch. #LOFC
Reposted by David Matthewman
This, by the way, is not a BBC problem. Sure plenty of people will respond happily to Robin’s stance as if it’s “anti-Beeb”.
This is a problem with the world at large, a cruelty which has been stamped into the face of the compliant BBC, cos it knows its precarious place.
This is a problem with the world at large, a cruelty which has been stamped into the face of the compliant BBC, cos it knows its precarious place.
December 13, 2025 at 8:33 AM
This, by the way, is not a BBC problem. Sure plenty of people will respond happily to Robin’s stance as if it’s “anti-Beeb”.
This is a problem with the world at large, a cruelty which has been stamped into the face of the compliant BBC, cos it knows its precarious place.
This is a problem with the world at large, a cruelty which has been stamped into the face of the compliant BBC, cos it knows its precarious place.
Reposted by David Matthewman
Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett casually confirming that 2D of Gorillaz is non-binary now is not what I expected from this album promotion cycle but y’know, yeah, cool, good for them!
![Albarn: That's the lovely thing about Gorillaz - it's still committed to everything existing in its own world. It's why l put that sound on my voice to separate me from [cartoon lead singer] 2-D. He…. Well, I actually don't think he's much of a he, he's more of a 'they', isn't he?
Hewlett: They're definitely more at home in that [non-binary] world. They're a sweetheart, they're open and accepting new information.
Albarn: Exactly, it's such a nice place to sing from.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:vmhrtckqi7ghdoqhf3lgvm4y/bafkreifoqfxkzjxz6oq5zh75dmks7wgy75zkpercumnvqubrm2vde4tdxy@jpeg)
December 12, 2025 at 9:33 PM
Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett casually confirming that 2D of Gorillaz is non-binary now is not what I expected from this album promotion cycle but y’know, yeah, cool, good for them!
Reposted by David Matthewman
That’s it. I’m on the train home after the last of, what, 200 gigs this year? Thank you very much to every single person who has (voluntarily) watched me in 2025. I’m about to get hammered*.
*I have just one of those little wines you can buy in M and S
*I have just one of those little wines you can buy in M and S
December 12, 2025 at 11:01 PM
That’s it. I’m on the train home after the last of, what, 200 gigs this year? Thank you very much to every single person who has (voluntarily) watched me in 2025. I’m about to get hammered*.
*I have just one of those little wines you can buy in M and S
*I have just one of those little wines you can buy in M and S
Reposted by David Matthewman
Love is infinite.
And we do not have to live in a cage.
And we do not have to live in a cage.
Not easy to get to sleep tonight - have burnt the bridge of whatever career I had left and really don’t feel that my opinions are so extreme that that should have been necessary
Very sad that I felt I had no choice but to resign from The Infinite Monkey Cage - a victory for the transphobes and other bigots - I did it because so much of the media has chosen to believe the kind and empathetic people are a fiction - they are real and so often unrepresented.
December 13, 2025 at 2:03 AM
Love is infinite.
And we do not have to live in a cage.
And we do not have to live in a cage.