John Grindrod
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grindrod.bsky.social
John Grindrod
@grindrod.bsky.social
Social historian of modern places. Wrote Concretopia and Iconicon. Tales of the Suburbs, on LGBTQ+ history, out March 2026. Also, maps. Disappointingly unserious. Podcast: Monstrosities Mon Amour

https://linktr.ee/johngrindrod
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Let's take a ride... My next book is coming out with @faberbooks.bsky.social. Tales of the Suburbs: LGBTQ+ Lives Behind Net Curtains will be published March 12 2026. Preorder links in profile, and lots more on the book and the remarkable stories people told me to come over the next few months...
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I have LOADS of Tales of the Suburbs events coming up! Announced so far: Foyles (with Luke Turner), Bookseller Crow (with Karen McLeod), Curious Minds festival in Bath and The Portobello Bookshop in Edinburgh. Loads more to come! www.johngrindrod.co.uk/events
January 27, 2026 at 7:50 PM
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Finally, the monstrosity I've been waiting for! This is a really fascinating perspective on one of the most satisfying spaces to spend time in.
January 29, 2026 at 9:35 PM
Don’t miss this mega(lithic) episode…
January 29, 2026 at 8:34 PM
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My new book Still In A Dream: Shoegaze, Slackers, and the Reinvention of Rock, 1984-94 is out in June on @whiterabbitbks.bsky.social . It's a love letter to the music of my youth and a flashback to the most exciting time of my writing life. Pre-order geni.us/StillInADream
January 29, 2026 at 7:12 PM
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If you want a really lovely listen & give yourself lots of food for thought (alongside having a guilty giggle 🤣) then this is the podcast for you!

Wonderful stuff! ❤️

#Archaeology 🏺
January 29, 2026 at 12:06 PM
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Really enjoyed listening to this on my way to work this morning 🎧🏺
January 29, 2026 at 10:54 AM
Really looking forward to this online event next week
High-rise estates are some of the most visible and contentious symbols of Britain's post-war dreams. Join Holly Smith and John Grindrod for an evening exploring Britains tower block history.

www.mklitfest.org/upintheair

@grindrod.bsky.social
@versobooks.bsky.social
@holsmith.bsky.social
January 29, 2026 at 9:41 AM
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Bruce Springsteen has become braver and more radical as he has got older. It’s the way to end a career like Johnny Cash did before him - “Take a stand in this land for the stranger in our midst” www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWKS...
Bruce Springsteen - Streets Of Minneapolis (Official Audio)
YouTube video by Bruce Springsteen
www.youtube.com
January 28, 2026 at 11:53 PM
Loved The History of Sound. Though it was sad enough without the song we played at my brother’s funeral coming on near the end
January 28, 2026 at 11:00 PM
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New episode of Monstrosities Mon Amour. See the National Theatre through the eyes of an archaeologist: @reblambert.bsky.social explains how it’s like a henge. Also her love for Dolph Lundgren’s Masters of the Universe! johngrindrod.substack.com/p/monstrosit...
Monstrosities Mon Amour: The National Theatre with Rebecca Lambert
#14. John Grindrod meets archaeologist Rebecca Lambert to discuss the neolithic echoes of the National Theatre and the camp absurdity of the 1987 film Masters of the Universe
johngrindrod.substack.com
January 28, 2026 at 7:55 AM
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Recommended listening. Features an Austin Maxi, the finest building in London, Dolph Lundgren and a fleeting mention of Garibaldi biscuits. What more could you ask for?
January 28, 2026 at 9:11 AM
I always forget Nights in White Satin makes me cry until the banshees all start wailing in the chorus and there it is.
January 28, 2026 at 9:03 AM
New episode of Monstrosities Mon Amour. See the National Theatre through the eyes of an archaeologist: @reblambert.bsky.social explains how it’s like a henge. Also her love for Dolph Lundgren’s Masters of the Universe! johngrindrod.substack.com/p/monstrosit...
Monstrosities Mon Amour: The National Theatre with Rebecca Lambert
#14. John Grindrod meets archaeologist Rebecca Lambert to discuss the neolithic echoes of the National Theatre and the camp absurdity of the 1987 film Masters of the Universe
johngrindrod.substack.com
January 28, 2026 at 7:55 AM
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I'm giving a talk on my book, Unburied: The True Story of Hannah Beswick, the Manchester Mummy) for the Manchester Histories Salon this Thursday! It's a free event, and it starts at 6pm (in person at Manchester Histories Hub in Central Library or online). www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/manchester...
Manchester Histories Salon - Unburied: The True Story of Hannah Beswick
Discover the macabre tale of an eighteenth-century woman immortalised in folklore as the 'Manchester Mummy' in the first of our 2026 Salons.
www.eventbrite.co.uk
January 27, 2026 at 9:11 PM
Going for my first run in a couple of weeks, due to a heavy cold. Expecting to take two steps and go ‘not for me’
January 27, 2026 at 5:39 PM
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For those that want to read more about my whole cancer palaver, I've finally got round to writing my first blog post - only four months late.

You can read it here and you can also subscribe (it's free) if you want to be emailed when I've written a new post.

open.substack.com/pub/janehill64
Have You Got Somebody With You? | Jane Hill | Substack
Ovarian Cancer and me. Click to read "Have You Got Somebody With You?", by Jane Hill, a Substack publication. Launched 24 minutes ago.
open.substack.com
January 25, 2026 at 4:37 PM
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Same, girl, same
January 27, 2026 at 12:50 PM
Just submitted my tax return. Didn't make enough money that year to pay tax. Another triumph of a successful writing career. Now obviously feeling like I'm about to be arrested, as usual.
January 27, 2026 at 12:24 PM
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I've also written about "blang" which is a blingy form of bland, and I think that applies here too. "Fluorescent meh" is a form of blang.
January 27, 2026 at 10:27 AM
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Here's John Grindrod talking about 'the grey plague' as a trend for suburban houses. Definitely a thing, and it's horrible. londoninbits.substack.com/p/john-grind...
John Grindrod on the suburbs, the grey plague and post-pandemic architecture
Part one of our conversation with the author and architecture geek
londoninbits.substack.com
January 25, 2026 at 3:48 PM
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The modern world in old Ladybird books
London skyline, 1968

Artist: Robert Ayton
The story of Radio
January 27, 2026 at 7:50 AM
Imagine what kind of empty rubbish you’d have to be to look at all that Trump has been doing in the US and think, that’s what I want to stand for in the UK
January 26, 2026 at 1:35 PM
Tax return day! Many happy returns
January 26, 2026 at 8:41 AM
Thanks to the crowd of long tailed tits that turned up just after I’d uploaded our birdwatch results. I hope you’re happy
January 25, 2026 at 1:10 PM
Right, these garden birds aren’t going to watch themselves
January 25, 2026 at 10:00 AM