Brian Groom
@groomb.bsky.social
Ex-Financial Times Assistant Editor. Ex-editor Scotland on Sunday. Author of 'Made in Manchester' and 'Northerners: A History'. 'These Isles' due Feb 2026.
Pinned
Brian Groom
@groomb.bsky.social
· Nov 1
'Made in Manchester: A People's History of the City That Shaped the Modern World' and 'Northerners: A History, from the Ice Age to the Present Day', paperback and hardback. 'These Isles: A People's History of England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales' due 26 Feb 2026 (HarperNorth).
After Manchester United sack Amorim, Celtic sack manager Nancy after eight games. www.bbc.co.uk/sport/footba...
Celtic sack manager Wilfried Nancy after eight games
Celtic sack manager Wilfried Nancy, with Saturday's 3-1 defeat by Rangers his sixth loss in just eight matches, with head of football operations Paul Tisdale also removed from his post.
www.bbc.co.uk
January 5, 2026 at 6:14 PM
After Manchester United sack Amorim, Celtic sack manager Nancy after eight games. www.bbc.co.uk/sport/footba...
Cobh, County Cork, a while ago, photo by Brian Morrison (via Fáilte Ireland/Tourism Ireland).
January 5, 2026 at 5:59 PM
Cobh, County Cork, a while ago, photo by Brian Morrison (via Fáilte Ireland/Tourism Ireland).
Snowy walk in Greenfield, Saddleworth.
January 5, 2026 at 3:42 PM
Snowy walk in Greenfield, Saddleworth.
Ebook version of 'Northerners: A History, from the Ice Age to the Present Day' currently on offer from bookshop.org for just 99p. uk.bookshop.org/p/books/nort...
January 5, 2026 at 2:16 PM
Ebook version of 'Northerners: A History, from the Ice Age to the Present Day' currently on offer from bookshop.org for just 99p. uk.bookshop.org/p/books/nort...
I'll be talking about Manchester's history at Davyhulme u3a, 1.45pm Mon Jan 26th. Visitors welcome, £3. (Park Hospital was the first NHS hospital in 1948. I had my tonsils out there in 1960.) davyhulme.u3asite.uk/events/
January 5, 2026 at 1:59 PM
I'll be talking about Manchester's history at Davyhulme u3a, 1.45pm Mon Jan 26th. Visitors welcome, £3. (Park Hospital was the first NHS hospital in 1948. I had my tonsils out there in 1960.) davyhulme.u3asite.uk/events/
Murals in Edinburgh by Phoebe Anna Traquair (1852-1936), Irish-born artist Arts and Crafts artist. In the former Catholic Apostolic Church, now Mansfield Traquair Centre.
January 5, 2026 at 1:49 PM
Murals in Edinburgh by Phoebe Anna Traquair (1852-1936), Irish-born artist Arts and Crafts artist. In the former Catholic Apostolic Church, now Mansfield Traquair Centre.
Amorim sacked as Manchester United manager. 'Not sufficient evidence of progress.' www.bbc.co.uk/sport/live/c...
Ruben Amorim sacked LIVE - latest news as Manchester United make managerial change
Ruben Amorim sacked as Manchester United manager - follow live updates to this breaking news story.
www.bbc.co.uk
January 5, 2026 at 10:56 AM
Amorim sacked as Manchester United manager. 'Not sufficient evidence of progress.' www.bbc.co.uk/sport/live/c...
Looks exactly the same this morning.
January 5, 2026 at 9:11 AM
Looks exactly the same this morning.
Platform 4, Newcastle Station, c.1952, painting by Sheila Gertrude Mackie, from County Durham, 1928-2010 (Government Art Collection).
January 5, 2026 at 9:00 AM
Platform 4, Newcastle Station, c.1952, painting by Sheila Gertrude Mackie, from County Durham, 1928-2010 (Government Art Collection).
A horse-drawn taxi waits outside the White Hart Hotel, Cheadle, Stockport, 1870s (Cheadle Civic Society).
January 5, 2026 at 9:00 AM
A horse-drawn taxi waits outside the White Hart Hotel, Cheadle, Stockport, 1870s (Cheadle Civic Society).
Halifax, 1979, photo by Martin Parr.
January 5, 2026 at 8:59 AM
Halifax, 1979, photo by Martin Parr.
Hull-born Amy Johnson’s plane crashed, off-course in foggy weather over the Thames Estuary, on this day 1941. She was the first woman to fly solo from London to Australia and broke many long-distance records. Her corpse was never recovered. She was only 37.
January 5, 2026 at 8:58 AM
Hull-born Amy Johnson’s plane crashed, off-course in foggy weather over the Thames Estuary, on this day 1941. She was the first woman to fly solo from London to Australia and broke many long-distance records. Her corpse was never recovered. She was only 37.
Reposted by Brian Groom
St Issui's, Partrishow, Monmouthshire. No reason for the photo other than I was scrolling my photos and it came up, and I was reminded of a wonderful day of peace and beauty in a church where time has stood still. A day to hold on to in troubling times.
January 4, 2026 at 12:43 PM
St Issui's, Partrishow, Monmouthshire. No reason for the photo other than I was scrolling my photos and it came up, and I was reminded of a wonderful day of peace and beauty in a church where time has stood still. A day to hold on to in troubling times.
‘Durham’s other cathedral’: mining union hall reopens after £14m restoration. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
‘Durham’s other cathedral’: mining union hall reopens after £14m restoration
Considered one of world’s finest trade union buildings and famous for its ‘pitmen’s parliament’, Redhills was built on a grand scale
www.theguardian.com
January 4, 2026 at 7:24 PM
‘Durham’s other cathedral’: mining union hall reopens after £14m restoration. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
View from Devil's Kitchen over Y Garn, Snowdonia, north Wales, photo by Victoria Ashman.
January 4, 2026 at 6:57 PM
View from Devil's Kitchen over Y Garn, Snowdonia, north Wales, photo by Victoria Ashman.
‘Oh my gosh, they’re all from London and Cambridge’: York University’s northerners fight back. www.theguardian.com/education/20...
‘Oh my gosh, they’re all from London and Cambridge’: York University’s northerners fight back
Lucy Morville, from Burnley, thought most students would be from the north and felt ‘culture shock’ surrounded by southerners
www.theguardian.com
January 4, 2026 at 2:54 PM
‘Oh my gosh, they’re all from London and Cambridge’: York University’s northerners fight back. www.theguardian.com/education/20...
Reposted by Brian Groom
Kindle edition of 'Northerners' currently on offer at just 99p. www.amazon.co.uk/Northerners-...
Amazon.co.uk
www.amazon.co.uk
January 3, 2026 at 2:25 PM
Kindle edition of 'Northerners' currently on offer at just 99p. www.amazon.co.uk/Northerners-...
This Thursday, all welcome. 'These Isles' due out Feb 26th, available for preorder from bookshops and websites.
I'll be talking about 'These Isles: A People's History of England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales' at Bingley Local History Society, West Yorks, Thurs Jan 8th, 7.30pm. Church House, Main Street. All welcome, £3.
January 4, 2026 at 11:42 AM
This Thursday, all welcome. 'These Isles' due out Feb 26th, available for preorder from bookshops and websites.
The Liffey Swim, Dublin, 1923, painting by Jack B. Yeats, 1871-1957 (National Gallery of Ireland).
January 4, 2026 at 11:40 AM
The Liffey Swim, Dublin, 1923, painting by Jack B. Yeats, 1871-1957 (National Gallery of Ireland).
Liverpool, 1965, photo by John Bulmer.
January 4, 2026 at 9:25 AM
Liverpool, 1965, photo by John Bulmer.
The Duke of Westminster’s Estate, Forest of Bowland, 1989, photo by Fay Godwin.
January 4, 2026 at 9:18 AM
The Duke of Westminster’s Estate, Forest of Bowland, 1989, photo by Fay Godwin.
Piccadilly Bus Station, Manchester, early 1980s.
January 4, 2026 at 9:15 AM
Piccadilly Bus Station, Manchester, early 1980s.
A man and woman watch water flood Salford streets, September 1946.
January 4, 2026 at 9:15 AM
A man and woman watch water flood Salford streets, September 1946.
In 1955, 19-year-old Luciano Pavarotti competed in the Llangollen International Music Eisteddfod. Recordings just released. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Pavarotti's Llangollen concert given new voice in lost recording
Pavarotti widow says she is delighted that lost recordings of his return to Wales are released.
www.bbc.co.uk
January 3, 2026 at 7:29 PM
In 1955, 19-year-old Luciano Pavarotti competed in the Llangollen International Music Eisteddfod. Recordings just released. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Huge Wallace and Gromit queues prompt museum limits in Preston. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Museum steps in as Wallace and Gromit mania grips Preston
Preston's Harris Museum sees a surge in demand for displays of original sets from the Aardman franchise
www.bbc.co.uk
January 3, 2026 at 7:24 PM
Huge Wallace and Gromit queues prompt museum limits in Preston. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...