Vivienne Dunstan
LightNews LightNews
banner
vivdunstan.bsky.social
Vivienne Dunstan
@vivdunstan.bsky.social
1.7K followers 1.5K following 2K posts
Academic historian, genealogist, former computer scientist, Doctor Who fan and accordionist. Scottish Borderer from Hawick now living in Dundee, Scotland. Pronouns she/her. Equality ally. #BLM. https://vivdunstan.co.uk
Posts Replies Media Videos
Reposted by Vivienne Dunstan
lbflyawayhome.bsky.social
“The soil has thawed sufficiently to allow the farmer to start ploughing”

‘What to Look for in Winter’, 1959
Artist: CF Tunnicliffe
A hare dashes across the furrows dug by the plough, barely noticed by the large flock of seagulls that follow the tractor
January 28, 2026 at 8:10 AM
Reposted by Vivienne Dunstan
eblong.com
Here we go...

Announcing the Visible Zorker Project and Patreon! Remember how I did Visible Zork 1 and 2? I'm going to do Zork 3, and then continue through Infocom's entire canon -- in chronological order, one per month.

blog.zarfhome.com/2026/01/the-...
The Visible Zorker Project (and Patreon)
Announcing the Visible Zorker Project and Patreon. The plan: deconstruct every Infocom game, one per month, and make the source code explorable.
blog.zarfhome.com
January 26, 2026 at 11:12 PM
vivdunstan.bsky.social
Dull residents visit Vienna to prove it's anything but dull www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Dull residents visit Vienna to prove it's anything but dull
All 84 residents were invited to the Austrian capital to prove that Vienna is anything but dull in January.
www.bbc.co.uk
January 27, 2026 at 4:48 PM
vivdunstan.bsky.social
For any fellow Discworld fans the Discworld Reading Blanket is back in stock at the Discworld Emporium in Wincanton, after it sold out rapidly previously. Buying me one! www.discworldemporium.com/product/disc... @discworldemporium.bsky.social #Booksky #Discworld
Discworld Reading Blanket | Terry Pratchett's Discworld |Homeware
Cosy up with a book and wrap yourself in the magic of Discworld with our sumptuous woven reading blanket, perfect for furnishing your bedrooms & book-nooks!
www.discworldemporium.com
January 26, 2026 at 9:47 PM
vivdunstan.bsky.social
Thinking of my Dad who would have been 91 today. He loved Robert Burns poems and songs from a young age, and I inherited a book of them he bought as a young man in Yorkshire. He always used to treat himself to a haggis meal on Burns Night. Still much missed.
January 25, 2026 at 9:41 PM
Reposted by Vivienne Dunstan
asls.org.uk
“On the dirt roads of Arkansas I first met Robert Burns…”

Currently on the BBC iPlayer: writer, poet, & activist Dr Maya Angelou goes on a pilgrimage to the home of Robert Burns (originally broadcast in 1996 to mark the bicentenary of Burns’s death)
#BurnsNight #C18
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m...
BBC Two - Angelou on Burns
Writer and poet Maya Angelou goes on a pilgrimage to Burns Country in Scotland.
www.bbc.co.uk
January 25, 2026 at 12:42 PM
Reposted by Vivienne Dunstan
ancestralenq.bsky.social
A rare map of Kingsbridge, Devon from 1586 & likely commissioned by the lord of the manor, Sir John Petre to go on display at the Devon Heritage Centre, Exeter. 👇
BBC News - 'Extremely rare' map to go on show after 400 years
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
'Extremely rare' Tudor map of Devon town to go on display
The Tudor map, which has been in private hands for 400 years, has been secured by a £17,691 grant.
www.bbc.co.uk
January 25, 2026 at 1:03 PM
Reposted by Vivienne Dunstan
drjenniferorr.bsky.social
I often hear people say Burns doesn’t do it for them (often based on ‘To a Haggis’ or the first line of ‘To a Mouse’; I thought I’d share my favourite ‘Is There For Honest Poverty’: you are not what you earn or who your parents are but what’s inside the heart.
January 25, 2026 at 8:55 AM
vivdunstan.bsky.social
Lost Robert Burns portrait discovered after 200 years www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Lost Robert Burns portrait discovered after 200 years
The rediscovered portrait by Sir Henry Raeburn was found in an auction house following a house clearance last March.
www.bbc.co.uk
January 25, 2026 at 12:42 PM
Reposted by Vivienne Dunstan
lbflyawayhome.bsky.social
“Starlings are flying in converging flocks towards their roosting place”
Artist: CF Tunnicliffe
(What to Look for in Winter, 1959)
On a winters day at sunset, a murmuration of starlings swoop overhead while a group of magpies perched on a tree near a lake, singularly unimpressed
January 25, 2026 at 8:36 AM
Reposted by Vivienne Dunstan
vivdunstan.bsky.social
Some bonus photos from my husband's Saturday walk to the Dighty Burn wooded river valley near our home in eastern Dundee, Scotland 📷📸🎞️🪶 #dogs
A grey heron perched in a tree high above the burn. The bird is facing to the right, with its long legs stretched out below, and its grey hooded cloak around its body. The "cloak" has some white markings on it. In the background are other trees and greenery, and white sky. A fluffy white samoyed dog perched on a muddy path with grass to the left side of the path. He is more or less facing towards us, with his head slightly to one side, his paws down on the ground, ears raised, and pink tongue stuck out, very smiley. Extremely fluffy. A herring gull perched on a lamp post with white sky behind. The bird is seen side on, head to the left and turned slightly this way. It must have been quite windy, because the bird's feathers are ruffled. A fake black owl figure on the grey roof of a red shed with trees and white sky in the background. The bird is "looking" towards the camera, and has finely worked feathers and eye markings.
January 24, 2026 at 10:05 PM
Reposted by Vivienne Dunstan
vivdunstan.bsky.social
Some photos from my husband's Saturday walk to the Dighty Burn wooded river valley near our home in eastern Dundee, Scotland 📷📸🎞️🪶 #squirrels
A rook perched on a metal fence with a red brick building behind. The bird's body is facing the left as we look, with its head turned round to the right backwards. It has a particularly fluffy black head, and a very sharp grey beak pointed back to the right. A siskin perched in a birch tree looking sternly towards the camera. It is surrounded by birch cones and branches, with white sky behind. A robin perched among bramble branches, facing the left as we look, with its soft mid brown body with grey colouring, and a bright orange area around its beak, neck and tummy. It was singing loudly. A grey squirrel scampering across the leaf-covered floor of a wood. At this moment it was caught perched on a long branch, its fluffy grey tail flung out behind it. In the foreground left is a tall tree trunk.
January 24, 2026 at 9:58 PM
vivdunstan.bsky.social
Some bonus photos from my husband's Saturday walk to the Dighty Burn wooded river valley near our home in eastern Dundee, Scotland 📷📸🎞️🪶 #dogs
A grey heron perched in a tree high above the burn. The bird is facing to the right, with its long legs stretched out below, and its grey hooded cloak around its body. The "cloak" has some white markings on it. In the background are other trees and greenery, and white sky. A fluffy white samoyed dog perched on a muddy path with grass to the left side of the path. He is more or less facing towards us, with his head slightly to one side, his paws down on the ground, ears raised, and pink tongue stuck out, very smiley. Extremely fluffy. A herring gull perched on a lamp post with white sky behind. The bird is seen side on, head to the left and turned slightly this way. It must have been quite windy, because the bird's feathers are ruffled. A fake black owl figure on the grey roof of a red shed with trees and white sky in the background. The bird is "looking" towards the camera, and has finely worked feathers and eye markings.
January 24, 2026 at 10:05 PM
vivdunstan.bsky.social
Some photos from my husband's Saturday walk to the Dighty Burn wooded river valley near our home in eastern Dundee, Scotland 📷📸🎞️🪶 #squirrels
A rook perched on a metal fence with a red brick building behind. The bird's body is facing the left as we look, with its head turned round to the right backwards. It has a particularly fluffy black head, and a very sharp grey beak pointed back to the right. A siskin perched in a birch tree looking sternly towards the camera. It is surrounded by birch cones and branches, with white sky behind. A robin perched among bramble branches, facing the left as we look, with its soft mid brown body with grey colouring, and a bright orange area around its beak, neck and tummy. It was singing loudly. A grey squirrel scampering across the leaf-covered floor of a wood. At this moment it was caught perched on a long branch, its fluffy grey tail flung out behind it. In the foreground left is a tall tree trunk.
January 24, 2026 at 9:58 PM
Reposted by Vivienne Dunstan
martin-dunstan.bsky.social
Female blackbird with strongly speckled breast on a miserable cold grey day. 📷📸🎞️🪶 #birds #ukwildlife
A brown bird perched on branches facing the camera with their head turned to the right. They have a jet black eye with thin pale eye ring. Their collar and upper breast is pale reddish brown with dark speckles.
January 24, 2026 at 8:47 PM
Reposted by Vivienne Dunstan
martin-dunstan.bsky.social
Wee grey squirrel foraging on the ground in Panmurefield woods. 📷📸🎞️ #squirrels #ukwildlife
A grey squirrel seen in profile resting on all four paws on a branch on the ground covered with dark brown leaves. The top of their head, ears and nose are orangy brown with a hint of brown on the top of their back. There is also some brown down the middle of their fluffy tail curved around the branch.
January 24, 2026 at 8:47 PM
Reposted by Vivienne Dunstan
martin-dunstan.bsky.social
Grey heron at the edge of a lawn about to be flooded by the Dighty Burn at Panmurefield on a miserable cold grey day. 📷📸🎞️🪶 #birds #ukwildlife
A portrait image of a grey, white and black heron bird with a very long neck and long pointed orange beak standing on thick green grass with pampas grass stems and small black rocks in the background.
January 24, 2026 at 8:48 PM
Reposted by Vivienne Dunstan
martin-dunstan.bsky.social
The gorgeous fluffy Reo on a miserable cold grey day. 📷📸🎞️ #dogs
A close-up image of a fluffy white teddy bear of a dog with black nose, eyes and lips, and a cute pink tongue. They are sitting back on their haunches with slightly muddy front paws on front of them. Their small triangular ears are almost hidden by the soft white fur on their head.
January 24, 2026 at 8:48 PM
Reposted by Vivienne Dunstan
astroroyalscot.bsky.social
Eldest child "made an insta reel" 🫣
#BraidwoodTelescope 🔭
January 24, 2026 at 4:53 PM
Reposted by Vivienne Dunstan
astroroyalscot.bsky.social
A splendid cold walk to Fiddlers Gill to see the fab but rusting Victorian #Braidwood Telescope! Once part of the now long-gone Lanark Observatory, its optics are safe at the Lanark Museum. Sadly I see no hope in restoring this beauty tho, that's been long-abandoned in this field ☹️ #histsci 🔭🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿
Catherine (tall, long blonde hair) standing in a wintery field by a large old rusting telescope. The golden setting sun is illuminating the trees in the distance.
January 4, 2026 at 12:32 PM
Reposted by Vivienne Dunstan
lbflyawayhome.bsky.social
Artist CF Tunnicliffe first came to prominence with his wood engraving illustrations for Henry Williamson’s book Tarka the Otter, 1933
A copy of the front cover of the puffin version of Tarka, dating from the early 1970s
January 20, 2026 at 7:29 PM
vivdunstan.bsky.social
Yay! Just got my latest academic publication in hand. An annotated transcript of a historical poem about events at Melrose in 1682 plus an accompanying essay. So very many Dundee University linked historians in this one volume. #skystorians
A red hardback volume resting on a red sofa. On the front of the book it says "Miscellany of the Scottish History Society Volume XVII" and published by Scottish History Society in 2025. Contents page of the book, including 9 edited contributions by different historians. Here is the full list. 1 Account of George Wishart of Drymme, 1563-1565 Edited by Michael Pearce 2 Essay on Resistance to Magistrates, c.1637-1638 Edited by Karie Schultz 3 Observations on the Divine Right of Kings, 17th century La. III 737 Edited by Calum S. Wright 4 Two Protestations, October 1681 Edited by Laura Doak 5 A Strange Truth: A Poem about the Appointment of a Court Judge at Melrose, 1682 Edited by Vivienne Dunstan 6 The Justiciary Court of Argyll, 1694 Edited by Allan Kennedy 7 Heterodoxy and Orthodoxy in Late Seventeenth- and Early Eighteenth-Century Scotland: Archibald Pitcairne and His Critics Edited by Alasdair Raffe, translations by Juan Lewis 8 Constructing the Steeplehouse: The Dumfries Midsteeple Minute Book, 1703-1709 Edited by Robert Athol 9 ‘Practical Patriotism’: The Sutherland Reclamations, 1868-1893 Edited by Annie Tindley Index
January 24, 2026 at 11:58 AM
vivdunstan.bsky.social
Tonight’s film viewing, Loch Ness (1996). Total nostalgia fest for us two. And such lovely music! www.imdb.com/title/tt0113...
January 23, 2026 at 11:09 PM
Reposted by Vivienne Dunstan
onestpress.onestnetwork.com
Sky News: Danish PM Mette Freideriksen’s note in the visitors book when she visited UK today
Visit of the Prime Minister of Denmark 22nd Jawary 2026 We'll get by with a little help from our friends
January 23, 2026 at 4:59 AM
Reposted by Vivienne Dunstan
theduncanmackay.bsky.social
The Ribchester Roman cavalry ‘sports’ or ‘parade’ helmet (although some might argue they were perfectly suited for battle too…), part of a hoard probably buried beneath the floor of a barracks in the fort c.AD120.
British Museum
#FindsFriday
Bronze helmet and visor in the form of a beautiful face with decorative helmet rim
January 23, 2026 at 7:26 AM